Horror Movie and Beer Pairings
Few things are as pleasant as having a couple of beers and watching a good horror movie. For some horror movies, there are certain beers that are especially appropriate to drink while watching, usually due to that beer popping up in the movie itself. Here are a few to start with. At some point, I will likely do another, because there are certainly more than I will be listing now.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)- Shiner Premium
To start off, we have Tobe Hooper's classic, which features some country guys drinking some Shiner Premium in a cemetery at the beginning. The choice of Shiner makes sense for the movie, as it is a Texas beer, brewed in Shiner, Texas. This particular beer was, as far as I know, discontinued for some time, but it showed up some time back on shelves, with the label looking very close to the ones visible in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. So if you plan on watching this one and want to really get into the vibe of the movie, try picking up a six pack of Shiner Premium, if it is available in your area.
Cat People (1982)- Dixie Beer
The 1980s gave the world quite a few horror remakes, and they were generally pretty damn good-- The Fly (1986), The Thing (1982), etc. Cat People is a remake of the 1940s classic, with amped up violence and sex. This one features Malcolm McDowell and the extremely hot Nastassja Kinski, credited in this film as Nastassia Kinski (the biggest suspension of disbelief with this movie for me is the idea that these two are brother and sister). I also can't neglect the gorgeous Annette O'Toole and a brief appearance by Lynn Lowry. Add to that an excellent score by Giorgio Moroder, including a song performed by the late David Bowie and the setting, then you have something pretty interesting.
Set in New Orleans, it really is no surprise that Dixie Beer popped up in this one, along with eating some oysters. Unfortunately, Dixie is not the most readily available beer on the market. It has remained regional over the years, but has managed to avoid being acquired by one of the big brands, ceasing to be its own company (although the company names in those cases usually carry on as a small division of whichever massive brewer bought them up). It has weathered a lot over the years, including prohibition and Hurricane Katrina, which forced the company to contract brew the beer outside of New Orleans. It did get a recent revival, when Tom Benson bought a majority share of the company, giving Dixie Brewing Company the financial resources it needed to make some major changes to revitalize the company and bring everything back home, with a new brewery in the works in New Orleans (current plans are for it to open this autumn). I wish the company well, as Dixie Lager and Blackened Voodoo are a couple beers I really like. Thankfully, Dixie seems to be creeping back into my area finally, as I just recently started finding it in a few stores here for the first time in about three years. In those years, the only time I got to have any of them was on my trips to New Orleans, where it is pretty readily available.
As a side note, if you want an old action flick to watch with a six pack of Dixie, try Stone Cold (1991). It ain't exactly a classic, but it is a fun watch every now and then, featuring the great Lance Henriksen and William Forsythe, plus many cans of Dixie Beer, in addition to neon signs advertising it in bar scenes.
Phantasm (1979)- Dos Equis Ambar
This is probably the most blatant one on this list. Apparently, Coscarelli and company contacted Dos Equis and said they wanted to feature the beer in their movie and Dos Equis was down with it, shipping out a big delivery of the beer. This stuff pops up repeatedly in the film, both in deleted scenes and the finished version. Jody has a bottle of it next to him when jamming on the front porch of the house and later in the movie, Mike snags a bottle Jody had on the table and takes a big gulp of it. There is even some visible in the garage when Mike is under the 'Cuda and gets attacked by the Tall Man's minions. It doesn't really pop up in the sequels, except for part four, but for me, at least, it is so ingrained in the Phantasm universe, that it is appropriate for all the movies. The first time I ever tried Dos Equis was watching Phantasm with a close friend of mine back when we were in college, which we had picked specially for the occasion, although it was the Lager Especial in the green bottles, rather than the Ambar because it was all we could find at the time.
As a bonus-- if you prefer whiskey, you really can't go wrong with a bottle of J&B. This stuff shows up everywhere. Giallo films, cannibal films, zombie films, Amercian horror, etc. Just as a couple of examples: MacCready drinks it in The Thing and Robert Kerman's character drinks it in Mangiati Vivi! seemingly nonstop. It even pops up in Joe D'Amato's horror/porn hybrids Erotic Nights of the Living Dead and Porno Holocaust. In all honesty, my awareness of this brand really comes from having seen it in so many movies. As it turns out, there is actually a blog dedicated to J&B's appearances in movies, simply called J&B in the Movies, which is certainly worth checking out.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)- Shiner Premium
To start off, we have Tobe Hooper's classic, which features some country guys drinking some Shiner Premium in a cemetery at the beginning. The choice of Shiner makes sense for the movie, as it is a Texas beer, brewed in Shiner, Texas. This particular beer was, as far as I know, discontinued for some time, but it showed up some time back on shelves, with the label looking very close to the ones visible in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. So if you plan on watching this one and want to really get into the vibe of the movie, try picking up a six pack of Shiner Premium, if it is available in your area.
 |
| 1980s VHS release of the movie next to a bottle of Shiner Premium |
Cat People (1982)- Dixie Beer
The 1980s gave the world quite a few horror remakes, and they were generally pretty damn good-- The Fly (1986), The Thing (1982), etc. Cat People is a remake of the 1940s classic, with amped up violence and sex. This one features Malcolm McDowell and the extremely hot Nastassja Kinski, credited in this film as Nastassia Kinski (the biggest suspension of disbelief with this movie for me is the idea that these two are brother and sister). I also can't neglect the gorgeous Annette O'Toole and a brief appearance by Lynn Lowry. Add to that an excellent score by Giorgio Moroder, including a song performed by the late David Bowie and the setting, then you have something pretty interesting.
 |
| Soundtrack record (left) and DVD release (right) |
Set in New Orleans, it really is no surprise that Dixie Beer popped up in this one, along with eating some oysters. Unfortunately, Dixie is not the most readily available beer on the market. It has remained regional over the years, but has managed to avoid being acquired by one of the big brands, ceasing to be its own company (although the company names in those cases usually carry on as a small division of whichever massive brewer bought them up). It has weathered a lot over the years, including prohibition and Hurricane Katrina, which forced the company to contract brew the beer outside of New Orleans. It did get a recent revival, when Tom Benson bought a majority share of the company, giving Dixie Brewing Company the financial resources it needed to make some major changes to revitalize the company and bring everything back home, with a new brewery in the works in New Orleans (current plans are for it to open this autumn). I wish the company well, as Dixie Lager and Blackened Voodoo are a couple beers I really like. Thankfully, Dixie seems to be creeping back into my area finally, as I just recently started finding it in a few stores here for the first time in about three years. In those years, the only time I got to have any of them was on my trips to New Orleans, where it is pretty readily available.
 |
| Current can of Dixie (left) and an older can, closer to the one seen in the film (right) |
As a side note, if you want an old action flick to watch with a six pack of Dixie, try Stone Cold (1991). It ain't exactly a classic, but it is a fun watch every now and then, featuring the great Lance Henriksen and William Forsythe, plus many cans of Dixie Beer, in addition to neon signs advertising it in bar scenes.
 |
| Bottle of Dixie Beer at Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop Bar in New Orleans |
Phantasm (1979)- Dos Equis Ambar
This is probably the most blatant one on this list. Apparently, Coscarelli and company contacted Dos Equis and said they wanted to feature the beer in their movie and Dos Equis was down with it, shipping out a big delivery of the beer. This stuff pops up repeatedly in the film, both in deleted scenes and the finished version. Jody has a bottle of it next to him when jamming on the front porch of the house and later in the movie, Mike snags a bottle Jody had on the table and takes a big gulp of it. There is even some visible in the garage when Mike is under the 'Cuda and gets attacked by the Tall Man's minions. It doesn't really pop up in the sequels, except for part four, but for me, at least, it is so ingrained in the Phantasm universe, that it is appropriate for all the movies. The first time I ever tried Dos Equis was watching Phantasm with a close friend of mine back when we were in college, which we had picked specially for the occasion, although it was the Lager Especial in the green bottles, rather than the Ambar because it was all we could find at the time.
 |
| MGM DVD release (left) and Anchor Bay DVD release (right) and a bottle of Dos Equis Ambar |
As a bonus-- if you prefer whiskey, you really can't go wrong with a bottle of J&B. This stuff shows up everywhere. Giallo films, cannibal films, zombie films, Amercian horror, etc. Just as a couple of examples: MacCready drinks it in The Thing and Robert Kerman's character drinks it in Mangiati Vivi! seemingly nonstop. It even pops up in Joe D'Amato's horror/porn hybrids Erotic Nights of the Living Dead and Porno Holocaust. In all honesty, my awareness of this brand really comes from having seen it in so many movies. As it turns out, there is actually a blog dedicated to J&B's appearances in movies, simply called J&B in the Movies, which is certainly worth checking out.
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