My Aunt Taught Me to Add This One Ingredient to Beer and I’ve Never Stopped

A few summers ago I was in New York for a family visit. It was scorching hot and my great-aunt offered me a cold Corona. I happily accepted — and before she went to the kitchen to grab one she asked me, “Do you want salt?” I was surprised and replied “Sure!” without really thinking about it. She brought back an ice-cold Corona in a bottle. When I held it up I could see a light sprinkling of salt flakes on the lip of the bottle. I took a swig — it was what I can only describe as a revelation. When I asked about this tasty little trick my aunt replied that it’s something she’d always done and that it “just makes it taste better,” which I could not disagree with.

I’m no stranger to salting a beverage. I would never order a classic margarita without a salted rim, for example. And I’ve always been a fan of a pinch of salt in a cup of hot cocoa. I’m even a fan of a bloody Mary with brunch or transforming a beer into a savory michelada. But somehow I’d never thought to add plain old salt to beer. 

Maybe it’s because when I think of sprinkling salt in unexpected places, the main flavor juxtaposition that comes to mind is salty and sweet. Salt has the curious effect of enhancing and amplifying sweet flavor while also contrasting with it. Have you ever sprinkled salt on a chocolate chip cookie or a slice of watermelon? If you haven’t, run don’t walk. Salting beer never occurred to me because I didn’t consider that salt can add flavor to basically anything, so why not beer? It complements the beer the same way that salted rim on a margarita does, blending seamlessly with the flavor of the beer itself and making it even more refreshing on a hot day. 

This little upgrade has since become a staple of my summer routine, and I’ve tried it with other beers with varying degrees of success. For me, it works best with light, summery beers, cervezas, pale ales and lagers, or even a light Belgian beer. One of my favorite beers to add salt to is watermelon-flavored beer (itself another unexpectedly great flavor combo). Try it out the next time you crack a beer open on a hot day. I promise you won’t be sorry, and you may even find that, as it does for me, a light beer feels practically naked without a light dusting of salt.