Raw Eggs in Beer

[rabidscottsman]

I was talking to my aunt this weekend and she was telling me that her neighbor drinks beer with a raw egg added to the glass he drinks it out of. Has anybody heard of this and if so is there a name for it?

I dont think i could do that!

[rich]

When I worked in my father's bar late 60's, early 70's, many "professional" drinkers would start their day with a beer and raw egg. They also claimed it was the best cure for a hangover. I don't recall any particular name for the drink.

Tried it once, didn't taste like anything more than a slimey beer. By the way, the egg was not beaten - it was placed in the beer whole.

People also used to put raw eggs in milk shakes or malteds.

[judiu]

When I was quite young, my Mom's expression was "Whadaya want; an egg in your beer?" when I'd been given something, but was whining for something else to go with it.

[Domestic Goddess]

In the Philippines, my late gradfather would make us drink rootbeer with a raw egg in it. It was gross and yucky but late Granddad thought it would make us grow stronger. I still shudder at the thought of that concoction going down my throat.

[mcsheffrey]

On HBO's The Wire I saw an episode where the dockworkers are drinking beer with eggs cracked into them as breakfast. I shuddered at the thought then....and I haven't changed my opinion since.

[Chris Amirault]

In Milwaukee, where there were nine or ten bars within a three-block radius of my house in Riverwest, the egg and beer breakfast was common for folks getting off the 12m-8a shift at the plants and breweries.

[Kropotkin]

When I was a nipper in East Lancashire I sometimes heard of drinkers having an an egg in their pint as a special 'extra' for fortitude... I never tried it, though!

[budrichard]

A common practise years ago. I used to get a raw egg in my orange juice every day as part of my mothers heritage. As food production methods have 'improved' and pathogens have spread, just about discontinued. We still use quail eggs raw for different preperations which seem not to have suffered yet.-Dick

[andiesenji]

Wow, does this topic bring back memories. Waaaaaay back in 1960/61 my then husband and several of his friends were frequent visitors to the Bonneville salt flats and had been for a number of years. Some were involved in the developement and building of the Shadoff Special, trying for the land speed record with a "conventional" engine.

One of their "start the day", or "end the day" drinks was what they called the "Larry Finley special" and I have no idea where the name originated.

A mug of beer, drawn from a keg, was doctored with an egg broken into the beer and then a can of Snap-e-Tom was added and the entire contents consumed at one go. In fact, one guy could actually pour the entire mug down his throat without swallowing.

To this day, I have never figured out how he did it but he won a lot of bets with this trick.

I went along on these trips a couple of times but unlike the other women and girls who actually enjoyed baking in the sun, I preferred to stay in the shade and keep my skin from taking on the appearance of old leather.

They could never talk me into tasting one of these concoctions so I have no idea what it tasted like.

This type of thing has a long history.

An egg in a mug of stout was touted as a hangover cure in the 1890s. I have read about a "stirrup cup" of a fresh egg broken in a measure of brandy prior to a hunt and that surely goes back a long way.

I will have to pull out my copy of Dickens' book about spiritous drinks to see if it is mentioned in it.

[jsolomon]

For some reason, when I read that question, I remembered Rocky Balboa... but he just cracked the eggs into a glass and drank them, right?

I've heard of it. What's more common in my area is a red beer. Usually some mixture of 10%-50% tomato juice in a beer, usually light.

[chezcherie]

from natalie macleans's newsletter:

the website (containing the newletter)

under "Queasy Like Sunday Morning",

On the one hand, eggs are a good source of cysteine, which helps the body make glutathione, the antioxidant that's diminished by alcohol. (The amino acid supplement N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) supposedly also helps to boost cysteine.) But on the other hand, eating raw eggs isn't recommended because of the risk of salmonella poisoning. Worcestershire sauce seems a cruel thing to inflict on an irritated stomach, and unless you have a butler, following a complex recipe may be a challenge.

that, combined with "hair of the dog" might explain the egg in the beer? maybe?

[Vesper Lynd]

..............................

A mug of beer, drawn from a keg, was doctored with an egg broken into the beer and then a can of Snap-e-Tom was added and the entire contents consumed at one go.  ..................................

←

When I first read that, I read Snap-e-Tom as Snappy Tom (as in cat food)

[EggLady]

My grandmother used to do this. Yes, I said my grandmother. Like most folks have said, this was very popular back in the 50's and 60's. I always thought it was a Polish thing.

[Special K]

What's more common in my area is a red beer. Usually some mixture of 10%-50% tomato juice in a beer, usually light.

And isn't it a "red eye" when you add a raw egg?

[Mr Pie]

For some reason, when I read that question, I remembered Rocky Balboa... but he just cracked the eggs into a glass and drank them, right?

I've heard of it. What's more common in my area is a red beer. Usually some mixture of 10%-50% tomato juice in a beer, usually light.

I was at a bar in Calgary and noticed some of the locals pouring some red liquid into their beer. The barman lady, informed me that it was clamato juice. Apparently this is a mixture of tomato juice and the liquid that is left over when clams are boiled. I honestly thought she was joking at first! No eggs though....

[mtigges]

When I worked in smaller towns (Sudbury, Williams Lake), Red Eyes (clamato & NAIL) were very common, and I actually grew to like it. But really, adding anything to a NAIL (north american industrial lager) can only make it better.

[Snadra]

For some reason, when I read that question, I remembered Rocky Balboa... but he just cracked the eggs into a glass and drank them, right?

I've heard of it. What's more common in my area is a red beer. Usually some mixture of 10%-50% tomato juice in a beer, usually light.

I was at a bar in Calgary and noticed some of the locals pouring some red liquid into their beer. The barman lady, informed me that it was clamato juice. Apparently this is a mixture of tomato juice and the liquid that is left over when clams are boiled. I honestly thought she was joking at first! No eggs though....

It's pretty common throughout northern Canada in my experience. I've worked in a few places where people would order 'two and a juice' ie two beers and a tomato juice. And yes, Clamato (Mott's is the brand if I recall correctly) is the usual alternative to tomato juice - I used to call that a 'clameye', but that's just me... I think it's vile, but it was pretty popular, and not just amongst the oldies. I knew quite a few women my age who drank it. But hey, Brits drink shandys (beer and lemonade or beer and gingerale) which I find really odd. I mean, at least there's a pretence of vitamins in the tomato juice!

But with regards to the egg in beer issue, I'm SURE I've seen that mentioned in books before. I'll have to go look it up now. It does sound like it's meant to be a hangover cure, doesn't it? And why do hangover cures always seem to involve the unfertilised ova of innocent poultry anyway?

Snadra

Full disclosure: I have been known to enjoy fresh lime juice in my beer on ocassion.

Edited May 27, 2010 by Snadra (log)

[Mr Pie]

For some reason, when I read that question, I remembered Rocky Balboa... but he just cracked the eggs into a glass and drank them, right?

I've heard of it. What's more common in my area is a red beer. Usually some mixture of 10%-50% tomato juice in a beer, usually light.

I was at a bar in Calgary and noticed some of the locals pouring some red liquid into their beer. The barman lady, informed me that it was clamato juice. Apparently this is a mixture of tomato juice and the liquid that is left over when clams are boiled. I honestly thought she was joking at first! No eggs though....

It's pretty common throughout northern Canada in my experience. I've worked in a few places where people would order 'two and a juice' ie two beers and a tomato juice. And yes, Clamato (Mott's is the brand if I recall correctly) is the usual alternative to tomato juice - I used to call that a 'clameye', but that's just me... I think it's vile, but it was pretty popular, and not just amongst the oldies. I knew quite a few women my age who drank it. But hey, Brits drink shandys (beer and lemonade or beer and gingerale) which I find really odd. I mean, at least there's a pretence of vitamins in the tomato juice!

But with regards to the egg in beer issue, I'm SURE I've seen that mentioned in books before. I'll have to go look it up now. It does sound like it's meant to be a hangover cure, doesn't it? And why do hangover cures always seem to involve the unfertilised ova of innocent poultry anyway?

Snadra

Full disclosure: I have been known to enjoy fresh lime juice in my beer on ocassion.

In the UK, Shandy tends to be something that kids drink or maybe adults if they are driving. However lemonade is a different thing over here. It has generally never been near a lemon so it is clear, sweeter and fizzy. When added to beer it really just makes it lighter.

Lager and lime was a drink of the 80's, it has been a long while since I heard someone order that.

[HungryChris]

Through stories I have heard growing up and fellow workers I have known, eggs in beer is something I associate with shift workers who get out of work in the morning. This "breakfast" is usually taken in at a bar quite near the "gate". The first beer includes one or two raw eggs and perhaps some added spices, seasonings or condiments. With a wholesome breakfast out of the way, the beers that follow are your normal cold ones. To a shift worker, with or without the eggs, it's just their way of having a few beers after work. I don't hear much about the practice anymore, but my circle of friends has changed a bit too.

[Jaymes]

"Red beer" - some mixture of beer and a tomato-based juice or sauce - remains pretty popular in many parts of the US; although, as others have said, the once equally-popular raw egg thing largely has died out due to the fears of salmonella.

But the red beer remains ubiquitous.

In the southwest, many bars with a largely Hispanic clientele offer the Michelada - a kind of catch-all term for beer-based drinks. Almost everybody squeezes in some fresh lime juice, and then adds an assortment of other condiments, most often including some sort of salsa or hot sauce, turning the beer red.

Michelada

[Snadra]

In the UK, Shandy tends to be something that kids drink or maybe adults if they are driving. However lemonade is a different thing over here. It has generally never been near a lemon so it is clear, sweeter and fizzy. When added to beer it really just makes it lighter.

Lager and lime was a drink of the 80's, it has been a long while since I heard someone order that.

The first time I heard about Shandys my concept of lemonade still involved lemons, and made shandys sound far worse than they are. Now I'm used to thinking of lemonade as a sweety fizzy drink, but it's still a pleasure to go back to North America and get a 'proper' lemonade (no beer required).

Snadra

PS. I was drinking lime in my beer in the 90s - 10 years out-of-date is probably about right for the locale!

[Punk Rock Chef]

What's more common in my area is a red beer. Usually some mixture of 10%-50% tomato juice in a beer, usually light.

And isn't it a "red eye" when you add a raw egg?

from the movie Cocktail

[Jenni]

However lemonade is a different thing over here. It has generally never been near a lemon so it is clear, sweeter and fizzy.

Isn't that a bit unfair? Certainly the lemonade that I grew up with in the UK was the one that my mum learnt from her mum - lemon juice, sugar and water. Definitely real lemon. I know most modern commercial lemonade is largely flavourings, but I assume it's like that all over the world.

[pogophiles]

Learned to enjoy adding a Snap-e-Tom (basically tomato juice spiked with green chile) to a mug of draft beer many years ago while working construction in Wyoming. Never had the egg addition, but can easily imagine it!

[azmilsyahmi]

When I was young I heard that if you take a raw egg in your guiness stout daily,it will help you put on some weight. Growing up skinny I tried it. Its not that bad. But it didn't work for me, I'm Still skinny