Backyard Legends
It was the kind of summer day that begged for a barbecue—the sun blazing, the lawn freshly mowed, and the scent of lighter fluid already in the air. I had everything prepped: burgers, brats, potato salad, even a watermelon chilling in the cooler. But the real star of the day wasn’t on the grill. It was in the keg.
A cream ale. Light, crisp, golden. Clean as a whistle and smoother than my cousin Jason’s pickup lines. It had been brewed three weeks earlier—just enough time to carbonate in the keg, chill in the fridge, and make its debut on this glorious Saturday afternoon.
Enter Uncle Mike.
With a patriotic tank top, white socks pulled up to his calves, and enough sunscreen to blind a lifeguard, Mike rolled into the backyard already holding a spatula like it was a scepter. “I’ll take grill duty,” he declared, as if anyone had asked. Tradition dictated that Mike burn at least 40% of the food, and no one had the heart to stop him. It was part of the show.
Beer in hand, I watched the chaos unfold. Mike lit the grill with a dramatic flourish, then immediately forgot about it to argue with the neighbor over lawn care techniques. A few guests wandered over to the cooler, pulling out bottles of commercial lager—until someone spotted the tap on my kegerator.
“What’s this?” asked my friend Rachel, eyeing the unmarked handle. I smiled and poured her a pint. She took a sip. Her eyebrows rose.
“This is…really good.”
Word spread like wildfire. Within 15 minutes, nobody was touching the store-bought stuff. The keg of cream ale became the centerpiece. Smooth and refreshing, it paired perfectly with sunburns, overcooked hot dogs, and the echo of Uncle Mike yelling “I GOT THIS” from across the yard as flames licked the sides of the grill.
By mid-afternoon, Mike had accidentally melted a spatula, dropped half a tray of burgers, and ignited a grease fire (that could be seen from space) that was extinguished with someone’s flip-flop. The backyard was a mess of laughter, Frisbees, folding chairs, and people asking, “Who brewed this beer?”
I just smiled.
Later that night, after the kids were sticky with popsicles and the sparklers had fizzled out, someone tapped me on the shoulder.
“This beer,” they said. “It made the whole day.”
The burgers were burnt. The dog stole three buns. And Mike fell asleep in the kiddie pool.
But the beer? The beer was perfect.
It wasn’t just a BBQ—it was a legend in the making. And behind every great summer story, there’s a better brew.
Want to make your backyard a legend?
Our Old Glory Cream Ale Beer Kit is on sale now through June—brew it today, and raise a glass by the 4th of July. Extract Kits start at $35.99 (before yeast). All-grain kits starting at $28.99 (before yeast).
