14 Slang Terms Every Beer Drinker Should Know

This list won’t make you a Certified cicerone but it will help you navigate your next trip to the taproom.

lineup of beer cans and bottlesPhoto by Henry Phillips for Gear Patrol

The lexicon of beerdom can be intimidating. We all know the beer nerd who rolls their eyes if you mispronounce “Saison” or have to ask the bartender what “double dry-hopped” means.

But not every beer geek acts that way. In fact, much of the beer world practices inclusivity and always lends a helping hand for educating anyone who has a question.

Slang is one of the easiest places to start. This list won’t make you a Certified cicerone but it will help you navigate your next trip to the taproom.

1. Crispy Boi

A beer that is clean and crisp, typically a lager of some kind. It can also refer to a male who only drinks crispy beers.

2. Crushable

An adjective for a beer that one could drink many of in a session. Crushable beers tend to be lower in ABV and are very easy-drinking. Bell’s Light Hearted Ale is a good example.

3. Drain Pour

A beer so bad that it must be poured down the drain.

4. Gusher

A beer that is over-carbonated and gushes out once opened. This typically occurs with the ever-popular fruited kettle sours when extra fermentation from the fruit in the can is not taken into account. Sometimes these cans even explode before being opened.

5. Half Pour

Known as a Schnitt in German, the half pour is exactly what it sounds like — a half-serving of beer, usually six to eight ounces. They’re common in Europe, where drinking at lunch is common practice. In Spain, for example, half pours are known a caña.

6. Haze Bro

A young craft beer drinker who only enjoys New England-style IPAs (also known as Hazy IPAs).

can of beer next to glass
A “haze bro” refers to someone who only drinks hazy IPAs.
Photo by Henry Phillips for Gear Patrol

7. Haul

What a beer drinker buys at a brewery release day and brings home. Oftentimes a haul requires waiting in line for the hyped releases.

8. Iceman Pour/Boss Pour

Basically an improper way to pour a beer that became way too popular on Instagram. It is essentially filling the glass all the way to the top without any head. Don’t do this.

9. ISO

Stands for In Search Of. Beer drinkers will often say ISO about a beer they are dying to try but haven’t been able to find yet.

10. Juicy

One of the most common ways to describe a New England-style IPA. This refers to the orange juice-like quality of these beers that is imparted from the hop character (the hops used in NEIPAs are often less bitter and more fruity).

11. Mule

Someone who stands in line for a hyped beer release for someone else.

12. Shelf Turd

A beer that is fairly common that no one buys off of shelves. Shelf turds often sit and collect dust at your local liquor or grocery store despite nothing inherently wrong with them.

13. Tallboy/Pounder/Pint

A 16oz can, the preferred vessel today in modern craft beer thanks to the prevalence of the New England-Style IPA, goes by different names in different places. Don’t @ us with your opinion.

14. Whale

A rare beer that is often extremely difficult to find but one that a drinker hopes to acquire someday. Ultra-rare beers are even called “white whales.”