While some might consider it downright scandalous to leave a beer unfinished, there are times when you simply can’t take another sip and have to leave it. As you stare at your unfinished beer, your eyes fill with disappointment. You think about what a terrible waste it would be to throw away this tasty treasure and you are almost tempted to swallow it regardless of the consequences. The good news is that there are several uses for leftover beer, so don’t strain your stomach and pour any beer down the drain just yet!

 

Marinade

Beer is a wonderful ingredient in many different marinade recipes. Next time add some to the BBQ meat and let it soak. You will definitely notice a difference in tenderness and juice factor. Continue basting the meat with this beer marinade as it cooks for best results.

 

Treat your hair

Have you ever seen beer shampoo in your local supermarket? Beer has great beneficial properties for your hair, so simply mix it with a little distilled water, and if you want to avoid the smell of beer, you can also add just a small amount of your favourite fragrance oil to the mix. You can also add that leftover beer to your bath water if you feel like taking a long bath to soften your skin.

 

Use on pests

This may seem strange, but you can make your garden pests easy targets for birds by “offering” them a drink. Leave a few small, shallow bowls of leftover beer in your garden and this will make it much easier for the birds to prepare a meal from their now slower prey.

 

Sleep easy

The smell of hops can be really relaxing. So if you have trouble sleeping, wash your pillowcase with a little water with a splash of that leftover beer and the smell will help you have a restful sleep.

 

Get baking

If you love the flavour of hops, you’ll love making beer bread! There is yeast in beer, and although the alcohol may evaporate during cooking, the delicious flavour and smell of those hops remains.

 

Treat your lawn

You’re not the only one who loves drinking beer. Your weed could use a sip or two, too. In fact, the sugars in beer help grass grow, so if you have leftover beer from a friend and don’t feel comfortable using it as food, you can feed your lawn.

 

Cleaning power

Beer has also been known to remove rust, stains, and even clean jewellery. Of course, each case is different and may not remove the entire stain. Likewise, you may not want to purposely dunk your expensive engagement ring in a glass of leftover beer. You don’t want to have any unpleasant surprises. Try these theories on cheap jewellery first.

 

These are just some of the best uses for leftover beer. There are many other ways to make good use of it. Just remember to keep it in the fridge even if it has deflated and you don’t plan on drinking it.