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I know you can have whisky chasers with lager or beer, I used to have them all the time, and still do when I am on a cruiseship. However, having a chaser is not quite the same as pouring a large amount of whisky straight in to a pint of lager. I have actually never heard of anyone do this before, and I did simply because I was just back from a twelve hour drive, was listening to some dance music and wanted to get merry in record time.

I cannot say that I got any drunker than usual, but I certainly got iller than usually. I came out in a sweat and my heart began racing, and I was still sweating with a racing heart for three days until I suffered what my life saving professor called "a major to massive heart attack".

I was only 40 years old and there was no previous sign of ill health, nor warnings of a heart attack, and my professor was reluctant to put my heart attack down to my smoking, telling me that smoking related heart attacks would be more common in the 50's and 60's than in the 40's, and that at my age it would be more the lungs that he would be concerned about regarding smoking, so I told him about the lethal cocktail and he said nothing at-all regarding this.

So, apart from smoking and too many big macs, what do the experts on alcohol think? Could whisky in lager be considered a lethal cocktail?

John Strachan
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  • You lived to tell us the tale. All alcohol can be lethal , either short term from alcohol poisoning or long term from damage to the body's systems. – Alaska Man Feb 28 '21 at 19:35

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If you are asking if there is some chemical reaction that makes the mixture of beer and whiskey more toxic than the two drunk separately, I'm pretty sure the answer is no. That said, if you drink a beer and then drink a shot of whiskey you know pretty much how much of each you have consumed. If, however you just pour your whiskey into the beer it might be that you are pouring in more than a shot glass worth and end up with more alcohol. The point is what matters is the total quantity of alcohol you consume and over what time span.

Eric S
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  • I am trying to understand what caused my heart attack, and your answer has caused me to believe it was the Whisky in the lager, as it was a lot more than a shot i tipped in. More like a quarter of a pint of Jack Daniels. I drink fast too. – John Strachan Mar 01 '21 at 00:16
  • Beer is about 6% alcohol and whiskey is 40%+. Alcohol will kill you if you consume too much too fast. – Eric S Mar 01 '21 at 01:59
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    @JohnStrachan From what I can tell simply from this one post, there were many factors involved in your heart attack - perhaps the blame cannot (and should not) be placed wholly on the one beer cocktail, but on all of the factors combined. Too much drinking, too much smoking, too many big macs, too much stress, not enough sleep and exercise... and all that for too long in your life. I am not judging - these are simply the things that contribute to a generally bad state of health with ultimate consequences. All of our doctors warn us that this sort of thing catches up with you... – Tim Burnett - Bassist Mar 01 '21 at 15:52
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Could whiskey in lager be considered a lethal cocktail?

The short answer is no.

It has not killed me yet!

There are a number of ways to drink a Lager beer with whiskey.

Traditionally, the liquor is drunk in a single gulp and is then "chased" by the beer (lager or otherwise), which is sipped.

The liquor and lager may be mixed by pouring or dropping the shot into the beer. The mixture may be stirred. If the shot glass is dropped into the beer glass, the drink can also be known as a depth charge. As long as drunk in moderation even a depth charge will not kill you.

Whiskey may be poured directly into an open beer bottle or can after consuming some of the beer.

Ken Graham
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