Some beers were born to be stars of the small screen and have earned a place in our hearts – and our fridges – as a result of funny, thought-provoking, unusual or simply unforgettable TV commercials.

A good TV commercial is no guarantee of a good beer, but they do go well together.

We drank a few beers and researched the best of the best beer commercials on TV and can present them for your viewing pleasure.

So, what are you waiting for? Take a beer in hand, sit back and continue reading for the top 10 greatest beer TV commercials.

Photo by hoveringdog

Guinness: Tipping Point. Guinness have a long affinity with TV advertising and consistently produce some of the most innovative and complex commercials. This spot has a great cinematic feel and reinforces the notion of the ‘big pint’. Stella Artois: Last Wishes of a Dying Man. Stella produced a string of clever, movie-like commercials riffing off the theme of the French film Jean de Florette (including reusing the memorable score). This commercial is the best of the series and manages to weave an entire short movie around the ‘reassuringly expensive’ beer. Carlton Draught: The Big Ad. This Australian beer pokes fun at the big set-piece commercials by being purposely self-referential, but is all the better for it. Worth inclusion in the top 10 for the sheer audacity of pulling it off! Guinness: Evolution. Another classic from Guinness, this time with stunning visuals and spanning millennia to highlight the wait associated with a good pint. One of the most original commercials for a beer on TV and instantly memorable. Brahma: Refreshingly Voodoo. From the Brazilian beer makers is this inventive commercial with an excellent punch line. Saying any more than that would possibly ruin things… Bud Lite: Swear Jar. Inspired by The Office, this is a nice one-joke commercial that is played very well. You can have some fun trying to fill in the bleeps. Carlsberg: Dream Apartment. This Irish-made commercial spawned a number of similar adverts and even made it’s way into popular culture with it’s signature “Carlsberg don’t do…”. The commercial nicely elevates the beer as a thing of excellence and brought their tag line of probably the best beer in the world into an interesting new dimension. Castlemaine XXXX: Sherry for the ladies. A great old Australian commercial, and a refreshingly frank, male-oriented piece that plays on the Aussie stereotypes, while at the same time, reinforces them! Carlton Draft: Flashdance. Another excellent Australian commercial, again for Carlton Draft. This inspired advertisement takes a surreal turn for the better and never looks back. The attention to detail is brilliant, especially the ‘update’ to the story at the conclusion. Guinness: The Surfer. 3 out of the top 10 for Guinness? It could have been 10 out of 10, such is the consistency and originality of their commercials. This one is pretty stunning; beautifully shot, highly original and unique. It’s such a huge advert that YouTube doesn’t really do it justice – you’d need a movie screen for it. It manages to capture the essential nature of Guinness within a fascinating scene – the black and white, the patience, the fulfillment. Sit back and admire!

And that makes 10! Are you thirsty for a beer yet? What was your favorite commercial of these, or have you another favorite that we missed? Leave a comment with your thoughts.