It’s officially Girl Scout cookie season, and while the young women selling the snacks are too young to drink beer, most of us paying for the treats can enjoy a brewed beverage with our Thin Mints and Samoas. But which beers will work best alongside each variety of cookie?

There are too many beers out there to give any definitive answers to that question, but that hasn’t stopped anyone from giving an opinion:

THIN MINTS

This would seem to be a tricky pairing, with the Thin Mint’s strong mint and chocolate taste not always wanting to play nice with other flavors. A sampling of suggestions seems to point to a darker beer being the answer. The beer chicks of TheBeerChicks.com single out a Hitachino Nest Espresso Stout (7.5% ABV) as the best beverage for enjoying Thin Mints, while the folks at Central Track recommend a 9.5% ABV imperial stout, suggesting the Great Divide Yeti by name. Doubling up on the chocolate and mint, Brooklyn Brew Shop offers up the Mint Chocolate Porter from California’s Bootlegger’s Brewery as its pairing suggestion.

TAGALONGS

Peanut butter poses the challenge here for those looking to pair up their cookies and beer. The Beer Chicks suggest adding banana to the mix with Wells & Young’s Banana Bread beer from the U.K. Central Track heads over to Belgium for its pairing, recommending Duvel Belgian Golden Ale or any Belgian ale to go with this classic snack. Again, Brooklyn Brew Shop goes matchy-matchy with its pairing of Tagalongs and its own recipe for Peanut Butter Porter.

SAMOAS

Toasted coconut, caramel and chocolate all on one cookie is a lot to take in, but there are still good beer pairing suggestions out there. Brooklyn Brew Shop seeks to accentuate the coconut flavor with Maui Brewing Co.’s Coconut Porter, while Central Track suggests an 8.5% ABV heavy ale, like a Founders Dirty Bastard.

Each of the three sites linked in this story have other pairing suggestions for other Girl Scout cookies, so check them out if you’re curious.

[via BeerAndBrewing.com]