What: Beer FloatI discovered this strange and wonderful-sounding concoction recently, on a bar menu. And then I learned that a beer float is not such a rare find. At least two nearby pubs serve up this alcohol-laden dessert, though in slightly different interpretations.Where: The Pike Pub & Brewery, 1415 First Ave., downtown Seattle, (206) 622-6044 The Pike Pub serves two kinds of beer floats: a house stout (The Pike Brewing Company Homebrew XXXXX) and Lindemans raspberry lambic. Each is served in a pint glass, topped with your choice of vanilla or chocolate ice cream. If that sounds like too much (or you’re tempted to try both) they’re also available schooner-sized. (Schooners are those slightly smaller, hourglass shaped beverage receptacles that old world Scotsmen will tell you women drink.)When: sometime last weekOfficial Tasting Notes:

My goofy friends (pictured) and I tried both, the Pike Place stout topped with a scoop of chocolate (schooner: $3.50) and the Framboise float, made with Lindemans raspberry lambic, and floating with vanilla (pint: $4.50 –we knew which one we’d like better). The deep, molassesy stout stood up well to the chocolate ice cream, and despite my hesitations, paired rather nicely. Though we fought over the vanilla raspberry lambic.

Sweeter–and hardly polluted by the tell-tale flavor of alcohol–the lambic was the tastier of the two, making for a creamy, slightly tart desert with a hidden kick. Though we had no problem slurping up both.

Insider Tip:Elliot Bay Brewing Company, with locations in West Seattle and what I hear is the ever-developing town of Burien, offers just one kind of beer float. Their’s made with their No Doubt Stout, and topped with their own malt ice cream, crafted using spent grains from the brewing process. Sounds tempting.Photos by Adriana Grant.