Make it Snappy!

It was Allman's restaurant on the Kentucky River at Boonesboro that originated beer cheese in the early 1940s.
Johnny Allman's cousin Joe, a chef in Phoenix, was said to have created the beer cheese for the popular hangout. "We should have kept that cheese recipe a secret, but everybody on the river worked for us at one time or another and learned the recipe," Johnny Allman said in a 1983 Lexington Herald-Leader interview.
The closest to Allman's original is the beer cheese served at Hall's on the River at Boonesboro. Beer cheese is served with saltine crackers, celery sticks and radishes, and delivered to the table as soon as you sit down at Hall's.

George and Gertrude Hall bought Allman's in 1965, and Jean Bell has since been making beer cheese that has become synonymous with Hall's. Bell patterned her creation after what was served at Allman's restaurant - the popular spot on the river that flooded many times and burned before it was rebuilt at the current site, 1125 Boonesboro Road. Bell couldn't get anyone to share the secret recipe for Allman's beer cheese, so she created her own.

"They wouldn't tell me what they put in it. I had to figure it out," Bell said. She got the right spiciness and texture, and it hasn't changed over the years. Bell makes 100 pounds a week by hand in 10-pound batches, almost always in private. "They really don't know what I put in it. I go over there and dash it in so fast," she said. The only secret she shares is that the beer and cheese must both be at room temperature. The reason it's so good is the brand of cheese, she said.

The best beer to use is the cheapest, and the choice way to get stale beer is to open a can or bottle and leave it in the refrigerator overnight. But don't use too much beer - you just want a hint of flavor. Otherwise it will taste like you're eating beer on a cracker.
Here are four versions of beer cheese.

Snappy beer cheese

2 10-ounce sticks Cracker Barrel extra sharp Cheddar cheese
2 cloves garlic
1 7-ounce bottle stale beer
1⁄8 teaspoon salt
Tabasco sauce to taste
Grate cheese and garlic in a food processor; add remaining ingredients, mixing until thoroughly blended. Mixture will be soft but will harden in the refrigerator. Better if made ahead of time. Serve with crackers, celery sticks or radish roses. Source: Bluegrass Winners.

Beer cheese

2 pounds American cheese, grated, at room temperature
1⁄2 teaspoon garlic powder
1⁄4 teaspoon chili powder
1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1⁄4 teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 can warm beer
Beat cheese until smooth. Add all of spices and Worcestershire. Add beer slowly; beat until mixture reaches the desired consistency.
Source: Generations, A Dickinson Heritage Cook Book.)

Beer cheese

1 pound sharp Cheddar, grated
1 pound mild Cheddar, grated
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 to 5 drops hot pepper sauce, or to taste
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 12-ounce can beer
Combine all ingredients, except beer, and beat with electric mixer. Pour in beer slowly, and beat until cheese is very smooth. Store, refrigerated, in covered jar. Remove from refrigerator at least 30 minutes before serving. Beat once more.
Source: The Kentucky Derby Museum Cook Book

Beer cheese

1 pound sharp cheese
2 cloves garlic
1⁄2 medium onion
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 ounces stale beer (made by heating in saucepan to boiling point, cool)
Grind cheese with garlic and onion. Add Worcestershire, cayenne and stale beer. Mix well. Cover and store in refrigerator. Keeps several weeks in refrigerator.
Source: Favorites of Zion