Beer Tourism: Ranking Universal Orlando's Unique Beers

TLDR: We sampled and judged all of the unique beers at Universal Studios Florida / Islands of Adventure and ranked them (plus 2 bonus beers).

If I had to summarize Universal Orlando in one word, it would be this: INTENSE.

Lots of people, sounds, smells, and thrills can all become a little overwhelming at times. That can bring the need to just sit for a minute with a good beverage right to the top of your priority list. The good news is that Universal has a great variety of unique, themed, specialty beers for you. Honestly, there is something absolutely magical about being able to step into the pages of a favorite story and enjoy a moment of near-complete immersion (You’re still going to have to contend with being surrounded by muggles, but that’s a hurdle that I’m not sure how you’d get over. The day I can sit in the corner of the Three Broomsticks and hunt wrackspurts with Luna will be the day Universal can just have all my Galleons.).

The unique park beers that were available at the time of our visit were 1 from Jurassic Park, 3 from Springfield, and 5 from Wizarding World, plus two others that we added on. We spaced our judging out over 3 days to try and be as fair and objective as possible.

Here’s what we came up with:

1. Hog’s Head Brew – 3.70/5.00
Available at the Hog’s Head Inn – Hogsmeade. Evaluated as a Scottish Export Ale, and you should expect it to be a just a little malty and sweet, with some flavors like toffee and fruitiness. While this was our highest scoring beer, it gets some definite swagger points for exclusivity and venue. This one won’t be for everybody, but it’s a damned fine beverage.

2. Daisyroot Ale – 3.63/5.00
Available at the Hog’s Head Inn – Hogsmeade, and the Hopping Pot – Diagon Alley. Evaluated as a British Golden Ale, and the only reason I couldn’t score this one just a little higher was that it needs just a little bit more hop character. As it stands, this is a really approachable golden ale, and was my pick for a go-to park beer. We also had our best staff experiences at both the Hog’s Head and Hopping Pot, so this beer gets my top endorsement.

3. Duff Dry – 3.57/5.00
Available at Duff Brewery and Moe’s Tavern – Springfield. Evaluated as a British Sweet Stout, which as the name implies, is dark and sweet…unlike the actual name of the beer, which implies a Dry Irish Stout like Guinness. While we gave this one the highest rating of the Duff beers, this one may not be your go-to when the sun is beating down on you. Still, it’s very good, and made for an enjoyable break while sitting at the brewery bar.

4. Dragon Scale – 3.54/5.00
Available throughout the Wizarding World. Evaluated as an Amber Lager, so similar to a Yuengling Lager, commonly found throughout most of the East Coast and into the South-Central US. I grew up on Yuengling, and so this had a comfortable familiarity for me. Taking a moment to camp out at the tables behind the Three Broomsticks with a Dragon Scale made for a very nice mid-day break.

5. Isla Nublar – 3.53/5.00
Available throughout Jurassic Park. Evaluated as a Hazy IPA, with strong citrus aromas and flavors. Honestly, I had higher hopes for this one. I had heard a couple reviews that raved about it, so I was a little disappointed…but hey, if juicy IPAs are your thing, then definitely give this one a try. Scroll down to the ‘bonus section’ though, if you want another great hoppy option.

6. Dark Forest Ale – 3.46/5.00
Available throughout the Wizarding World. Evaluated as a British Brown Ale. Honestly, I feel like maybe I was a little hard on the Dark Forest, and I’m willing to give it another go in the future. It’s a fine beer, but it just didn’t do all that much for me and didn’t really stand out against some of the other similar beers on the list. I’d love to see them replace this one with a black lager. Good, not great.

7. Wizard’s Brew – 3.46/5.00
Available only in Diagon Alley. Evaluated as a British Sweet Stout. If you’re in Diagon Alley and, “Accio Duff Dry!” doesn’t work for you, then I guess you could walk over to the Fountain of Fair Fortune and get one of these. A decent beer, but seems unnecessary. I’d like to see this one replaced with a traditional British Pale or a solid dry Irish Stout.

8. Duff Lite – 3.31/5.00
Available from various locations in Springfield. Standard American Light Lager, so if you have someone in your party who is a devout light beer enthusiast, then this one may be your go-to. It’s not a bad beer, and it complemented my Krusty Burger very well. Also, Light lager is deceptively hard to brew well. You can hide a ton of flaws under a pile of hops, but with a light lager…well, there’s just no room for error in the flavor profile. We found this one superior to the standard Duff.

9. Duff – 3.23/5.00
Available from various locations in Springfield. Evaluated as an Amber Lager, so again, similar to a Yuengling Lager, but we found the Dragon Scale to be the superior choice. Not a bad beer, and you’re practically obligated to get it if you’re going to sit at Moe’s. We went into the tavern on a slower day, and it was practically empty. The bartender was nice enough, but didn’t seem particularly knowledgeable or engaged. I feel like Universal missed a golden opportunity to sell me more than one extremely overpriced lager – just have an engaging bartender behind the bar. Sadly, this was our experience more often than not at most Universal venues.

The bonus beverages…

Psuedo Sue – 4.04/5.00
I mentioned above that we were a little disappointed with the Isla Nublar IPA. If you find yourself in the same raft, fear not…just keep a sharp eye out throughout Jurassic Park for cans of Pseudo Sue Pale Ale by Toppling Goliath. Inspired by one of the largest and most-complete T-Rex fossil specimens ever found, Sue is the hoppier option in the park. Sure, it’s easy to be taken in by that sexy Isla Nublar Mosasaurus tap marker, but there’s a reason why the T-Rex is King (or Queen).

The Deathly Hallows – 3.83/5.00
This one is a little bit of a cheat, as it’s not something you’re going to find on the menu. It’s also not something you’re going to get if you order it by that name. No, we’re not sure exactly what happened there, but you can no longer get it that way. You have to ask for the ‘Triple’ or ‘Triple-Layered Drink’, and only from the Hog’s Head Inn. What you’ll get is Strongbow cider, Hog’s Head Ale, and Guinness. It’s deceptively refreshing, and you get to look like an insider among the muggles. We saw several of these while there, so the secret is definitely out, and they were very cool about making them for us.
Also not listed anywhere on the menu is the Black Hog, which is the Hog’s Head’s take on a traditional Black and Tan.

Hopefully, you found our take on these refreshing and informative.
Thanks again, and Cheers!