6 beers you should plan to drink during the Rugby World Cup final

Kick-off beer: Cape Brewing Company Pilsner

The tension mounts, the crowd roars and it’s go time! When the whistle blows, you need a beer that’s equally as snappy as a solid kick-off into enemy territory. Cape Brewing Company’s green-and-gold pilsner is the beer for the job. It’s packed full of biscuit malt and floral hop aromas and flavours. It finishes with a long, lingering bitterness reminiscent of the way the English still feel about their 2007 World Cup final defeat.

20th-minute beer: Stout Hoek

We’re 20 minutes in and you’ll either be praising Faf’s box kick as his luscious locks stream out behind him, or you’ll be cursing him for kicking away possession, again. Should it be the latter, that means it’s time to mix up strategies even if Rassie won’t. The call is a 50/50 blend of Castle Milk Stout and Windhoek Lager. It sounds crazy, but it’s a power duo that gives you all the rich chocolate and coffee character of dark roasted malt tempered by the crisp, clean bite of a pale lager.

Half time and the first 20 beer: Darling Brew Bone Crusher 

With any luck, we would have scored a try just before the whistle and it’s time to celebrate with the half-time classic, sliced oranges. Bone Crusher is a classic Belgian-style Witbier and it’s brewed with orange and coriander to give it a distinct citrus and spice character. It’s super refreshing and the name is a good reminder of what the boys need to do for the remaining 40 minutes.

60th-minute beer: Mad Giant Killer Hop

At this point, I’m going to assume that the Boks are playing out of their socks and we’re 50 points ahead. Even so, this is not the time to hang back and defend, because this is a final. We need to reinforce our killer instinct and there’s one beer for the job: Killer Hop. It’s punchy pale ale that’s bursting with tropical fruit hop character and a snappy hop bite that will have you singing the lyrics to Eye of The Tiger for the rest of the day.