On St. Patrick’s Day, nothing could be greener than a little green beer. The Sierra Club has a list of 5 eco beers, and I’ve added 5 more, to give you a list of the top 10 Green Beers you can drink to celebrate St. Patrick and Mother Earth.

1. O stands for Orlio and Organic. Orlio’s beer is 100% organic. Their organic seal means they meet the standards of both the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) and the Vermont Organic Farmers. O’Really? Yes, Really!

2. New Belgium, which brings you the popular “Fat Tire” beer is based in in Ft. Collins, Colorado and, in 1998 was the first U.S. brewery to harness energy from wind power. Employees even volunteered to contribute to help pay for the green switch. New Belgium also recycles “waste” products into grain and cattle feed, and keg caps into table surfaces. And they use motion sensors on the lights and evaporative cooling in their new packaging hall.

3. Sierra Nevada in California, uses four 250-kilowatt co-generation fuel cell power units to supply electric power and heat to the brewery and produce the steam needed boiling the beer and other heating needs. In 2006, Sierra Nevada recycled 33,738 tons of materials –97.8 percent of their total waste, which may explain why they’ve won a WRAP Award (Waste Reduction Awards Program) from the State of California every year since 2001. They’ve even come with a system to reuse most of the CO2 produced during the natural fermentation. And Sierra Nevada incentivizes being green, rewarding employees for reducing their emissions by riding their bikes to work.

4. Great Lakes Brewing Co., in Cleveland Ohio, delivers their beer on “The Fatty Wagon” a beer delivery truck and shuttle bus that runs on straight restaurant vegetable oil. They’ve reduced their trash removal expenses by 50% by in half by printing newsletters, menus, beverage napkins and promotional items on 100 percent recycled paper and using recycled packaging. They also use a system that brings in cold air during winter months to cool the beer. Skylights and light sensors allow in natural light and reduce the use of electricity. An “air curtain” in the brewpub keeps warm air from escaping when patrons enter and exit.

5. Brooklyn Brewery became the first company in New York City to switch to 100 percent wind-generated electricity in 2003. Brooklyn Brewery’s green power prevents an estimated 335,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, 1,500 pounds of sulfur dioxide and 500 pounds of nitrogen oxide from being emitted into the atmosphere each year.

6. Wolaver’s Organic Ale has been family-owned company, has supported sustainable farming, and has been organic since it started in 1997.

7. Mateveza ain’t your typical beer, it’s your typical mate and beer combo! Mate + Cerveza = MateVeza. So what is it? An organic pale ale brewed with yerba mate, source of the ancient South American herbal tea, which is a natural source of caffeine equivalent to one cup of coffee per 22-ounce bottle of MateVeza. MateVeza won a 2007 Veggie Award from VegNews, and has been brewing organic since 1997.

8. TakePart’s Own Green expert Kerry Truman (Who’s no Green Horn when it comes to going green) blogged about Barefoot Radler Beer, Australia’s first carbon neutral beer. Since so many Irish people were sent to Australia, drinking this Aussi beer is more green than you think!

9. Kerry also have props to the Australian Cascade Green beer. (What is the deal with Kerry and Australia? Am I right?) Cascade Green is also carbon neutral and offsets the power it uses by purchasing government-approved Greenhouse Friendly carbon credits, which fund the reclaiming of landfill gas. The labels are printed with bio-degradable, vegetable oil-based inks and the cartons are 100% recyclable too. Since the brewery is located in the Tazmanian wilderness, it probably wouldn’t make sense for Cascade Green to pollute the wilderness that feeds them, or quenches us.

10. Fish Tale Brewing makes certified organic beer in its small brewery in Olympia Washington. Although they produce “truly authentic British-style organic ales,” it’s still OK to drink them on St. Paddy’s Day. Just think of it as moving along the Irish-English peace process, one pint at a time.

Source: http://blogs.takepart.com/2008/03/17/st-patricks-day-goes-green-with-green-beer-top-10-eco-beers/