3 World Cup rivals find 'Common Ground' in a cross-border beer

Headlands Brewing launched its World Cup-themed beer Common Ground, ahead of the first World Cup game in June. Justin Gellerson for NPR hide caption toggle caption Justin Gellerson for NPR The British betting company William Hill predicts that soccer fans will throw back more than 5 million pints of beer in stadiums and fan zones during this year's World Cup. And that number doesn't even account for the millions of pints being poured in bars as fans tune in to the global soccer event. But while international soccer crowds are focusing on goals and penalties, a trio of craft breweries from the tournament's three host nations are using the tournament to brew something increasingly rare: cross-border solidarity. A shared recipe with local spin The collaboration began months ago over a flurry of video chats and emails. The beermakers at Rey Árbol Brewing Company in Mexico, Headlands Brewing in the United States, and Cabin Brewing Company in Canada set out to design a single, unified recipe representing the brewing traditions of all three nations. "It's a Mexican lager," said Alejandro Gomez, founder of Rey Árbol. "...that's like a West Coast IPA," said Ryan Frank, chief operating officer and brewmaster for Headlands. "And up in Canada, most of our beers are hop driven," said Haydon Dewes, co-founder of Cabin. …