German beer wasted on bird (5)
I believe the answer is:
grebe
'bird' is the definition.
(grebe is a kind of bird)
'german beer wasted on' is the wordplay.
'german' becomes 'g' (abbreviation**).
'wasted' indicates an anagram.
'on' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'beer' is an anagram of 'rebe'.
'g'+'rebe'='GREBE'
(Other definitions for grebe that I've seen before include "Aquatic bird that builds floating nests" , "I'll dive in" , "Crested water-bird" , "Flier" , "Diving waterbird" .)