Great Divide Hibernation Ale + Steak And Mashed Potatoes

I guess it really is what's for dinner.

This is more or less the quintessential Southern meal, no?

Good steak is a relatively rare treat for us, so I carefully weighed my beer options for this.  I didn’t want to screw it up.  On one hand, on this very website Stuart has been praising the virtues of red meat with malty beer pairings.  On the other, I found some beer discussion forum talk at BA with several respondents recommending IPAs with steak.

What to do, what to do?

I went with Great Divide Hibernation Ale.  A winter seasonal in the style of an English Old Ale.  Malty won out.

This was simply incredible.  The sweet, malty, nutty flavors of the beer combined with a little alcohol bite and some subtle, spicy hops melded perfectly with the steak.

Admire the grill lines. And the smoke.

USDA Choice cut Rib eye.  Medium rare.  (USDA Prime is a bit above my pay grade.)

Anyway these were mongo hunks of steak.  Again, Costco to the rescue.  Around $25 for 4 large steaks.

I’m pretty hardcore on using charcoal over gas.  I love that smoky flavor.  All I did was let these sit out about an hour and a half before grilling to hit room temp.  A little olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Bam.  Grill over the hottest coals I could muster, 4-5 minutes each side.

And a malty old ale is definitely the winner.

Tags: Great Divide Brewing, Hibernation Ale, mashed potatoes, ribeye, Steak