As Beer Meister (aka “The Pairings Guy”) I have had the pleasure of attending many beer dinners over the last couple of years. I know some of you have not yet experienced the variety of pleasures – and occasionally pains! – each one brings to the taste table, so here is a short write-up to whet your appetites and give you an idea of what you’ve been missing!
OLDE TOWNE DINNER, 24 JANUARY 2009
This dinner was arranged by the J Clyde to celebrate the welcome return of Olde Towne beers to Birmingham after a brewery fire caused a too-long absence.
Reception: Olde Towne Pilsner A Selection of Gourmet Cheeses
I am generally quite indifferent towards beers in the Pilsner/lager styles – I am not a huge fan of the style. The OT Pilsner is a persuasive offering, and paired very well with the mustard seed and porter infused cheeses: it brings out the richness of the cheese, while cleaning the palate afterwards. Nice.
First Course: OT Porter with Local Winter Vegetable Soup
A surprise pairing here. The soup was truly outstanding – rich, tasty, with nice chunky vegetables. The porter lent its richness to the stock, leaving a lingering caramel/coffee sweetness that successfully played off the flavour of the vegetables.
Second Course: OT Hefeweizen (wheat beer) with Spanish Potato Omelet
Hefeweizens are a hard style to do well: many brewmasters come out with a good, but not outstanding, hefeweizen. OT’s brewmaster should be proud of this beer: it is, quite simply, world class: one of the best hefeweizens I have ever had the pleasure of drinking. Subtle, delicately sweet, with a very gentle spice flavour at the back of the mouth. The combination with the omelet was astonishing: taking a sip of the beer with the omelet in my mouth produced a phenomenal blast of clove spices! Superb!
Third Course: OT Pale Ale with Pecan Chicken Salad on leaf lettuce
This is a contrasting pairing. The Pale Ale is in the English style, very balanced and eminently drinkable, with a gentle hop dominance. The pecan chicken salad is sweet and rich. The combination? Both shine out full force: the Pale Ale clenses the palate, allowing you to fully appreciate the salad, and the salad leaves a rich sweet nuttiness which the Pale Ale washes down. Dynamite combination.
Fourth Course: OT Amber with Local Venison tossed in a rich red sauce over farfalle pasta
The Amber Ale is a style I only came across after moving to the U.S. It rapidly became one of my favourite styles, due to its flexibility: it pairs with pizza, burgers, milder chilis and curries, most cheeses, and so on. It’s also just a good sipping beer! This pairing proves I am not so nuts for liking the style: there is enough malt sweetness there to balance the spicy red sauce and to play with the richness of the venison, while keeping enough hop bitterness to leave a clean taste in your mouth, ready for the next bite. If you have never had this style before, the OT Amber is a great introduction to it.
Fifth Course: OT Chocolate Stout with Classic Homemade Cheesecake
I am, as you may recall, Mr “Dark Beer And Cheesecake”. There is nothing I can usefully add to my previous article: porters/stouts and cheesecake are simply Da Bom. The OT Chocolate Stout is an interesting take on the style. While there is the expected hop bitterness, there is also a dark chocolate bitterness. This double whammy could have been overwhelming, but the cheesecake came to the rescue by providing dairy richness and sugar sweetness to offset the hop/chocolate combination. An odd combination, but still very tasty!
As you can see from above, a beer dinner is quite a serious time – and waistline! – investment, but well worth it. It allows you to explore beer and food, and try pairings that would not necessarily have occurred to you.
Tags: Amber Ale, Cheese, cheesecake, Chicken Salad, Chocolate Stout, Hefweizen, Olde Towne, omelet, Pale Ale, Pilsner, porter, red sauce, Spanish potato omelet, stout, vegetable soup, Venison
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