Some of my favourite fried pickles come from the J. Clyde. They’re little bits of panko-crusted goodness, that are brilliant when paired with a Rogue Dry Hop Red. The slight sourness of the pickles is lovely with the sweetness & hoppiness of the brew.

And here’s where it goes wrong.

On night, I decided to try a different beer with the pickles- and settled on Sweetwater IPA.

DANGER, WILL ROBINSON!

It was not a good experiment. I found that the combination of the two produced a flavour that can only be descirbed as lemon & malt Kool-Aid. I do not suggest you try this at home, or anywhere else.

This is part two of a linked two part article looking at pairing barleywine and cheese. The first part looked at it from the barleywine perspective, this part looks at the cheese perspective.

A work of beauty

Borough Market Quicke’s Cheddar
A full, rich traditional Cheddar aged for a minimum of 18 months bound in linen and covered in lard to provide a protective coating. An awesomely good cheese.
Seek out Flying Dog’s Horn Dog, Great Divide’s Old Ruffian, or Rogue Old Crustacean to pair with this cheese.

Cave Aged Gruyere
An assertive, earthy, complex cheese that will dominate a pairing unless you are careful. Try it with Flying Dog Horn Dog, or Avery Hog Heaven.

Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog (goat cheese)
Made by a mother/daughter team in California, it has buttery, creamy, faintly feta taste. Seek out Nogne O 100 or Rogue Old Crustacean to pair with this tasty cheese.

Maytag Blue
Made from pasteurised cow’s milk, Maytag Blue is a more subtle blue cheese which dominates the US market. Try this with Flying Dog Horn Dog, or Uinta XV Anniversary.

Neal’s Yard Dairy Colton Bassett Stilton
Rich, creamy, mellow and savoury with a buttery texture. Move Heaven and Earth to have this with Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot – a truly outstanding pairing, you may hear an angelic chorus. Whatever you do, do not pair this cheese with Norrebro Little Korkny Ale, or the Uinta XV Anniversary – it produces appalling bad, rancid, moldy, metallic, vomit-inducing sensations.

Neal’s Yard Montgomery Cheddar
Rich, sweet, fruity, nutty, beefy flavours reminiscent of the caramelised edge of a Sunday roast. This cheese will play well with most barleywines, especially so with the Flying Dog Horn Dog (which won the award of “most cheese agnostic” beer!), Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot, Norrebro Little Korkny, Avery Hog Heaven, Rogue Old Crustacean… well, pretty much any decent barleywine will do good things with this wonderful cheese.

It was a dirty job, but we took one for The Team

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Beerlicious articles by Stuart Carter, stuart@beerlicious.net is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

This is part one of a linked two part article looking at pairing barleywine and cheese. The second part will look at the flip side, pairing cheese with barleywine.

A few bottles of barleywine

Mikkeller Big/Worse
A Danish barleywine.
Flavour is sweet and fruity, making this a very easy to drink beer. It does not play very well with the cheese we chose, making this hard to recommend as a pairing beer. But it’s well worth it as a drinking beer

Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot
A Pennsylvanian beer.
The absolute show-stopper perfect pairing of the evening was Blithering Idiot paired with Neal’s Yard Dairy Colston Bassett Stilton. This pairing is definitely a 10 out of 10: you will taste rich, buttery, creamy sweet notes in the cheese, with a cheeky little hop/blue cheese snap at the back of your throat as the after-taste. Outstandingly good.
Your mileage will definitely vary more with cave aged Gruyere: one comment of “sweet and tasty”, one of “BAD ANIMAL, BAD!”.

Avery Hog Heaven
A Colorado brewery.
Pairs very well with Neal’s Yard Dairy Montgomery Cheddar – it makes the cheese taste more cheesy, without developing any harsh flavours. It pairs reasonably well with Cave Aged Guyere, bringing out a funky nutty taste.

Flying Dog Horn Dog
A Maryland brewery.
This beer is best described as “cheese agnostic”: it will pair respectably well with a wide range of cheese, but never reaches the heights of the Blithering Idiot and the Stilton.
With Maytag Blue, the beer brings out a nutty spiciness; with the Cave Aged Gruyere, it reduces the funk of the cheese and brings a buttery flavour out, but beware of the Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog – your mileage will vary a lot with this pairing.

Norrebro Little Korkny Ale
A Danish barleywine, it tastes much more like a Sherry than a beer. It does not play well with anything less than a powerful blue cheese – it is so sweet that it will drown out any lesser cheese, but beware Stilton – for me, the combination with the Stilton was bad enough for me to comment “Bad, fail, kicked puppies”! Enjoy this as a good drink, don’t sweat it as a pairing beer.

Nogne O 100
A Norwegian brewery.
A very pleasant beer, it is meant to be paired with a goat cheese like Humboldt Fog. Comments include “brings out faint Stilton flavour”; “Goat Heaven! Goats should drink this!”; “brings out some spice, makes the cheese more creamy”. Don’t pair this with Stilton, the cheese will wash the beer out entirely.

Rogue Old Crustacean
An Oregon brewery.
A huge, complex, powerfully flavoured beer. Brings out citrus spicy notes from Borough Market Cheddar, a nutty spiciness or Stilton/feta characteristic from the Humboldt Fog, a chalky earthy funk from the Stilton, and a good balance and complexity from the Montgomery Cheddar.

Great Divide Old Ruffian
A Colorado brewery.
Works wonderfully well with the Quicke’s Cheddar, bringing out buttery flavours, peppers, soft red fruits. Seek this out!

Uinta XV Anniversary
A Utah brewery.
Oh dear. Under no circumstances have this beer with the Colston Bassett Stilton. I nearly vomited. One of the participants described this combination as tasting “like the contents of a moldy New York dumpster”. There really is no way to emphasise how truly appalling this pairing is. I warn you: if you seek out this pairing, puppies will commit suicide in horror. Won’t you think of the puppies?

It was a dirty job, but we did it.

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Beerlicious articles by Stuart Carter, stuart@beerlicious.net is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Come a little closer.

Wrap your mind around this one.  Decadent mini cupcakes paired with robust English Porter.  Remember cupcakes?  Well, they’re out.  Apparently, making mini cakes has become passé.  Now making mini cupcakes are all the rage.  Yep, you heard it here first.  Beerlicious is on the cutting edge of pastry fashion.  Here’s how I found out.  Last Thursday, my sister-in-law came through Birmingham with a friend on their way to a wedding in Mobile.  They went out to eat with my wife at a new European-style restaurant on 2nd Ave. North in Birmingham, Urban Standard, after reading a good writeup of the restaurant in Birmingham Weekly.  FWIW, Urban Standard is the only restaurant I am aware of in Birmingham that serves Primavera coffee.  Primavera is very selective about who they allow to serve their coffe.  Brett, the owner, once told me that they will only allow restaurants to serve their coffe if they are confident that the restaurant will prepare it correctly, which means proper equipment, proper glassware, and proper training.  At Urban Standard, the wife and SIL saw that they sold cupcakes, but decided that wasnt’ good enough. 

Closer Still.

They had already planned their next stop at a Homewood Bake Shoppe, Pastry Art, specifically to pick up some mini cupcakes.  Why mini cupcakes?  Who knows, but who am I to question fashion?  Now, my SIL lives in Beer Capital of the South, a.k.a. Asheville, NC.  When she comes to Beer Wasteland, she is always faithful to bring me a growler of something good.  This time she brought a growler of English Porter from Asheville’s newest brewery, Wedge Brewing Co.  So, my treat, when I arrived home on Thursday, was four mini cupcakes and a growler.  Excellent!  Of course I had to try to beer right away, and it was quite good.  I actually prefer American Style porters, with less fruitiness and more bold and assertive roasty flavors.  However, Wedge’s Community Porter is good for what it is and compares well to other English Porters I’ve had (Samuel Smith’s and Fuller’s).  The porter with dinner was fine, but the interesting part came when my wife and I sampled the various mini cupcakes from Pastry Art.  First was a chocolate cupcake.  My favorite.  What could be better than chocolate on chocolate with porter to boot?  Well, chocolate on chocolate with nuts was.  And even better than that?  Red Velvet.  In fact, to my surprise, the red velvet worked better with the beer than the chocolate cupcakes did.  For some reason the chocolate cupcakes had a lingering sweetness that competed with the beer, whereas the red velvet cupcake brought out a nice dry aftertaste in the porter.  

There's the art in Pastry Art.

The strawberry mini cupcake was the best of both worlds, initially dry with the roasted coffee and burnt chocolate flavors, the sweet strawberry didn’t stay down, but imposed itself slowly, mixing very nicely with the subtle esters in the porter.  Do you have to be “in” or have a sister-in-law who lives in Beer Nirvana to enjoy this pairing?  Certainly not.  A slice of strawberry cake and Fuller’s London Porter or Samuel Smith’s Taddy Porter would probably fit the bill just fine.

Seafood Gumbo with Olde Towne Amber
If you haven’t had gumbo, you haven’t lived. Get some now! This pairing just confirmed my already solidly set perception that Amber Ale is probably the most flexible beer style – the mellow sweetness and subtle hops balanced off the seafood richness and chili spice of the gumbo, without squashing any of the subtle flavours or developing any harsh or “off” notes. Simply delicious.

Spicy boiled shrimp on a fried green tomato with remoulade, with Good People Pale Ale
The briny sweetness of the shrimp found a perfect foil with the malt sweetness of the beer, while the spices and hops danced an exquisite tango of polite one-upmanship. Utterly brilliant pairing.

Trout a la Meuniere with buttered pasta, with Terrapin Golden Ale
The Golden Ale is my go-to beer for creatures that live in water. It has a gentle sweetness that never overwhelms the delicate taste of white fish, while also playing nice with shellfish in a non-spicy setting. The Golden also helps to cut the butter richness, refreshing the mouth and leaving you eager for the next bite.

Southern-Style strawberry shortcake, with Good People Coffee Oatmeal Stout
Stout is my go-to beer with dessert, especially the Good People coffee stout which has echoes of a really fine cup of coffee with rich cream. What more can you ask for with dessert?

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Beerlicious articles by Stuart Carter, stuart@beerlicious.net is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Action shot!

I had previously done a successful pairing with Sweetwater IPA and an Italian dish, but the food was kinda crudely thrown together, and it featured a cream sauce.  I wanted to give it another go with a more properly-prepared Italian dish, and one featuring a tomato-based sauce.  If I keep this blog going long enough you’ll probably see me pair Sweetwater IPA with nearly every food imaginable as it’s one of my favorite beers, even including the thousands I’ve sampled that aren’t available in Alabama.  Yes, it’s that good.

As for the sauce, I’m not hardcore opposed to sauce from a jar, but when I can I usually go with the method outlined by Ezra Klein here.  My “aromatics” were the quintessential elements of a good tomato sauce, in my opinion.  Onion, mushrooms, and garlic.  All fresh.  Add large can of diced tomatoes (mine were organic, from Whole Foods, with basil).  And salt, pepper, oregano.  I also happened to have a few ounces of leftover sour cream in the fridge that needed polishing off, so I threw that in.  You’ll notice in the pic it’s a creamy tomato sauce, rather than pure red tomato sauce.

Simmered sausages in a separate pan.  Mild Italian, turkey.  Whole wheat noodles.  And upon serving it up, sprinkled with a six cheese blend including asiago, romano, mozzarella, and parmesan.  In short, this was a truly excellent meal.  One of my finest Italian creations.

And Sweetwater IPA?  Not so much.  Not cringe-inducing, but there was a bit of a funky clash of flavors toward the end of a sip taken right after a bite.  I really don’t think all IPAs are indicted by this so much as Sweetwater specifically.  There’s a massive range of flavors among different hop varieties, so I’d like to try something with some English hops here.

As luck would have it, I have substantial leftovers.  I’m going to dig up an English-style IPA and give it another go.  I probably even have enough to test a third beer, too.  I’m certain something in the ballpark of a Belgian pale ale would work, but I’m trying to push the envelope a bit…

The stout is warm and rich, with a dark coffee bitterness. How does it stand up to chocolate?

First up: Moser Roth 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate. Really not a good combo. It washes out the flavour of the beer, making it taste watery, and bringing out the bitterness in the chocolate.

Second: Moser Roth Orange Almond. Much better. Brings out a really rich creaminess in the beer.

Third: Terry’s Dark Chocolate Orange. Not sure about this one. There is a smooth richness there, and a subtle sweetness, but the orange flavour almost disappears.

Fourth: Cadbury’s Dairy Milk. Oh my. I think I heard an angelic chorus. Perfection. The beer takes some of the sweetness away from the chocolate; the chocolate-beer combination tastes like hot chocolate, with a rich velvet texture. Words fail me in describing how wonderful this combination is – but it wouldn’t surprise me if it brought about world peace.

One final note – please make sure you allow the beer to come to a “lightly chilled”, rather than “ice cold” temperature, or you may be disappointed

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Beerlicious articles by Stuart Carter, stuart@beerlicious.net is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

How do these beers pair with chili? The regular stout is a very pleasant beer, and is an eminently suitable pairing. The Imperial Stout, with its coffee, caramel, chocolate, and dark fruits are a superbly rich complement to the taste of the chili. Quite simply, any Imperial Stout will leave a regular stout gasping like a grounded fish.

Despite the clear superiority of the Imperial Stout, you will not be unhappy with the results of pairing a chili with either beer.

Stout goes well with both chili and dessert. And it’s liquid bread. What more do I need to say

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.