The other night, I sampled some of the Magic Hat Brewery's Mardi Gras Ale. It was dark, with a mouthfeel and flavor almost like that of a porter, yet spicier. Another fine beer from a brewery that continues to stand out on the cluttered American micro scene.
...Mostly, I've spent the weekend rediscovering the pleasures of Grolsch. It's better than Heineken, and comes in a flip-top bottle that's oh-so satisfying to dick around with while quaffing.
In other news, Brue and fellow Beercrafter Bob Thomas have begun homebrewing again. We spent last Saturday in their basement brewery drinking Baltika 6 Porter and brewing a Munich Lager. More to come...
-Mark
Monday, February 27, 2006
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Cask-contentment
I'm sitting in The Old Toad, one of my favorite pubs, and I've just been served a pint of cask-conditioned Blue Point Oatmeal Stout. It is fucking fantastic.
The coffee aromas and roasted caramel malt flavor are perfectly enhanced by the cask-conditioning. The beer is beautiful, too. Jet-black with a thin caramel ring, leaving toffee-colored lace on the sides of the glass as I sip. I'm suffused with a slight warm glow, and as the volume of my pint shrinks, the stresses of the day dinimish accordingly.
Sometimes it's absolutely fantastic to be a beer lover.
The coffee aromas and roasted caramel malt flavor are perfectly enhanced by the cask-conditioning. The beer is beautiful, too. Jet-black with a thin caramel ring, leaving toffee-colored lace on the sides of the glass as I sip. I'm suffused with a slight warm glow, and as the volume of my pint shrinks, the stresses of the day dinimish accordingly.
Sometimes it's absolutely fantastic to be a beer lover.
Monday, February 20, 2006
C-Town, Part three.
I wanted this to be more elaborate, but really we just walked around and drank more beer, ending, stupidly, with the house Tripel at the Rock Bottom Brewery in The Flats. I don't even know if it was any good.
One thing that impressed me about Cleveland's bars is the comprehensive beer lists. A lot of these places, like the Winking Lizard, Map Room, and The Boneyard, had a lavish, themey corporate feel, yet the beer selections were uniformly awesome. Thank you, Cleveland. We'll be back.
-Mark
One thing that impressed me about Cleveland's bars is the comprehensive beer lists. A lot of these places, like the Winking Lizard, Map Room, and The Boneyard, had a lavish, themey corporate feel, yet the beer selections were uniformly awesome. Thank you, Cleveland. We'll be back.
-Mark
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Beercraft newspaper column #5- Pairing beer with food
Man does not live by beer alone- pairing beer with food
By Mark Tichenor and Bruce Lish
Remember the first time you had a beer together with a slice of pizza? At the time, wasn’t that the best beer, and best slice, you had ever tasted? As is the case in the world of wine, some beers go incredibly well with certain foods. When served together, the best is brought out in both cuisine and beer.
This is not accidental. Beer evolved up with western civilization, all the way from ancient Egypt, and was a staple drink in the days when water was often unsafe. Brewing was an important and vital profession, and beer was frequently consumed with every meal.
In that sense, it would be more realistic to say that cuisine evolved in parallel with beer, and the foods we eat are heavily influenced by the flavors of the beverages that accompanied them through the ages.
Some pairings are no brainers. Belgian abbey ales and Belgian cheeses practically come out of the same farmhouse, so the sweet, musty flavor of the beers lock with the strong, creamy cheese in the most exquisite way; refined, elegant, and delicious (of course, a good Belgian also goes great with Cheez-whiz, but it’s not as impressive to your date).
Oysters and stouts are another time-honored couple, stemming from the pubs of 19th century England, in which oysters were a common snack food. The salty ocean flavor of the oysters mates well with a good stout’s roasted finish.
One style that takes this to an extreme is oyster stout: Originating on the Isle of Man, this beer in its archetypical form actually contained oysters. Today, Dogfish Head Brewing of Delaware makes an oyster stout that they filter through 300 pounds of oysters before packaging.
This may be a bit extreme for people who prefer to keep their food on the outside of their pint glass. Most folks find a dozen on the half shell and a glass of their favorite porter just as enjoyable. Much has been written about the supposed aphrodisiac qualites of the oyster, but not about the beer. So remember that when you combine the two, you’re either twice as attractive or half so.
Chefs will tell you that there’s no hard and fast rule for pairing individual beers with dishes. They try to envision the spices used in cooking, as well as the flavor of the ingredients when trying to pair food with brew. Heartier flavors may require a darker, more obtrusively flavored beer, whereas curries or spicy dishes may be best with a quenching light lager.
The point is that the process of discovering which food goes with which beer is quite an enjoyable one. You can do this in your own kitchen, or let others set it up for you at a local pairing. The Rohrbach Brewing Company regularly holds pairings, seats at which can be reserve in advance. A schedule of upcoming events can be found at www.rohrbachs.com. The Old Toad also runs pairings from time to time. For those into personal discovery, The Brewmaster’s Table, by Garrett Oliver, Head Brewer for the Brooklyn Brewing Company, is a tremendous resource for classic food and beer matchups.
Of course, many dishes, especially on restaurant/brewery menus, use beer as an ingredient. Rohrbach has a beef stew flavored with their Sam Patch Porter, while Buffalo’s Pearl Street Grill and Brewery makes a beer-braised pot roast. Many area restaurants also use beer in chili, and we’re all familiar with that Western New York classic: the beer-battered fish fry.
Likewise whole cookbooks have been devoted to cooking with beer. Many microbreweries publish their own, predictably self-serving tomes (place the ham in the Crock-pot. Add 3 cups STREUBEL brand PORTER…etc.), but a number of noted gourmets have also devoted pages to the subject.
Even if you’re not a beer nut, at least give it a chance. Next time you’re out at the restaurant, why not put the wine list aside and ask what’s on tap? You may discover that a certain nut brown ale ads much to the pleasure of that Kobe beef with Roquefort or lobster thermidor.
Or hell, you may just decide that it’s perfect with pizza, and that’s a match made in Heaven too.
In other beers:
• Monty’s Krown is stocking Carlsberg Elephant in bottles. The strongest beer produced by the Danish/Canadian brewery, Elephant is sweet, malty, and quite unique in flavor. It’ll also knock you on your butt if you’re not careful.
• Vermont’s Magic Hat Brewery has been making quite a name for itself in Rochester, and, unusually for a microbrewery, it’s going over well with the younger set. These guys like to release test batches to the public, gauging reaction before putting beers into general release. We just enjoyed their batch 373, a very good robust porter, at Macgregor’s Gregory Street Location.
Bruce is a certified beer judge and former commercial brewer. Mark owns a laptop and likes beer. For more on beer, check out the beercraft blog, updated regularly, at http://beercraft.blogspot.com. Send your questions, suggestions, or comments to beercraft@rochester.rr.com.
####
By Mark Tichenor and Bruce Lish
Remember the first time you had a beer together with a slice of pizza? At the time, wasn’t that the best beer, and best slice, you had ever tasted? As is the case in the world of wine, some beers go incredibly well with certain foods. When served together, the best is brought out in both cuisine and beer.
This is not accidental. Beer evolved up with western civilization, all the way from ancient Egypt, and was a staple drink in the days when water was often unsafe. Brewing was an important and vital profession, and beer was frequently consumed with every meal.
In that sense, it would be more realistic to say that cuisine evolved in parallel with beer, and the foods we eat are heavily influenced by the flavors of the beverages that accompanied them through the ages.
Some pairings are no brainers. Belgian abbey ales and Belgian cheeses practically come out of the same farmhouse, so the sweet, musty flavor of the beers lock with the strong, creamy cheese in the most exquisite way; refined, elegant, and delicious (of course, a good Belgian also goes great with Cheez-whiz, but it’s not as impressive to your date).
Oysters and stouts are another time-honored couple, stemming from the pubs of 19th century England, in which oysters were a common snack food. The salty ocean flavor of the oysters mates well with a good stout’s roasted finish.
One style that takes this to an extreme is oyster stout: Originating on the Isle of Man, this beer in its archetypical form actually contained oysters. Today, Dogfish Head Brewing of Delaware makes an oyster stout that they filter through 300 pounds of oysters before packaging.
This may be a bit extreme for people who prefer to keep their food on the outside of their pint glass. Most folks find a dozen on the half shell and a glass of their favorite porter just as enjoyable. Much has been written about the supposed aphrodisiac qualites of the oyster, but not about the beer. So remember that when you combine the two, you’re either twice as attractive or half so.
Chefs will tell you that there’s no hard and fast rule for pairing individual beers with dishes. They try to envision the spices used in cooking, as well as the flavor of the ingredients when trying to pair food with brew. Heartier flavors may require a darker, more obtrusively flavored beer, whereas curries or spicy dishes may be best with a quenching light lager.
The point is that the process of discovering which food goes with which beer is quite an enjoyable one. You can do this in your own kitchen, or let others set it up for you at a local pairing. The Rohrbach Brewing Company regularly holds pairings, seats at which can be reserve in advance. A schedule of upcoming events can be found at www.rohrbachs.com. The Old Toad also runs pairings from time to time. For those into personal discovery, The Brewmaster’s Table, by Garrett Oliver, Head Brewer for the Brooklyn Brewing Company, is a tremendous resource for classic food and beer matchups.
Of course, many dishes, especially on restaurant/brewery menus, use beer as an ingredient. Rohrbach has a beef stew flavored with their Sam Patch Porter, while Buffalo’s Pearl Street Grill and Brewery makes a beer-braised pot roast. Many area restaurants also use beer in chili, and we’re all familiar with that Western New York classic: the beer-battered fish fry.
Likewise whole cookbooks have been devoted to cooking with beer. Many microbreweries publish their own, predictably self-serving tomes (place the ham in the Crock-pot. Add 3 cups STREUBEL brand PORTER…etc.), but a number of noted gourmets have also devoted pages to the subject.
Even if you’re not a beer nut, at least give it a chance. Next time you’re out at the restaurant, why not put the wine list aside and ask what’s on tap? You may discover that a certain nut brown ale ads much to the pleasure of that Kobe beef with Roquefort or lobster thermidor.
Or hell, you may just decide that it’s perfect with pizza, and that’s a match made in Heaven too.
In other beers:
• Monty’s Krown is stocking Carlsberg Elephant in bottles. The strongest beer produced by the Danish/Canadian brewery, Elephant is sweet, malty, and quite unique in flavor. It’ll also knock you on your butt if you’re not careful.
• Vermont’s Magic Hat Brewery has been making quite a name for itself in Rochester, and, unusually for a microbrewery, it’s going over well with the younger set. These guys like to release test batches to the public, gauging reaction before putting beers into general release. We just enjoyed their batch 373, a very good robust porter, at Macgregor’s Gregory Street Location.
Bruce is a certified beer judge and former commercial brewer. Mark owns a laptop and likes beer. For more on beer, check out the beercraft blog, updated regularly, at http://beercraft.blogspot.com. Send your questions, suggestions, or comments to beercraft@rochester.rr.com.
####
The brewers return!
Bruce and our friend Bob Thomas have brewed a new batch of beer for the first time in over a year. Bob, an excellent homebrewer in his own right, has a sweet little brewery in his basement, and the two put it to good use.
The porter should be ready in a couple of weeks.
-Mark
The porter should be ready in a couple of weeks.
-Mark
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
C-town, part 2
We left our intrepid heroes tying one on in the best brewery in Cleveland, their sampler platters culminating in the mighty Lake Erie Monster, a "triple IPA" weighing in at 9% alcohol by volume.Ambling down 25th street, we headed into a fetching Irish-style pub called The Old Angle. The early hour ensured an empty bar, save for a couple of stocky, potato-headed guys engrossed in a televised Irish Football match. We ordered our pints.
The evening degraded from there. A hazy trip to a bar that specialized in Belgian beer followed. It might have been a nioe place, except for the hoity-toity lawyer types and their giggly overbaubled wives, all eschewing a gold mine of rare belgian ales in favor of pinkish "martinis." Never had I felt so smug drinking a Duvel.
the Belgian portion of the evening wrapped up, Bruce and I headed back somewhat unsteadily to the hotel, what for to begin part three of Saturday night in Cleveland...
The evening degraded from there. A hazy trip to a bar that specialized in Belgian beer followed. It might have been a nioe place, except for the hoity-toity lawyer types and their giggly overbaubled wives, all eschewing a gold mine of rare belgian ales in favor of pinkish "martinis." Never had I felt so smug drinking a Duvel.
the Belgian portion of the evening wrapped up, Bruce and I headed back somewhat unsteadily to the hotel, what for to begin part three of Saturday night in Cleveland...
Monday, February 13, 2006
Back from Cleveland.
I had no idea.
Growing up in the eighties, the only real impressions of Cleveland you get are the worst ones: The burning Cuyahoga River, high crime rates, the Cleveland Indians, et cetera. I admit that, as we trundled along a salt-whitened Interstate 90, I was subconsciously expecting a blasted-out relic of the Rust Belt, more suited to a Michael Moore documentary than a beer culture.
Cleveland, you proved me wrong. Thank you.
Our first stop: The Great Lakes Brewing Company on Market Street, where a helpful server named Amber promptly produced two beer sampler trays. Plowing my way through lager and ale alike, my favorite remained the Edmund Fitzgerald Porter. Dark, substantial, and exquisitely balanced, the opague brew went perfectly with my comically hearty bratwurst and pierogies.
Of course, the day continued. Holy Jesus, did it continue. I'll post the rest of it tomorrow. -Mark
Growing up in the eighties, the only real impressions of Cleveland you get are the worst ones: The burning Cuyahoga River, high crime rates, the Cleveland Indians, et cetera. I admit that, as we trundled along a salt-whitened Interstate 90, I was subconsciously expecting a blasted-out relic of the Rust Belt, more suited to a Michael Moore documentary than a beer culture.
Cleveland, you proved me wrong. Thank you.
Our first stop: The Great Lakes Brewing Company on Market Street, where a helpful server named Amber promptly produced two beer sampler trays. Plowing my way through lager and ale alike, my favorite remained the Edmund Fitzgerald Porter. Dark, substantial, and exquisitely balanced, the opague brew went perfectly with my comically hearty bratwurst and pierogies.
Of course, the day continued. Holy Jesus, did it continue. I'll post the rest of it tomorrow. -Mark
Friday, February 10, 2006
C-town or bust
Bruce and Myself will be heading to Cleveland tomorrow to see Sunday's Sigur Ros concert. First stop: the Great Lakes Brewery. Look for progresively blurry photos, as well as blog entries from the midst of the foamy carnage, as the two of us experience all the tropical wonders of metro Cleveland.
-Mark
-Mark
Monday, February 06, 2006
Beer goes well with food...
...and I'm not just talking about pizza. Many microbreweries hold beer and food pairing events in which each course is served with a complimentary beer. More on this in next weeks column.
In related news, if you're in Rochester this coming Saturday, you can enjoy a beer and wine tasting at Winterfest, in the Scottsville Ice Arena. The family-oriented event goes all day, and the tasting is from 7-9pm. Lots of Upstate NY breweries, including Southern Tier Brewing Company, the Rohrbach Brewing Company, and Casa Larga Vineyards, will be on hand for the event. Taste, discover, and enjoy!
Of course, I'll be in Cleveland so I gotta miss it.
-Mark
PS: I feel like pumping my visitor numbers, so: ANNA KOURNIKOVA.
In related news, if you're in Rochester this coming Saturday, you can enjoy a beer and wine tasting at Winterfest, in the Scottsville Ice Arena. The family-oriented event goes all day, and the tasting is from 7-9pm. Lots of Upstate NY breweries, including Southern Tier Brewing Company, the Rohrbach Brewing Company, and Casa Larga Vineyards, will be on hand for the event. Taste, discover, and enjoy!
Of course, I'll be in Cleveland so I gotta miss it.
-Mark
PS: I feel like pumping my visitor numbers, so: ANNA KOURNIKOVA.
Sunday, February 05, 2006
From Russia with Suds...
I picked up a case of Baltika 6, a Baltic porter brewed by St. Petersburg, Russia's Baltika Brewery.
Dark, sweet and malty, without a ton of hop character, and with a slight banana finish, Baltika 6 really hits the spot on cold winter days. There are better Baltic porters (Saku, Okocim and Ziewic, for example), but Baltika is a good beer in its own right and easier on the wallet.
-Mark
Dark, sweet and malty, without a ton of hop character, and with a slight banana finish, Baltika 6 really hits the spot on cold winter days. There are better Baltic porters (Saku, Okocim and Ziewic, for example), but Baltika is a good beer in its own right and easier on the wallet.
-Mark
Thursday, February 02, 2006
Introducing someone to good beer
Sad as it may be, sometimes beer lovers are paired with signifacnt others who have no appreciation for the drink whatsoever. Your wife or girlfriend may be a fuzzy navel-quaffing sweet freak who never took the time to tune her taste buds to the malt and hops channel. Your husband may have been a Coors Light man since his frat party days. Either way, an inability to understand a partner's passion for good beer places unecessary stress on any relationship.
Fortunately,given that there are so many styles, flavors, and characteristics of beer, there's probably one out there that your partner will enjoy; he or she simply doesn't know it yet. As long as they taste with an open mind, they are likely to discover tastes and aromas they've never before associated with beer.
So what do you serve them? A great place to find out is the Beer Advocate forum, where knowledgeable homebrewers and beer lovers have been hashing this question around for a while. To paraphrase their advice:
If your partner likes sweet drinks, start them off with a Lambic, like Lindemann's Framboise. It's a dry, light fizzy belgian flavored with raspberry, and chicks go apeshit for it. It's even pink!
If he or she only drinks American macrobrews, ease them in with Newcastle Brown. Newkie is a mellow, balanced ale, the archetype of the brown ale style. There's no super hop-bitterness or pronounced malt sweetness, so taste acclimation is quick and easy. After a few weeks of drinking Newcastle, they'll be wondering what else the beer world has to offer, and the two of you can enjoy long, fruitful tastings together.
-Mark
Fortunately,given that there are so many styles, flavors, and characteristics of beer, there's probably one out there that your partner will enjoy; he or she simply doesn't know it yet. As long as they taste with an open mind, they are likely to discover tastes and aromas they've never before associated with beer.
So what do you serve them? A great place to find out is the Beer Advocate forum, where knowledgeable homebrewers and beer lovers have been hashing this question around for a while. To paraphrase their advice:
If your partner likes sweet drinks, start them off with a Lambic, like Lindemann's Framboise. It's a dry, light fizzy belgian flavored with raspberry, and chicks go apeshit for it. It's even pink!
If he or she only drinks American macrobrews, ease them in with Newcastle Brown. Newkie is a mellow, balanced ale, the archetype of the brown ale style. There's no super hop-bitterness or pronounced malt sweetness, so taste acclimation is quick and easy. After a few weeks of drinking Newcastle, they'll be wondering what else the beer world has to offer, and the two of you can enjoy long, fruitful tastings together.
-Mark
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)