Showing posts with label Beer Pairing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Beer Pairing. Show all posts

Hoosier Beer Geek's CBMTCBL 

Monday, April 4, 2011 -
After last year's event, hubs and I were waiting quite a while for this year's Craft Beer Meal that Comes Before Lunch (CBMTCBL,) planned by the fine ladies & gents of Hoosier Beer Geek.  This past Saturday, we made our way to Brugge with tickets in hand and stomachs ready for a what would be a great morning.

Here is a run down on the brews we got to sip:  

New Albanian's Old Lightening Rod
A seasonal release, this is a smooth darker ale with molasses flavor.  It was deliciously paired with a cheese from Goose the Market.  The cheese was of a brie texture and taste, but very smooth.  Creamy and buttery, it had been wrapped in wood, giving the rind a slight salty and earthy finish.  I can picture the cheese oozing between the wood and huge grape leaves that were placed one on top and bottom. I apologize, being the cheese lover that I am, I really concentrated more on the cheese.  But I can tell you that the beer complimented it well, not overpowering but cleansing the palate for each bite.

Black Coffee

Brugge Black Coffee 
Subtly sweet smell, also had a strong coffee backbone.  Subtle chocolate taste to the palate.  

Broad Ripple Brewpub ESB 
Not carbonated like a standard ESB, but once warmed up a bit it was subtly bitter.  A bit more hoppy than anything, but a decent brew.


 


Dogfish Head My Antonia 
Sadly, Dogfish no longer sells their beer in Indiana.  Which is unfortunate, because this was my first taste of this particular brew and I would love to try it again (and again...)  A hoppy pilsner, I enjoyed how smooth it was.  Very drinkable for being an Imperial - surprisingly refreshing for a hoppy beer.


Mmm...chocolate bacon...


Sun King Baconator 2
Last year, we got to enjoy the original baconator beer, but this year, a slight twist was added.  The bacon was infused with milk chocolate from Indy's Best Chocolate.  So you had the sweetness taste from the chocolate, but a subtle smokey flavor from the bacon.  It was very good - cheers Sun King!


Lafayette Brewing Bumpyface Agave Wheatwine
A thicker alcohol taste than I anticipated, and also more smooth.  Not much of an opinion on this one, didn't really stand out to me or the hubs.



Schlafly Raspberry Coffee Stout 
This may be my favorite of the day.  It had a light raspberry smell, but a rich coffee flavor.  It made me think of those chocolate covered raspberry jelly treats I ate as a child.  But don't be thinking it was sweet, only subtle sweet because of the rich stout flavor.  I really enjoyed it - and there is quite a story behind it involving a grocery store and how it is made just for them.  Yum.




With poplar syrup addition

Brugge Bad Kitty 
We weren't originally going to be tasting this, but the scheduled woodruff wasn't delivered (it was stuck in Illinois somewhere).  A sour beer, it wasn't something I loved at first sip, but this is because I'm not a sour beer fan.  But, with a bit of their poplar syrup (which they mix in with their mustard normally...mmm...so good) added to the mix, it was pleasantly refreshing.


The food - oh yes, those frites that Brugge serves up.  We were given three choices, and I got to taste a little bit of each due to some sharing friends (thank you friends!):

Steak & Eggs, served with frites.  I've reviewed the steak & eggs time and time again and am happy to report it is still delish.  For the first few bites, I thought my steak was over seasoned, but the more I ate, the more I disagreed with myself.  Eggs were perfectly fried with a soft yolk for the frites and steak to soak up.  And of course, the fantastic frites.  I chose two different dipping sauces: hot curry and bleu cheese, this time around and both were phenomenal.  Nom.
German Cheese & Meat Platter.  Kyle had ordered this, and there was a variety of fruits, meats, cheeses and spreads.  I nibbled on some dragon fruit, which was very bland and some mustard cheese.  That cheese was fantastic, mustard seeds popping with each bite.  Nom again.




Sweet Potato & Goat Cheese Crepes.  If you know me, you know that I adore goat cheese and sweet potatoes and crepes are also ranked highly.  But really, I just adore goat cheese.  Unfortunately, I didn't order it.  Fortunately, Kristin (my vegetarian, beer loving gal) did!  My nibble was rich with earthy components, bursting with great herb flavor (thyme maybe?)  The goat cheese was creamy, big dollops inside the thin crepe.  Delish.  If it wasn't for those frites, I would have ordered this hands down.

Another successful event, we had a great time with our friends while noshing on some treats and sipping some brews.  Unfortunately, we had to take off rather quickly for another event that afternoon (more to come) so we missed out on the misc. tastes offered by HBG and their collection.  But I'm sure it was a grand time.

Thank you HBG's for another great event, and the Brugge for being a fantastic host location.  The servers, the cooks, and all those involved - cheers to all of you for a great morning.  I look forward to next year's event (and word to the wise, if you missed out, make sure to your ticket early!)

2 comments

Labels: , , , , ,

Sun King Sips at Tastings 

Friday, March 18, 2011 -
In celebration of the upcoming St. Paddy's Day, Tastings invited Sun King to participate in their weekly Wednesday tasting event.  A combination of two of my favorites in Indy (Tastings & Sun King), I immediately knew hubs and I had to participate.  Those who attended drank and ate well that evening - here is what you missed (and be sure to look at the great glasses Sun King served their beer in - love them!):

First Course - Sun Light Cream Ale served with Irish Breakfast in One Bite
Sun Light Cream Ale is the first beer I sampled from Sun King Brewing.  And to this day, it is consistently beautiful.  Clean and smooth, it is always great on the palate.  Couldn't have picked a better beer to pair with the treat Steven served up.  A deviled egg, consisting of a creamy center of yolk, goat cheese and mustard, was wrapped in a smokey and spiced Irish Banger sausage.  The taste was perfect - the seasoning of a great breakfast sausage.  To make it even better, it was wrapped in Rasher bacon - slightly fatty but crispy at the same time.  To calm it all down, an heirloom tomato coulis was the bed and perfectly thinned out sauce to cover the egg in.  The half surely wasn't enough - I could have eaten more of these (and of course, sip on the Sun Light as well).  Hubs doesn't even like deviled eggs and he too said that he wanted more.  A little goat cheese always make it a tasty treat, and with perfectly spiced sausage?  You can't go wrong.



Second Course - Osiris Pale Ale served with Corned Beef and Cabbage
If you like hoppy beer, you will love the hop punch from this Pale Ale.  And if you aren't a hop lover, I still say give it a taste.  You will be surprised on the citrus element you taste.   Definitely give it a sample next time you head to Sun King's tasting room - or buy it in a can at a store near you.  The beer carried a back of the mouth taste with the hops which played well with the beef brisket we were served.  A surprise to me, the beef brisket was infused with citrus elements, and that acid was perfect in the dish.  It gave the expected fatty (but full of flavor) corned beef an extra burst of flavor, which subtly lightened the heavy flavor of the meat.  And it give it an even lighter characteristic, the citrus was carried through in the warm cabbage slaw accented with a variety of herbs.  This isn't your run of the mill heavy with mayo cole slaw, but instead, a delightful citrus salad.  And what is corned beef without mustard?  Bringing it together was the Fermenti Osiris mustard sauce (which you can buy at the Indy Farmer's Market downtown - check out Fermenti Artisan).  A slight touch of honey for some sweetness, a dash of heavy cream for some thickness, and you've got yourself the best accompaniment to this dish you could have possibly asked for.  More mustard please!

Third Course - Dominator Dopplebock served with Shepard's Pie
This strong lager was rich and malty, boasting a strong molasses flavor.  Around 8% ABV, you know you are getting a strong beverage with a simple smell of the rich, deep flavors the glass holds.  I loved this matching as the dopplebock was balanced well with the Shepard's pie.  Duck confit was earthy and fatty on the tongue - delicious all on its own (thank you Maple Leaf Farms!)  But what I really loved about the confit was the sweetness of the golden raisin and fig chutney.  I'm not normally a fan of sweet chutney, but the figs were a great addition to the rich meat.  Figs, carrots, onions, malt vinegar and touch of honey brought a sweet element to the dish as it cut the thick taste of the duck.  On top, an Irish cheddar potato fritter: crisp fried goodness on the outside, slightly salty cheddar cheese with a creamy potato filling on the inside.  I personally like the two separate more than together as I didn't want to mask either flavor.  However, those fritters were great finger food that I could have eaten through the evening.

Fourth Course - Ring of Dingle Dry Irish Stout served with Deconstructed Irish Stout Stew
Now, I love my stouts.  And if you haven't had the opportunity to sip and savor this delicious Irish Stout, you better get out and do so because it will not disappoint.  I was stoked with the taste of cocoa in the Ring of Dingle.  It had a dry cocoa taste to it making it extremely drinkable - glass after glass.  Hubs tasted more coffee than cocoa, but either way, we both tasted something pretty amazing in that glass.  The second best pairing of the evening (see below for the best), it was matched with a coffee-crusted buffalo strip loin.  I didn't get the coffee flavor from the crust, and the Though initially a bit tough to cut into, the buffalo burst in flavor and was perfectly cooked throughout.  I didn't get any coffee tones from the crust, but the piece of meat was slathered in a divine sauce.  Creamy, buttery and rich in all the best ways, the stout gravy was amazing on the meat.  Rutabagas, parsnips, potatoes and carrots were part of the root vegetable confit bed, slightly seasoned with thyme and pepper.  Caramelized onions, rich in sweet flavor, also had a subtle rosemary taste, perfect for the homey stick-to-your-ribs meal.

Fin - Buffalo Fest served with Bread Pudding
Now my friends, remember the fantastic Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale that I sampled at WinterFest?  Or the equally delicious Buffalo Mac from Sun King at the festival?  Though both were delish, Sun King's Buffalo Fest blew it out of the water.  Why was this beer epic you may ask?  Oktoberfest.  My favorite type of beer was aged in a Bourbon barrel.  Best. Thing. Ever. So not only do you have all those great flavors of an Oktoberfest, but now you have these great elements of a bourbon infused into the drink.  So many flavors were expressed (caramel, vanilla, coconut), everyone was loving this beer.  And it was paired to perfection with the toasted croissant bread pudding.  Rich in buttery, yeasty flavor, these croissants were baked in a pecan-brown sugar custard.  Sweet, it was elevated to perfection with a reduced Bourbon-Devon cream sauce.  Heaven.  Steven: must have more.  Sun King: I'll be by to fill my growlers with this beautiful beverage if you will let me.
 

It was a great evening of fantastic beer and food.  Pairings were great, and all those attending were having a good time.  After two successful tastings together, I look forward to seeing many more in the future.  Congrats for great products to all those involved, especially Dave of Sun King and Steven of Tastings.

1 comments

Labels: , , , , , ,

A Case of the "Blends" 

Friday, September 17, 2010 -
Blended Wines.  Some people love them and have embraced this increasing trend while others have yet to try.  Tastings decided to expand their varietal series as we took a closer look at blended wines and a pairing of wonderful food.

First course was a white table wine, Pro-mis-Q-ous.  A combination of Gewurtztraminer, Chenin Blank and Chardonnay, the taste was subdued in flavor.  Originally, I could smell a hint of oak flavors, but after taking a bite of food, more intense flavor shine through.  Simple and basic in flavor, the three varieties blended well together to create a partnership.  The name says it all, does it not?

What normally would have been our apertif, we were treated to not only a tasting of wine but also to a pairing of food.  Unrue presented us with a warm pear and scallop salad.  Lemon-poached red pears and Granny Smith apples were on a bed of spicy arugula and then topped with perfectly pan-seared bay scallops.  I loved the use of the bay scallops, as it gave a delicate approach to the dish.  The red pears were not as grainy in texture (I'm not normally a fan of pears...yes, I think they taste like dirt...) but more crisp like the apples.  They soaked in the lemon flavors and were strengthened with the meyer lemon dressing.  The tartness of the lemon was refreshing, but what played well with it was the surprise of the St. Germaine foam on top.  This wonderful liquor made from elderflower gave the whole dish a sweetness that was cut by the salty flavors from a shaving of manchego cheese.  I loved the simplicity of the flavors in this dish - it was fantastic.

Our second course began the reds of the evening with a 2006 Michael~David "Incognito" Rouge.  Lodi Vineyards (located in California) produces this sharp, peppery smelling wine.  I was expecting the bold flavors of a Syrah after giving it a swirl and I was happy to have the subtle dryness delivered (if you remember, some individuals do not like reds like this.)  A fruity flavor of berries (especially blueberries) exploded on the palate and then rounded out with the tannines that I expected.  I had previously had this before (I can't help it, marketing gets me every time!) so I was happy to have another tasting.


Paired with the Incognito was the perfect dish - creole fish and dirty rice.  I had already envisioned sitting in Louisiana sipping the wine, so what a dish to match.  Wonderfully cooked mahi mahi was seasoned with creole spices and left you with a great back taste complimenting the wine perfectly.  The startchy dirty rice was cut with the richness of the fish.  To add another element, a basil remoulade was served on top leaving a basil heavy, creamy textured compliment.  A tinge of berry brought out the spices of the dish as well. A heavier dish, the second course contrasted sharply from the first, but I loved everything about it.  My favorite of the evening.

As I continued drooling over the creole mahi mahi and dirty rice (side note - all I want is dirty rice now...and that was a few days ago,) we were presented with our third tasting.  From Argentina, a 2007 Alta Vista "Atemporal" was smooth and full of flavor from the blends.   Malbec was the lead of the flavor, followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and a varietal I've never experienced - Petit Verdot.  I could taste the richness floral and red fruits from what I would expect out of a Malbec, being "fruit forward" in taste.  It finished silky and smooth in the mouth.

I was excited to see a strong and flavorful dish for the course.  Falafel and Babaganoush - two elements that I adore - were beautifully presented in a colorful dish.  A cumin-scented chickpea fritter was chopped so that it had almost a rice texture to it but with all the taste of a chickpea.  Even hubs who doesn't like chickpeas could have had more fritters.  On top was a roasted Japanese eggplant, which I was extremely excited to try as I had never had theJapanese eggplant before.  Sweeter in taste, it paired well with the creaminess of the roasted tomato cream sauce which was poured over the tasting.  I adored the creamy and heavy taste of the sauce as it added a new texture to the grainy chickpea flavors.  The gentlemen sitting next to me told his date that he could be a vegetarian if all the dishes were like this.  For a minute, I thought he was going to start licking his plate, but alas...

Revelry Vintners out of Columbia Valley, Washington, produced our next tasting, the 2008 Reveler.  Luscious in flavors, this was a reverse-style Bordeaux made with a blend of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.  It had a medium body with a clean finish and light tannines.  It is a limited series and was a great introduction for the reverse Bordeaux style that I had never tried.

With a bold flavor of the Reveler, what better to be served than lamb meatballs?  I love lamb but never had it in a meatball form, so I was excited to be served the red wine-braised lamb.  Served with a smooth porcini mushroom jus, pepper-roasted figs and maytag purple peruvian potatoes mad this a hearty dish.  I love the combination of the bleu Maytag cheese and thyme - it was a level of berry flavors combining with the earthiness of the smashed potatoes.  A little salty in taste, this was comfort food at its finest: salty but bold with meaty flavors.

 
Onto the dessert course, I was happy to not be given a dessert wine, but a white from Terra Alta, Spain.  I love Spanish wines and this 2007 Clos del Pinell Blanc was sweet but with a uniqueness of flavors.  Lemon amber in color, it had a grapefruit smell and was sweet (in the not overwhelming kind of way) on the tongue.  I could see this being served with a light dessert (as we were so happily served) or a seafood - seemed very versitle for a sweeter white.  Another thing I enjoyed, how simple the Spanish can be - can you get anymore basic with this label?
Mock cheesecake - I had no idea what to expect.  I was given a creamy, mascarpone panna cotta which was "eggy" in the perfect way (and yes, I understand that there are no eggs in panna cotta, but still, the cream, sugar and gelatin basics sometimes yield these flavors to me.)  A buttery, almond sugar cookie "crust" was sitting in a pool of sweet tangelo syrup.  The tangelo, which is a sweet fruit, similar to a tangerine, wasn't over the top sweet and complimented the mellow flavors of the mascarpone and almond.  The beautiful sparkle of the candied citrus and lychee (which is a berry) gave it a cruncy sweetness.  Light but sweet - a perfect ending to another wonderful meal. 

During the meal, I was able to enjoy a NEW addition to Tastings - the beautiful flat screen behind the open kitchen!  I know, a tv. And yes, it is exciting.  This is the perfect way for people who MUST see sports or something on the weekend to potentially have that opportunity.  For this tasting however, we were shown some classic pieces of digital art - a nice touch if I do say so myself.

I unfortunately can't make it to the next two Wednesday wine dinners (sad face) because I'll be heading to Seattle to try amazing food (happy face), but that doesn't mean you can't make it!  On Wednesday evening, they made a BIG announcement - Sun King Brewing is partnering with Tastings for an Oktoberfest Beer Tasting!  Beyond excited, as Sun King has some amazing craft beer (amazing tasting room by the way, you must check them out - they also great events, like HBG4) that will match well with Unrue's culinary masterpieces.  You should sign up for that one now - limited spots are available.  I already have my seat reserved, as well as the other marked evenings below:

September 22 - Regional Series: Napa in Nap Town
September 29 - Truly Progressive (Happy Anniversary to my hubby!)
*October 6 - An Evening with Burgess Cellars
*October 13 - Oktoberfest Beer Tasting with Sun King Brewing

Will I be seeing you at any of these events?

1 comments

Labels: , , , , , , ,

Marriott & Leinenkugel's Craft Beer Dinner 

Thursday, August 19, 2010 -
Friend and colleague, AB, has recently joined the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown property as a sales manager, and I was thrilled to hear from her last week.  She called not only to tell the news, but to also invite the hubs and I to an evening with the wonderful Marriott staff.  Little did I know that this "beer dinner" would feature my home state love, Leinies!

Yes, I know.  Miller (I'm sorry, MillerCoors, that will take a while to get used to) now owns the Leinenkugel Brewing Company and you can get their product from all over.  However, my love for these beverages is true to the Chippewa Falls, WI nature.  From my first HoneyBear (combo of the Honey Weiss & Berry Weiss) at the Bar East to my parents delivering me cases in Massachusetts when I was in college (because at that point, you couldn't get it anywhere outside of Wisco, Illinois and maybe Minnesota), I've always enjoyed it.  So yes, I was excited for this dinner and the wonderful pairing of Marriott food and liquid refreshments.

After a bit of mingling, we sat down and began a walk through on the creation of beer.  Basic lessons ranging from the four main ingredients (barley, hops, water and wheat) to the history of Leinies. We were all anxious to begin, and just like that, the first appetizer came out and the pouring began.

We began with the Summer Shandy, which is an American specialty lager.  Great summer beer because of the lemony flavor and carbonation.  This refreshing beverage is currently only available in the summer (love the seasonals) and goes great with a light pairing.  For instance, how about tuna? (*Excuse the lack of photo, I don't know how I missed it, but if you try hard, you can see it in the upper left hand corner of the menu photo.  But thank you Leinenkugel website for allowing me to utilize your photo.)
The paired food was tuna tsoi, served over thinly sliced cucumber and topped with herbs and crisp lotus root.  The dressing of soy and honey were also included to complete the Asian taste of the dish.  I love tuna, so I was ecstatic with this combo.  I had never had lotus root and was excited to try something new.  The slight crunch was great as it added something to the tuna's texture, which was of a ground consistency.


The second course began with a pouring of my go-to Leinie's beverage - Honey Weiss.  Also a palette pleaser, you can taste the honey through this wheat lager.  It is available all year (which I don't believe was the case always...) and is my favorite when mixed with the Berry Weiss, which we'll get to later.  I wouldn't be surprised if this is one of Leinie's biggest sellers, it really is a refreshing beer.

The words "quesadilla" and "cheese" explain why the second course was the hubs favorite.  A uniquely presented steak quesadilla served with tomato jalapeno pico set the tone for the Mexican dish.  There was a drizzle of cayenne oil, which didn't have much spice to it, and a dollop of avocado mayo. Lots of cheese, I didn't really taste too much of the other quesadilla fillings, but the pico was perfectly seasoned.  The coolness of the avocado mayo was a great accompaniment to the final bites. 

The third pairing was one of my favorites, the Sunset Wheat.  The herb and spice wheat was, once again, I believe only available as a seasonal American Wheat at one point, but now you can purchase it all year long.  It is a perfect beer to match with a light but earthy dish as it cleanses your mouth with a spicey finish.  I really do enjoy it sitting by the lake on a fine Wisconsin (or any state) evening.  You can see the sampling pictured with the paired salad.

To compliment the Sunset Wheat, the chefs presented us with our salad course.  There was a Mediterranean theme going on as we were presented with a crispy flatbread wrap, stuffed with Spring greens.  This was a drop of goat cheese (you know how much I love goat cheese?!) and accompanied by blueberries, mandarin oranges, beets and pecans.  There was also a basil oil with citrus accompaniments which worked well to bring out all the fruit flavors.  The fried flatbread wasn't heavy at all and gave a perfect crunch (with the pecans) to the salad.  And of course, the goat cheese's smooth creamy finish perfectly cut the citrus.  This was my favorite - it was a great combination.

For the entree, we were served the vienna style lager, Classic Amber.  I normally do not drink this, and after tasting it again, I found myself asking 'why not?'  Its name says it all - a classic red lager that you could easily drink more than one of, with or without your all American meal.  But in this case, we were served the all American meal, and this lager really shined through to compliment the dish..

We were served a glazed pork chop with broccolini and baby yukon potatoes.  The rustic apple compote was a lifesaver, because unfortunately, the pork chop was quite dry.  The apples offered a sweet bite to compliment the bourbon glaze, but it still fell a little short.  There was something about the broccolini that really stood out, a spice that gave it a slightly sweet but rustic taste which would have been a perfect match if all the components were brought together.

Duo was the theme for the final course - dessert!  To showcase how beer can really compliment any dish, we were encouraged to really play with two Leinie's beers.  First, the Creamy Dark - dark lager (and my father's favorite) is smooth and not too heavy.  It was the perfect beer to match with something heavy (like chocolate cake) as the two tastes match really well.  The second, which is my second favorite (after the Honey Weiss) and other half to my HoneyBear, the Berry Weiss.  This fruity wheat is that - fruity.  Made from trio of WI berries (logan, elder and blackberry) it is now available all year long (so you can enjoy HoneyBear's every day!)

The food accompaniment was a duo of chocolate terrine and vanilla bean cheesecake.  The wafer included wasn't necessary, and it didn't have too much flavor. If anything, it just broke up the creamy texture of the two desserts. The raspberry puree was fantastic with the terrine adding a fruit companion to the deep chocolate.  There was a sort of ganache on one side, and it was luscious (but once again, those two beers made it that much better!)  I wasn't a huge fan of the cheesecake, and I think it was because I was disappointed in the vanilla bean flavor that wasn't standing out.  But vanilla and berries - a great combo for sure!

It was a great evening to enjoy some of my favorite beers, great food and even more fantastic company.  Much thank you to Chef Jennifer, as this was her first event as a chef!  She did a great job with the menu, and I look forward to seeing all the great things she does at the Marriott. 

A great big thank you to AB for inviting us, I look forward to seeing you more in the future!

2 comments

Labels: , , , , , , , , , , ,