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Reviewbicle: Thanksgiving Special

Beer Reviewbicle: Thanksgiving Special

November 2013

Dan Belfry and Jon Buck

www.brewbicle.com

Well it is that time of year when leaves start to turn colors, the air gets cooler, ugly sweater party invites start to materialize, and also when the elusive Turduckin appears from the woods and ends up on your dining room table. To celebrate such a festive season without beer would be unheard of. We’d like to pull together a list of beers that we think will add to your family’s celebration, your enjoyment of your family, and the seasonal meal we hope you all share together.

Knowing that everyone has their own unique culinary traditions we have stuck to some very traditional and stereotypical offerings to make our suggestions. Hopefully you can use these as a starting point and apply as needed to fit in your own celebration of thanks. We’ve also tried to keep this list as local as possible, to show support of our awesome MN craft beer scene.

APPETIZERS:

food beer squareCan range from cheese and crackers, to meatballs, to egg rolls. This pairing, having such a wide degree of accompanying foods, we think would be best to pair according to flexibility and neutrality. We wanted to suggest some things that are, easy drinking, and have a well-rounded character that would go with any and all of the apps out on your table. Plus you’ve got a whole day of eating and drinking ahead of you at this point. Think marathon.

Schell’s Pils – Crisp and grassy, tastes of biscuit, and hints of lemon citrus. Serves as a great back-drop and palette cleanser for a wide variety of pre-meal treats

Lift Bridge Farm Girl – Heavier on the grassy – grainy flavors, and citrus notes but still a good sharp cleanliness and healthy dose of refreshing. This is a versatile Saison as it is not too aggressive in its’ funk or yeast flavors.

FIRST COURSE:

senor wong phoAssuming a salad of some variety, perhaps some mixed greens with some candied nuts and strong cheese such as a bleu or goat. Maybe arugula topped with prosciutto and parmesan. Perhaps something with fruit, strawberries or raspberries and a vinaigrette. All sound lovely and offer different pairing opportunities to kick things off while sitting around the table.

For the nutty/cheese salad:

Odell 90 Shilling – This scotch ale offers a sweet and malty character with a lot of depth and the rich flavor would hold up well to a strong cheese.

Surly Furious – The resinous and fruity character of the hops and bready malts will do wonders with the strong cheese and will stand-up to the all nuttiness this salad can throw at it. Plus it’s a hometown favorite, how can you go wrong?

For the Fruity tart salad:

Indeed Day Tripper – The crisp clean character and friendly presence of hops will balance with acidity and complement the fruits. It will also hold its’ own with some milder cheeses.

MAIN COURSE:

Ah here we are! The main course, likely a smorgasbord of Turkey, gravy, cranberries, mashed potatoes, au gratin potatoes, stuffing, and the infamous green bean casserole. Plus many others, the common element here is most of these things are savory and/or salty in character. They are rich and strong flavors plus you’ve made it to the main event so time to indulge in some stronger and layered beers to match the food before you.
Summit Brewing Biere De Garde
Summit Biere de Garde – With a strong malt profile, amazing biscuit flavors, hints of caramel and faint inklings of cherries this is a well-rounded and wonderful pairing to your main course. Plus at 8.5% packs a decent punch and will get your digestion working on that bird.

Dangerous Man Belgian Golden Strong – Hopefully this is available leading up to the big day, get yourself a growler fill. Then watch as this deliciously complex blend of yeast, hops and alcohol meld in a heavenly manner with the heavy and rich foods on your table.

Stone Arrogant or Double or Oaked Bastard – Dark ruby color, high ABV and a complexity of dark fruit, hops and caramel/toffee make this one another fine choice to wash down that turducken. See if Uncle Eddy isn’t face-down in his mashed potatoes after this beer.

DESSERT

Let’s assume some of our favorites are being served; Apple pie, Pumpkin pie, and French Silk pie (we like pie). Each present a different opportunity.

Apple Pie:

Trappistes Rochefort 10: Let this strong Belgian beauty make friends with your apple pie. The dark fruits will complement that tart apple and if served alamode the cream will graciously carry away the alcohol to the delight of your taste buds.

Backwoods Bastard: Apples, brown sugar, cinnamon and bourbon, our work here is done.

Pumpkin Pie:

Southern Tier Pumking – The quintessential pumpkin beer to accompany the quintessential Thanksgiving desert.

French Silk Pie:

Founders Porter – More chocolaty/sweet and less roasty than most of its Porter counterparts means it will really play up the rich and thick nature of the pie. It will also layer a nice coffee flavor in the mix. Why isn’t there Coffee French Silk pie?

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Flight with Bites – A Beer and Food Pairing Social Event

Please join us for our first monthly social event of Flight with Bites, hosted by MN Beer Activists and Senor Wong Bar & Restaurant, with special guest Kevin Welch of Boom Island Brewery. Participants will be able to sample the current seasonal style of beer available from four different breweries and enjoy pairing those beers with foods in a fun, casual, and social atmosphere.

$25 per person (includes tax, tip and donation)
Saturday, Dec 22nd
6:00pm-7:00pm

  • Featured Beer Style: Christmas/Holiday Ales
  • Featured Beer Flight: Indeed Old Friend (MN) – A limited release Holiday Ale with fresh ginger root and a hefty dollop of family harvested honey. This fireside companion has a deep ruby-colored body with layers of malt complexity and an intense ginger aroma. Reunite with friends, old and new, and celebrate the season with an Old Friend by your side. 7 % ABV
  • Bells Christmas Ale (MI) – A malt driven scotch ale, made with 100% Michigan grown barley and a blend of Pacific Northwest and Michigan hops.
    Boom Island Yule (MN) – Yule smell the holiday spices before it hits the glass. Yule savor the rich, toasted malts and drink deep in the spirit of the season. http://boomislandbrewing.com/Yule.html
    St. Bernardas Christmas Ale – St. Bernardus Christmas Ale is the youngest descendant in the illustrious family of delicious Abbey Ales by Brewery St. Bernardus. This specialty beer of 10% alc. vol. is characterized by its deep dark colour, with a creamy, thick head and a full, almost velvety taste with a fruity nose. It’s a seasonal ale, brewed annually for the holiday season. The long winter nights are perfect moments to savour this ale with or without friends and to enjoy its unique, complex taste and after-taste. RateBeer: 99
  • Meet and talk to Kevin Welch, owner and brewer at Boom Island Brewery.
  • Espresso rubbed lamb loin w/ mole
    Pho soup dumpling w/ braised oxtail, onion, herbs
    Crispy pickled red onion rings w/ adobo sauce and queso cotija
    Impossible cake: cherry flan, chocolate cake, mexican chocolate pudding, dulce de leche powder, nuts

Please call for reservations. A credit card is needed to secure your reservation. 651.224.2019

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Eat a Beer: Thanksgiving

I see it only fitting that the first recipe I post is for America’s favorite day of food consumption – Thanksgiving!
We all have a coveted favorite dish.
Mine? Well, it’s stuffing. Complete with beer infusion, of course!

Crack a beer & let’s get this started!

Chicken Beer Stock:
Place stripped chicken carcass(es) in large stock pot (8qt or bigger).
Pour in 12-24 oz or more of your favorite beer. I used a Rye Stout homebrew. Add water or beer as needed. I cooked for 2 hours on high heat.
Boil down & reduce to half.
Remove carcasses & strain to be sure there is no bones or inedibles hanging around.
Set aside for later. You can make this days in advance.
You will need 2 cups and more.

Thanksgiving

 

The Bread:
I baked a loaf of rye beer bread used with the same Rye Stout homebrew. Malty beers would be choice for bread. I baked the loaf 2 days in advance. You will need enough bread for 8 cups of cubed bread.
Air dry sliced bread overnight.
Cube bread, toss with olive oil, sage, thyme, cracked pepper & a pinch of clove.
I toasted for 30 mins in oven @ 300 & turned every 10 mins for even toasting.

While toasting the bread, I prepped the fruit & veggies.
1cup chopped celery
1cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped water chestnuts
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled & chopped.
I soaked the chopped mix in 1/4cup beer, 2 tbsps of maple syrup while waiting for bread to finish.

The Meats:
I love sausage in my stuffing!
I cooked : (in electric skillet)
1/2lb Italian sausage
4 cinnamon apple breakfast links
4 strips of bacon
Cook, chop into smaller pieces.
Set aside.

While skillet is still hot, add veggie & fruit mix, including liquid. Cook down until onion is translucent, but not browned.
Add 1 stick of butter to pan & melt. Add 1.5 cups of chicken beer stock.
Add toasted bread a bit at a time & fold into mixture. When well coated, add meat.
You may need to add more stock if you like a moister stuffing. Denser bread will need more liquid.

Cook in electric skillet @ 300 for 40 mins.
Oven: cook covered @ 350 for 30-40 mins.
Serve and enjoy with your favorite beer!

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Adventures in Beer Pairing

By Derek Allmendinger

People have been drinking beer with pizza for hundreds of years. It’s a natural combination. Coincidentally, my first taste of beer was in a pizza joint. It was a Pizza Hut in Pipestone, Minnesota, in the late 1980s. I can’t tell you what brand it was, but knowing my dad it was probably PBR. And, hey, it was the 1980s so it all pretty much tasted the same, anyway. Point being, people drink beer with pizza. Fortunately, nowadays, we have much better beer options for pairing with our ‘za.

I had a Saturday to myself recently and decided to hit up one of my favorites, Punch Pizza. Punch has been making fantastic Neapolitan pies for years and has been doing a pretty good job of keeping a nice rotation of local craft beers on tap. Since I live in Eden Prairie, I most often frequent this particular location. It is where I fell in love with Harriet’s West Side, Brau Bros’ Hopsession and other great Minnesota beers. I must disclose that I used to work at this Punch location. I was a part-time dough and toppings guy back in 2009-10.

I recently acquired Garrett Oliver’s book, The Brewmaster’s Table. The book is an amazing reference guide to pairing food with beer and it has gotten me excited to explore the world of pairing. I like to eat and, like many of us, I’m sometimes guilty of wolfing down food so fast that I don’t taste it. It is the same as when I drank beer in college – of course, that beer didn’t have much taste. Since I began exploring the world of craft beer, I’ve stopped to smell the roses, so to speak, and the more aware I am of what I’m drinking, the more I enjoy and appreciate it. I am now starting to do the same with food.

So let’s get to the fun part. I ordered the Margherita pizza, a classic Neapolitan tradition. The only toppings besides the fresh mozzarella and tomato sauce are a few leaves of fresh basil. If I may quote one of my favorite movies, “The beauty of this is its simplicity.” However, simple does not mean boring. The fresh mozzarella has so much flavor. And the sauce doesn’t come from tomato paste, it’s simply crushed San Marzano tomatoes, so elegant and full of vibrant flavors. And the dough, like any good pizza, must also shine and all Punch pizzas deliver on this. I paired this with Day Tripper, an American Pale Ale from Indeed Brewing Company.

Day Tripper from Indeed Brewing Company

What did I think? First of all, the aromas of both were amazing. Fresh-baked bread and basil notes from the pizza and a huge dose of evergreen tree, fruity esters and caramel malt from the beer. What I liked was the way the fresh hops and fresh basil aromas played off each other. It was very inviting. The hoppy flavor in the beer, which also gave off massive Christmas tree scents, favorably contrasted the acidic tomato sauce. The pleasant bitterness of this beer cuts nicely through the cheese. One of the things I really found impressive about this pairing was that the beer really scrubbed the tongue, leaving it ready for the next flavor assault.

Overall, a good pairing with great individual flavors and aromas that married well. I loved the aroma of the beer. I mentioned evergreen and it is probably the most piney I’ve ever smelled. And I mean that in a good way. Cat pee and sweaty gym bag don’t sound very pleasant, either, but if they are shouting at you from your pint glass, it can be a great thing. As long as I don’t belch tree ornaments we’ll be okay. At another visit I would like to pair the Day Tripper with one of the more spicy pizzas like the Vesuvio with hot peppers and spicy salami; or the Bufalina with its flavorful arugula and earthy buffalo mozzarella. If I ordered the Margherita again I might try a more delicate beer like a pilsner or cream ale. Or, if I’m feeling particularly bold, perhaps a smoked beer to complement the charred blisters on the crust of every Punch pizza.

If this got you in the mood for a pie and a pint there are numerous places in the Twin Cities that offer amazing pizza and a good craft beer selection. Any of these spots are sure to get your mouth watering; Pizza Lucé , Black Sheep, Pizza Nea, Pizzaria Lola or any of the seven Punch Pizza locations. Salud!