Whenever there is a meal on the table, there has also been a need to have a drink on hand to accompany it. While the ins and outs of what’s on the menu have changed over time, right now, the most popular drink is craft beer. The world of small-batch, handcrafted, and detail-oriented craft beer has not only attracted many admirers of great beer, but has also piqued the interest of foodies around the world regarding the possible combinations that could be made with your favorite foods.
It’s easy to see why the idea of pairing a good craft beer with certain foods would be of great interest. Think of craft beer the same way you would think of wine. In the same way that certain flavor notes in wine pair very well with certain foods, so does well-made beer.
Here are five beer and food pairings that you really need to consider for your next gathering:
Golden ale – These light beers are easy to drink and have a balanced flavor, which makes them a perfect pairing with familiar foods. Burgers, brats, and Mexican cuisine are safe bets for a great combination of beer and food.
Dark red ale – Now you’ve moved on to some more exotic flavors, but you’re still grappling with a mild, roasted flavor that has a dose of American hops and Belgian yeast. This beer moves between flavors and styles, which would make it a good choice when working with spicy foods and even spicy cheeses.
Chocolate-based stout – A strong beer with notes of chocolate is not willing to be tame and somewhat muffled. You are looking at a beer that pretends to be noticed. A robust flavor of deeply roasted barley lingers, which goes great with roasted foods (think root vegetables) and even more pronounced flavored desserts.
Ingenuity – A Belgian-style wheat beer, the ingenuity is subtle in its spices and its citrus base allows a refreshing citrus profile to emerge. This is the type of beer that many people wish they had discovered years earlier because it has all the flavor profiles of a great beer with a certain “lightness” that makes it easy to enjoy. It goes very well with vegetarian dishes, light soups, seafood and sushi.
American IPA – American IPA combines the malt, citrus and floral notes of American hops, balancing the flavors that figuratively set your taste buds on fire. That being said, it does have quite an interesting variety of foods that can go along with this particular drink. Spicy dishes from all corners of the world are fair game, as are the more tried and true snacks, like the salty and fried foods, more familiar to the average beer drinker. Curries are also a very interesting option.
Craft beer, like modern art, can be daunting for the person who’s not so sure that stepping away from their usual adult beverage is the best idea. However, when you realize how much fun exploring world cuisine can be with an ice cold drink in hand, you may wish you discovered craft beer sooner. So, feast on the goodness (and plentiful options) of craft beer, and enjoy your next meal with a cold one.