Food and Beer pairings with Randy Mosher!

As most of you know, I geek out about food pairings! (There is nothing better than eating and drinking something that just goes really well together- when you try it- you will know it!) I was introduced to the  world of food pairings in Boulder, where I was taught the the basics. ( "What grows together goes together", drinks acting as a "second sauce" on a dish, the drink must stand up to body and flavor of dish, the flavor wheel, etc.) Traditionalists might say that any nice dish can be paired with a nice glass of wine- but more recently beer pairing advocates have been giving them a run for their money.

(I paired 5 Rabbits- 5 Vulture- a dark ale brewed with ancho chilis and Native Food's African Peanut Soup)














Nathan bought The Brew Master's Table,by Brooklyn Brewery's own brewmaster Garrett Oliver, before we headed to Chicago. I got so excited when it arrived that I read a lot of it on the flight up here. Oliver is a genius when it comes to this stuff- he is a wealth of information and he has put it all together in one easy to read book. I recommend this to anyone that wants to learn the basics of beer pairing- plus it is fun to read -and good to reference. He highlights a large array of widely known beer styles, then gives an overview of his favorite commercial beers available in those styles, as well as the food he thinks you should eat with them -and why!

Some of his favorite pairings:
Oysters with an Irish Stout
Spicy Mexican food with an aromatic Pale Ale
Duck Confit with a Belgian Abbey Ale
Goat Cheese salad with Belgian Wit beer
Porcinni Risotto with a German Bock

                                                     (Randy Mosher is the guy in the middle teaching about cool stuff- beer pairing!!!)

At the end of the Chicago portion of Nathan's program, they brought in Randy Mosher (legendary brewing author and recent partner at 5 Rabbits Brewing Company in the Chicago area) to teach them about pairing food with beer. Mosher (along with Oliver and many others) believe that beer pairs better with food than wine. Beer has such a wide spectrum of flavors (very bitter to very sweet), colors (light straw to rich black) and textures (a light mouthfeel to rich and creamy) that it can stand up to the wide spectrum of food available. He also mentioned that the CO2 found in beer lends itself to cleansing or "reseting" the palate. Nathan also mentioned that Mosher is working with Ray Daniels to create an authoriative list of beer and food pairings in a new book coming out soon (those of us who cannot learn from the man himself can at least read about it!)

Some of the pairings Randy Mosher brought with him to class:
-Key lime pie and Brooklyn Brewery's Sorachi Ace (Nates personal favorite)
-Funky blue cheese with a aromatic Saison Rue (pictured below)
-Gruere cheese with a nutty brown ale

After reading some of this literature, learning from others and testing out my own palate: I have come up with a few basic recommendations myself:
-Chocolate cake and a Frambiose
-Spicy curried mussels and IPA
-Omelets or Salmon (brunch food) with Hefeweizen
-Pork tenderloin with Kriek

The best thing about pairings is that there really is not a right or wrong answer- you can follow the guidelines but at the end of the day, everyone has their own preferences! So- go out, buy some beers and experiment for yourself! (Start with cheeses- they are great for beer pairings.)