A chocolate cake and porter combination changed my life. A slice of dense chocolate mud cake was sitting on a paper plate in front of me. Our guide, talking all the while, poured a serving of a dark Speight’s Porter into the glass beside it. After a brewery tour and beer pairing that had already involved pizza, platters of charcuterie and an assortment of beers, we were satiated, almost full, but this – this idea that chocolate and beer could somehow taste good together – stopped me in my tracks.
The guide waxed lyrical on the merits of this particular porter, entreating us to slow down and sniff it. I did, and it was hit with a smoky coffee and chocolate aroma. It perfectly complemented the strong cocoa hit coming from the cake as it awakened from its refrigerated slumber. One sip, one bite, and I was hooked. While I enjoyed the other beer and food pairings, I – a constant baker – had found my heaven in the flavour sensations which happen when someone puts an ideal combination together. That was more than 20 years ago and I’ve been chasing that flavour dragon ever since.
At that time, I was living in New Zealand, a country of many small breweries and many, many beers. I had made it my mission to try a wide assortment while I was there, but that one night, a beer and food event at Christchurch’s Canterbury Brewery, was special.
I didn’t drink until I was 21 and hadn’t been particularly interested in beer, beyond being seduced by the freebies liberally handed out at college events. Those were just a means to a giddy end. That all changed when Cork’s Franciscan Well Brewery was first opened in 1998.
Reared on free pints of Heineken, we quickly took to their Chieftain IPA, but – unless we headed to North Mall in Cork city – it wasn’t available anywhere else.
A move to Dublin involved exploring beers that the Porterhouse was brewing right at their flagship spot in Temple Bar, and then there were trips to visit friends in Brussels (Chimay Bleue! Who knew? My head did, all the next day) and treks with visitors to the just-opened Guinness Storehouse in the early 2000s, where I enjoyed the advertising section far more than the coldest pint in Dublin in the Gravity Bar. But beer and food? That was not on my radar.
This tasting in New Zealand opened a whole new world for me – a world of beers brewed for flavour rather than volume, a world of tantalising taste combinations. It was a world where I got to try beers that were far more exciting than the three mainstream options then available in most Irish pubs: the yellow stuff, that dark one with the white head and, on a rare occasion, something slightly red.
I came home to Ireland in 2005 and haven’t touched any of the big brewery beers since, making a point of searching out the new and unusual from Irish microbreweries and imported beers, even home-brews when my partner, the Kiwi, decided to brew his own. He went on to set up his own brewery; I went on to co-write Sláinte: The Complete Guide to Irish Beer and Cider, and I wrote The Official Guinness Cookbook.
I’ve worked at beer festivals and events, hosted beer meals, fought beer vs wine battles, gone toe-to-toe with cider producers arguing for the beer side, all the while, always tasting and eager to try something new.
Now, here, we get to do that together. For this first column, we’re going to have fun pairing a few beers from Irish microbreweries with some of the delicious spring-time dishes featured in this edition of Irish Country Living Food (starting on p10) that Janine Kennedy has been busy cooking at her bright and busy farmhouse kitchen in Co Tipperary.
I’ve worked at beer festivals and beer events, hosted beer meals and long table dinners, fought beer vs wine battles, gone toe-to-toe with cider producers arguing for the beer side
Why pair beer with food? Quite simply, it’s a better match in so many cases than wine. There’s bitterness from the hops to stimulate the appetite, carbonation to cleanse your palate after each bite and, when it comes down to it, beer has a far wider range of flavours than wine.
So give beer the respect it deserves and pour it into a glass. You wouldn’t start swigging that chardonnay from the bottle, would you? You don’t need a pint glass either – in fact, the best receptacle for many beers can be a tulip shaped wine glass. Pour the beer and take a look. Swirl it, smell it, sip it. Take the time to appreciate the aroma, the flavour and the aftertaste. Unlike wine, we don’t spit, we taste beer.
Three beers to try with your food
1. Sour cream rhubarb crumble tart (p11). 18 Pole Star Sour from Dot Brew x Skellig Six, 4.2%, approx €3.80 for 44cl can
Sour beers are always special and there are lots of refreshing lemon flavours here that will enhance the tartness of the rhubarb without overwhelming it.
18 Pole Star Sour from Dot Brew x Skellig Six.
2. Marinated slow cooked lamb shoulder (p4). Devil’s Backbone Amber Ale from Kinnegar Brewing, 4.9% ABV, approx €3.25 for a 44cl can
With enough hops to lift the rich lamb shoulder, the toasted malt in this amber beauty ensures each sip will be appreciated when paired with this dish.
Devil’s Backbone Amber Ale from Kinnegar Brewing.
3. Spaetzle with goat’s cheese and caramelised onion (p12). Clonea Strand Kölsch Lager from Dungarvan Brewing Company, 4.5% ABV, approx €4.69 for 50cl bottle
The temptation to pair spaetzle with a German-inspired beer is irresistible and this Kölsch-style lager won’t disappoint. It’s clean, crisp, and an ideal complement for the goat’s cheese.
A chocolate cake and porter combination changed my life. A slice of dense chocolate mud cake was sitting on a paper plate in front of me. Our guide, talking all the while, poured a serving of a dark Speight’s Porter into the glass beside it. After a brewery tour and beer pairing that had already involved pizza, platters of charcuterie and an assortment of beers, we were satiated, almost full, but this – this idea that chocolate and beer could somehow taste good together – stopped me in my tracks.
The guide waxed lyrical on the merits of this particular porter, entreating us to slow down and sniff it. I did, and it was hit with a smoky coffee and chocolate aroma. It perfectly complemented the strong cocoa hit coming from the cake as it awakened from its refrigerated slumber. One sip, one bite, and I was hooked. While I enjoyed the other beer and food pairings, I – a constant baker – had found my heaven in the flavour sensations which happen when someone puts an ideal combination together. That was more than 20 years ago and I’ve been chasing that flavour dragon ever since.
At that time, I was living in New Zealand, a country of many small breweries and many, many beers. I had made it my mission to try a wide assortment while I was there, but that one night, a beer and food event at Christchurch’s Canterbury Brewery, was special.
I didn’t drink until I was 21 and hadn’t been particularly interested in beer, beyond being seduced by the freebies liberally handed out at college events. Those were just a means to a giddy end. That all changed when Cork’s Franciscan Well Brewery was first opened in 1998.
Reared on free pints of Heineken, we quickly took to their Chieftain IPA, but – unless we headed to North Mall in Cork city – it wasn’t available anywhere else.
A move to Dublin involved exploring beers that the Porterhouse was brewing right at their flagship spot in Temple Bar, and then there were trips to visit friends in Brussels (Chimay Bleue! Who knew? My head did, all the next day) and treks with visitors to the just-opened Guinness Storehouse in the early 2000s, where I enjoyed the advertising section far more than the coldest pint in Dublin in the Gravity Bar. But beer and food? That was not on my radar.
This tasting in New Zealand opened a whole new world for me – a world of beers brewed for flavour rather than volume, a world of tantalising taste combinations. It was a world where I got to try beers that were far more exciting than the three mainstream options then available in most Irish pubs: the yellow stuff, that dark one with the white head and, on a rare occasion, something slightly red.
I came home to Ireland in 2005 and haven’t touched any of the big brewery beers since, making a point of searching out the new and unusual from Irish microbreweries and imported beers, even home-brews when my partner, the Kiwi, decided to brew his own. He went on to set up his own brewery; I went on to co-write Sláinte: The Complete Guide to Irish Beer and Cider, and I wrote The Official Guinness Cookbook.
I’ve worked at beer festivals and events, hosted beer meals, fought beer vs wine battles, gone toe-to-toe with cider producers arguing for the beer side, all the while, always tasting and eager to try something new.
Now, here, we get to do that together. For this first column, we’re going to have fun pairing a few beers from Irish microbreweries with some of the delicious spring-time dishes featured in this edition of Irish Country Living Food (starting on p10) that Janine Kennedy has been busy cooking at her bright and busy farmhouse kitchen in Co Tipperary.
I’ve worked at beer festivals and beer events, hosted beer meals and long table dinners, fought beer vs wine battles, gone toe-to-toe with cider producers arguing for the beer side
Why pair beer with food? Quite simply, it’s a better match in so many cases than wine. There’s bitterness from the hops to stimulate the appetite, carbonation to cleanse your palate after each bite and, when it comes down to it, beer has a far wider range of flavours than wine.
So give beer the respect it deserves and pour it into a glass. You wouldn’t start swigging that chardonnay from the bottle, would you? You don’t need a pint glass either – in fact, the best receptacle for many beers can be a tulip shaped wine glass. Pour the beer and take a look. Swirl it, smell it, sip it. Take the time to appreciate the aroma, the flavour and the aftertaste. Unlike wine, we don’t spit, we taste beer.
Three beers to try with your food
1. Sour cream rhubarb crumble tart (p11). 18 Pole Star Sour from Dot Brew x Skellig Six, 4.2%, approx €3.80 for 44cl can
Sour beers are always special and there are lots of refreshing lemon flavours here that will enhance the tartness of the rhubarb without overwhelming it.
18 Pole Star Sour from Dot Brew x Skellig Six.
2. Marinated slow cooked lamb shoulder (p4). Devil’s Backbone Amber Ale from Kinnegar Brewing, 4.9% ABV, approx €3.25 for a 44cl can
With enough hops to lift the rich lamb shoulder, the toasted malt in this amber beauty ensures each sip will be appreciated when paired with this dish.
Devil’s Backbone Amber Ale from Kinnegar Brewing.
3. Spaetzle with goat’s cheese and caramelised onion (p12). Clonea Strand Kölsch Lager from Dungarvan Brewing Company, 4.5% ABV, approx €4.69 for 50cl bottle
The temptation to pair spaetzle with a German-inspired beer is irresistible and this Kölsch-style lager won’t disappoint. It’s clean, crisp, and an ideal complement for the goat’s cheese.
SHARING OPTIONS