Last night, a small group of us gathered at Flatbread for an evening of beer and cheese pairings hosted by Garrett Oliver, Brewmaster of The Brooklyn Brewery and author of The Brewmaster's Table. I have to admit, prior to this event, I was skeptical about how well beer and cheese actually go together. What about wine?
Garrett started the evening by giving all of us a bit of background on the history of cheese and beer. He shared his feelings about the growing number food items in our grocery store that are FILLED with many too many ingredients to help preserve them. How long does bread stay fresh? Real bread only keeps for a few days. So what is the grocery store selling? Answer: A steamed product with no real crust. It's actually food coloring that makes the outside of the product look like crust on the loaves that seem to last forever. And then there are cheese, "singles." I can't even go there. Ew. OK, back to the history lesson. Cheese was originally made to capture milk so it wouldn't go bad before it could be consumed. Making beer was a way to capture clean water. Before there were water purifiers, there was always a concern that...a cow (for example) might wander into your river, DIE and contaminate your entire water source. Hmm...Beer and cheese have been dietary staples for hundreds of years. It just makes sense to pair them together.
Shortly after the introduction, we began to taste the beer...and then the cheese...and finally the beer and cheese together! I have a new appreciation for a person's ability to select a beer and a cheese that compliment each other. In one case, I really thought the beer was blah but, coupled with brined sheep's milk cheese, the combination was perfect!
We were also surprised to hear that despite all we've ever heard about the union of wine and cheese...people in the industry find it near impossible to successfully match a red wine with a cheese. Garrett told us that in one case, a Sommelier announced that, since he had lost in the past with red wine, he was going to cheat and serve his cheeses with Sherry. Garrett later said, "...and he still lost!" In many cases people pair wine and cheese together without much thought since a cheese course falls towards the end of a meal. They just look for what's left of the wine and go for it. In my opinion, that approach is still fine. I'm just glad to know that when I really want to taste something wonderful there are people out there who can guide me.
Thanks for entering the contest at the Brewer's Festival Jay and Maegen...and winning!
Here are the pairings:
Vermont Butter & Cheese Chevre with Brooklyn Sorachi Ace
Taleggio with Brooklyn Local 2
St. Andre Triple Cream with Brooklyn Local 1
Petit Basque with Brooklyn Brown Ale
Shelburne Farms 1 Year Old Cheddar with Brooklyn East India Pale Ale
Jaspar Hill Bayley Hazen Blue with Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout
Maegen, moments after I missed the "cheese sniffing" moment.
Brooklyn Brown Ale: the 4th of six pairings.
A few of The Critics.
The Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout was selected for the final pairing.
