January 11. 2014 Show

This week was a very special treat as we devoted an entire show to beer and food pairings and were blessed to have Chef Gene Philbin  from Peculiar Culinary Company in the studio to partake in some great beers and we were also truly blessed when he brought in his Pork Belly with Mac n Cheese and fresh made sliders for us all to enjoy.  This truly was a special show!

We again tasted our beers from left to right and set them in order of a meal with Green Flash's Saison Diego being great for appetizers and Brewery Ommegang's Three Philosophers taking on desserts.


Green Flash Brewing Company- Saison Diego: This light and refreshing saison comes in at 4.2% ABV is perfect for light appetizers and we decided to pair this with Cypress Grove's award winning Humboldt Fog cheese, the pairing was discussed at length on the show but was a positive one that highlighted the beer.

Dogfish Head- Namaste This beer is new to the 12oz bottle world and we were lucky enough to get some extremely fresh offerings of it.  Dogfish's take on the witbier has notes of coriander and lemongrass is very light but flavorful.  We again paired this one with the Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog cheese to showcase just how much beer can effect food and vice versa, this time the pairing helped to showcase the cheese.

Yards Brewing Company- IPA: Yards began as an English styled brewery and despite their astronomical growth they has certainly not left their roots and it is showcased in this delicious IPA. This beefed up version of an English IPA with American hops certainly has a bite, but a tame one and instead has a very sweet and smooth body that is just perfect for pairing with meat, so we of course paired this with Chef Gene's Pork belly Mac n Cheese (which he also mentioned that he does another variation of this dish and actually braises the pork in IPA before adding to the mac n cheese!) along with his phenomenal sliders that he simply calls "The Burger."  A truly wonderful pairing!

Brewery Ommegang- Three Philosophers: We finally wrapped things up with our dessert dish.  This Belgian style Quad has cherries added directly in and is just a smooth and highly drinkable Belgian beer.  We could not help but pair this with some dark chocolate (55% cacao) with cherries and almonds added in for flavors that seemingly danced across our palates.

The biggest take away from this show: Good beer pairs with good food for the ultimate experience, good beer will not make a bad dish better and good food will not make a bad beer better!