Plenty of people (at least people who appreciate a good beer) talk about pairing beer with food. This has been popular for some time, and although it continues to grow, it still isn't as commonly thought of as pairing wines with beer. Well I was going back over some articles I hadn't read in some of my old issues of The Beer Connoisseur magazine and the Winter 2010/2011 issue had an article that focused specifically on Beer and Chocolate. I've done wine and chocolate, but I've never done beer and chocolate. I think I may just have to try it - and have some friends over to try it with me.
The article (Sweet Rewards by Brandon Hernandez) starts by mentioning a "Beer-Pairing Box" by Recchiuti (www.recchiuti.com) which can be ordered from their website that includes:
- cardamom-nougat to pair with IPAs
- burnt carmel for less hoppy dark beers
- bergamot tea for English-style bitter ale
It then mentions additional pairings:
- Stone Smoked Porter with Taza's cinnamon-laced Chocolate Mexicano (www.tazachocolate.com)
- sour cherry Verhaeghe Echt Kriekenbier with Taza's 80% cacao chocolate
- Cambridge Brewing Company Milk Chocolate Stout (which is brewed with Taza cacao nibs) paired with just about any other chocolate variety
Then it goes on further:
- stout with truffles
- weissbock with a coconut filled chocolates
- slightly sweet beers with chocolates that have a caramel center
- darker Belgian-style beers with chocolate bars
- a very hoppy IPA with floral notes and citric edges paired with dark chocolate with deep red fruit notes and some spice
- a smoky stout with chocolate filled with almond and hazelnut praline
- stouts and porters paired with brownies and truffles
- smoky porter witha cardamom nougat chocolate
"It's best to avoid light, refreshing beers," warns Michael Antonorsi of Chuao Chocolatier (www.chuaochacolatier.com) in this article. He goes on to say that, "In general, very flavorful beers will pair beautifully with many different chocolates."
Alex Whitmore of Taza Chocolate suggests balancing sweetness - "putting a darker, 80% [cacao] chocolate with [something] sweeter and a sweeter, 50% chocolate with [something] drier."
In the end, I agree with the author's decision to wrap up his article with a quote from Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery (www.brooklynbrewery.com), "In order to find great pairings, you may have to eat a lot of chocolate and drink a lot of beer, which I can't regard as a problem"
