Beer 'n' meat

An aptly named tasting sponsored by the Culinary Center at the gigantorama Whole Foods on the Bowery. Much as I want to hate Whole Foods for being gargantuan and taking up a city block, I have to admit I appreciate their fun stuff like this event, where they paired beers from the Captain Lawrence Brewing Company with a variety of tasty meats from the market and brought The Shameless Carnivore Scott Gold to lead a discussion with brewmeister/Captain Lawrence himself, Scott Vaccaro, and Tate Ramos, the meat coordinator the the market.  (Meat coordinator, huh? That's either a job I should pursue or a friend I ought to cozy up to.)

Okay, what you see here is the tasting plate.  Starting at 12 o'clock, we've got Swedish meatballs made with ground buffalo, a chicken liver and veal pate, Prosciutto d'Parma (droool), Nostrano (an Italian American salumi that evokes a different sort of droooool), and smoked duck with Wheelhouse Minor Threat mustard.  Not in the picture is a small piece of Mo's Chocolate Bacon from Vosges.

All of these items were lovely and memorable on their own, although the pate and chocolate with bacon-bits made me swoon considerably less than the other delectables.  The Swedish meatballs had the sweetness but not the dryness of buffalo meat and got paired with a cranberry - as opposed to lingonberry - sauce to display American ingredients.  The rich, savory, and definitely salty Nostrano emitted a perceptible aroma that I can't quite describe - sort of tangy, peppery / spicy, and ripe.  The smoked duck breast - how did I not wind up with a cart full of this stuff?  The dense meat and creamy fat were in perfect balance. The smokiness did not overwhelm the flavor and paired perfectly with the piquant and sweet mustard, made with habaneros and mango.  It took a lot of restraint on my part not to mop up the mustard with my fingers.

Okay, that was the meat.  What about the beer?  Like the meats, excellent on their own - I am now a fan and will look for Captain Lawrence beer whenever I go to a bar.  I'm also planning a trip soon to Pleasantville, not too far away, for their brewery tours and tastings (ah, Pleasantville, what better place to quaff a beer).

And the pairings?  They really, really worked.  I appreciate the thought put into them.  An Imperial IPA was served with the buffalo Swedish meatballs, the intense flavor of the IPA matching up but not crowding out the richness and heartiness of the meatballs.  Liquid Gold, a light on hops but flavorful and spicy brew, made with a Belgian yeast strain and coriander, served as an elegant partner for the delicate pate.  The Prosciutto came, somewhat surprisingly to me, with a brown ale, but this particular brown ale worked: not overwhelmingly malty - just enough to balance the saltiness of the Prosciutto - and not too full-bodied; a very drinkable brown ale that I can fully imagine  ordering two or three rounds of.  The Freshchester Pale Ale was poured when we hit the Nostrano.  Made with American Hops, the pale ale was fruity and citrusy, nicely balancing the salt and fat of the salumi.  (I can't recall whether I preferred the Freshchester or the Liquid Gold.  Guess I will have to compare both on a hot summer day.)  A smoked porter came out with the smoked duck meat.  (I believe that's what my esteemed colleague Ernest is drinking in the photo.)  There were some raised eyebrows in the group, wondering if the double whammy of smoky flavor would be too much.  It turned out not to be a palate calamity, but I may simply not be a fan of smoked beers period.  I would like to try one of the regular porters they offer.  Last but definitely not least was the Nor'Easter Winter Warmer, a seasonal brew aged in bourbon barrels and bottle conditioned.  This year's batch featured dried elderflowers and had a complex flavor and aroma, very sophisticated and very drinkable, a beer to mull over and sip slowly.  This was probably the least favorable pairing, because the Winter Warmer eclipsed the "eh" (that was literally in my notes) chocolate bacon.  I need to get me some of this stuff because just thinking about it has made me feel much better.

That's it from here.  Beer 'n' meat, yessir.  Go forth and replicate the tasting on your own, if you can get the ingredients.  I plan to.

Comments

[pauline]

wow. i never knew how beer can have so many varieties of flavors and the subtleties. personally i am not a serious connoisseur of any wine or beer or liquor, but i do like trying out different things and figure out those subtle hints of flavors. will look out for those beers and the meat pairing. maybe one of these days i'll have a meat and beer party. thanks for sharing :)

[Rich]

Prosciutto is just another kind of bacon. Yeah... bacon.