Sockeye and Lager

Shadow's Wild Black Premium Blackberry Lager
Photograph by Melody Flammger

Shadow's Wild Black Premium Blackberry Lager
Photograph by Melody Flammger

I've noticed I do a lot of pairings with salmon at this point.  It's probably because it's so versatile and it's one of my favorite types of fish to work with.  It also happens to pair with a lot of different beverages.  That said, this is unique because I've paired fish with beer (something I haven't done before).  Without further ado, on to the food and beer pairing!

Beer:

• See: very garnet in color- not a common color for a lager.  There is also very little head on the beer.
• Sniff: Blackberry, cherry and hints of molasses 
• Sip: Blackberry and cherry on the forefront with and almost woody backbone
• Swallow: Clean and crisp finish with very little aftertaste.

Sockeye Salmon and Steamed Peas
Photograph by Melody Flammger

Food:


Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon with a side of steamed peas.  The salmon was flavored with seasoning salt and black pepper and then oven-baked skin side down until flaky.  The peas were microwave steamed.

Food and  Beer:

The fattiness from the salmon immediately softened the woody and bitter flavors in the beer.  Because of the more bitter flavors being softened, it allowed the blackberry flavor to shine.  Paired with the fish, the pairing was almost like eating a glazed piece of salmon rather than two separate entities.  It was an excellent combination.  I even forgot to sample the peas with it, but they were more for a vegetable than for actual tasting value.

Barbecue and beer

This is the first time the blog has really delved outside of the topic of wine, but with the Summer upon us I decided to address the food of the season: Barbecue, and it is typically best with a beer.

Saranac Blueberry Blonde Ale

See:
About a "2" on the color scale (1 being the lightest and 8 being black).  There's a little bit of a head on the beer and visible bubbles.  The beer is apparently unfiltered, as it's a bit cloudy towards the end of the bottle.


Smell:
Blueberries, honey and bread are the main aromas


Sip:
I tasted just a little sweetness on the front end, being inundated with hops and bitter skins of blueberries on the middle of the sip.  My husband (who is a self-proclaimed hop head) got a lot more of the fruit from the blueberries on the front end of this beer.  Your tasting experience will depend on your preferences and your sensitivity to certain flavors.

Barbecue Chicken


Once paired with the chicken, I was able to pick up on the fruity flavors my husband had described to me in the initial tasting so the food certainly brought out some flavor in the beer.  Additionally, the hoppiness in the beer brought out the spice in the barbecue making the pairing mutually beneficial to the food and the beer.

Brown Sugar Baked Beans


The beans paired with the beer similarly to the way the chicken did.  The spiciness was picked up by the hops flavor in the beer and the sweetness in the beer was picked up by balancing the hops out against the food.  Overall, I felt both items went well with the beer.

What is your favorite Barbecue pairing?