February ESB and Chips & Dip

What is ESB?  It is Extra Special Bitter which doesn't mean the beer is bitter.  It refers to a British style of beer and really confuses some people with the word “bitter” becayse “bitters” are not really bitter.

Beer advocate describes it as follows:

ESBs are essentially more aggressive and more balanced Bitters, both in alcohol and hop character, but nothing overpowering. Color range will be similar, though leaning towards the darker end of the scale; dark golds to copper. Low carbonation. Malts tend to be more pronounced, often toasty and fruity, with maybe some notes diacetyl. And despite "bitter" being in its name, ESBs are not really all that bitter. They key to an ESB is balance.

We paired it with sour cream mixed with Lipton Onion Soup Mix, my favorite chip dip.  Lay's Wavy Chips are the best dipping chip so that's what we chose, of course!

Our beer was Christian Moerlein OTR (Over The Rhine) which seems fitting since we will be running in a Christian Moerlein beer race through Over the Rhine next Saturday.

As a special touch, we used our new Ginger coasters that Heather gave us in her memory.

Here was our social media post:
February #foodbeerpairing "ESB w/chips & dip" @moerleinbeers OTR and Lay's Wavy Chips by @fritolay. @WCPO @Mike_Canan

January Pilsner and Bloody Mary

After seeing pictures and getting ideas for January's pairing, we decided to go for it!  And it was well worth it.  Probably the most fun we have had with the presentation of a pairing!

The weather was nice enough to grill out so our sliders were really good.

The end result was spectacular!

The only probably was the amount of alcohol involved.  We all felt pretty bad the next morning.  :)

Here was our social media post:
Bloody Mary and Pilsner #foodbeerpairing w/ @greatdividebrew Nomad. @WCPO @Mike_Canan

And I saved my Snapchat story!

Next month looks like ESB and Chips & Dip.  We just have the pictures from online since I don't have the actual calendar.

January 2016 Special : Venison Chili and Madtree Thundersnow

Calendar or not, we can't decide...

Because we aren't sure about the calendar this year (mostly because it starts with two beverages so it isn't really beer and food but beer and drink), we decided to do some of our own pairings.  We are deciding on the meal and adding a beer that pairs well with it.

The first pairing of the year is Venison Chili and Madtree Thundersnow.  Because it is spicy (with nutmeg and cinnamon), it paired well with my chili (which also has those spices).  

The chili was made possible because of Dr. John (my nephew) who provided us with the meat.  Because Andy and Cartoon were in town, they enjoyed the chili with us.

Here was our social media post:

1st 2016 #foodbeerpairings Venison chili with @MadTreeBrewing Thundersnow was a hit! @Mike_Canan #creatingourown

December Milk Stout and Chocolate Chip Cookies

What a year!  We finished the year of the beer pairings tonight with a milk stout by Left Hand Brewing and chocolate chip cookies (like we needed more cookies in our house... not!).

The beer paired well with the chocolate in the cookies and we felt like it was a great way to end the year.

And with special guest, Andy Clark!

Here was our social media post:
Last 2015 Beer Pairing @lefthandbrewing Milk Stout and Chocolate Chip Cookies, great combo! @Mike_Canan @WCPO #9beer 

We haven't decided if we will continue with the calendar or try something different for 2016.  Stay tuned!

November Bière de Garde and Leftover Turkey

We had to wait until after Thanksgiving for the beer pairing this month.  Now that we have our leftover turkey it's time to use it up!

I made a casserole that my mom used to make and I'm not sure that she had a recipe.  I seem to recall that she put it together, it tasted good, and it was something she made again.  I'll just call it Mom's Potato Chip Topped Turkey Casserole.

The ingredients are turkey, onions, celery, sliced water chestnuts, cheddar cheese, mayonnaise and potato chops.  I tear apart the turkey, chop the onions, slice the celery, coarsely chop the water chestnuts and cube the cheese; stir in a really small amount (2 T?) of mayonnaise.  Put it in a greased casserole dish and top it with crunched up chips.  Bake at 350 degrees until hot (and the cheese is melted).

It is really yummy and is a little different from plain leftover turkey made into sandwiches or ate with leftover mashed potatoes and stuffing.

Our beer was tricky.  Matt picked out Bière De Mars - Grand Reserve Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales with the help of Beer Advocate.  The beer actually tasted a little like wine.  It was pretty pricey so we bought one bottle (for almost $15).

It was a good pairing.  We liked the beer quite a bit and it paired well with turkey.

Here was our social media post:
November beer food pairing @JollyPumpkin Bière De Mars and Turkey Casserole @Mike_Canan @WCPO #9beer

And Mike Canon at WCPO included us in his online story.

See you in December for Chocolate Chip Cookies and Milk Stout.  It sounds like a dessert that should include ice cream. Stay tuned.

And the new calendar is now available online!  Join me in 2016 for beer and food pairings!

October Black IPA and Blue Cheese Wedge

This month's pairing of Black IPA and Blue Cheese Wedge was another new beer and new recipe.  I viewed several recipes and choose to just top the wedges with a combination of my favorites:

Bacon
Tomato
Green Onions
Blue Cheese
Blue Cheese Dressing
Optional almonds and cranberries

Our Beer was 21st Amendment Back in Black.  When we looked it up the story behind was interesting:

Inspired by Paul Revere’s midnight ride, we rebelled against the British style IPA, embraced the more aggressive American version and then recast it in bold, brave, defiant black. Our Black IPA is a Declaration of Independence from the tyranny of the expected.

Here was our social media post:

October beer food pairing Black IPA and Blue Cheese Wedge @21stAmendment Black in Black @Mike_Canan @WCPO #9beer 

And the new calendar is now available online!  Join me in 2016 for beer and food pairings!

September Fish and Chips and Double IPA

This month's pairing was perfect for a football Sunday afternoon!

We made Breaded Baked Tilapia, a recipe from Taste of Home which never disappoint.  Add to it chopped salad (similar to cole slaw) and steak fries.  Fish and Chips!

The Double IPA Matt chose was Christian Moerlein's Bay of Bengal Double IPA which WCPO did a story about last month, "Christian Moerlein's Bay of Bengal Double IPA roars back into Cincinnati."  (I think the name probably has something to do with the Cincinnati Bengals.)

Loved the beer but sadly the fish recipe was not a keeper.

Although we had hoped to plan a field trip and invite friends to Mac 'n Joes for this pairing, we decided to do it at home.  Time ran out before I leave for my next trip out of the country and this day was the only day we had left.  Homecoming and football make it impossible.

Here was our social media post:

September beer food pairing Double IPA with Fish & Chips @moerleinbeers Bay of Bengal @Mike_Canan @WCPO #9beer 

See you in October for Black IPA and Blue Cheese Wedge, a combo we are sure to love since we love IPAs and love blue cheese!