5 Best Beer Food Pairings

Experiment with the 5 best beer food pairings to create an amazing dinner for friends and family. Like wine, beer should be paired with foods that compliment the taste of the beer. Properly paired food and beer creates a balance of flavors that blend well and brings out the best in the beer and food.

1. Imperial Stout. Imperial stout has a hearty rich flavor to match its dark color. Imperial stout pairs well with rich, flavor intense food such as roasted game meat, smoked goose, or heavy garlic pasta and vegetable dishes. Serve Gouda or sharp cheddar cheese with chopped cocktail onions on wheat crackers for the perfect appetizer. The ideal dessert for Imperial Stout is dark chocolate truffles or raspberry mousse cake.
2. Classic Pilsner. Classic Pilsner has a light golden color with a flavor to match that is delightfully paired with fried chicken, salmon or roast turkey. Serve an appetizer of mild cheddar cheese on cocktail-sized sourdough bread slices. End the dinner with a perfect dessert of strawberry shortcake or pound cake topped with hot lemon pudding.
3. Dry Stout. The perfect food pairing for dry stout is a thick hearty beef steak grilled to perfection and topped with sautéed onions and mushrooms. Go all American by adding hot biscuits, baked potato and tossed green salad with ranch dressing. Serve an appetizer of rich sharp cheddar cheese slices on rye crackers with stuffed olives. The best dessert to complete this dinner is rich chocolate mousse or hot chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream.
4. Pale Bock. Pale bock, with its golden color and light flavor is well paired with spicy Thai or Korean dishes but pair perfectly with American fried chicken with all the trimmings like mashed potatoes, gravy and corn. For an appetizer, serve thinly sliced Swiss cheese on multigrain crackers. For dessert, indulge in rich cheesecake with raspberry sauce or chocolate sauce.
5. Scotch Ale. Scotch ale is dark with a strong flavor that pairs perfectly with lamb cooked slowly on a spit over an open flame, smoked salmon or roasted game. Serve an appetizer of smoked cheese and stuffed olives on wheat crackers. The perfect dessert for this hearty ale is double chocolate chip cake with fudge icing.

References:

Lucy Saunders, "The Best of American Beer & Food." Brewers Publications, 2007.

Garrett Oliver, "The Brewmaster’s Table." Harper Collins, 2005.