When you visit the store, if you want to chat about ANYTHING beer related (or anything else under the sun) Jon's always looking for opportunities to connect with our visitors. I'm a novice with the craft beer world at best, but I'm learning a lot by just showing up to our weekly tastings and staying open-minded to all the styles and flavors. I have to say, I typically enjoy them ALL!
I'm also learning how the flavors in different beer pair best with food because I think that's important to keep in mind with the types of non-beer items included in The Packie's Craft Beer Baskets. I figure, when you give the gift of a beer basket, the beer is definitely the main event!! But everything else in the basket should be delicious too!
I thought I'd share some of my learnings from the interwebs in case you'd like to try this out! Pairing your beer with different foods could be a great reason to branch out and try a new style! I was pretty surprised at some of this!
Pilsner = Goes great with lighter fares like salads and grilled chicken. Pretzels and other salty snacks fit with this beer well. You could try it with salmon too!
IPA = Easily our most popular style of beer at The Packie, and it should be great with spicy food like a kicked-up chili or salsa, and get this ...carrot cake! Yes! When it's the right beer, it can pair well with dessert too!
Hefeweizen = Think sweeter foods to bring out the flavors best in this beer. Fruits, especially citrus like oranges make a great pairing. Also tacos and most seafoods!
Amber Ale: Seems like this one is pretty much a free-for all with the meats! Red and white meat, as well as seafood go great with these flavors.
Porters and Stouts: I'm grouping these two because what I've found is that even though they're not (exactly) the same, they're similar in how they pair up with food. What's pretty awesome is that in addition to beef and pork, CHOCOLATE can help to bring out the best of these beers. And I am nothing if not a huge fan of chocolate (and beer). Dark chocolate is best; at least 50% cacao.
So, if you typically stick with one style because you know it's delicious, maybe you've found a reason to branch out and try something new! You can certainly do some Googling yourself to dig deeper than I've gone here. And building your own six-pack at The Packie is a great way to try something different without over committing!
Hope to see you soon!
Sarah