Hello BBQ and Beer lovers. Welcome to my first blog post on 2 of my favourite topics.
Open up any decent food magazine, or the Sunday papers food section and you will always find a section on food and wine pairing. Many foods and the multitude of different wines can be matched with lots of great food. The same trend is now taking off with craft beers as well, so we think it’s about time we explore this a bit better.
Gone are the days where you would grab the cheapest beer on the way to a mates BBQ, and gone are the days where VB or New were the beers for all occasions. With so many craft beer flavors out there, its time to look at some food pairing of our own, and with one of our most favorite Aussie food past times, the BBQ.
Even now, and Aussie BBQ is not just steaks and snags any more. Many of us, including myself, have stepped up the game and are exploring the more US style BBQ foods. And isn’t it damn good!
So what beers go with what BBQ?
Well there are no strict rules by any means, but just to help you out, here are a few ideas to guides you in your next BBQ and Beer adventure:-
Light Tasting Food + Light beers – Generally you want your beer to compliment your food, and not over power it, so for things like chicken, fish and seafood, think the lighter tasting beers such as Pilsners, lighter ales and Lagers
Heavy BBQ Food + Heavier Beers – Now these are the BBQ foods we love more. Steaks, briskets, Lamb, those greasy sausages from Woolies, usually contain those nice rich fatty tastes that the heavier beers go so well with. Sauces and spices we add to these also add saltiness and sweetness flavors that pair so well with beers like Porters, Stouts and even IPAs.
Heavy BBQ Food + Light Beers? – Of course there is no reason the lighter beers won’t pair well with the more flavoursome BBQ foods like steaks. Pale Ales and Strong Ales, wheat beers all go down well if the weather is hot. Even a Golden Ale or Blond work well if the temp is as hot as the BBQ!
What about Smoked BBQ? – Depending on the meat, the heavily smoked foods have a few beer allies. Smoked ales and porters are just great with things like pulled pork or brisket. Your strong west Coast style IPAs are just perfect with smoky pork and chicken. Add something a bit spicy like Jalepeno poppers and you have a match made in heaven for your west coast IPAs.
Anyway, I hope these basic ideas give you a starting point for what type of beer you can pair with your next big BBQ. Stay tuned for more details and tasty ideas coming soon.
In the mean time, keep popping those tops and fire up the grill!