The Brewmaster’s Table

^R&B Brewer, David Bretherick, and Diva at the Met Executive Sous Chef, Jeff Van Geest, collaborated to celebrate Father’s Day with a special brewmaster’s dinner.

When it comes to fine dining, there is a common fallacy that beer has no seat at the table beyond, perhaps, drinking as an aperitif. This is understandable, given that our culinary foundations have been strongly influenced by the traditions of France and Italy. However, this is changing as more people cast off their preconceptions and discover what countries with beer cultures, such as Belgium, have known for some time—that beer is an excellent match for food of all kinds. Even Italy is finally discovering the gastronomic affinities of beer with a burgeoning craft brewing industry.

Much credit for this new approach to beer in North America can be attributed to the influence of Brooklyn Brewery brewmaster, Garrett Oliver. His seminal book, The Brewmaster’s Table, has sparked the imagination of craft brewers and chefs alike. Vancouver brewers, Barry Benson and Rick Dellow of R&B Brewing, worked with Oliver in setting up Brooklyn Brewery. Therefore, it’s no surprise to see them working with local chefs, like Jeff Van Geest and Lee Humphries, to demonstrate the exciting possibilities of pairing beer with food.

An excellent example of the sheer culinary pleasure that can be achieved with a strong chef-brewer collaboration was the five- course Father’s Day dinner R&B hosted at Diva at the Met:

^ Fresh oyster with green apple herb mignonette.

One of three prepared different ways, the other two being tempura with crushed edamame & wasabi and smoked with rhubarb barbecue sauce. This course was paired with R&B Sun God Wheat Ale. American-style wheat ales are bright and refreshing, ideal for salads and light seafood. While stout is a classic pairing with oysters, this particular variety was of a more delicate flavour that was nicely complimented by the beer’s citrus note.

^Albacore tuna & pink salmon tartare.

With stronger flavoured, oily fish, you need some brisk bitterness to cut through it and cleanse the palate. In this case, R&B Bohemian Lager, a hoppy Czech-style pilsner, was masterfully paired with this dish.

^R&B Brewing co-founder Barry Benson.

^Bacon-wrapped Sloping Hill pork loin, confit pork shoulder, morel & barley risotto, maple mustard jus, and cream ale foam.

Chef Jeff Van Geest asked R&B if they could brew a special cask-conditioned ale to pair with this course. They settled on a smoked version of R&B’s Raven Cream Ale, with Van Geest smoking the malt with alder. The malt sweetness of this dark ale nicely matched that of the pork, while the moderate smokiness of the ale lent a smoke-cured character to the meat, even though it had not been prepared that way.

^Executive Chef, Dino Renaerts, and Jeff Van Geest ready a course of farmhouse cheddar with apple ginger crumble and garam masala gastrique.

India pale ales have the body and bitterness to nicely match a sharp cheddar. R&B’s Hoppelganger IPA not only paired well with the cheese, but brought out the spiciness of the ginger and garam masala.

^Raspberry & dark chocolate Napoleon with Morello cherry coulis, served with stout ice cream and espresso gelée.

Stouts with a pronounced chocolate flavour are a natural pairing with fruit and chocolate desserts. In this case, we have both, so the beer of choice was R&B Dark Star Oatmeal Stout. When pairing beer with chocolate, however, serving temperature is important. If the ale is too cool, the malt character is suppressed and the hop bitterness accentuated. Consequently, the pairing will be off. Once the stout warms up to the proper temperature, though, the match can be simply stunning.

^ A fine tribute to Dad: David Bretherick toasts his father with some cask-conditioned smoked R&B Raven Cream Ale.

If you are interested in experiencing beer and food pairing with Garrett Oliver in person, he will be hosting a four-course Brooklyn Brewmaster’s Dinner prepared by The Granville Room’s Chef Kye Agrios:

Friday August 14, 2009
6:00pm – 9:00pm
The Granville Room
957 Granville Street, Vancouver
Tickets: $75
Call 604.633.0057

~ RG

Tagged as: Barry Benson, Brooklyn Brewery, cask ale, David Bretherick, Dino Renaerts, Diva at the Met, Father's Day, Garrett Oliver, Jeff Van Geest, Kye Agrios, Metropolitan Hotel, R&B Brewing, Sloping Hill Farm, Sun God Wheat Ale, The Brewmaster's Table, The Granville Room