HopHeadSaid Food Pairing Blog

Wolf Creek Pairing Series: 6 Layer Toffee Coffee Cake

2/21/2014

This series explores the beer pairing options available at the Wolf Creek Restaurant and Brewery. My tasting partner for this session was Jason Hendrick, founder of Everybody's Hungry and my co-host on pints&pairings.

Feel free to comment on any of these pairing suggestions, especially if you had another beer pairing in mind.

The Dessert

The desserts at Wolf Creek are always in rotation so you may not have the opportunity to try this exact dessert. This is a 6 layer cake with coffee cream dividers and a healthy dose of toffee bits sprinkled on top. The cake is served with side of whipped cream and fresh fruit.

If this dessert isn't available the beer pairings below will work with other desserts that have a coffee and/or toffee focus.

Jason's suggested beer pairing for this dessert is Wild Angles, a rich Belgian-style dubbel that is lightly hopped and full of sweet malt flavors. Wild Angels' subtle caramel-like flavors -hiding just behind the sweet malt flavors- resonate with the toffee topping of the dessert while the Belgian yeast profile (a touch spicy) helps to cleanse the palate and add an interesting complexity to the cake.

While this beer pairs well with the cake it doesn't pair so well with the berries and cream.

My pairing suggestion is the Howlin' Hefeweizen, a traditional style German wheat beer full of clove spices and banana. You will want to let the beer warm up just a bit before you power through this pairing so order it ahead of time or warm it up in your hands.

When the beer is cold this pairing doesn't work as well because the banana and cloves are masked by the cold and the esters are still being held in suspension and the elevated carbonation levels cleanse the palate too quickly. As the beer warms and looses some of its carbonation, the beer will coat your palate more and will allow the banana and clove notes to mingle with the dessert as you chew and add a new layer of complexity to this dessert.

The Howlin' Hefe is also a great pairing for the berries and cream. The bananas and clove add another flavor component to this dessert making it more interesting than it was before, which is what a good beer pairing should do.

1 Comment

Wolf Creek Pairings Series: Orange Cashew Chicken

2/21/2014

0 Comments

The Entree

Orange Cashew Chicken ~
Crispy sautéed chicken with cashews, broccoli, snow peas, and carrots tossed in a spicy orange ginger sauce and served on a bed of white rice; topped with green onion & cashews

This dish is full of color, flavor and textures and a great entree for those who crave a little spicy heat. The red pepper flakes and ginger do build up over time so you will want to keep that in mind when you pick your beer pairing.

Jason's favorite beer pairing for this entree is the Howlin' Hefeweizen, a traditional style German wheat beer full of clove spices and banana. He enjoyed they way the beer's fresh, slightly tart wheat flavors resonated with orange glaze and the effervescent carbonation cleansed the palate.

As Howlin' Hefe warms, the banana esters (aromas you can taste) become more prominent which add another layer of complexity to this pairing. The beer's mouthfeel also becomes a little heavier as the beer warms. The heavier mouthfeel is a welcome sensation as it helps to balance the spicy heat from the entree.

I really enjoyed the Surfin' Monk, a hopped up Triple with sweet orange peel and cumin, with this entree. The beer's sweet malt flavors and orange peel resonate with the entree's spicy orange glaze, but they also contrast against the ginger and red pepper flakes and help balance the spicy nature of the entree. The Belgian yeast notes resonate with the ginger in the orange glaze accentuating their herbal qualities.

Alternate Pairing Option

Rebel Rye, an American Rye Ale (similar to a pale ale) with a solid malt base to balance the assertive hop profile (flavor and bitterness) and the spicy rye notes, is a great pairing for this entree, too. The hop bitterness and rye flavors accentuate the spices in the entree momentarily before the carbonation and alcohol can cleanse the palate. The hop flavor also resonates with the broccoli and creates a new and surprisingly, pleasant vegetal layer to this pairing.

0 Comments

Wolf Creek Pairing Series: Taos Egg Rolls

2/21/2014

0 Comments

The Appetizer

Taos Egg Rolls

Spicy grilled chicken, red onion, corn, cilantro, cheese, avocado & roasted peppers lightly fried & served with spicy avocado cream sauce and chipotle ketchup.

This SoCal fusion incorporates all the great herbs, veggies and fruit that makes life here so wonderful and the side sauces give you the opportunity to spice up the egg roll, if you are so inclined. The avocado sauce isn't an aggressive heat by any means, but it will add another layer of creamy complexity to this appetizer. The chipotle addition gives the ketchup a decidedly Asian flair and does a nice job of balancing its sweetness.

Jason's favorite beer pairing for this appetizer is the Winter Wonderland, a winter seasonal filled with nutmeg, cinnamon and sweet malt. This is one of those surprising pairings that come out of nowhere -really, who pairs a winter warmer with Asian food? Well, we did and we were rewarded for it. Depending on the order of consumption you will get two very different tasting experiences.

1. Try tasting the egg roll first, then sip the beer. The egg roll pulls out a hidden smokey note out of the beer and adds another layer of complexity neither had as solo bites.

2. Try sipping the beer first and then taking a bite of the egg roll. This sequence accentuates the sweet malt, cinnamon and nutmeg flavors that are found in the beer.

My favorite beer pairing for this appetizer is the Surfin' Monk, a hopped up Triple with sweet orange peel and cumin. The hop profile in this beer helps the spicy heat of this dish explode, momentarily before the carbonation and the alcohol content cleanse the palate. The malt sweetness resonates with the sweet wonton and corn (accent flavors in the egg roll) and creates a base layer that brings the beer and this appetizer together. The cumin in this beer helps to dry out the finish, and it also adds one more layer of complexity to this appetizer.

Alternate Pairing Option

Rebel Rye is an American Rye Ale (similar to a pale ale) with a solid malt base to balance the assertive hop profile (flavor and bitterness) and the spicy rye notes. This pairing is all about taking the flavors in the egg roll and kicking them up a notch. If you would like a little more spice, Rebel Rye's hop profile and spicy rye notes will do that for you - no sauces needed. The beer cleanses the palate nicely and its dry finish leave you wanting another bite and another drink.

A word of caution: One of the best parts of my job is being totally blown away by unexpected beer and food combinations (ex. Winter Wonderland and egg rolls). On the other side of the coin, I do come across pairings that just don't work, from time to time. Midnight Howl, a black IPA with a crisp, citrus hop flavor, pronounced bitterness and subtle roasty notes, is my goto beer at Wolf Creek. If I'm only going to be drinking a pint, THAT is the beer I'd pick. However, Midnight Howl is NOT the beer you should pair with this appetizer because the egg roll accentuates the subtle roasty notes in the beer to an unpleasant ash-like flavor. Save Midnight Howl for another appetizer or entree. On the bright side, I just gave you and me, a perfectly good reason to have two beers with dinner!

Seasonal Spotlight: Surfn' Monks Triple

SURFN' MONKS TRIPLE - 9.5%
A So-Cal Belgian Triple Ale is brewed with Belgian Candi syrup, dried sweet orange peel, cumin, American hops, and Belgian Yeast. The result is a deceivingly strong ale with big, juicy citrus flavors, complex fruit flavors from the yeast, and moderate bitterness from the hops.

Surfn' Monk isn't a cloyingly sweet triple with a lot of alcohol heat or one of the crazy over hopped American-style Belgian tripels that miss the mark on balance. Surfn' Monks Triple does have a subtle orange juice flavor and a well balanced hop profile. The cumin helps to balance the sweetness and dry out the finish.