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