Crafty Beer Girls

Girls Love Beer

  • Home
  • About
  • Beer Stories

By Lauren Lerch Leave a Comment

So Some Beer, Chocolate, And Cheese Walked Into A Bar…

… actually, it was a brewery. And since we’ve decided to be so specific, it was Fisher Brewing Company in Salt Lake City, Utah, joined by The Chocolate Conspiracy and Raclette Machine in the name of flavor exploration and sensory discovery! On Sunday, August 12th, these three SLC gastronomic powerhouses teamed up for a pairing event, in which guests were given five pairings of beer, chocolate, and cheese. The order of tasting the three components of each pairing was self-guided, with occasional suggestions from gurus Tim Dwyer (Fisher Brewing), AJ Wentworth (The Chocolate Conspiracy), and Zara Ahmed (Raclette Machine). Words may never be as tasty as the real thing, but I’ll try my best.


Pairing #1

Beer: Kolsch
Cheese: Casatica di Bufala
Chocolate: Pure Dark

The first pairing featured my new favorite cheese. The mildly sweet nature of the Italian water buffalo cheese was reminiscent of buttercream, and jived with the kolsch to bring out subtle fruit notes. The simplicity of Pure Dark gave an earthy grounding to the glory of Casatica di Bufala – heavenly dirt! Maybe I could just have four more of pairing #1?

Pairing #2

Beer: Blonde Ale
Cheese: Testun Al Foglie di Castagno
Chocolate: Chocolate Créme Truffle

Salt is a big player in this pairing, pushed to the forefront by the cheese, elevated by the mild sweetness of the blonde ale, and countered by the creamy, coconut driven flavors of the truffle. My favorite order of pairing for this one was chocolate, cheese, then beer, which is the order of viscosity from heavy to light. This insured some chocolate was still lingering by the time beer made it to the party.

Pairing #3

Beer: Mild Child
Cheese: Snow Canyon Reserve
Chocolate: Porter

Mild Child is, hands down, my favorite beer made by Fisher. It’s complex in the most drinkable way, and it’s exactly what I want to drink five of on a Sunday afternoon. I thought the only way to make it better was to drink it on cask, but apparently a bit of cheese and chocolate are able to get the job done, too! The salty, almost grainy texture of the Utah cheese yielded an almost grilled cheese-like toastiness when paired with the beer. The Porter chocolate, made by soaking cocoa beans in Fisher Porter for seven days, added a delicate layer of cocoa goodness to the pairing.

Steve Brown dishes up the good stuff!

Pairing #4

Beer: White Pale
Cheese: Chiriboga Blue
Chocolate: Lavender Blueberry

I call this pairing the white, blue, and blue. While subtle similarities make this pairing accessible, it’s the contrasting flavors and textures that make this really work. The fruity character of the mosaic hops in the White Pale matches well with the floral and berry notes of the chocolate, both of which bring their own bitterness. The cheese tames the bitterness with wild tang, while lending a creamy mouthfeel to contrast the carbonation of the beer.

Pairing #5

Beer: Porter
Cheese: P’tit Basque
Chocolate: Pistachio Truffle

The final pairing was a true nod to the appropriate ending to any good meal – dessert! And what’s a finale without a bit of flare? That’s right, they whipped out the cheese curler for this one. The way the P’tit Basque was curled up had me thinking mushrooms right off the bat, and probably had me looking for earthy, rich notes in the pairing. The chocolate shared several similarities of nuttiness and cocoa with the Porter, and in combination with the airy, creaminess of the cheese, I was convinced I had been delivered a slice of chocolate cake!


It was an afternoon well spent! Keep your eyes peeled for future organoleptic events of beer, chocolate, and cheese pairings on social media. Thank you Tim Dwyer (Fisher Brewing), AJ Wentworth (The Chocolate Conspiracy), Zara Ahmed (Raclette Machine), and all helpers for organizing this tasty occasion! Looking forward to the next!

Left to Right: Zara Ahmed, Tim Dwyer, AJ Wentworth

Filed Under: Beer & Food, Beer Tasting, Events, Pairings, Utah Beer Tagged With: beer, beer and food pairing, cheese, chocolate, Fisher Beer, pairing, raclette machine, the chocolate conspiracy

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

craftybeergirls

Jenni Shafer & Lauren Lerch
A sunny Sunday morning on the slopes with a tasty A sunny Sunday morning on the slopes with a tasty local @fisherbrewing beer to wash down burritos in the parking lot. Yes, Utah! #sundayinutah #utahbeer #skiday #parkinglotbeer #skialta #fisherbeer #sundayfunday #sundaybeer #skibeer #lunch #beer #altaskiarea #fisherbrewing #crispyboi #utah
Finishing up the holiday pie/beer #pieisbeer #beer Finishing up the holiday pie/beer #pieisbeer #beerispie #drinklocal #utahbeer #pecanpie #pumpkinpie #roostersbrewing #shadesbrewing #epicbrewing #dessertbeer #holidaypie #holidaybeer #holidays #aretheyoveryet #drinkbeer #newyear
Taste the sensation of skiing @altaskiarea on Chri Taste the sensation of skiing @altaskiarea on Christmas Day! ⛷️🎄 #peppermintpatty #uintabrewing #skialta #christmasday #skiday #christmasbeer #peppermint #chocolate #beer #getthesensation #merrychristmas #christmasskiing
We hope your cup is full of beer this fine Christm We hope your cup is full of beer this fine Christmas Eve 🎄🍻 #merrychristmas #griswalds #holidayale #redrockbrewery #cupofcheer #christmasbeer #utahbeer #drinklocal #spicedale  #christmaseve #beer #cheers
Welcome, winter! It's good to be back on the slope Welcome, winter! It's good to be back on the slopes for some snowy mountain therapy. #winterwelcome #beerwithaview #skibeer #apresski #altaskiarea #wasatchmountains #beeroutside #brightonresort #samuelsmith #kiitosbrewing #skilunch #wheatbeer #dogfishhead #americanbeauty #hazyipa #snowboarding #skiutah
High above the grid, this GABF medal winner lets s High above the grid, this GABF medal winner lets simple flavors shine. Cheers to the highs and lows of 2020, @gridcitybeer 🍻
.
.
#utahbeer #gridcitybeerworks #honeycream #ale #slcbeer #honey #creamale #utahcraftbeerscene #gabfmedalwinner #awardwinningbeer #utah #beer #beerwithaview #beeroutside #socialdistancing #survivingcoronavirus #trailbeer
All hopped up on cider! 🍎🌱 ~L #hoppedcider # All hopped up on cider! 🍎🌱 ~L #hoppedcider #craftcider #oregon #oregoncoast #roadtrip #beachlife #weebitchilly #tillamook #greenery
Last week vs this week. A bit of a temperature cha Last week vs this week. A bit of a temperature change, but still spending Sunday on the trails. #sundayfunday #mountainbiking #trailbeer #levelcrossing #sinday #kiitosbrewing #pumpkinlatte #sundaybeer #bikesandbeers #beerwithaview #beeroutside #utahbeer #paleale #pumpkinbeer #utah #beer
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Contact us:

craftybeergirlsblog@gmail.com

© 2019 Crafty Beer Girls