Boston Cooks 2002 Beer Dinner
at
Jacob Wirth Restaurant
Boston, MA
By
Peter LaFrance
Figure 1: Peter LaFrance and Phyllis Kaplowitz, Executive Chef , Jacob Wirth
(photos on this page courtesy of
Julie Dennehy, APR
Dennehy Public Relations
Media Relations, Promotions & Special Events)
“This weekend is the end… for a while.”
It was almost three o’clock in the afternoon on Tuesday 22 January 2002.I was in Boston to as the guest of Chef Phyllis Kaplowitz, executive chef at Jacob Wirth restaurant, and at the request of Labatt USA, with the blessing of the folks from Interbrew, as part of the fifth annual Boston Cooks Dine-Around. I was scheduled to conduct a beer tasting-dinner at Jacob Wirth restaurant at 7:00pm that evening.
The woman who poured my twenty-ounce pint of India Pale Ale at the original Brew Moon brewpub in Boston told me that they were closing that weekend for a month or two of refitting. Then they would be reopening as part of the Rock Bottom group. It was not a shock in that I noted the press reports of the demise of Brew Moon in HotTrub@BeerBasics last year. Nonetheless, as I took a sip of that brew, I watched as an old friend packed up and got ready to leave. Other than me, the only other folks in the place were a busboy, the host, the barmaid, a fellow barfly and three stout men. The three stout men carried rolls of blueprints and thick envelopes in beefy hands. They were taking inventory of the furnishings, brew-house, bar stools, and stock.
The India Pale Ale was good beer. The deep, clear old-copper-penny-colored brew had a sweet malt aroma. There was a fresh crisp tang of hops in the flavor, less the bitter, chalky undertones often found in highly hopped brews. Fairly alcoholic, it gave warmth to body and soul. I enjoyed the crisp French-fried potatoes, sweet and mealy on the inside, and two good-sized cod fillets steamed inside a crisp beer batter. I was very comfortable.
I was four hours from explaining the art of appreciating beer and food pairings to over a dozen members of the Boston food and beverage press. It would be preaching to the choir. I only had a half-pint of the I.P.A. for desert.
For those of you who wish to trade war stories about beer dinners I am always available to swap lies over a pint or two. For the rest of you I will proceed to the menu and share the trips and triumphs of working the following pairings, the beers recalled from memory and dishes explained via email.
THE DINNER:
After whetting their appetites with glasses of Stella Artois, the invited guests took seats at a long sturdy wood table in anticipation of tasting six dishes and twelve beers.
Serving the first Stella of the evening.
Members of Boston's Fourth Estate sit down at beer dinner at Jacob Wirth.
FIRST TASTING:
Stella Artois and Dos Equis Amber were served with a grilled bratwurst nestled atop German potato salad and traditional sauerkraut, with a Dos Equis sauce.
The Stella Artois was a good example of the challenge a lighter lager accepts when used to refresh the pallet. Without a slightly hearty hop tang the brew becomes refreshing in a simply tactile way. The sweeter flavors in the Dos Equis helped to soften the acid of the sauerkraut and the vinegar in the potato salad. The same sweet flavor adds rich undertones to the sauce and sausage.
SECOND TASTING:
The second tasting dish was a Leffe beer-glazed beef short ribs served over cheddar white polenta and wild mushroom ragout, paired with Leffe Blond and Tremont Ale.
I am very fond of beef short ribs. It makes no matter that they be braised and served in broth, braised with a thick rich reduction, or served with a glaze, the test is in the fork-tenderness of the meat. This is, without a doubt a rich dish. The polenta and mushrooms also added distinct and pronounced flavors. The best pairing is with strong flavors, fairly high alcohol and a brew that looks like a thick dark kick-butt brew.
This was a set-up for the hefty Leffe (pronounced “left” without the “t”). The fresh, crisp hop and sweeter finish of Tremont was reduced to simply liquid refreshment. The Leffe was hearty enough to meet the richness of the beef. It also had a heat to cut through the forest funk of the mushrooms and the grain/cheese smooth texture of the polenta.
THIRD TASTING:
Lambic poached pear salad on field greens tossed in vanilla shallot vinaigrette lavender candied hazelnuts and Stilton cheese.
The two brave beverages were Hoegaarden White and Cider Jack.
Had I a magic wand to transform the poached pears into fan sliced fresh ripe pears the pairing (pun) would have been perfect. As it was, the cider at least danced with the pear and made mad love to the cheese, nuts and bitter greens. The Hoegaarden would have been perfect with fresh pear, but it had the legs to tackle the cheese and finish with a slightly spicy chase of the lavender candied hazelnuts.
FOURTH TASTING:
Tempura Ale Battered New England Cod with cinnamon scented noodles, wilted baby spinach and ginger soy glaze.
An informal poll has this dish the hit of the evening. It might have been because at least three of those attending were not carnivores and were starving.
This was an all-ale set: Bass and Boddington’s Pub Ale
Here the flavors of the spices were dominant. The delicate cod steamed in the crispy batter found a foodie-friend in both ales with Boddington’s favored due to the “Pub Ale” widget that makes a difference whether you want to admit it or not. The smoother flavor of the Boddingtons surfed the spices on a refreshing slice of tongue tingle. The Bass just didn’t have the mouth feel to challenge the cinnamon or ginger. I wonder what a “g-gas” system might do to alter the above results. (G-GAS: A nitrogen/CO2 mix that many bars use to push the brews that are on tap through the beer lines as well as assure almost all of the beer is pulled from the keg. The effect on the flavor of the beer is that there is no oxidation of slower moving brews, and a denser head and carbonation that is richer than that driven by an air pump.)
FIFTH TASTING:
Are you still with me?
Beer brined grilled pork fillet mignon with cider glaze, maple sweet potato puree, panchetta braised red cabbage and beer battered fried apple chip.
The beverages served with this tower of power (you had to see it) were up against just as much of a challenge as was faced by the Bass, Boddington’s, Leffe, Hoegaarden White and Cider Jack. The brave souls were Warsteiner Dunkel and a second appearance by Cider Jack.
The winner was Cider Jack. The sweet fruity sparkling beverage was able to put the sweet meat, glaze, puree, rich panchetta cabbage and apple chip in context. The Warsteiner Dunkel just didn’t have the body or flavor to make a contrasting impression on the sense of tasting flavors. It was cool and wet but it had too many sweet flavors to compete with.
DESERT:
To those who were still sitting around the table I offered a toast and my thanks. There were some private chats about the following pairings but a major deconstruction was not done.
Cream stout gingerbread bundt cake with lemon glaze and pumpkin pie ice cream. Hoegarrden and Warsteiner made their encores.
When the Warsteiner warmed to cellar temperature it was a fine complement to the spicy-citric cake. The Hoegarrden was smooth and enjoyable when paired with the ice cream.