Your intrepid liquor reporter munched on a lot of BBQ beef buns and slow-roasted pulled pork sandwiches during the many Stampede lunches I attended in early July.
Foremost in my mind at each event, was how to pair an appropriate beer with each meal, followed closely by my grand schemes of convincing the cute little cowgirl at the next table to pull off her spurs for a roll in the hay.
Tragically, I was more successful in the former than the latter, so the only reverse cowgirl action I got was watching a gaggle of girls back out of the parking lot.
Luckily, with the explosion of craft beer establishments in our fine province, your humble narrator was not stuck drinking bland and tasteless macrobrews like the dreaded Bud Light.
After much experimentation, I have found the perfect pairing of beer with every type of BBQ.
The crisp hop flavouring and effervescence from the carbonation in the beer helps to cut the fatty texture in the meat, and cleanses the palate of the smoky BBQ sauce or spicy marinade.
Different styles of beer will complement particular types of meat. In a nutshell, the basic strategy is match the flavour intensity of the beer with the flavour intensity of the meat.
Still the new kid on the block, Calgary-based Village Brewery released the Farmhouse Saison earlier this month, available in 64oz growlers in select retail stores, and on tap at a few lucky drinking establishments.
The saison style of beer originated in French-speaking southern region of Belgium, and tends to be a highly carbonated spicy summertime ale. This type of beer goes particularly well with barbequed chicken, as the fruity finish cuts the hot spiciness of the BBQ sauce.
Sticking with the local theme, the Wild Rose India Pale Ale, brewed on the old Currie Barracks in Calgary is a fiercely hopped beer that is a longtime favourite of your humble narrator.
The sharp tang of the hops from the IPA cut the sweet & savoury sauce of a fine rack of slow-roasted beef ribs, making both more enjoyable.
India Pale Ale has a very intense flavour, so it needs a full and robust rack of ribs to balance it on the palate. This would be a poor choice for pairing with a mild dish like salmon, but an IPA with a robust rack of BBQ ribs is a winning combination.
For a simple and honest grilled steak garnished with a few sautéed mushrooms, your humble narrator’s beer of choice is a Big Rock Traditional Ale, with the full-bodied malt complementing the red meat and butter from the mushrooms.
For the pescatarians in the audience, never fear, for there is a beer for you fish fans as well.
Grilled salmon and similar seafoods tend to be mild in flavour, so it is important not to overpower them with an intensely flavoured beverage.
Wheat beers go well with fish, either the filtered wheat variety like Grasshopper, or the more traditional unfiltered and cloudy wheat beer like Hoegaarden. With just a hint of citrus and cloves, wheat beers are still mild enough to complement a grilled salmon without saturating your taste buds, which gives the fish a bland taste by comparison.
For the hardcore boozers that prefer their Stampede drinks to be bourbon instead of beer, try a steak marinated in Jack Daniels BBQ sauce, or pretty much any meat prepared with mesquite or other smoky finish. The vanilla and smoke undertones imparted by the oak barrels while the bourbon is aging will complement the smoky flavour of the meat.
If your preferred tipple is wine, you probably felt mostly left out of Stampede festivities this year, so I will let you in on a little secret. There is a well-hidden wine garden at the Calgary Stampede, tucked away in the BMO Centre with the western art exhibits.
Your humble narrator finds it to be a classy respite from the corn dogs and carnies, and I always pop in for a few sampling flights of wine in air-conditioned comfort before trying my luck at the midway games.
So, whether you prefer your BBQ with a side of beer, wine, or even bourbon, just remember to match light-tasting beverages with mild foods like fish, and the more intensely flavoured drinks with a nice marinated steak or BBQ ribs. With those basic guidelines in mind, you can’t go wrong.
