Well, I finally made the plunge - I had a beer tasting event at my house. The best part was how the weather in CT wasn't helping - so much snow I had to send a parking diagram to everyone.
We had all the beers set around the dining table, with a description of each below the bottle(s). The description even included what foods and desserts went well with the beers. I had even gone to the trouble of setting some smoked Gouda cheese and bacon near the Rauchbier - smoked beer. Although it's not clear in the photo, we even had bottles of water to rinse out the tasting glasses, and even "spit buckets." As luck would have it a local discount store had beer-branded (e.g. Corona)!
My very understanding, tolerant and wonderful wife made her famous guacamole and spinach-artichoke dip, but the rest of the cooking was my job. We had foodstuffs in the following categories:
Meats: roast pork, barbecue roast pork, chicken breasts, hamburgers, smoked salmon, German bratwurst, bacon and soupy
Veggies: carrots, celery, mini corn, various olives, sweet pickles, tomatoes, peppers, coleslaw, ceasar salad (w/optional anchovies), guacamole and spinach artichoke dip and peiorgi
Cheese: smoked Gouda, Brie, Stilton, Monterey Jack and Gorgonzola
Bread: miscellaneous grains and rackers, Ritz, mini buns, corn chips, Ruffle, rye bread
Cheese: smoked Gouda, Brie, Stilton, Monterey Jack and Gorgonzola
Bread: miscellaneous grains and rackers, Ritz, mini buns, corn chips, Ruffle, rye bread
Dessert: pecan pie, various cheesecakes, oatmeal-raisin and lemon shortbread cookies, strawberries and chocolate
The beers were a mix, I tried to go from Anheuser-Busch Budweiser to Brewdog Sink the Bismarck. Yes as a special treat I had the strongest 2nd strongest 3rd strongest beer in the world. We used small communion cups to taste it, so as not to waste it - plus it was a sublime, nearly-religious experience!
In no particular order, as I put the beers around the table to "break it up" so to speak:
Hooker Old Marley USA CT Ale Barleywine 10.0%
De Ranke Guldenberg Belgian Abbey Ale Belgium Ale Belgian Abbey Tripel 8.5%
St. Benedictus Abbey Trappist Achel Belgium Ale Belgian Abbey 8.0%
Van Eecke Hommelbier Belgium Ale Belgian Blonde 7.5%
Franches Montagnes Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien 2005 Switzerland Ale Belgian Strong 15.5%
Bosteels Kwak Belgium Ale Belgian Strong Pale 8.0%
Brewery Het Anker Gouden Carolus triple Belgium Ale Belgian Triple 9.0%
Coniston Brewing Premium XB Bluebird Bitter UK Ale Bitter 4.2%
Cottrell Old Yankee Ale USA CT Ale English Brown 5.0%
Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA USA PA Ale India Pale Ale 9.0%
Boon Kriek Belgium Ale Lambic w/cherries 4.0%
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale USA CA Ale Pale 5.6%
Dog Brewing Stillwater Artisanal existent USA MD Ale Saison 7.4%
Brooklyn Black Ops Stout USA NY Ale Stout 10.6%
Samuel Smith Tadcaster Oatmeal Stout UK Ale Stout, Oatmeal 5.0%
Beijing Yanjing brewery Yanjing China Lager American lager 5.0%
Ayinger Jahrhundert-Bier Germany Lager Dortmund 4.4
New England Brewing Elm City Lager USA CT Lager Pils, German 5.0%
Ayinger Bräu-Weisse Germany Lager Hefeweizen (wheat) 5.1%
Sünner Kölsch Germany Lager Kolsch 5.2%
Anheuser Busch Budweiser USA Lager Light Lager 5.0%
Modelo Corona Extra Mexico Lager Light Lager 4.6%
Ayinger Oktoberfest Marzen Germany Lager Marzen 5.8%
Hofbrau Hofbrau original Germany Lager Munich Helles 5.1%
Blossom Industries Taj Mahal India Lager Pale 4.5%
Heller Aecht Ochlenterla Rauchbier Germany Lager Rauchbier (smoke) 5.1%
Williams Brothers Fraøch Heather Ale Scotland Ale Pale, Classic 5.0%
So we have beers from light lagers to barleywines, alcohol from 4% to 41%, and brewery size from Van Eecke in Belgium (not the smallest I've seen) to Beijing Yanjing brewery (550 acres!). I have also tried to now (why not years ago?) put photos of beer bottles on the Net.
There were several handouts provided, some of these were just ones I made up based on an Internet reference, such as the hymn to Ninkasi, the Sumerian Goddess of Brewing; as well as many beer references. This includes (in no particular order) what beer should I drink, beer types in the beer universe, a whimsical periodic table of beer, the Beer Judging Certification Program color guides, beer CO2 amounts for those concerned with non-man-made, unstoppable global warming, the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi from 1700 BC, and last but certainly not least the Reinheitsgebot.
There were several handouts provided, some of these were just ones I made up based on an Internet reference, such as the hymn to Ninkasi, the Sumerian Goddess of Brewing; as well as many beer references. This includes (in no particular order) what beer should I drink, beer types in the beer universe, a whimsical periodic table of beer, the Beer Judging Certification Program color guides, beer CO2 amounts for those concerned with non-man-made, unstoppable global warming, the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi from 1700 BC, and last but certainly not least the Reinheitsgebot.
I think everyone had a fun time. There were some surprises, such as how much people enjoyed the Hooker barleywine and the Boon Kriek. And I was told by many that the food/beer pairing info as well as the foods available made it even more fun.
