Christmas dinner (with beer!)

Since the holiday season is very much upon us, we here at b5 are working together to provide you with a full menu for Christmas dinner. The menu itself is provided by Tracey at foodie obssessed, and Farley from Behind the Vines will match it with wines. Needless to say, I’ll be matching it with beer.

The menu starts with Crab Cocktail, a twist on the classic which adds a horseradish and wasabi spiciness. My choice here is a weissbier, even though I usually don’t drink much weissbier in the winter. I’m not usually a big fan of Belgian-style whites, I’d be tempted to try one of those since the slightly citrus taste of the beer should compliment the shrimp nicely. An alternative would be a nice full-bodied lager, like a Prima Pils from Victory or even a Thai or other Asian lager to match the wasabi.

Moving on to the entreé, we have a Crown Roast of Pork with Onion and Bread-Crumb Stuffing (yum) with sides including Gougeres, Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta, Cauliflower Gratin, Candied Carrots, and Yorkshire Pudding. This is a big, hearty meal which, in my mind, calls for a big, hearty beer. I’m thinking a good, dry porter or brown ale, or even a dry stout – nothing too fancy or too hoppy, just a good solid beer which holds up to but doesn’t compete with the roast. I have a Cream Porter from St. Peter’s in the basement which I’d try with this, or maybe the Duchy Estates Brown Ale I wrote about a little while ago. Given the flavorful side dishes, I’d also consider a Belgian Ale, particularly as there are a few Flying Fish Grand Cru in the basement calling my name.

For dessert, Tracey went Italian on us, with Panettone and Eggnog-Panettone Bread Pudding. My wife loves bread pudding. In any case, this one’s a little tricky, since it lacks the sweetness of some other desserts, but I think I’d stick with the classic dessert beer, a really big stout. I’m thinking Brooklyn Chocolate Stout or maybe a Samuel Smith Imperial Stout. I’m intrigued by the idea of an Altbier as well, but would probably steer away from anything Belgian, which I think would compete too heavily with the Panettone.

After dinner, if you’re not ready to burst, most beer writers would recommend a barleywine. I love beer, but a nice single malt scotch does it for me, and hell, it’s really just distilled beer anyway!

I’m somewhat new to this world of matching beer with a full menu, so if you think you have a better match let’s hear about it!