I was very excited when Beau's All Natural Brewing Co. announced a beer paired dinner hosted at the Blueberry Hill Bistro in Vankleek Hill to celebrate the collaboration beer Mates ..with Dates. I was so excited I reserved a seat without thinking about the driving distance between Ottawa and Vankleek Hill or that it was a work night. Nevertheless I couldn't pass up an opportunity to hear Beau's brewmaster Matthew O'Hara and guest brewer Alex Barlow from ALLBEER speak about their collaboration and beer pairings.
The Blueberry Hill Bistro offers the usually pub fare with some great beers on tap, Beau's seasonals for example. The dinner started with an introduction by brewery owner Steve Beauchesne and the two brewers; giving thanks to the owners of the bistro and those who helped in the collaboration. As they spoke the first beer pairing was served, a half pint Lug Tread, which naturally lead into a discussion of the first pairing. Paired with their signature Kölsch styled lager were skewered pan seared shrimp on a bed of greens with sesame oil vinaigrette. The light ale flavour worked well with the delicate shrimp and the crispness of the lagering helped refresh the palate from the bitterness of the sesame oil.
The next pairing was a pint of Beaver River I.P.Eh? with a spicy chicken and vegetable curry. Beaver River is a combination of a malty British IPA (India Pale Ale) and citrusy American IPA; paired with the spice of the curry the citrus becomes more intense while the malts dull down the burn in your mouth. It was my favourite pairing, one that I'll be repeating with a home cooked curry and growler.
The next course featured the beer that everyone was there to celebrate - Mates ..with Dates. Served in a wine glass, we sniffed and swirled the beer around as brewers Matthew O'Hara and Alex Barlow spoke about skyping, date dicing and other long distance brewing challenges. Paired with the fruity brown ale was a selection of Glengarry cheeses, walnuts, dates and a slice of pear. The beer itself isn't overly fruity, with just a hint of date but it's extremely drinkable and at 7.7% ABV is dangerous. I enjoyed this course, trying different cheese/beer combinations highlighted different flavours. Who said you shouldn't play with food?
Finally the fourth course was served, a delicate raspberry mousse cake. Collabrrewator was originally paired but was unavailable at the time of the dinner, this year's version of Winterbrewed was served instead. Brewer Matthew O'Hara admitted he was disappointed in the pairing; saying that Winterbrewed would be perfect for French toast or pancakes but the more complex chocolate, coffee notes of Collabrrewator would have suited this dessert. I thought the pairing was okay, but was surprised at how light (4.7% ABV) and drinkable this years version was (like a carbonated iced coffee!).
It was hard to wake up for work on Friday morning but I'm glad I made the drive to Vankleek Hill. I've been to a lot of dinners with pairings but this was the first where dinners were encourage to discuss the pairings and weren't afraid to speak, it helped me learn more about what I was drinking. Steve Beauchesne did make a point of saying that they felt it appropriate to host their first beer dinner in Vankleek Hill, I can only hope that future dinners bring them to Ottawa, paired with some of our best restaurants and Chefs.
