The Session is a unique blogging event in the beer world. Every 1st Friday of the month, beer bloggers unite to write on a common theme. We at beerdinners.com are happy to contribute! This month’s topic is Winter Beers, which was thought up by the Barley Vine blog. Winter seasonals are presented at beer dinners all around the world this time of year, and it’s a great chance to get to to sample some smaller batch beer.

ENJOY A BEER DINNER AT A RESTAURANT
It seems to many that the concept of a fancy beer dinner in a restaurant for $50 and up can make people a little uncomfortable. However, the beer dinners I’ve attended have been casual get-togethers where friends eat great food and discuss great beer. You don’t have to be an expert to have a good time at a beer dinner. There seem to be a wide variety of beer dinners nationwide now, and don’t feel like you can’t attend a beer dinner because you aren’t a beer expert. The odds are that you’ll be sitting near someone who is a beer expert and they’d most likely be happy to answer your questions (don’t be afraid to ask!). Many of these beer dinners will have food paired with Winter Seasonal brews, and it’s a great chance to explore a brewery’s beers (from their year-round styles to these smaller batch seasonal beers).

DIY BEER DINNERS
But as Stan Hieronymous of Appellation Beer points out, “Shouldn’t every dinner be a beer dinner?” and we heartily agree. Anyone can put on their own beer dinner in the comfort of their own home! These beer dinners can be as complex or as simple as you want to make them. The Holiday season is a great time to spend with your friends, and doing a DIY beer dinner could be just the right motivator to get your friends together! Winter seasonal beers provide an excellent option for your beer pairings, and there are a wide variety of winter seasonal beers throughout the country.

Picking the perfect Winter Seasonal beers for your beer dinner is definitely up to your individual tastes. I found a really nice article about Seasonal beer and food pairings - which helps you pair a winter beer style with various types of food.

I spoke with Matt Brophy, the analytical brewer of Flying Dog Brewery, and he gave me some tips on pairing K-9 Cruiser with food. It was really easy to get Matt to contribute here since we both work at Flying Dog (and he’s a good guy who wants to help out).

K-9 could be classified as a Strong Ale. Matt directed me to the Brewer’s Association site, where I found this:

Strong Ales are light amber to mid-range brown in color, with medium to full body with a malty sweetness. Hop aroma should be minimal and flavor can vary from none to medium in character intensity. Fruity-ester flavors and aromas can contribute to the character of this ale. Bitterness should be minimal but evident and balanced with malt and/or caramel like sweetness. Alcohol types can be varied and complex. A rich, often sweet and complex estery character may be evident. This process often softens the perceived bitterness.

K-9 is more balanced to the sweet side so it may not be best for balancing spicy flavors, so keep that in mind.

Matt also gave me a list of foods that go well with K-9 Cruiser:
Cheeses: Gouda, Havarti, Swiss
Meats: Beef, Pork (Grilled / Smoked)
Deserts: Chocolate

RECIPES ONLINE
Can you follow directions? That always helps when preparing food for your beer dinner. The internet is a wonderful resource for finding dishes that can complement your winter seasonal brew. Here are a few of the sites I consult when cooking at home:

FoodNetwork.com: They have their own television station, complete with recipes from all your favorite cooking shows. I think it’s the best resource around. Beer can be paired with food, but don’t forget that beer can be a key ingredient in your recipes as well. I did a search for “beef and beer“, and 95 different recipes came up.

FoodPairing.be: Another nice resource for preparing your own beer dinner is foodpairing.be. The website allows you to see how various ingredients complement your dish (look at the roasted beef page to get an idea of what I’m talking about). This site is an interesting resource for the more adventurous chef.

BeerCook.com: Lucy Saunders (author of “Grilling with Beer” and “Cooking with Beer”) has a nice site devoted to food and beer. She’s been getting a lot of blog love these days, and it’s well deserved.

CookingByNumbers.com: A sort of handy site that allows you to find recipes based on what you have in your fridge.