A second group of beers are the Belgian-style ales… 

These beers are typically amber to brown in color, with high alcohol content (often greater than 8%) and are usually quite fruity in their aroma.  Candy sugar (like a hard rock candy) may be added to the barley malt to increase the alcohol level without darkening the color or making it too malty.

The beer style is flavorful, yet smooth.  The yeast used in these Belgian-style ales has a lot of underlying fruit tones, especially among the Trappist-style dubbels (doubles).  As a result you might notice caramel, layers of banana, apple, apricot and peach, with cinnamon, nutmeg, or clove spices.

Fruit-flavored Belgian Lambic beers pair well with 60%+ cacao dark chocolate.  The tartness of these fruity beers pairs nicely with the not-too-bitter dark chocolate.  For an extra wow factor, combine any berry-flavored truffle or chocolate bar with dried berries and amber ale. 

Amber ales are made from barley malt that, in some cases, is called “caramel malt.”  This malt doesn’t really taste like caramel, but it does have an inherent sweetness and can give a nutty flavor.

Sue Langstaff, a member of the Primal Chocolate Club, has contributed this series about chocolate and beer pairing.  Her company Applied Sensory, LLC offers analytical sensory services for the wine, brewing, and food industries.

The first group for pairing includes dark beers such as porters and stouts…

These beers are made using a good deal of roasted or burnt barley malt.  In fact, one of the burnt barley malts is even called “chocolate malt.”  It doesn’t really have any chocolate in it, but rather the malt has been roasted or kilned until it acquires more of a chocolaty color.

“Chocolate stout” is a name brewers will sometimes give to certain stouts that have a noticeable dark chocolate flavor through the use of chocolate malt.  In some cases, to give a real chocolate flavor, the beers are brewed with a small amount of actual chocolate; this can impart a powdered cocoa flavor or a creamy, dark, bittersweet chocolate flavor. 

Brewers will also use a good deal of pale malt and some caramel malt in making porters and stouts.  These beers provide roasted, toasted, caramel and coffee-like flavors that match well with any chocolate, especially a caramel truffle, a chocolate turtle with caramel and nuts, or a caramel-infused dark milk chocolate bar. 

Strong stouts, especially Imperial stouts, can provide perfect matches to chocolate desserts.  Classic dry Irish stouts such as Guinness are not a good match because they don’t have the proper intensity.  Another stout that doesn’t work well is a Cream Stout.  It’s simply too sweet due to the addition of lactose, causing a conflict with the sweetness of the dessert.  Instead, you should find a beer that offers a little break from the sweetness of the dessert.

Sue Langstaff, a member of the Primal Chocolate Club, has contributed this series about chocolate and beer pairing.  Her company Applied Sensory, LLC offers analytical sensory services for the wine, brewing, and food industries.

Tannins in red wine can make dark chocolates seem more bitter, and the acidity in wines often does not  balance well with the chocolate.  Because of the variation in wine styles, even within varietals, it’s often difficult to generalize about ideal wine and chocolate pairings.

This is not the case for beer!

Beer is every bit as complex as wine, perhaps more so.  There are more than 60 recognized styles of beer.  Styles of beer include stout, porter, India pale ale, bock, Oktoberfest, amber ale, lager, and many more.

While each style is unique, most brewers create beers within the style guidelines for that beer type.  Beers within a style are recognizable cousins of each other, unlike wines within a wine varietal.

One of the things that makes a chocolate and beer tasting great is the fact that it is unusual, yet it works!  Even people who say they don’t like beer, often do like chocolate so everyone can enjoy the event.  Serious beer aficionados can find toasty, caramel, toffee, roasted, chocolate, coffee and fruity notes in beer.  All these same notes can be found in chocolate.

Through years of experimentation, beer drinkers have discovered that a number of different beer styles can pair well with the unique flavors in, and sweetness of, chocolate.

Three general categories of beers usually do well when paired with a range of chocolate selections.  We’ll take a look at each of these categories in upcoming posts.

Sue Langstaff, a member of the Primal Chocolate Club, has contributed this series about chocolate and beer pairing.  Her company Applied Sensory, LLC offers analytical sensory services for the wine, brewing, and food industries.

At one point I was rolling the two around my mouth at the same time, coffee and chocolate, chocolate and coffee…  Then I experienced a new flavor emerge as I swallowed. 

This got me thinking about chocolate and coffee pairings!

I grabbed the first chocolate I could find in my drawer (we all have a secret stash of chocolate nearby, right?) and pulled out a mostly Ecuadorian blend of 73% cacao dark chocolate.  I let my coffee cool down just a bit so that I could better taste its subtle flavors. 

First, I enjoyed the aroma of the chocolate, identified some familiar flavors and then took a bite.  I allowed the chocolate to coat my mouth and took in the smooth texture. 

As the chocolate melted, the flavors really exploded.  Ecuadorian chocolate has one of my favorite flavor profiles.  It is fruity, with a hint of nut, and the finish is intensely chocolate and astringent on the tongue. 

Next, I smelled the coffee and identified as many flavors as I could just before taking a sip.  Seattle Reign is a gem of a coffee with rich flavors of roasted chocolate, mixed with mild earthy and nutty notes.

The chocolate and coffee blended very well and introduced me to a new level of flavor complexity.  I really enjoyed this pairing.

Since I am not as familiar with the flavor profiles of coffees as I am with chocolates, I will need to do some more research and some more pairings.  That means spending more mornings drinking coffee and eating chocolate.

Oh darn.

Well, thanks for asking.  Cheesecake is believed to have originated in ancient Greece and was served to the athletes during the first Olympic Games held in 776 B.C.

In 1872, America dairyman William Lawrence, is credited with inventing modern day cream cheese.  He accidentally created it when he tried to reproduce a French cheese called Neufchatel.

William Lawrence started selling his new invention and called it PHILADELPHIA Brand Cream Cheese.  Today, cream cheese is by far the most popular cheese used to make cheesecakes.

I recently enjoyed eating one of my favorite cheesecakes; brownie marble cheesecake.  During this most enjoyable experience, I “accidentally” stumbled upon something spectacular.  I had a sip of a Pinot Grigio as I took a bite of my cheesecake slice and Bam!  The cheesecake/Pinot Grigio pairing was amazingly delicious.

I recommend you celebrate the Winter Olympics with a cheesecake and a Pinot Grigio.  Raise a toast to ancient Greece and accidental inventions!