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Bah. Philistines. There is only one true and original pairing: pilsner, sausage and sauerkraut.
Bah. Philistines. There is only one true and original pairing: pilsner, sausage and sauerkraut.
Interesting. I’m a wine guy myself and never put much consideration into beer pairings, I’ll just have a beer if I’m in the mood. But I have heard that IPA does best with spicy food, and this seems to confirm that, which is interesting because with wine higher alcohol is generally worse for spicier foods while IPAs are among the higher alcohol beers. Wonder why it’s the opposite?
Interesting. I’m a wine guy myself and never put much consideration into beer pairings, I’ll just have a beer if I’m in the mood. But I have heard that IPA does best with spicy food, and this seems to confirm that, which is interesting because with wine higher alcohol is generally worse for spicier foods while IPAs are among the higher alcohol beers. Wonder why it’s the opposite?
IPA's bring in the herbal and bitter flavors of hops, which balances well with spicy food for the same reason bitter/spicy szechuan chinese food is a thing. Boozier wines had more sugar in the first place, which is combining sweet and spicy which doesnt work well.
IPA's bring in the herbal and bitter flavors of hops, which balances well with spicy food for the same reason bitter/spicy szechuan chinese food is a thing. Boozier wines had more sugar in the first place, which is combining sweet and spicy which doesnt work well.
Sweeter wines with spicy food is the ideal pairing. If you’ve never had a sweet Riesling or Gewurtztraminer with Thai or Szechuan food you should definitely try it. Sugar ferments into alcohol so when fermentation is stopped to keep the ABV low you’re left with more sweetness, and the contrast makes for a better pairing. Higher alcohol wines have fermented longer so have less sugar, and the alcohol leads to a more intense burn (think like taking a shot of vodka after eating something spicy but obviously less intense) while muting the flavors of both the food and wine.
But thinking about that vodka analogy, “lower alcohol” wine is still in the 7-10% range, which is where most IPAs fall, so I guess even though they’re higher alcohol they aren’t high enough to imbalance the heat/flavor ratio
Sweeter wines with spicy food is the ideal pairing. If you’ve never had a sweet Riesling or Gewurtztraminer with Thai or Szechuan food you should definitely try it. Sugar ferments into alcohol so when fermentation is stopped to keep the ABV low you’re left with more sweetness, and the contrast makes for a better pairing. Higher alcohol wines have fermented longer so have less sugar, and the alcohol leads to a more intense burn (think like taking a shot of vodka after eating something spicy but obviously less intense) while muting the flavors of both the food and wine.
But thinking about that vodka analogy, “lower alcohol” wine is still in the 7-10% range, which is where most IPAs fall, so I guess even though they’re higher alcohol they aren’t high enough to imbalance the heat/flavor ratio
Ah, gotcha, I hadnt considered stopping fermentation early to leave excess sugar in the wine (I dont make rieslings, but I make enough wine to get the concept).
Great points all around. Thanks!
Ah, gotcha, I hadnt considered stopping fermentation early to leave excess sugar in the wine (I dont make rieslings, but I make enough wine to get the concept).
Great points all around. Thanks!
It also goes well with more beer!
It also goes well with more beer!
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