SACRAMENTO, CA
Welcome to this installment of Beer & Cheese Pairings. For this week’s editions, I’ve paired three strong cow’s milk cheeses with the light and straightforward SMaSH IPA. Let’s jump right in!
BEER:
SMaSH IPA from Yolo Brewing is a limited release beer. SMaSH stands for Single Malt and Single Hop. It is an excellent means of experiencing the pure undiluted character of a single variety of hops, supported by a pure unadorned base malt. This beer has El Dorado hops and features a light, inexplicable pineapple flavor. The lightness of this beer should counter these three cheeses nicely.
CHEESE:
The Poteaupré from Chimay has a bloomy rind and unctuous and soft texture. It features a pure and clean pronounced flavor that makes this cheese the cream of the Trappist cheese. It has an ivory-yellow body under a dark ochre rind. When paired with the IPA, the nuttiness of the cheese was enhanced nicely.
Saint Agur is a blue cheese imported by Tony’s Fine Foods. It is a blue cheese made from pasteurized cow’s milk in the village of Beauzac from the mountainous French region of Auvergne. Since 1988, the Bongrain Cheese Company has been manufacturing this double-cream cheese. It is ripened for 60 days and develops a stronger and spicier taste as it ages. This cheese paired wonderfully with the beer. The intense blue flavor of the cheese was nicely balanced by the sweetness and bitterness of the SMaSH.
Mrs. Quicke’s Cheddar is imported by Murray’s Cheese. It is a traditional English cheddar that comes from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is made from Devonshire cow’s milk and is aged for 10-14 months. It has a very sharp cheddar taste that is accompanied by a very complex citrus flavor. The beer paired very nicely with this cheese, but as a pairing, it didn’t quite match up to the Saint Agur.
Make sure to check back for the next installment of Beer & Cheese Pairings.
