Beer and Food

Here’s an idea: Let’s take the three star Michelin chef at his word. Maybe if you’re going to think more about food, you need a deeper well of reference and to break the problem down into components. I tell the kids in the beer appreciation class at George Brown that […]

Salt Peanuts

May 21, 2018 in Beer and Food / Uncategorized by admin

It’s warm in the sun on Carlaw and the line outside the black box theatre is full of people in new clothes for the season; girls in summer sheath dresses and guys in light sports coats. It’s a Haspel and madras affair and a real fashion statement in a double […]

In Which I Visit The Estrella Damm Gastronomy Conference

May 18, 2018 in Beer and Food by admin

“If you’re looking for the real thing, he can show you where it went.” – The Band It was July first and I had been booked to appear at one of the reopening weekends for Ontario Place. In principle, speaking as a historian at a Canada Day celebration during the […]

Supper’s Ready

December 22, 2017 in Beer and Food by admin

There’s always something a little dispiriting about a delivery you’re not expecting showing up at the apartment when you’re out of town. All you can really do is buzz the guy into the building with instructions to leave it in front of your door and hope that the neighbours don’t […]

Beer and Food: Estrella Damm Tapas Journey

August 21, 2015 in Beer and Food by admin

The Background St.Ambroise sold a couple of years back to Brasseurs RJ and the quality has kept up. Originally helmed by Peter McAuslan and Ellen Bounsall, the beers have been and continue to be largely English in their influence. While we tend to see a lot of Belgian influence in […]

Review and Food Pairing: St.Ambroise Erable

May 4, 2015 in Beer and Food / Reviews tagged Fenugreek / Maple Beer / Sotolon / St.Ambroise by admin

“You know, Andy, when I was your age…” was the way that I’d started the sentence, and I immediately wished that I hadn’t. There’s nothing to make you feel old like having to explain your context to your younger brother. Before Andy was born, I was given my first cellphone […]

Review: Local Leaside

May 3, 2015 in Beer and Food / Reviews tagged Craft Beer / Leaside / Local Leaside by admin

Last time we talked about German Beer and Food (scroll down a couple of posts) we had established some pretty basic truths about the situation in Germany prior to the advent of Oktoberfest. We talked about how the flavours in German landrace hops more or less matched the flavours in […]

On Malt Lightening and the Beer Style Continuum

November 24, 2014 in Accounting for Taste / Beer and Food tagged 19th century malt lightening / Anton Dreher / Beer and a Burger / Gabriel Sedlmayr / Oktoberfest Food by admin

Last week (just scroll down a little), we ended up by talking about Oktoberfest and how it’s a sort of benchmark for the modernization of the Bavarian agrarian system. The impressive thing about Oktoberfest is not that it has been going on for 204 years. The impressive thing is how […]

German Beer and Food Part 2: Terrines, Terpenes and Terroir

October 4, 2014 in Accounting for Taste / Beer and Food tagged Canstatter Volksfest / Germany / Herbs / hops / Humulene / Myrcene / Spices / Terroir by admin

(Ed note: This is longer than usual. There are no pictures. Next time there will be pictures. Promise!) When we talk about beer and food pairing, we try to come up with shorthand rules. I’ve heard Stephen Beaumont suggest you treat Lagers like White Wine and Ales like Red Wine. […]