For centuries, wine was the preferred companion to many dishes served at several upscale restaurants in America and beyond. However, many people slowly realized how well beer paired with different kinds of foods, leading to this beverage making its way onto many restaurants’ menus as more than just an afterthought.
Many culinary experts opine that beer may even be more food-friendly than wine because it offers more flavor variety opportunities. You can pair beer with many foods, including seafood dishes. However, it’s essential to match your brew and fish dish correctly for a delightful culinary experience. Below are some top beer and seafood combinations worth knowing as a restaurateur.
Amber Ale and Grilled Salmon
Amber ale is citrusy and has high notes of caramel malt. It has an extraordinary hint of sweetness and is always brimming with flavor. You can best savor this medium-bodied beer’s taste when paired with flavorful foods like grilled meats and sharp cheddar cheese. However, salmon, in particular, is reportedly the best companion to a pint of amber ale. Grilled salmon’s smoked, savory taste is accentuated by the malty, sweet undertones of amber ale. Therefore, feel free to treat your guests to a rich amber ale and grilled salmon delicacy. You can even grill your salmon with your favorite BBQ sauce for more taste since these sauces are known to go well with amber ale. As a restaurant business, having the right equipment like grills and refrigerators is undoubtedly necessary to your proper functioning. Trusted restaurant suppliers such as The Restaurant Warehouse can help with this need.
The Restaurant Warehouse is a Seattle-based enterprise that offers a wide range of durable commercial kitchen equipment to businesses in the foodservice industry. They’re known suppliers of quality commercial cooking equipment like freezers, fryers, ice machines, refrigerators, commercial sinks, hot plates, and grills. The Restaurant Warehouse’s Atosa 27-inch sandwich prep table range has interior and exterior stainless-steel construction, pre-installed shelves, eight pans, and an efficient refrigeration system. Their sandwich salad prep refrigerators ensure that you have everything you need to make healthy salads at your disposal. What’s more, The Restaurant Warehouse offers great customer service and quality sandwich prep tables with free and fast shipping, although it isn’t the largest online restaurant supply store.
American IPA & Lobster
An ice-cold American IPA pint with a slightly bitter bite is typically refreshing on a hot summer’s day. IPAs can differ in tastes, from piney or citrusy tastes to floral notes, all having distinct extra hops to add a pleasant bitterness. Since these beers have a dominant taste, you’ll need to select a seafood choice that has an equally strong flavor on its own. Rich, buttery lobster often does the trick, and many experts consider it to be the ideal accompaniment because it tempers bitter India pale ales nicely. As such, you can serve this beverage with your next lobster boil dinner, but be sure to serve your lobster with enough butter to counteract the bitterness and soothe the palate in between bites. The American IPA has an alcohol content of between 5-8% ABV, an intense citrus aroma with fruity characters, noticeable hop bitterness, and a smooth medium-bodied mouthfeel. This ale also has a strong malt backbone with citrus and floral hop flavors and is best served in IPA glassware.
Pale Ale with Shrimp Cocktail and Oysters
Pale ales are widely credited with inspiring the American craft beer boom. They’re versatile brews and can range from malty and amber to hoppy, citrusy, or golden. These ales have a balanced malt to hop ratio and are labeled according to the malt style used (pale malt), giving them a brighter and lighter appearance and taste than their IPA cousins. Pale ales pair well with shrimp and oysters, as well as several other seafood appetizer portions of meals. This pairing is excellent because neither seafood nor beer would overshadow the other. Instead, you might notice a slight hop flavor or citrus occasionally cutting through the mignonette toppers or cocktail sauce. Consequently, you can invest in fresh, wild-caught Gulf shrimp and other shrimp products from a trusted supplier, since shrimp is a restaurant staple. Also, because bulk supply is always the best way to order for your restaurant, consider partnering with gulf shrimp suppliers that offer free shipping if you buy 10 pounds of shrimp products to save money.
Hefeweizen and Scallops
Hefeweizen is a German classic that has a citrusy taste with clove undertones. Hefeweizen means “wheat beer with yeast,” so its style is often open to broad interpretation. Regardless, this German wheat beer pairs well with a wide range of seafood, especially shellfish. Hefeweizen beers are light and bubbly and best enjoyed with the rich, sweet taste of sea scallops. Therefore, a refreshing pint of hefeweizen paired with seared scallops is a delightful combination you can offer on your menu. It’s essential to order your hefeweizen and a wide range of other alcoholic beverages from a reliable alcoholic beverage distributor in the United States. You can find several reliable liquor distributors who can supply a wide range of drinks, including wines and craft beers from some of the best farm wineries countrywide.
Oysters and Stout
Oysters and stout might initially seem like an imperfect pairing due to oysters’ delicate taste and stout’s dark richness. However, this is a surprisingly great combination. Dark and rich stouts have a silky mouthfeel because most are made with plenty of grains. As such, stout’s body typically pairs well with oysters’ sharp, salty taste. The roasty taste and aroma of a typical stout also blend well with oysters’ slight salinity and seaweed-like notes.
Swordfish and Gose
Swordfish is large and meaty in texture and has soft and nuanced flavors. As such, it needs a brew that can match its bulk while enhancing its taste. Gose is a perfect companion for swordfish because this beer has tart or salty notes, offering its unique taste that allows you to enjoy your meaty swordfish without downplaying its taste. Therefore, combine swordfish and gose to create a balanced pairing that allows each flavor profile to stand out.
