Pairing Beer & Chocolate (Ep. 25)

When you’re pairing beer and chocolate, you aren’t pairing a meal; you’re pairing a moment. So how do you make that moment the best it can be? There are some special considerations when it comes to pairing craft beer and bean to bar chocolate, and in this episode I walk some of through those, offering tips on how to pair chocolate and beer. I also share some of my favorite beer and chocolate pairings from the past year.Episode timeline::01 - Intro & welcome2:25 - Thoughts on pairing beer & chocolate9:40 - Tips for pairing12:45 - Listermann Pirate Life & Chocolate Tree Coconut Rum 75%13:55 - Bhramari Quasar Shine Through an Endless Night & Tales of Stockholm Djurgarden 70% with Lingonberry17:20 - Odious Cellars Rubied Perspective & Manoa Ghost Pepper 60%18:35 - Zebulon Biere de Coupage (for Werner Herzog) with Mission Umbu 70% Dark Chocolate19:50 - St Bernardus Abt 12 2015 & Firetree Vanuatu Malekula Island 72%23:55 - Info on Virtual Belgian Quadrupel Beer Tasting with BelgianStyleAles.com25:35 - New Belgium Fernandito & Madhu Saffron Milk27:50 - Fat Heads Alpenglow & Definite Coffee and Sea Salt 65% Dark Chocolate29:35 - Perennial Shake the Frost & Manoa Waiahole Valley Oahu 70%30:45 - Branch & Bone Curl of the Burl & Crow & Moss Vanilla Smoke32:25 - J.W. Lee’s Harvest Ale 2015 Calavados & Mashpi 65% with Calamondin33:35 - Blue Owl Wee Beastie & Volo Mexicali35:20 - Conclusion37:12 - EndAs mentioned in the episode, I’ll be leading a virtual tasting of Belgian Quadrupel Ales on Saturday, October 16. This 90 minute event will include a tasting of 6 different excellent Belgian Quads. I’ll talk about how to taste beer like an expert, discuss the history behind this style and each brewery, and walk attendees through a guided tasting of each beer. You’ll be able to ask questions and share tasting notes as we go! Tickets are on sale now at belgianstyleales.com. Tickets are $52.95 plus shipping, and 1 ticket can be used for all the adults in your household who will be watching on one screen. So if you have a few friends over, it’s only 52.95 for all of you to participate. The ticket includes 1 bottle of each of the 6 beers shipped to your house, as well as the 90 minute event. If you’re not able to attend on October 16, the event will be recorded and available for ticket holders for 30 days after the event. I can’t wait to taste through these revered Belgian ales with you all.In this episode I referenced these past episodes as well if you haven’t listened to them yet:Episode 04: Pairing Beer & ChocolateEpisode 10: Branch & Bone Against a Violet SkyEpisode 19: Wood, Beer, and ChocolateI also referenced this article on the use of ethical, high quality cacao in brewing for Good Beer Hunting.The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “Come Home” written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album Umbrella. You can find out more about Anna at her website. Check out David's book Pairing Beer & Chocolate: A Guide to Bringing the Flavors of Craft Beer and Craft Chocolate Together.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramFacebookPinterestSign up for host David Nilsen's beer newsletter for regular beer musings, and the Bean to Barstool newsletter for pairings, collaborations, and maker profiles.