What's In My Glass: 8/3/11

The first beer from today's drinking escapades I want to highlight is Dogfish Head Sah'tea.

It's a beer that defies classification, and is really just out there on its own.  It's brewed with rye malt and  a traditional German weizen yeast, and further utilizes juniper berries and chai tea in the brewing process. It may sound like a lot of different things going on, but every piece manages to fall in and work well for the beer. The juniper berries and banana notes from the yeast strain give the brew a fruitiness that serves as the base for what's to come. The rye malt lends a spicy note, and there's some clove phenols from the yeast, and both serve to highlight the peppery, herbal notes from the chai tea. To the casual drinker, Sah'tea is probably as far away as you can get from what you might consider a "normal taste" when it comes to beer, but Dogfish finds a way to make it work.

The other beer that cought my attention tonight was Rochefort 8.

Like the Westmalle bers I had a few nights ago, this one is brewed by monks in Belgium. While I usually like to have a beer with dinner, this is one of the more deliberate pairings I've done in a while. The Rochefort 8 is a strong, dark Belgian beer. There are big notes of fig and plum, along with an almost sugary sweetness. That's all balanced by some spicy yeast phenols, and a slight warming from the not-insignificant alcohol content.  The intense fruitiness wraps itself around each rib and almost acts like a sauce slathered on to enhance the  meat's flavor. The more peppery side of the beer serves to keep things interesting and really elevate the meal to a new level. Ultimately this is a pairing (in style, if not in specific beer) that I'll be happy to revisit in the future.