When it comes to choosing what to drink with a meal, most cooks and diners still reach for wine out of reflex”, expresses Adam Dulye, Executive Chef of the Brewers Association, and co-author of The Beer Pantry, a beer & food pairing cookbook written with Michael Harlan Turkell.
In 1994, Charlie Papazian, the founder of the Brewers Association and Great American Beer Festival, said “beer is a food”. Since then the beer and culinary worlds are no longer autonomous. There’s a long history of beer intertwined with food, from beer-based breads (e.g. Irish brown, the Viennese Kaiser roll), German/Wisconsin beer cheese soup, beer-boiled bratwurst, beer-battered fish, and the unfortunate architecture of beer can chicken. You can even finish off a meal with a chocolate stout cake, but all recipes don’t have to utilize beer to be “beer food”.
As beer is becoming more ingredient-driven for culinary-minded brews, Dulye aspires to make food that’s beer-minded. When it comes to pairing craft beer and food, the rules are much less rigid than with wine. The presence of carbonization and bittering agents enables beer to cleanse the palate in a way that wine with its acidity and tannins can’t. Just as brewing techniques are set for each style (e.g., Kölsch should taste like Kölsch whether it’s made in Cologne or in California), cooking has fundamental ways of building flavors. If you need to deglaze a pan, there is a proper way to do that. Need acid to sharpen a dish? There is a technique for that as well.
Dulye and Turkell have been able to break down beer styles into six flavor profiles for efficiency’s sake, which they call the “Six-Pack”: Crisp & Clean, Hoppy & Bitter, Malty & Sweet, Rich & Roasty, Fruity & Spicy, and lastly, Sour, Tart, & Funky. The subsequent chapters are divided into these flavor profiles, which food conveniently falls into as well.
Come for a beer, stay for the food, and enjoy them together as they should be.
Tickets for admission are available at two levels: Level One includes a reserved ticket and Level Two includes a reserved ticket plus a copy of The Beer Pantry. Please note the cost of the book includes shipping and sales tax. Your purchase will support our partner, Greenlight Bookstore in Brooklyn, NY. Books are not guaranteed to arrive before the event date and cannot be shipped to a PO Box.
ADAM DULYE
At the Brewers Association, Dulye leads the culinary side of events including SAVOR: An American Craft Beer and Food Experience, Paired at the Great American Beer Festival, and the World Beer Cup Dinners. Dulye also works with the BA’s Export Development Program. In this role, Dulye works to educate media, trade, and consumers on the quality and diversity of American craft beer and cuisine.
In July 2012, Dulye took a new approach to beer and food with the opening of The Abbot’s Cellar. Abbot’s Cellar became a fine dining destination, multiple time SF Chronicle Top 100 restaurant, and James Beard Award Semi-Finalist. Abbot’s Cellar dedicated menus to food and beverage pairing with a focus on American cuisine and craft beer.
In 2018, Dulye released The Beer Pantry (Dovetail Press, NYC). The Beer Pantry focuses on cooking for beer not with beer. With over 70 recipes, The Beer Pantry teaches readers how to think like a chef when pairing beer with culinary ingredients.
MICHAEL HARLAN TURKELL
Michael Harlan Turkell is an award-winning photographer, writer and podcaster, who co-authored THE BEER PANTRY with Adam Dulye, Executive Chef of the Brewers Association. Over the past decade, they've traveled the world from Denver to Tokyo, pairing food with beer in its many styles, never forgetting to enjoy a pint (or two) while they're at it. www.harlanturk.com
GASTRO OBSCURA
Gastro Obscura's mission is to inspire wonder and curiosity about the world through food and drink. Its articles and videos explore what food and drink reveal about the places where they’re made and the people who make them. And In partnership with chefs, historians, and other experts, Gastro Obscura helps travelers and curious people experience culinary wonders firsthand.
GREENLIGHT BOOKSTORE
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