Before the beer dinner even started, “the Tims,” Sous Chef Tim Andrews and Head Brewer Tim Stumpf, had a few surprises in store for their guests. Diners were greeted by an Iron Hill staple – the Vienna Red – and a new twist on a key beer ingredient. A pickled shoot from the hop plant arrived on a goat cheese spread and cracker with a honey drizzle.
The first course of the evening was cornmeal fried oysters on top of a sweet mirliton slaw with three sauces – the tabasco creme fraiche, tomato coulis, and a charred chive emulsion. These sweet oysters were paired with a Voodoo Lager, a lager with heavier black notes based off a signature beer from the now defunct Dixie Brewing Company in New Orleans.
The Savory Duck Confit Bread Pudding proved that bread pudding should not be restricted to desserts. Under a pile of hedgehog mushrooms, diners sunk their forks into layers of light brioche bread pudding with shredded pieces of duck and served with an andouille-bourbon cream sauce. This earthy and rich dish was paired with their award-winning Roggenbier, a versatile, traditional German, dark rye beer with notes of bananas, cloves, and a little spiciness.
Course three was a medley of spicy and sweet dishes including smoky, Blackened Diver Sea Scallops; crawfish risotto; maque choux, a classic spicy New Orleans side dish; and a tomato marmalade. This spicy trio was balanced with The Sweet Honey IPA, a beer specially saved for this dinner, that has reformed me of my IPA/hoppy beer hating ways. The first sip of this beer is filled with citrus notes and a nectar flavor without an overwhelmingly sugary taste. It is followed by the flavor of the hops without the standard bitterness of most hoppy beers.
For the fourth course, the rabbit loin was soaked in buttermilk overnight, resulting in a thick, crunchy coating when the meat was pan fried. The dish was accompanied by sliced pieces of fried okra, rosemary biscuits, and a spicy cured ham tasso gravy. Based on the groups’ reactions, the rabbit and the duck were the two favorite dishes of the night. According to Tim Stumpf, they paired the rabbit with the bready, malty, lager, the Bridge Street Bock to allow this dish to shine.
The capstone to our trip to the Big Easy was a lemon pudding cake (closer to a lemon souffle with a lemon pudding underneath; pictured below) paired with sweet potato ice cream and an orange caramel sauce. This course was paired with a sweet, heavier, beer with similar tasting notes of citrus-flavors, caramel and a spiced flavor – The Sasquatch American Barleywine.
The menus for brewmaster dinners series are planned out at least one or two months in advance, leaving enough time to plan out and brew the beer. When planning a beer dinner, Tim and Tim pick a theme for the evening, then a flavor profile and beers that would work well with the dishes. The two culinary artists send ideas back and forth until the menu is finely tuned for their guests.
“As I am making it, I usually have the beer sitting right there to make sure what I am I making is really going to pair nicely with the beer. Today, Tim came in, we ate a little of the food and talked about why it pairs well and what flavors really tied in. That way, when we get up to talk, we aren’t just talking blindly,” said Andrews.
Iron Hill Brewery & Restuarant’s next Brewmaster’s meal will change the way you look at the most important meal of the day. Their Breakfast of Champions brunch will take place on Sunday, March 11 from 1 to 3 p.m. The cost for this 5-course beer and breakfast pairing is $60 per person (including gratuity). Reservations are required and can be made by calling 610-983-9333.
Photographs credited to Michelle Tomm.
