Food pairing
Beer with beef jerky
Dried, salted and often smoked beef, concentrated to the point where salt and umami dominate everything else.
Drying removes most of the water and concentrates what remains, so a small piece delivers more salt and savoury intensity than a much larger portion of the meat it was made from. Smoke is frequently there too.
The pairing constraint is salt, which sharpens the perception of bitterness noticeably. A very hoppy beer alongside this reads as harsh even though it would suit the same meat cooked fresh, and something malt-forward with moderate bitterness handles it better.
Beef jerky rules a lot of beer out, but several beers do the job it needs equally well. Pick between them on preference — the reasons matter more than the order. The attribute doing most of the work is salt.
What to drink
Czech dark lager — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Munich Dunkel — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
English porter — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Rauchbier — strong
Smoke in the beer meets smoke on the plate — the same family of compounds on both sides.
Dry stout — strong
Roasted malt echoes the charred, caramelised edge of the food, so the two reinforce each other.
American brown ale — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Scottish ale — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Caution: Expect the beer to refresh rather than to stand up to the food.
Oud Bruin — strong
Malt sweetness rounds off the salt rather than compounding it.
What not to drink
- Belgian blond ale — Expect the beer to refresh rather than to stand up to the food.
- Belgian table beer — Expect the beer to refresh rather than to stand up to the food.
- New England IPA — Delicate food needs a beer that stays out of its way.