Food pairing
Beer with cheesecake
Dense, creamy and sweet with a lactic tang.
Rich, tangy and very sweet, with a biscuit base adding fat and a little toast. The lactic sharpness is what separates it from other creamy desserts.
A beer with some acidity of its own bridges that tang, and a fruit character meets whatever is on top. Sweetness still has to match or the beer reads sour.
Cheesecake narrows the field sharply, and one answer stands clear of the rest. Most beer falls down on at least one thing this dish demands. The attribute doing most of the work is fat.
What to drink
Fruit lambic — excellent pairing
Sharp fruit acidity against dense, fatty sweetness — the beer equivalent of the fruit compote a cheesecake is usually served with, and considerably drier.
Caution: Sweet food makes a drier drink taste harsher than it is.
Oud Bruin — strong
Tartness resets the palate between mouthfuls, the way a squeeze of lemon does.
Weizenbock — strong
Beer and dish carry similar weight, so neither flattens the other.
Dubbel — strong
Beer and dish carry similar weight, so neither flattens the other.
Bière de Garde — strong
Beer and dish carry similar weight, so neither flattens the other.
Dunkelweizen — strong
Beer and dish carry similar weight, so neither flattens the other.
Tropical stout — strong
Enough residual sweetness to stand up to the dessert rather than being flattened by it.
Belgian blond ale — strong
Beer and dish carry similar weight, so neither flattens the other.
Caution: Expect the beer to refresh rather than to stand up to the food.
What not to drink
- Alcohol-free pale lager — A light beer against a heavy plate tends to disappear.
- Altbier — Sweet food makes a drier drink taste harsher than it is.
- California Common — Sweet food makes a drier drink taste harsher than it is.