Food pairing
Beer with chicken wings
Fried wings in a hot, vinegary sauce — fat and capsaicin heat together.
Salt, fat, char and usually a sauce carrying both heat and sugar. Eaten in quantity, which matters — the beer has to survive a dozen of them.
Carbonation and moderate bitterness clear the fat between wings. Where the sauce is genuinely hot, the usual rule applies and a very bitter beer stops helping.
Chicken wings does not constrain the beer much: nothing clashes and nothing is clearly best. Drink what you like, or choose for the sauce, the seasoning or the sides, which will decide more than the dish itself.
What to drink
Bière de Garde — strong
Beer and dish carry similar weight, so neither flattens the other.
Oud Bruin — 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.
Flanders red ale — strong
Tartness resets the palate between mouthfuls, the way a squeeze of lemon does.
Caution: Expect the beer to refresh rather than to stand up to the food.
Sweet stout — strong
Gentle sweetness and modest strength take the edge off the chilli rather than sharpening it.
Caution: A richer dish than this beer can clear from the palate.
Czech dark lager — strong
Malt sweetness rounds off the salt rather than compounding it.
Märzen — strong
Beer and dish carry similar weight, so neither flattens the other.
American amber 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
- Lambic — A light beer against a heavy plate tends to disappear.
- Pastry stout — Delicate food needs a beer that stays out of its way.
- Milkshake IPA — Delicate food needs a beer that stays out of its way.