Food pairing
Beer with chocolate
Rich, bitter-sweet cocoa with substantial fat and a coating texture.
Cocoa carries a real bitterness underneath the sugar, which is why chocolate is easier to pair than most desserts. It is not simply sweet.
Roast malt and cocoa are the same flavour family, so a dark beer bridges rather than contrasts. The beer has to be at least as sweet as the chocolate or it will taste thin and sour beside it — which is what happens when a dry stout meets a sweet dessert.
Chocolate 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 sweetness.
What to drink
Imperial stout — classic pairing
Roasted malt and roasted cacao share a great deal of chemistry. The beer’s alcohol also cuts the cocoa butter, which is what keeps the pairing from becoming cloying.
Caution: Something lighter will let the food lead. This pairing works only if you want the beer to be the main event.
Pastry stout — outstanding
Chocolate, coffee and caramel notes in the beer are the same flavour family as the dessert, so the two read as one thing rather than two.
Czech dark lager — outstanding
Chocolate, coffee and caramel notes in the beer are the same flavour family as the dessert, so the two read as one thing rather than two.
American brown ale — outstanding
Chocolate, coffee and caramel notes in the beer are the same flavour family as the dessert, so the two read as one thing rather than two.
Oud Bruin — outstanding
Tartness resets the palate between mouthfuls, the way a squeeze of lemon does.
Eisbock — strong
Chocolate, coffee and caramel notes in the beer are the same flavour family as the dessert, so the two read as one thing rather than two.
London brown ale — strong
Chocolate, coffee and caramel notes in the beer are the same flavour family as the dessert, so the two read as one thing rather than two.
Munich Dunkel — strong
Chocolate, coffee and caramel notes in the beer are the same flavour family as the dessert, so the two read as one thing rather than two.
What not to drink
- Lichtenhainer — Sweet food makes a drier drink taste harsher than it is.
- British golden ale — Sweet food makes a drier drink taste harsher than it is.
- English IPA — Sweet food makes a drier drink taste harsher than it is.