Food pairing
Beer with hard sheep cheese
Aged sheep’s-milk cheese, saltier and more lanolin-scented than a cow’s-milk equivalent of the same age.
Sheep’s milk has roughly twice the fat and protein of cow’s milk, so a sheep cheese at the same age is denser, richer and more concentrated. It is also characteristically saltier, and it carries a faintly waxy, lanolin quality that is the giveaway.
Salt at this level constrains the beer: it sharpens bitterness, so the hoppy pairing that suits a hard cow’s-milk cheese turns harsh. Malt sweetness handles it better, and the nuttiness of an aged sheep cheese meets toasted malt directly.
Hard sheep cheese 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 salt.
What to drink
Bock — excellent pairing
Sheep’s milk has roughly twice the fat and protein of cow’s, so an aged sheep cheese is denser and considerably saltier. Salt sharpens bitterness, which rules out the hoppy pairing that suits an aged cow’s-milk cheese; malt sweetness handles it, and the nuttiness meets toasted malt directly.
Caution: Delicate food needs a beer that stays out of its way.
Munich Dunkel — outstanding
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Caution: A richer dish than this beer can clear from the palate.
Bière de Garde — 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.
Caution: Expect the beer to refresh rather than to stand up to the food.
Oud Bruin — strong
Tartness resets the palate between mouthfuls, the way a squeeze of lemon does.
Caution: A richer dish than this beer can clear from the palate.
Märzen — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Caution: A richer dish than this beer can clear from the palate.
American porter — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Caution: A richer dish than this beer can clear from the palate.
English porter — strong
Deep malt character matches the savoury weight of the dish instead of sitting apart from it.
Caution: A richer dish than this beer can clear from the palate.
What not to drink
- Alcohol-free IPA — Expect the beer to refresh rather than to stand up to the food.
- Sahti — Delicate food needs a beer that stays out of its way.
- Alcohol-free pale lager — A light beer against a heavy plate tends to disappear.