Given the huge offer of locals and new producers, everyone’s great dilemma is how to discover when a brand is worth it and when it is not. That is why we share a series of tips and advice to avoid consuming bad products, and to know how to pair them better.
“It is difficult to know when a beer is good or bad, but we can be guided by the most important thing we have, which is taste, but it is also true that there are many beers that may not be to your liking and are perfectly made. Not everyone likes the bitterness, intensity or degree of alcohol of some particular styles”, says Nicolás “Harry” Salvarrey, a partner at Desarmadero Bar (Gorriti 4295, Palermo). In those cases, there are some factors that you can pay attention to. Here are the specialist’s tips:
The beers are discovered if you know more or less the style of beer you are ordering. Therefore, the ideal is to use someone from the place where it is being consumed who knows and can explain what the characteristics of the style are and how it should feel. For example: a cloudy color may be synonymous with the beer being “sloppy” or it may be a distinguishing factor for wheat beers or NEIPAS, where cloudiness is mandatory.
If a beer is highly acidic, it’s probably bad, unless it’s a Sour, Lambic, Gose, or Berliner Weiser, where high acidity is a sought-after distinguishing factor.
If a beer is charged with a lot of gas, it is most likely oxidized. On the contrary, if it does not foam at all, it may have had some problem during the packaging or bottling, that oxygen has entered and / or the gas has escaped. This is not always the law, but they are general aspects that can be taken into account.
If there are smells of solvent or nail polish remover, it is not a good sign. The same happens if there are notes of butter or boiled vegetables. In general, if there is an unpleasant aroma or taste, the beer is most likely bad.
If the drink gives you a headache the next day, you probably had a higher alcohol level, which is not okay.
Tips for pairing beers and dishes
When thinking about a pairing, the first thing we have to think about is what kind of experience we are looking for: if we want the flavors to accompany each other and harmonize or if, on the contrary, we want them to contrast to explore new flavor combinations”, says Gabriel Furnari, brewmaster of Cervecería Tacuara (Juramento 2781, Belgrano and more branches). Although there is no general rule, there are rules that tend to fail less. Here are the brewmaster’s tips, keeping in mind the flavors of winter cooking:
Combining fatty dishes with hoppy beers, for example, an IPA, because the hops have so much power, so much flavor imprint and so much strength that it generates a drag and a kind of cleaning of the fat in the mouth.
Light beers go very well with all kinds of dishes, from light to intense, since they are easy to drink, support, refresh the palate and help to lower the food. For this reason, an intense preparation, such as a locro, can go very well with a light style, such as a Lager.
For intense desserts, such as a marquise, you can also choose two paths. The classic thing would be to accompany it with a black beer, like the Stout, because chocolate is combined with a beer that has notes of chocolate. Another option would be to go for a light style, like a Pilsen, because it is smooth on the palate and cleanses the mouth. One could also go down the path of experimentation, combining the marquise with an acid beer, such as a Krieg (cherry), which contrasts and complements the slight bitterness of the chocolate with the freshness and fruitiness of the beer. In this way, the flavors are enhanced.
by RN
