Bring your beer to the table – the perfect food and beer pairings
Most people consider what wine they need to match with food, but not at Bendigo Beer. We know that beer and food were meant for each other and finding the perfect balance can create an amazing dining experience.Whether it’s complementing or contrasting, we’ve created a guide to our favourite food and beer pairings so you can enjoy them too.Charcuterie Board and IPA
There is no better way to end a long week than relaxing with a beer and a well curated antipasto platter, and we can guarantee that IPA is your perfect cheese board match.We suggest a sharp cheddar and a creamy blue cheese option as the bitterness of the hops in IPA will cut through and contrast with the fat of creamy cheeses. It’s also the ideal match to your chosen cured meats, such a prosciutto and salami, as it will complement the caramelised char of the meat and balance the salt.We recommend going with Blackman’s Brewery Reginald IPA, filled with prominent citrus, peach and pine aromas, whilst remaining surprisingly smooth, it’s great match for your board.Oysters and Stout
Stay with us here… Both oysters and Stout have unique flavours that are generally liked by people with a mature palate – that’s what makes this unusual combination work so well.
Oysters have a strong, briny flavour that can stand up to the rich texture and chocolatey notes of the Stout. The bitter, roasted, smooth flavour of a dry Stout is a beautiful contrast to the creamy, salty, sweet oysters.
Hargreaves Hill’s Stout gives off intense roasted malt flavours, with pronounced hop bitterness, the deep and complex palate has hints of espresso and cigar box, perfectly suiting it to the saltiness of oysters.Ramen and Pale Ale
Asian food and beer? You’re talking our language. But what’s the best beer pairing for your favourite Japanese soup? Our suggestion would be well-balanced beer with a nice full body, such as a Pale Ale. It’s important to find a beer that won’t overpower the lightness and subtlety of the broth flavours, making Pale Ale the perfect pairing to break through the ramen’s saltiness.Pale Ale from Modus is fresh, crisp and aromatics of pine and citrus work well with the flavour profile of ramen.Smoked Brisket and Porter 
The American food trend is not leaving anytime soon, and one of our favourite elements to have made its way across the Pacific is smoked barbeque meats.Depending on the meat, heavily smoked foods have a few beer buddies. Our choice for smoked brisket is definitely a Porter. The sweetness and saltiness of the meat pairs perfectly with the bitter, rich notes of the beer.Our brisket beer suggestion would be the big and bold but not overpowering Porter from Colonial Brewing Co. It’s brewed with chocolate malts for their cocoa and coffee notes, which is balanced with a gentle bitterness and a complimentary light tropical and spice aroma.Poached Pears and Double IPA
One of our favourite winter sweets is poached pears and it pears (get it) deliciously with a Double IPA. The intense hoppiness of the Double IPA cuts through the rich sweetness of the poached pears, creating a perfectly balanced dessert.We’d suggest cracking a Fix Double IPA from Fixation Brewing. It’s a fruity, punchy and hop driven, yet surprisingly dry and light on the palate, with a light malt body and an unrestrained 8.2% ABV, making it the perfect after dinner beer to go with your sweet dessert.
What beer and food pairings are you obsessing over? Send us a message and let us know!