I wrote about this show last week when beer got a mention and bugger me, didn't it again last night, or, for me, this morning. Last night when the F Word was being broadcast, I was having two superb pints of Lees Bitter in the Dog and Partridge in Royton, while we were being royally gubbed in the Quiz League.This time Gordon Ramsay wishes to match beer to some veal being reared by Janet Street-Porter (it's a long story) and so went to see someone I've never heard of to match beer with food. Will Beckett is an expert in this black art it seems. (As an aside he seems to encompass Stonch's third way pretty well if you read his site.) After Gordon had spat out Taylor's Landlord, gagged on Brooklyn Chocolate Stout and rejected Meantime IPA as too bitter, he settled on the ubiquitous Innis and Gunn oak aged beer. So he bought a few bottles and pissed off. Right? No. He wanted to brew this himself and enlisted the help of Dougal Sharp, the founder of Innis and Gunn to do so, by setting up a brewery in his extensive back garden. We await the results.
What is the point of all this I hear you ask? Well I happen to know* that the brewery and the brewing expertise was supplied, not by Mr Sharp, but my CAMRA branch member Dave Porter, who owns the Outstanding Brewing Company in Bury and is a prolific installer of breweries and a fine brewer. You'll hear more of him I promise.
* From my fellow blogger Tyson!
Reading that this vulgar prat has "rejected Meantime IPA as too bitter" has reminded me that I must post about the brilliant Meantime Brewery. IMHO the best beer currently coming out of London by a long way.
ReplyDeleteI hope he gets a yeast infection.
I can't speak highly enough of David Porter or his micro brewery kit - both are superb and we are grateful for the help they provided! They even supplied a chap called Glenn to help set things up and make sure that the kit was all working, they really could not have been more helpful.
ReplyDeleteWe did brew a recipe, which Gordon and I worked out and agreed on, rather than one from Proter Breweries. I have done the odd beer recipe before, even won CBOB once...
Isn't it great that beer has been showcased to a large audience of consumers in such a positive way!
Dougal - Good of you to respond - you certainly have your ear to the ground! I am sure you can brew the odd pint! Hope it turned out well and tasted as it should.
ReplyDeleteDougal - agree with your comment about positive exposure, though there's still plenty of room for improvement. In general, food programmes and their presenters ought to be a lot better informed about beer, and it'd be nice to see it get more than the occasional mention in passing.
ReplyDeleteOn a related note, I'm no expert on food pairings, but Brooklyn Chocolate Stout with... veal?
It might not surprise you that I know Will Beckett. We met at the pub he co-owns, The Marquess Tavern in Canonbury, recently and have spoken since then. He's a nice bloke and knows the industry very well. He's about to start writing a blog for the Guardian under the nom de plume "Beer Guerilla".
ReplyDeleteMeantime IPA too bitter? The usual complaint is that it's too sweet. I love the stuff personally. And Landlord. And Brooklyn.
ReplyDeleteStill,very interesting that he's dipping a toe in the water.
Be fair, Meantime IPA might come as a shock if you'd never had a heavily hopped beer before - and most people haven't.
ReplyDeleteWhat annoyed me was the way GR implied that a good beer to go with food was one without an aftertaste. Total bollocks.
ReplyDeleteI understand it was trying to show beer in a positive light, but it ended up just spreading more disinformation.
I've posted about the programme, too:
http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/
2008/05/gordon-ramsey-brews.html
I quite like GR. However I suspect this episode may alter my opinion somewhat. Interesting to read this as this series of the FWord hasnt come out here yet but a mate has downloaded it and is promising to pass me a copy.
ReplyDeleteOh my God
ReplyDelete