At the table
Beer and food pairings
What to pour with the food people actually cook. Styles, not brands, and a drink for the person who is not having a beer.
Best beer with curry
A cold, fizzy lager is the safe pour. A pale ale works when the curry is mild, and a strong beer usually makes the chilli hotter.
Cold lager or pilsner · Pale ale or a moderate IPA
What beer goes with steak
Roast malt echoes the crust on a steak. An amber ale or bitter cuts the fat. Save a very strong beer for the last few bites, not the whole plate.
Porter or a dry stout · Amber ale or best bitter
Beer with Sunday roast
A best bitter is the Sunday roast beer: biscuit malt for the potatoes, bitterness for the gravy. Brown ale if you want something softer.
Best bitter · Brown ale
Beer with fish and chips
Fish and chips wants fizz and a light body. A cold lager or a simple bitter cuts the batter. A heavy stout smothers the fish.
Lager or pilsner · Ordinary or best bitter
Beer with pizza
A cold lager cuts cheese and grease. A pale ale works with tomato and herbs. A brutally bitter beer can make the tomato taste harsh.
Lager · Pale ale
Beer with cheese
Match the beer to the cheese, not to 'cheese' in general. Cheddar likes a bitter, soft cheese likes fizz, blue cheese likes something darker or sweeter.
Bitter or pale ale with cheddar · Wheat beer or saison with soft cheese
Beer with BBQ
Barbecue is smoke, sugar and fat. Amber ale and pale ale cut the glaze. A gentle porter matches char. A heavily smoked beer is usually too much smoke.
Amber or brown ale · Pale ale or IPA
Beer with spicy food
Cold lager and wheat beer cope with chilli. High alcohol makes the burn worse. Sweetness and bubbles help. Extreme bitterness usually does not.
Cold lager · Wheat beer
Beer with Christmas dinner
Pour a bitter with the turkey and trimmings. Move to a small porter with Christmas pudding. One beer will not fit both courses.
Best bitter or brown ale with the main course · Porter with Christmas pudding
Beer with burgers
A pale ale cuts cheese and sauce. A lager is the cleaner pour for a plain burger. A stout only earns its place when the burger is already dark and savoury.
Pale ale or IPA · Lager
Beer with fried chicken
Fried chicken wants a cold, fizzy lager. The bubbles cut the crust. If the coating is very hot, do not add a very bitter beer on top.
Cold lager · Pale ale
Beer with seafood
Shellfish wants a dry, mineral beer: pilsner or wheat beer. Oysters are the exception that can take a dry stout. Heavy hops drown brine.
Pilsner · Wheat beer