This month...What would you serve with apple pie?
Forget the detox and the diet, what you need at this time of year is a hearty pudding to keep the cold out - and what could be better than an apple pie or crumble, smothered in lashings of home-made custard.
The idea of a beer served with dessert is still one that raises a few eyebrows with UK drinkers. But we're not going to let that stop us - the Belgians have been adding fruit to their lambic beers for centuries, and they seem to know a thing or two about both brewing and eating. We asked our beer and food matching panel to put their minds to the problem.
- Ben Bartlett, catering development manager, Union Pub Company:
Now is the time you can go out blackberrying, and probably pick up some windfall apples for nothing and in half an hour create a delicious apple and blackberry oat crumble. Last month I visited Thornbridge, set in 100 acres of stunning parkland in the heart of the Peak District National Park, and discovered Thornbridge Jaipur (5.9% ABV). A small brewery attached to the magnificent hall makes this strong beer, which is light golden in appearance and has sweet, citrus notes reminiscent of lemon peel and tropical fruits. Jaipur was recently the overall winner at the Sheffield Real Ale Steel City Beer Festival, and on Boxing Day it was a great marriage with crumble.
Kamini Dickie, product development, Brewing Research International:
Apple pie is a classic dessert made with the best apple for cooking - the Bramley. Bramley apples have a higher acid content and lower sugar levels giving a good balance of sweetness and sharpness. During cooking they require only a sprinkling of sugar to counter the tartness and produce that wonderful strong tangy taste and fluffy texture. Encased in a lovely golden brown, crisp, melt-in-the-mouth sweet pastry the pie is ready to serve. But what to drink? Well, something equally delicious - the award winning Clouded Yellow, a unique wheat beer from St Austell Brewery. The citrus overtones with the soft vanilla flavour and gentle spice notes of cloves and coriander marry very well with the dessert. Pure organic maple syrup adds a gentle touch of sweetness to the beer, lending a slight helping hand to the apple's sharp cut. The beer is best served cool in a long glass. The finished flavour of apple pie with Clouded Yellow gives the best of combinations.
Richard Fox, chef and broadcaster:
This is a real opportunity to have some fun with flavour. Keep the apple tart as neutral as possible from any additional spicing and serve it with St Peters Lemon and Ginger Spice ale to get the fireworks going. As well as the lemon and ginger, there is an underlying spiciness including cinnamon. A little bitterness at the end will contrast nicely with the sweetness of the dessert, while a light carbonation will refresh the palate.
Phil Vickery, TV chef and owner, the King of Prussia, Farnham Royal, Buckinghamshire:
A light beer, such as Shepherd Neame Early Bird, served in a small glass, say a sherry schooner. The light hoppy taste will be a perfect match. Sometimes a fruit-flavoured beer can work well with puddings, such as raspberry beer for instance.
John Keeling, Fuller's head brewer:
Leifmans Frambozen. This raspberry flavoured beer will be perfect - raspberry and apple is a great dessert combination, so this beer should add real flavour to an already great dish. Another possible would be Young's Double Chocolate Stout. It's not often you'll hear me recommending a beer from arch-rivals - but I think this combination would be a winner.
Michael Tuckwood, Craft Guild of Chefs member and patron chef at the Stag in Aylesbury:
For a beer that complements apple pie or crumble you need a real deep, malty, hoppy beer to bring out the full flavour of the apples. My recommendation would be Charles Wells Bombardier. It uses more malt per pint than other premium bitters and is carefully crushed, not ground, to give a rich flavour of hops and a deep copper colour. And it's synonymous with all that is English - just like apple pie or crumble.
When serving with a dessert, treat it like a wine and recommend your customers share it. Even serve it in a wine glass, give it a good head so that it can settle and allow its spicy aroma to develop. You will get about four servings out of the pint bottle and in this quantity customers really will savour the flavour of apples.
To appreciate the full flavour serve Bombardier chilled with fresh apple pie that is warm and mellow, not piping hot. The apple pie or crumble should be crunchy on top so that you have the crunch with the soft apples. And, of course, serve it with a home-made custard.
Rupert Ponsonby, R&R Teamwork:
Innis & Gunn Oak Aged Beer lightly chilled would really hit the spot, as it has been aged in once-used bourbon barrels which give it the delicate, toasty caramel flavours you find in a subtly oaked Chardonnay. The barrels also provide the beer with a hint of sweet apple, perfect for apple pie - or tarte tatin - if you are Peter Mandelson, who allegedly mistook mushy peas for guacamole - or apple pie. This combination of fruit tart and Innis & Gunn was chosen by Michel Roux for diners at his Michelin-starred Le Gavroche restaurant in London.
Next month, the panel will be suggesting matches for the classic pub basket meal: scampi and chips. If you'd like our experts to suggest beer matches for a dish on your menu, please email your request to pubfood@thepublican.com.