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Turkey sandwich, Biere de Garde interesting pair

Posted at 4:41 PM, Nov 30, 2015
and last updated 2015-11-30 16:41:38-05

Well, that was interesting.

November's beer/food pairing of a leftover turkey sandwich and biere de garde was not what I was expecting.

How's this for an endorsement: I think I liked it.

First, let me say: We broke the rules. My wife and I could not find a locally made biere de garde. Apparently, this strong pale ale from France is more of a spring beer.

My search took me to Country Fresh Farm Market on Vine. If you haven't been there, it is definitely worth checking out. Think Jungle Jim's without all the foods from around the world. It has a huge selection of beer and wine, lots of organic and hard-to-find grains and fresh produce.

I found one bottle of a biere de garde. It was made in Switzerland, aged two years and cost $23.99 for a bottle (enough for two pint glasses not quite completely filled).

It was worth it. 

I mean look at this beer.

 

 

The ale was much more sour than I was expecting. Of course, my wife (who loves sour ales) was a huge fan. I liked the beer too, even though I don't generally like sour ales.

I love leftovers from Thanksgiving. So the food was excellent.

But the turkey was overpowered by the flavor of the beer. What really connected perfectly though was the cranberry sauce (homemade, not canned) that I had on my turkey sandwich. The sour of the cranberry sauce and the ale were a perfect combo.

 

Abbaye De Saint Bon-Chien Biere de Garde paired with a leftover turkey sandwich.

 

But a warning. I had a little beer left and tried it with leftover pumpkin cake. The sweetness of the cake did not go well with the sour of the beer. It was sort of like drinking orange juice after brushing your teeth.

Here is reader Suzanne Clark's pairing:

 

Finally, the December pairing is the one my boys have been waiting for all year. No, they can't have the beer. But it is chocolate chip cookies and a milk stout. I can't wait.

Send your photos of your beer/food pairing to me via email or follow me on Twitter or Instagram. Feel free to send recipes too.

What's the beer/food pairing all about? You can find out more here.

Mike Canan is editor of WCPO.com. Contact him at mike.canan@wcpo.com. Follow him on Twitter or Instagram at @Mike_Canan.