On divided opinions

I regularly tutor beer tasting evenings, these are not commercial, just a bit of social fun with beer as the lubricant. A few weeks after what, I had thought, was a very successful evening I was approached by one of the participants who told me that she was keen to participate in the next one as long as there was "none of that horrible banana beer" 

She was referring to a bottle of Schnieder Tap 07, one of the great German Wheat beers (or Weissbiers) and a particular favourite of mine. After I had regained my poise I asked many of the other participants how they felt about the inclusion of this beer. The responses were completely bi-modal. Everyone had an opinion and they were either: "Loved it, best beer of the evening" or "Why would you put that in your mouth?"

Weihenstephaner claims to be the oldest functioning brewery in the world having been founded in 1040 (that is 26 years before the Norman conquest). Their Heff Weissenbier is a classic German Wheat beer. Wheat beers are governed by a section of the Reinheitsgebot (Bavarian ans later German Beer purity laws). Unlike their Belgium cousins the wheat in the grain bill must be malted and not just dried. Also the only flavourings allowed are hops so no spices, citrus peel and such. 

This style of beer is a murky, cloudy number often looking like dishwater, once you move past its uninspiring looks it is lovely from then onwards. Weihenstephaner is at the cleaner looking end looking like a cloudy golden caramel. The main interest comes from the yeast in this beer. On the nose, spicy Phenols provide a bit of vanilla and cloves; fruity esters give some pear and a lot of banana (there we are!). The palate is lifted by high carbonation, this is a very fizzy beer. It finishes full and rich. 

I love this style of beer but I am begining to understand why others do not.

Sainte-Moure de Touraine is a goats' milk cheese on the shape of a log. It is rolled around a strand of starw which makes it look a bit like a bizarre, cheesy lollipop. It is made from unpasteurised milk in the Indre et Loire department. It is rolled in ashes to get a distinctive grey look. 

This is the sort of goats'milk cheese that makes people say "Oh my, that is very goaty!" meaning its a bit too strong for them. In the UK we tend to use goats' milk cheese either in a salad with beetroot or melted on top of pasta. However, a cheese this good should be on a cheeseboard. It has the strong farmyard aromas that people either love or complain about.  

These two worked well together the pettilance (fizziness) of the beer managed the fat of the cheese well. The fruity esters created a lovely foil to the fattiness of the cheese. The sense of spice in the beer played above it all creating a lovely top note. It was also an accidental act of genius to add some traditional ham carved from the joint on the board as well. The red crackers on the board have beet root in them and this created a old fashioned match too.