Editor's Note: our friend Joe Burgers a.k.a. @bakerandthebeerd brings us his take on this month's curdbox and his beer-ish thoughts each month. If you're a fan of beer and cheese, this is the blog for you! And if you want to join our merry band of cheese lovers, head on over to our subscription page to sign up for your monthly box!
October’s Curdbox is themed on a tea party, leading me to take a new approach to this month’s beer pairings. Instead of limiting the tasting to three separate, pre-determined pairings, I took this box to a party and enjoyed all the cheeses and snacks together alongside two phenomenal wild and sour beers from Nashville and Atlanta.
Embrace the Funk’s Grisette Batch 1 is a low alcohol (4.6%) wheat ale fermented in French Oak with Yazoo’s Saison wild mixed cultures, then dry hopped with Nelson Sauvin hops. A couple years of cellar aging in the bottle made for a slightly tart, highly drinkable beer with a pleasantly dry finish. Our second beer is Brevis and Bretthead, a double dry hopped imperial IPA from Monday Night Brewing. This sour ale packs a bigger punch at 8% abv, with big hops, and a more pronounced sour flavor.
Onto the cheeses, I have to say up front that my favorite bite in this box was the Aroeira Brazilian honey over Comté cheese on an oatcake cracker. This is the absolute best honey I’ve ever tasted, and made an indulgent complement to the buttery, nutty flavor of the aged French cheese. This depth of warm flavors was best enjoyed with the Brevis and Bretthead, a big beer with tart, refreshing flavor that stands up to such a rich bite of food.
Marin Cheese Company’s Petite Breakfast is soft, creamy, and slightly sweet. I loved its texture and fresh flavor topped with a sweet and sour cherry from the Quice & Apple white tea and tart cherry jam. Beehive Cheese’s Teahive is rubbed in Earl Grey tea, and I enjoyed this cheese most on its own, without jam, honey, or cracker, to fully taste the interplay of tea and delicious cheese. Both of these cheeses made great pairings for the Grisette, whose subtle taste and dry finish best suited more delicate flavors.
