OktoberfestBeer.
By Gary Solomon
Two hundred years ago a prince and princess were married in Bavaria.
Their wedding party lasted for five days. Gee!, I wonder if the had
aspirin back then? That wedding feast is still celebrated today around
the world as Oktoberfest. The party was filled with food and drink. It
concluded with a horse race.
Beer is to Belgium and Germany as wine is to France. Beer was the most popular drink then as it is now in that part of the world. There have been many changes in the brewing techniques however. Back then hops were not used. The beers that were brewed had to be fermented in caves due to the lack of refrigeration. That is why the beer had to be consumed in the fall and winter. By the summer it would spoil and taste foul.
Belgium produces over 800 labels of beer. Beer is drunken during lunch time, and then after work. There are numerous sizes and shapes of glasses used to drink different types of beer. Some are wide mouthed and some long and fluted. Each flavor of beer has to be drunken with a certain amount of head in order to add to its enjoyment. There are golden, amber and dark beers. Beer tasting participants and their brewers scrutinize each beer just as in a wine tasting .
We have sampled numerous German beers for you. Okay, we sampled them for us! We tasted Bitburger, Koenig Pils, Koestritzer, Spaten, Warsteiner and Diebels Alt. Our favorites were Spaten and Bitburger. Bitburger is golden, lemony almost like a summer ale. Our favorite by far was Spaten which is light, dry and an amber color.
There are many places you can go to enjoy these German beers. Around the globe there are beer gardens. They are outdoor gardens or patios in which you can enjoy your favorite beer outside. Here in the United States many of out cities have beer halls. They are very large halls in which there is singing and dancing. They also offer many types of traditional German sausages, rolls, salads and cakes.
Beer is also used in the culinary arts in different ways. In fact American chefs and cooking schools import their own kegs to use and test in the kitchen. Beer is used primarily to deglaze and marinate. Here is our favorite recipe is Crispy Beef Filet with Wild Mushrooms.
All you do is salt and pepper the beef filet. Then sear the meat on all the sides. Soak some wild mushrooms in beer and then drain them. In a pan add some red onion slices, the mushrooms, some butter and beer. This is the base for your sauce. Place the meat on top the mixture and roast in the oven until cooked to your preference. Remove from the oven and put the beef on a serving platter and slice. Deglaze the pan of vegetables with your favorite beer. Add some heavy cream and veal stock and reduce slightly. This makes a delicious meal.
Submitted by Gary Solomon. Gary is the owner of The Kitchen Cupboard. One of the Kitchen Cupboard's specialties are their delicious cookies and rugelach. Visit Delicious Cookies to see for yourself! Online ordering is available. Or email Gary for further information.
