Beer and cheese

I touched on this briefly in the Trappist blog. Yeah, I know - beer and cheese doesn't quite have the same kind of sophisticated ring that red wine and cheese does. In fact the mental image conjured for me is one of a massive pitcher of low quality beer and a massive bowl of nachos with fatty fat fat fat cheese melted on top, resembling the Blob if it was yellow and had a taste for corn chips instead of blood.

But for me, beer and cheese is a much more exciting combination of the two. Though I've never really been a wine drinker - I think Chardonnay is an abomination on the achievements of the human race, and the difference between a good and bad wine is that one doesn't taste like it wants to kill me by liquifying my internal organs. Actually another Black Books quote fits in nicely here - "No one is willing to admit that wine doesn't actually have a taste."

Anyway, so far there's been two beer and cheese combinations that have really struck me. The Chimay Blue Grand Reserve (Belgium) and Roquefort cheese (far right) in particular is a brilliant mutually beneficial partnership. Both being incredibly rich, smooth, creamy - it's like your palette is being fed liquid sensory enhancing drugs. This isn't a combination you can have as part of a late afternoon platter shared with friends though, this lends itself to you finding a completely isolated area, caressing a cigar in one hand, your Chimay in the other, the Roquefort laid out in front of you, some Coltrane playing in the background and taking a deep breath and enjoying the environment you've created, and when I say you've created, I mean you ARE fucking god. Yes, it is a combination of pretension and you should damn well enjoy it as such.

The James Squire Porter (NSW) coupled with Spanish San Simon cheese, on the other hand, is a lighter coupling - the Porter being a light, crisp beer and the San Simon resembling orange cheddar in appearance (I'm no good with cheese descriptions, sorry) with a light, complimentary taste. Something to enjoy on a Sunday afternoon with friends when you're hungover as shit and want to go some significant steps up from just a carton of VB, some Coles purchased Gouda and a box of Captain's Table water crackers.

Here's the problem - although I want to explore this further, in the two weekends of mixing two great loves together, I've put on a shitload of weight. Beer and cheese, while having the potential to blow your mind, will also turn you into a fat sack of crap.

Have a great weekend.