The number on my phone glared at me in ugly black digits: 2,020.
My Fitness Pal app wasn’t being very friend-like, accusing me of eating over 2,000 calories in a single sitting. I undid the top button of my jeans and decided it was worth every bit of gut-distending discomfort.
It’s not often you stumble upon a true beer-pairing dinner.
The staff at Yukon Brewing Company put their heads together with the Culinary Arts program at Yukon College to come up with a stellar beer-centric meal in early April.
I gained a new appreciation for our local brewery, which was willing to put the effort into a fund-raising event for the students.
The 38 seat multi-course supper was held at the Hilltop Bistro at the Yukon College, and the Food and Beverage students did a fine job of serving and tending to the guests.
One serving was Yukon Gold-enhanced onion soup with a blue cheese crouton. Darcy Laliberty, a Yukon Brewing stalwart and MC for the evening, talked about how blue cheese can stand up to strong flavours — in this case, Double Trouble, an Imperial IPA. The bitterness of the blue cheese and bittering hops in the beer tag-teamed the sweet and savoury onion soup — flavour heaven.
The only problem with drinking a Double IPA early in the game is that its assault on your tongue takes time to dissipate.
The soup was followed by a beet and bibb lettuce salad paired with the less punchy younger brother to the Imperial IPA — Ice Fog. Of course, it didn’t take long for the ole palate to recalibrate, and after sinking into beet morsels and the bacon-and-beer salad dressing, I was quite happy to sip on the more subtle Ice Fog.
I was a little concerned about the main course: lamb. I have Welsh heritage and I think my ancestors’ fondness for all things lamb has turned me off of it.
Regardless, this lamb was fall-off-the-bone succulent. It was braised in Boreal Herbal Cream Ale and served in a shimmering pool of reduced veggie/beer broth. So good.
I am not a dessert eater. Anything with too much sugar gives me a diabetic quiver, even though my pancreas is fully functioning. Give me salt and I’m happy.
But dessert is a commodity in our household: Warm apple fritters with homemade ice cream is like fiat currency.
My partner ended up with most of my dessert but not before I scraped every bit of beer caramel off the plate, made with Yukon Red Amber Ale. The hop flavour in the caramel was revelatory.
Dessert was perfectly paired with the Midnight Sun Espresso Stout, a slightly sweet stout with enough bitterness in the roasted malts to offset the dessert’s sweetness.
Although my brain and stomach were doing battle by the end of the night, I left the event feeling completely taken care of, with all my senses delighted.
Hats off to Yukon College and Yukon Brewing Co. for a highly successful and satiating evening.
