Country: Spain
|
Region: Catalunya
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Rating: Excellent
|
Price: $10 per bottle (25.4 Fl Oz\750ml)
|
Recommendation: Highly
Recommended
|
|
I recently noticed this beer in
a store and read the description, which sounded attractive, so I decided to try
it and I’m glad I did.
The description went on to state
that the beer was created by the companies brewmasters, and a world famous chef
and his sommeliers, to be enjoyed with
any food dish, even with traditionally challenging items such as; asparagus,
artichokes, salmon, tuna, cheeses, citrus, and bitter items. It sounded like a beer designed to compete with wines when eating a good meal, a
very challenging objective. I read this
with interest and thought it sounded like a load of marketing hype but
decided to try it anyway. I can safely say that it is not marketing hype, this
is possibly one of the best beers I have ever tasted!
The chef is Ferran Adria from
the Catalonia region in Spain, who was the head chef of the elBulli restaurant
in the Costa Brava region of Spain. Ferran and the elBulli rrestaurant, somewhat
controversially, became famous for a style of cooking he describes as
“deconstructivist”. The restaurant received the highest Michelin rating of 3 stars,
and was consistently rated as one of the best restaurants in the world, including first place in the British magazine Restaurant’s Top 50 a record 5
times. The brewer is Estrella Damm, which
is a Spanish brewery in Barcelona, founded in 1876.
The box states that the beer
should be poured in a wine glass and filled no more than half way. I followed
the instructions explicitly and surprisingly it produced excellent results. The
beer is light honey colored and slightly cloudy. It has a beautiful hoppy,
floral and yeasty scent. The beer pours with a nice, and long lasting head, and has very mild carbonation. The flavor has mild bitterness, with an infusion of hops
with hints of pear and lemon. It has an
excellent balance between all the competing flavors and acidity. The objective
to create a beer that pairs well with most foods was absolutely achieved, in my
opinion. We paired it with Pork Ribs and the combination was excellent. 
Rating: Excellent
Recommendation: Highly recommended, although I would suggest it for special occasions as it is pricey at $10 per bottle.
