Beer … It’s What’s For Brunch

 
For some strange reason, in certain circles, brunch has a bad rap. Whether it’s related to the girls from Sex in the City or another connection to hipsters in Brooklyn whiling away hours on the weekend taking photos of their food, who knows. Maybe it’s the bourgeoisie, snotty sounding of it all. Possibly it’s paying far too much for the simplest, cheapest ingredients combined in unusual ways, I’m really not sure. In any case, I’m here to say I love brunch! Breakfast food at 1 p.m. on a Sunday is the best. I’m all about some fantastic local veggie omelet with butternut squash quinoa hash and cinnamon granola banana whole wheat pancakes. Sign me up!
Now that we’ve made our reservation, the next discussion we should have relates to your brunch beverage. The standards seem to be a choice between bloody mary or mimosa. A local Irish spot offers Guinness, but that seems to be the only beer I’ve seen suggested to pair with the after noon breakfast bites.
In hopes of giving your brunch a beer-centric twist, here are a few options of suds to compliment your late morning servings. In my experience, the two styles of beer that work best with breakfast and brunch food are either Belgian wit or, surprise, stout.
Where the sweeter side of brunch is concerned, think fruit-laced, batter based items; I highly recommend the wheat beer of Belgium. Refreshing and light, slightly acidic and somewhat citrus, I find that Belgium Wit is a perfect stand-in for orange juice. And although this combination can suffice to cut through the salt and fat elements of bacon, butter, cheese and eggs, I think the Wit is a great compliment to pancakes and waffles, fruit and sweet breakfast treats.
Many Wits exist, but you’ll never go wrong with Allagash White. The American standard of the style, this beer is easy going in the body and booze department, but offers up citrus, wheat and spice to join your lighter brunch fare.
If you’re going down the heavy isle for your meal, and coffee is your morning drink of choice, a big stout will do the trick. I don’t think it’s necessary to select the imperial versions, but stouts that use oats are a great brunch selection, and if your choice also contains coffee, what more could you ask for from a breakfast beer?
And given that you’re having a morning-type meal, your best option is Founder’s Breakfast Stout. “You’ve got to love coffee to truly appreciate this phenomenal brew. The coffee lovers consummate beer. Brewed with an abundance of flaked oats, bitter and imported chocolates, Sumatra and Kona coffee, this stout has an intense fresh roasted java nose topped with a cinnamon colored frothy head that goes forever.”
The aromas given off are powerful and wonderful. Think of the coffee isle in your favorite high-end grocer. The smell is outstanding, all coffee and espresso and dark chocolate. The taste and mouthfeel are divine. Velvety liquid imparts a battle between strong, black coffee and sweet, bitter chocolate. Think about the richest, most indulgent dark chocolate bittersweet cake, and then put that in a bottle. There you have Founder’s Breakfast Stout, and it’s a perfect coffee-beverage for your brunch. Enjoy the brunch brews … Cheers.
Gene’s Haufbrau has at more than 200 beers in bottles or on tap. While they don’t have every beer the Beer Snob writes about, they probably have most. Gene’s is located at 817 Savannah Hwy. 225-GENE. E-mail the Beer Snob at publisher@westof.net.