If you’re like us, you know that wine and beer go equally well with a hearty holiday meal. I was prepped to write a guide about pairing some great brews with holiday meals, much like Miles did for Thanksgiving. However, Jay R. Brooks from one of my favorite newspapers, The San Jose Mercury News, beat me to it. I could do my own, but Brooks really did a great job about giving suggestions and reasons behind pairing. He even put into some of the beers I would have suggested selected. A little excerpt for his suggestion for ham is below, but really do check the whole thing out.
A glazed, baked ham is one of the most popular Christmas roasts, and one complemented by several very different beer styles. One of my personal favorites with ham is a Belgian-style golden, especially one that’s got some strength. Russian River Brewing’s Damnation is a great choice, as are North Coast Brewing’s Pranqster or Duvel Belgian Ale.
Other styles that work well with ham include dry Irish-style stout (Moylan’s Dragoons), pilsner (Trumer Pils), Märzen or Oktoberfest (San Jose’s Gordon Biersch or Davis’ Sudwerk), Helles (Kona Longboard Lager), English-style brown ale (Big Sky’s Moose Drool), or a strong winter ale (Full Sail Wassail).
The San Jose Mercury News — Brooks on Beer: Pairing Beer with the Holiday Meal
