Recently I’ve featured one of Stockport’s little treasures in Robinson’s Brewery, and in the past few weeks, they’ve released information on two new collaborations – Iron Maiden’s ‘Trooper‘ and local celebrity chef Simon Rimmer’s ‘A Beer To Go With . . .’ range. As a huge fan of Iron Maiden, I’ve been rather looking forward to getting my taste buds around their finished ale, but the more intriguing concept came in form of seeing the words curry, chicken and steak stamped on a bottle.
Yes, you did read that right, the Cheshire born maestro has created three beers that have been designed to be drunk alongside three classic items of food. A good idea, and one that could appeal to many a consumer, not only at home, but in restaurants and bars too. Wanting to create something simple and innovative, Simon sampled a range of Robinsons’ ales to shortlist his preferred style of beer, taste and colour before deciding on three distinctive styles to go perfectly with each dish. With this in mind, and to get the best out of the three beers, I not only tasted them separately, but I also created the simple dish it is required to be paired with to see if they really did work well together. So below, I give to you my tasting notes –
Simon Rimmer Presents A Beer To Go With Curry – 5%
A golden lager, the nose gave a ripe, fresh lemon aroma whilst the palate enjoyed a crisp, sweet flavour with a lingering freshness. With Kashmiri butter chicken curry, it became very smooth with a crisp tingle on the tongue and a slight dryness near the end. Lemon lingers both times.
Simon Rimmer Presents A Beer To Go With Steak – 4.4%
A ruby red ale, a rich roasted aroma on the nose with hints of dried chocolate slowly following. The palate enjoys a very light, rather hoppy feel with fresh citrus flavours. With Jim Beam marinated rump steak (medium rare), the malts blended well with the Jim Beam bourbon flavours, and created a long flavour profile of chocolate and toffee, with the citrus creating a slight sharp ending.
Simon Rimmer Presents A Beer To Go With Chicken – 4%
A golden ale, a rather soft corn scent on the nose, but develops into a zest dominated finish. Instant fizz on the palate, light with a crisp refreshing finish. Slight bitterness. With chicken pieces drizzled with mushroom and onion sauce, the chicken developed more flavour alongside the citrus zest, with the bitterness slightly counteracting the sauce to create a well-balanced feel.
I’ve only ever tried one craft beer produced specifically to match food, so with high expectations, Simon’s onto a winner. With three well adapted beers, two ales and one lager, and being able to match three rather British dishes, he’s somehow managed to tick all the boxes. I deviated away from Simon’s food recommendations, and treated each as I would if I had picked them up from a supermarket. Throwing a simple dish together really challenges the conception of the beers, but it still works. And works well.
Available in his two restaurants, Green’s and Earl, as well as from Robinson’s itself for the time being, Simon has made his range rather exclusive, but also worth it. If I had never had the chance to try the range first-hand, I would still be intrigued to taste, and maybe even try to prove him wrong.
A simple collaboration, with a fantastic outcome. Experiment and give them all a go.
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