Beer and Skittles

views on brews, with menus to match

We recently polled our friends to see how many knew what "skittles" were. Most said they were a kind of potato chip, or other crisp edible. Some thought they were a timid animal, or salted fish. Only one knew they were ninepins, used in a game much like bowling. Of course, the expression "beer and skittles" is an idiom for play or enjoyment, but if anybody wants to persist in believing skittles are snacks to be munched with beer, we don't really mind because that's exactly what we're going to talk about right now -- beer and, well, vittles.

First, we'll talk about beer -- which, for our purposes, we'll interpret with enough latitude to permit the inclusion of ale and other variants. It's hard to convey in words the qualities that make up the gusto of a fine glass of beer; but the elixir of all beer, the very soul and core of its flavor, is the refreshing bite which comes from the hops, and which is always damned by non-beer drinkers because it's bitter, as though the quality of bitterness were unpalatable. Now it's a fact that most youngsters dislike things which are bitter. But as we grow more experienced, we begin to savor foods which may be sour, salty and frequently bitter. Among the many kinds of bitterness we've now learned to welcome in this country are the astringence of the quinine water in a gin and tonic, the soft bitterness of Italian black olives, the sweet bitterness of the dark chocolate fondant on an eclair, the subtlety of the Angostura in a manhattan.

When you taste beer slowly and deliberately, the earthy tang of the hops rests on the crown of your tongue as the beer slowly goes down. There's an ever-so-mild aftertaste, too, and this is most important to recognize when you're learning to discriminate between one kind of beer and another. If it's a fine, well-balanced beer with good body, the subtle aftertaste lingers on. If it's a watery beer, there's no aftertaste to speak of. This echo of the original flavor is somehow stimulating to the appetite, and quite automatically you find yourself reaching for the pretzels, the anchovy canapés or the Swiss cheese.

The first thing to remember when you shop for beer is that beer is at its best when it's fresh. Unlike wine and many kinds of distilled spirits which need aging, beer is at its prime flavor when it's poured into the kegs, bottles or cans. The great Midwestern breweries now have plants along both East and West coasts as well as in other parts of the country, and constantly deliver fresh beer almost everywhere. So buy bottled or canned beer at markets where traffic around the beer shelves is heavy.

Among enlightened bibbers beer excites quite different reactions at different temperatures. Extremely quick cooling in the freezing section of your refrigerator will cause it to lose flavor and acquire a harsh edge in taste. Extreme heat is just as harmful. In Belgium, the champion beer drinking country in the world (the Belgians drink about 30 gallons per capita yearly, while Germans down 22 and Americans 15), it is quaffed at about 50° F. And when professional beer tasters in our country do their professional beer tasting, the brew is usually from 40° to 50° F. At these temperatures the aromatic qualities are more easily detected. This doesn't mean you must stick a thermometer into the next mug you serve. But if you remove the cans or bottles from your refrigerator 15 to 20 minutes before you pour, your beer will probably reach a most pleasant temperature for civilized guzzling.

When pouring bottled or canned beer these days, some hosts tip the neck of the bottle or can gingerly against the side of the glass, pouring slowly so the glass is filled up with as much liquid and as little head as possible. When beer is poured in this manner, most of the carbon dioxide is trapped in the glass, and the head turns out to be a thin wafer instead of the snowy high collar it should be. It's true that the carbon dioxide is what gives the beer its tingle and revival power, but too much of the gas is stultifying. When beer, on the other hand, is poured to create a rich creamy cap, it loses just enough of its carbonation to make its softness and mellowness much more in evidence. A superior beer will not only form a deep dense head, but as the beer is slowly sipped, a lace of foam will cling to the sides of the glass. If you punch a can of beer once, it will create noticeably more foam when poured than if you punch it twice. Always hold the bottle or can about an inch above the rim of the glass to build up a rich, exuberant cap.

Equally important in serving beer correctly are clean glasses. The smallest trace of foreign matter on glassware affects the taste of the beer and the formation of the head. Wash beer glasses in very hot water with a detergent, followed by hot rinse water. Don't towel the glasses. Rinse them in clear cold water before pouring the beer. If you belong to the ferocious fraternity that uses beer glasses for stressing points during an argument, you'll want heavy seidels or steins. If you enjoy drinking your beer in curvacious company, you'll want thin Pilsner glasses, or perhaps the large tulip-shaped goblets which show up the brilliant clarity of a superb beer. The glass bottoms on old pewter mugs were designed for the same purpose.

In spite of over-standardization of American beers in the past, there are now scores of brews that maintain their own highly individual qualities, ranging from light Champale, which bears an uncanny resemblance to champagne, through the straw-colored, yellow, and deep orange beers, to such heavy brews as Pryor's double dark beer, a beverage similar to old fashioned porter. Guiness stout from Dublin has long been and is still a sumptuous drink, straight or mixed with ale.

To set up your own beer tasting criteria, you don't have to emulate the original ale testers in London, known there as conners. These august connoisseurs always wore leather trousers. To test a brew, they'd pour a little on a wooden bench, and then sit down. If, after three minutes, their trousers stuck to the bench, the ale was deemed "good for man's body in lawful measure." To make your own test, simply buy three or four different brands of beer or ale. Don't try to taste them immediately after a meal. Wait an hour or so. Then sip them, a little at a time. Between each sipping take a bite of unsalted cracker to give your taste buds a fresh start. You'll probably be surprised at the extent of your own flavor consciousness. You'll notice such characteristics as hop flavor body sweetness, mellowness, sharpness, blandness and many other qualities that you never expected to be able to identify.

The semantics of beer labels these days is simple. The main difference between beer and ale, for instance, is merely that ale has a stronger aroma and a stronger hop flavor than beer. Beer takes one kind of pedigreed yeast, ale another. When ale is brewed, the yeast rises to the top of the fermenting liquid: beer yeast stays at the bottom. In German breweries the term "lager" once meant that the beer was the type that was stored (lagered) during its sedimentation period. In this time its own natural carbonation was gathered and returned to it. Since practically all beer is handled this way today, the term is really unnecessary. Bock beer is a dark brew, made in the winter for use in the spring, with a slightly sweet malt flavor and a more pronounced hop taste than regular pale beer. Stout is dark ale made with more malt and hops than usual. Terms like Pilsner or Munchener refer to the European cities from which some beers were originally exported.

There's one element in beer which no brewing chemist can possibly analyze. Of all drinks, beer seems to engender the most conviviality. It may not be as esoteric as a fine white burgundy or as quick as whiskey or as heady as champagne. But with a glass of beer in your hand, you can't help but warm up to whoever's drinking with you. If you're a host at beer sessions, the most amicable thing you can do is provide vittles that go with easy summertime drinking. You'll find the following foods especially appealing with tall glasses of cold beer.

[recipe-title]Garlic Olives[/recipe-title]

Get extra large stuffed or plain green olives. Drain a 4-3/4-oz. jar of olives (or whatever size jar you need for the number of guests who are coming). Put the olives in a bowl with 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 large cloves of garlic smashed. To smash garlic, put it on a cutting board and rest the flat side of a heavy knife against the garlic. Hit the knife sharply. Remove the skin around the garlic before placing it in the bowl. Cover the bowl, place it in the refrigerator and let the olives marinate at least 4 hours before serving. If the olives are marinated overnight, the flavor will be even more zestful. Remove the garlic before serving. (continued on page 77) Beer and Skittles (continued from page 54) You'll want cocktail toothpicks for spearing these toothsome appetizers.

Liverwurst Club Sandwiches

These may be made with either plain or toasted rye bread or toasted white bread. For 4 companions you'll want 8 slices of bread, each piece spread with creamed butter, that is, butter left at room temperature until it can be worked very smooth for spreading with the back of a spoon. Cut 1 very large Spanish onion or 2 medium-size yellow onions into the thinnest possible slices. Heat 2 tablespoons salad oil in a large frying pan and sauté the onions only until they are limp -- not brown. Fry 8 slices of bacon until crisp. Cut 1/2 1b. Braunschweiger liverwurst into thin slices. Make 4 sandwiches of the sautéed onions, the liverwurst and the bacon. Place a lettuce leaf or two on top of the bacon. Cut the sandwiches diagonally and place them, cut side out, on serving plates. Garnish the sandwiches with sliced tomatoes (beefsteak if possible) and cold crisp garlic dill pickles. Serve both English mustard and mayonnaise in sauce boats.

[recipe-title]Stuffed Deviled Eggs[/recipe-title]

For this type of snack there is no designated portion or serving. The number of eggs you'll need will depend upon the appetites of the beer drinkers you're feeding as well as the amount of other food provided. Stuffed deviled eggs are delightful with cold fried chicken or cold sliced glazed ham. To make 12 half pieces, boil 6 eggs 8 to 10 minutes. Chill the eggs. Let 1/4 cup butter stand at room temperature until it is soft enough to spread easily. Remove shells from eggs, and cut the eggs in half lengthwise. Carefully remove the yolks from the whites. Force the yolks through a fine wire sieve into a mixing bowl. Add the butter, 2 tablespoons mayonnaise, 1 teaspoon prepared mustard, 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/4 teaspoon onion salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add 1 tablespoon prepared anchovy paste and 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice. Mix ingredients in the bowl until very well blended. Refill whites with yolk mixture, using a pastry tube if one is handy. Otherwise use a spoon or small spatula. Chill the eggs thoroughly before serving.

[recipe-title]Swiss Cheese Salad[/recipe-title]

Like the garlic olives, the cubes of Swiss cheese in this salad may be eaten with cocktail toothpicks at non-meal hours, or the salad may be served on lettuce like any lunch or dinner salad. In the latter case the following ingredients will make 2 portions. Buy 1/2 1b. Swiss cheese in one piece and cut into 1/2 inch cubes. In a mixing bowl combine the cheese with 1/4 cup French dressing, 2 medium-size onions sliced as thin as possible and 2 teaspoons imported Dijon mustard. If the Dijon mustard isn't available, any other prepared mustard may be substituted. Mix well. Marinate 2 to 3 hours before serving.

[recipe-title]Ham Cornucopias[/recipe-title]

Very carefully remove any pieces of shell or cartilage from 1 1b. fresh crab meat. (A 13-oz. can of crab meat may be substituted.) Cut 1/4 cup pitted black olives into thin slices. In a mixing bowl combine the crab meat with the sliced olives, 1/3 cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons minced parsley, juice of 1/2 lemon, 1 teaspoon grated onion, 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce and 2 hard-boiled eggs which have been shelled and chopped very fine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add more mayonnaise if a richer mixture is desired. Place the crab meat on 8 large thin slices of canned ham. Roll the ham cornucopia fashion, that is, with one end closed and the other end showing the crab meat. Place the rolled ham on a deep bed of crisp watercress. Serve with French bread or Russian pumpernickel. And keep the suds coming, because getting your gathering all hopped up is one way for a bright young man to get a head.