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Fred
Eckhardt, dean of beer styles, takes a tour of
West coast specialty cheese at Rogue's Flanders Pub in PDX
Learn
about the 2002 tasting here - by PDF
Is there
a Rogue in the house?
Plenty,
all to hear Fred Eckhardt. More than 100 beer lovers packed the Rogue
Flanders Pub for a tasting of West coast specialty cheeses, paired
with Rogue ales and other brews.
"Universal
compatibility," was the mantra Fred gave the crowd.  "It's
the marriage of lactobacillus with saccharomyces cervisiae tonight."
What nuptial delights awaited?
Fred
launched us with a snowy-white, fresh farmer's cheese made of goat's
milk, by Alan Sprints, a chef and now brewer/owner of Hair of the
Dog, matched with the quenching Rogue Kells lager. Mmm. Milky.
Deschutes'
Pine Mountain pilsner followed, at a tangy 50 IBUs, paired with the
buttery Bandon white aged Cheddar, from Bandon,OR. One of my favorite
matches.
Normally,
I'm not a fan of wheat ales (not malty enough for me), but the Half-a-weizen,
partnered with a sprightly Juniper Grove Feta cheese, was delicious.
Yet nothing
prepared me for the sumptuous nut flavor of the Rogue Hazelnut Brown
Nectar, which made a sensuous partner with the Sally Jackson Chestnut
semi-soft cheeses -- all three of them rendered with different milks
(sheep, goat and cow). Jackson maintains her herds in Okanogan, WA.
The Rogue
Smoke and Sammish Bay Aged Gouda was the "love/hate" pairing
of the evening. A few tasters winced, but more were wowed by the powerful
smoke flavor that underscored the richness of the aged gouda.
Terminal
Gravity IPA and a melting Hudson Valley Camembert, warmed gently and
served with French baguettes, tumbled together on my tongue with pleasure.
A new
dimension in cheesemaking comes with the washing of the rind. Whether
using beer, wine, brandy or some brine, the microflora in the wash
promotes a natural mold that enhances the aroma and taste. The Juniper
Grove Tumelo Tomme, a washed-rind cheese, was my stinky love...
Yikes!
Blame the potent Rogue Belgian 5000, paired with the tomme, for that
last over-the-top declaration. Upon tasting its 7.4 percent ABV, the
volume in the room went up noticeably.
 Rogue
Shakespeare Stout and the Point Reyes Blue made a tantalizing pair,
playing with my tastebuds.
But it
was the hot Bandon Jalapeno Jack cheese, standing up against the bold
Hair of the Dog's Thor, that created all the gustatory tension of
a shotgun wedding. Yowza. Who got who in that match?
So
many people worked hard to portion all those unsliceable soft-ripened
and sticky cheeses, and serve them, as well as refreshers such as
pears, nectarines and papayas. Congrats to the Rogue Public House
b for pulling it all off so well!
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