thanks wife

For Valentines Day Lelaine took me to a wonderful dinner that combined two of my favorite things: pizza and beer. On Monday we went to Pizza Paradiso in Georgetown for a six course food/beer pairing. All of the beer was from Troeg's and one of their guys on hand to give a rundown of each beer and answer any questions.

She bought two tickets and let me know that I could invite whoever else I wanted. Since I enjoy spending time with her...and since she doesn't like beer so I knew I would get hers...I told her I wanted her to be my +1.

It ended up not being six different pizzas, but the food was still very good, with one exception. First was a Pale Ale with pickled carrots, cauliflower, onions, and mushrooms. This was the exception. I don't understand why anyone would pickle anything. Why waste a perfectly good carrot by making it taste terrible? At least Lelaine liked it, and the beer was good. Lelaine even had a couple sips of the beer before handing it over to me.

Second was trout with the Dream Weaver Wheat. The trout wasn't bad. I'm not a fish guy, but it was pretty light and not overpowering. It was nice with the beer since both had a lemon taste. Dream Weaver isn't my favorite wheat, but it is good. Lelaine loved the fish and thought the beer was ok.

Next came sausage and wheat berries with Nugget Nectar on cask. I wrote a post about Nugget Nectar a couple weeks ago. It was great to have it real, as casks don't have added carbonation other than what the beer naturally makes. The sausage was great, and the veal glaze that came with it was good, but I don't think I will be rushing out to buy wheat berries anytime soon. Lelaine liked the food but the beer was a little strong for her wee self.

Fourth was a "Breakfast Pie" of pancetta, spnich, potato, egg, and blue cheese served with Troegenator, a dopplebock. We both thought this pizza was our favorite course. Unfortunately they don't offer it on their regular menu (except for the next course, I don't think of the food is regularly served), because otherwise we would be going back tonight. This beer was also a little too strong for Lelaine. I had never had it before, but liked it. Nice roasted malts. I wouldn't make this a session beer, but it was pretty good.

The last main course was a roasted vegtable pizza and the HopBack Amber. This is the first time in my life I have ever had a vegetable pizza. It was good, but it could have benefited from some...meat. Fortunately Pizza Paradiso has excellent crust, so even something with inferior, or at least missing, toppings is still going to be tasty. HopBack Amber was the beer that first hooked me on Troegs. I like it so much that not only did it make the list for my 30th birthday, but it is probably in my five favorites. It is every bit an IPA as it is an amber ale, due to the amount of hops, and that is why I like it. Along with Fat Tire, it is one of my two favorite amber ales.

For dessert we had a basil cherry goatcheesecake with Mad Elf. Having basil in a dessert was new to me, but it definitely worked and made it seem very fresh. I can't say I know much about how to pair food and drink, but this one was obvious. Mad Elf is Troeg's winter seasonal, made with cherries and honey. The beer and cheesecake were a great combination.

It was a great gift and we both left happy.