Getting Surly at the Green Mill
One of the occasional guilty pleasures Ms. BeerGeek and I enjoy is a trip to the St. Paul Green Mill’s happy hour (from 3-6 p.m. and 9-midnight daily), which includes our favorite $4.99 Dixie wings (their above average version of Buffalo wings). During this time, they also offer tall (22 oz) beers for the price of mugs.
We found ourselves hungry, lazy and with just enough time to get in the door before 6 p.m. earlier this week. When looking for a beer with which to pair Buffalo wings, I always look for something substantial and hoppy. I choose this way because I find the hop bitterness of the beer refreshing to my “three-alarm” tongue. As an added bonus, the hoppiness is still above the taste threshold as the numbness sets in.
At the Green Mill this week, I was presented with two excellent choices: Bell’s Two-Hearted Ale and Surly’s Furious. I chose the later. It’s not a beer I favor normally, because it’s bitterness is so intense I find it out of balance (although it is a favorite of the hop-headed Ms. Beergeek). With the the wings, though, I thought it might be just the thing.
True to form, the beer was all hops in the nose, flavor and aggressive bitterness. When the wings arrived, all of those characteristics worked to its advantage. When my mouth started to heat up, I reached for my tall glass and doused my palate with a good dose of the cool hoppy ale; the Furious would refresh me and get me ready for another round.
In general I’d say try pairing hoppy beers with spicy foods. When working with really hot stuff, get Furious.
