So it’s been so long since I blogged that Word Press logged me out and I had to remember my password. But school is out and I am back at my usual beertitude and here we are!

Boyfriend Ken & I went to Metzger’s annual Bier Dinner this past Tuesday. I really love Metzger’s for many reasons–they have been around since the 1920s (I want to say 1924 but I’m not positive), third and fourth generation Metzgers work there, and they couldn’t have been nicer when I asked for pictures for my book (Downtown Ann Arbor, coming from Arcadia Publishers this fall!). My family is all dispersed and nobody had a business that carried on like this, so of course I imagine having a long-time family business to be some familial utopia. Which I’m sure it isn’t. But it does sound kind of nice. And speaking of nice (see what I did there? MASTERBLOGGER!), here is a look at each of the five courses:

Appetizer: Housemade sausage with bacon & caraway, pickled vegetables, choron sauce paired with Schneider Porter Weisse

The beer was a new one to me but holy lamb! Okay so first, remember how I mentioned the family business thing? (You should, since I just said it). Well, Schneider & Sohn started with Georg Schneider the First, who lived from 1817-1890. They are now on Georg the 7th. No shit. And even cooler, Mathilde Schneider ran the place with her husband died unexpectedly. The brewery literally LITERALLY saved wheat beer from extinction, which you can read about yourself on their website. It is true that wheat beer gives me a headache, but I wouldn’t want it to not exist.

The “porter” taste was > “wheat” taste, and I really enjoyed the beer. It had subtle chocolate notes in it and a smooth, creamy finish. It paired nicely with the sausage, which was also fantastic.

Soup: Cauliflower Puree with a drizzle of white truffle oil, paired with Reissdolf Kolsch

Kolsch had held a special place in my heart ever since we got my dad tipsy on some Kolsch down in Fort Myers. It really is a great gateway beer but, like gateway beers, can be done sloppily. Fortunately, this is true Kolsch, from the Koln region and so there were no worries about the beer not tasting perfect. It paired very nicely with the soup, which was amazing–and I don’t like cauliflower! At first, my tablemates and I thought that the Kolsch should go with the salad but I think we all changed our minds once we tasted the pairing.

Salad: Asparagus, roasted mushrooms, cured ham, shaved parm, greens, vinaigrette, paired with Weihenstephaner Kristal Weiss

The Weihenstephaner brewery is one that I would like to get to before I shed my mortal coil. It is the oldest, continuously operating brewery in the world. That is survived some world wars and God knows what else just blows my mind. And the beer is good, too! This was the unfiltered version of the Hefe, so they served it with lemon. At first, I eschewed the lemon (as I object to citrus in my beer), but Ron from Rave said it was okay and so I gave in. And he was right. Because he is Ron from Rave! This light, crisp and clear beer made a great pairing for the salad. The citrus complemented the sherry vinaigrette in a lovely way.

Entree: Fresh rainbow trout stuffed with tomatoes, onions, fennel and garlic, paired with Weihenstephaner Hefe.

Since I’m not a huge fan of the Hefe, I can’t say that I loved the beer. Boyfriend Ken did, though! He drank my share so it was all good. Let me say though that the fish was beyond description. Absolutely delicious. Phenomenal.

Dessert: Housemade vanilla ice cream in Schneider & Sohn’s Aventinus Eisbock

It’s our friend Schneider again! And this time, he brewed a very strong beer. It tasted of plums and clove, with a slight warming sensation as I drank it. The ice cream made it creamy and heavenly but I think I preferred it by itself because I really liked the plummy taste with the nice warm finish. I might have gotten thirds on the ice cream and then ate it by itself. I might also have gotten thirds on the beer and drank it by itself. I might also have gone home and fallen asleep on the couch at 9:30 at night.

We will definitely go to this again next year! I don’t know if this is how beer dinners are in Bavaria (where my family is from originally, by the way), but it worked perfectly for us. Prost!