Celebrate St. Pat’s with these brews

St. Patrick’s Day, the annual celebration of the patron saint of Ireland, is just around the corner. This holiday generally conjures up images of corned beef and cabbage washed down with an ice cold mug of green beer, instead of wine. Although, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling both pair well with this meal, I decided to mix it up and taste some beers imported from Ireland and other countries.

I tasted several ales, lagers and stout beers at O’Bricks Irish Pub and Martini Bar in downtown Bradenton. Most of the beers I tasted were on tap — which I believe enhances the flavors of the beer.

The difference between lager and ale is the type of yeast that is used during the fermentation process. A lager is brewed using a bottom fermenting yeast at a colder temperature than an ale, which is brewed using a top-fermenting yeast. The method used to brew a lager causes it to be more mellow in flavor. That is probably the reason why lagers are the most common brewed beers in the world. A stout is a dark beer that is brewed using roasted malts and barley.

I started with the Harp Lager brewed in Ireland which appears to be light gold in color. It tasted a little sweet, with a mellow flavor that is more reminiscent of an American beer than an import. It was followed by a Stella Artois Pale Lager from Belgium, which is considered to be a Pilsner Lager — meaning that it has more hop flavors than a traditional lager. The Stella is golden straw in color and contains a slighter bitter aftertaste, which is an anticipated characteristic of the hops.

Moving on to the ales, I started with Boddington’s Pub Ale from England. This pale ale is gold in color with a creamy head. The Boddington’s is medium bodied and creamy, containing a nice slightly bitter flavor from the hops. Next came a Bass Pale Ale, also English, which had a pleasant, light nutty flavor to it. The Smithwick’s Ale Amber/Pale Red brewed in Ireland was one of my favorites. I could taste flavors of caramel and toffee is this bright-red ale that is little bit fizzy.

My mouth watered as the bartender started to pour the Guinness Draught Stout. The first thing he did was to fill the glass about 75 percent to the top, then let it sit as the head formed and slowly topped it off. Guinness is the quintessential Irish beer and this stout is dark brown in color, with a beige creamy head. It tastes of roasted malt and chocolate flavors. I followed the Guinness with the Young’s Double Chocolate Stout from England. This stout is more of a dessert beer, containing the bitterness of an unsweetened dark chocolate.

As an after-dinner drink, I would suggest you try a makeshift Irish Coffee by substituting chilled Three Olives brand Triple Shot Espresso vodka topped off with a spoonful of freshly whipped cream.

So exactly what is the best beer to drink with corned beef and cabbage? It really depends on what you like in a beer, because quite honestly all of the above tasted very good with this meal. In reality, the perfect beer is the one that you are willing to share with your friends! And remember to toast to your friends’ with the Gaelic phrase – Sláinte! – or in other words “To your health!”

Jim Rawe, a family attorney in Bradenton, is an avid collector of fine wines. His column appears weekly. He can be reached at jimrawe@gmail.com.