Home Brew Bloggers on July 22, 2020 0 Comments Craft brews continue to grow in popularity among consumers in the United States. Brewed and distributed by small- and mid-sized breweries located across the nation, the emergence of the craft beer industry in recent decades has benefited backyard barbecue enthusiasts. The sheer variety of craft beers is so great that now it’s possible to match your beer palate with your choice of barbecue. Whether you like your barbecue sweet and tangy, spicy, or something with a special and highly customized flavor from an old family recipe, one or more craft brews are certain to be the perfect choice for enjoying a barbecue just about any time. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy either. Suggested Barbecue and Craft Brew Pairings Pairing the ideal craft beer with the right barbecue often depends on the sauce itself — and the meat to a slightly lesser extent. There are many great sauces available to try depending on your taste and preference. You could also try creating your own. There aren’t any rules to coming up with your own barbecue sauce recipe. It may take some trial and error, but your only limit is what’s in your kitchen. Some popular types of craft beers and their ideal barbecue pairings include: Stout, a dark and very full-bodied beer, works great with grilled dark and light meats as well as deep and rich barbecue sauce. Hefeweissbier, a light-bodied German wheat beer, works great with grilled vegetables and chicken as well as spicy or tangy barbecue sauces. Rye beers work great with Carolina-style barbecue sauces, which often are vinegar-based and highly acidic. Ale goes great with a Texas-style barbecue like spicy ribs and brisket. Porter goes well with any Memphis-style barbecue, which emphasizes barbecue pork over other meats. The thin and tangy Memphis-style barbecue sauces and rubs wash down great with a good, smooth porter. The idea is to use the barbecue to stimulate your taste buds and the craft brew to accent the flavors with a high-quality beverage that is perfectly matched. Craft Brews Keep Growing in Popularity and Variety National beer sales declined by 2 percent last year, but craft brewers bucked that trend. Their market share rose by 6 percent to more than 25 percent of the brewing industry’s $116 billion in sales. Clearly helping to push the popularity of craft brews are the vast multitude of local and regional varieties offered. Craft brews give Americans truly great and locally sourced options for exceptional brewed beverages. They are available in bottles, quarter barrels and half barrels for entertaining at home. An appropriate craft beer pouring station is possible indoors or outdoors with a kegerator. You can get up to three taps each, and beverage refrigerators will keep your bottled goods and other items perfectly chilled and always readily available. Craft Brews Boost Popularity of Homebrewing Craft brewers accounted for more than a quarter of the nation’s $116 billion beer industry in 2019 with more than $29 billion in retail sales and are the fastest-growing market segment. Partly responsible for that popularity is the ability for homebrewers to recreate many of their favorite craft beers. More than 1.1 million enthusiasts brew their own beers at home, and most of them are married and have backyards in which to entertain guests. A great innovation that helps homebrewers share their creations with friends is the homebrew kegerator. Homebrew kegs are smaller than traditional quarter barrels and half barrels but still hold a significant amount of craft beer. You can buy them at affordable prices and hook them up to your craft beer serving area to share with friends and complement anything going on your grill.
