by Charlie Toder, Giusto's Craft Beer Writer
November 26, 2014
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday for drinking beer. What better time to enjoy a brew than on a day dedicated to watching football, and eating yourself into a blissful food coma. I’m here to walk you through the Turkey Day football action with beer suggestions for each team’s fan base.
In my efforts to chose an appropriately delicious local beer for each team, it was impossible to find beers that are distributed to all 50 states. All of these beers are sold regionally and quite a few see national distribution. To see if these beers are distributed in your area, check out seekabrew.com or ask around at your local beer store. Without further ado, here are my picks:
Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions 12:30 pm EST
This is right around the time of day my house starts buzzing with Thanksgiving dinner preparations. The turkey has just started cooking, the table is being set (remember guys, salad forks go on the outside of the main fork), and sides are being prepped. This game is a perfect excuse to temporarily shirk your prep duties and start your day of quality beer drinking. This game needs a beer because this matchup is ugly. I know Detroit has struggled recently and Chicago has won a few in a row but do not be fooled. The Lions have lost to the two best teams in the NFL and the Bears have escaped against two of the worst. Detroit still boasts the first ranked* defense in football anchored by the terrifying Ndamukong Suh, and an equally scary remaining front 7. Calvin Johnson is finally getting healthy, Matt Stafford is rounding into form and the rest of the offense looks solid. The Bears, well… the Bears stink. The defense is one of, if not the worst in football, being the first team in 91 years to give up 50 points in consecutive weeks. The offense is also a mess with a banged up receiving corps, no running game, and Jay Cutler turning the ball over a ton. Expect a lot of Detroit sack celebrations and close-ups of Cutler’s sad duckface. Prediction: Detroit 45 Chicago 17
*All of my rankings come from Football Outsiders DVOA statistics, which is the definitive source for football advanced metrics. An explanation of DVOA can be found here.
On to the important stuff, the beer!
My beer suggestion for Chicago fans: Off Color Brewing, Scurry.
Off Color is one of the many excellent breweries that call Chicago home and one of the few that distribute outside Midwest. Their Scurry is a dark honey ale based on the rare German Kottbusser style. Malty and rich without being too sweet and boasting an approachable 5.3% ABV, Scurry is a great beer to warm your bones on a brisk Thanksgiving afternoon without being sloshed by dinner.
My beer suggestion for Detroit fans: Founders Brewing, All Day IPA
Few beer styles have enjoyed more success in 2014 than the session IPA. The American obsession with hops has been carried over into the low-alcohol realm, with extremes of the style reaching an absurd 2.7% ABV. It is no surprise that the fine folks at Founders in Grand Rapids, Michigan make one of the best session IPAs around. In fact, every single beer I’ve had from Founders has been good, they are model of consistent quality. All Day boasts big citrusy hop character at an easy 4.7% and is a fine choice for the afternoon hophead.
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys 4:30 pm EST
By 4:30 in the Toder house the finishing touches are just being applied to the Thanksgiving feast. I’ve tasted my garlic mashed potatoes for seasoning approximately 317 times and my Dad and I are fighting over who gets the tail of the turkey. My Mom, now wielding a large chefs knife, swipes at the vultures (my brother and I) hovering over and picking at her beautiful platters of food. As we move into the height of Thanksgiving festivities we get the best football game of the day. Both Dallas and Philadelphia have struggled to keep their quarterbacks healthy but excel in other areas to compensate. Dallas running back DeMarco Murray has been historically excellent, rushing for over 100 yards in all but one game this season. In Philadelphia, the defense has stepped up (they rank 8th in the NFL) to support Chip Kelly’s fast paced offense. This shapes up to be a great football game, one worth craning your neck over Uncle Bryan’s shoulder at the dinner table to glimpse the television. I think Tony Romo takes just enough pressure off of Murray to overcome the Philly defense and Dallas takes a tough game at home. My prediction: Dallas 23 Philadelphia 20
My beer suggestion for Dallas fans: Jester King Brewery, Noble King
There are few breweries in the country generating as much buzz as Jester King Brewery in Austin, Texas. Specializing in farmhouse and sour ales fermented with their own wild yeast, they make some of the most sought after beer around. Luckily, they distribute a few of their less adventurous offerings including the delicious Noble King. Noble King is a farmhouse ale (also known as a saison), a style of wheat beer often brewed with wild yeast for a noticeable funk or tart flavor. Noble King pairs this funk with a generous helping of Noble hops to add bite and slight bitterness. This is a great beer to cut the richness of traditional Thanksgiving fare. Each sip wakes up the palate and readies you for another bite of turkey or mashed potatoes or green beans or stuffing or sweet potatoes or green beans or …
My beer suggestion for Philadelphia fans: Troegs Brewery, Troegenator Double Bock
I am doing my very best to singlehandedly promote and spread the love for one of my favorite (and oft overlooked) beer styles, the dopplebock. Dopplebocks are just a double bock (a german lager), doubling the strength and flavor of the classic malty spring beer. Dopplebocks are dark, but have a light enough body to not weigh you down during a meal and enough bitterness and roast from the malt to stand up to Thanksgiving food. Troegs Brewery out of Hershey, Pennsylvania makes a wide variety of delicious beers and their Troegenator is one of the finest American made dopplebocks. Troegenator works as a great transition from main course to dessert with its slight malt sweetness and coffee-like roastiness.
Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers 8:30pm EST
At this point in the evening I am lucky to be awake. The pie and turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes have thoroughly defeated any desire to be a functioning human being. But this is no impediment to more football and beer! The late west coast matchup features two up and down teams from the shark tank of quality of football that is the NFC west. Both Seattle and San Francisco have lost contributors to their successful 2013 campaigns and Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick have regressed throwing the ball. Despite this, this is still a rivalry game between two teams with talent on both sides of the ball and good coaching. Seattle has gotten back to their rushing ways with Marshawn Lynch and Russell Wilson as an effective duo running the read option. And though the defense is not at full strength, it still is a top 10 unit. San Francisco’s strength also lies in its defense, currently ranked 4th in the NFL, despite significant losses at linebacker. And Colin Kaepernick is a dangerous dual threat option at QB, extending plays with his legs and excelling at designed runs. This is going to be a hard fought game but San Francisco just has too many injuries to keep up with the Seattle offense. My prediction: Seattle 17 San Francisco 13
My beer suggestion for San Francisco fans: 21st Amendment Brewery, Fireside Chat
This time of the evening calls for something rich and comforting, perfect for sipping by a fire. This winter warmer fits the bill perfectly, with a nice chorus of warming spices accentuating the strong brown sugar notes and strong ABV. Surprisingly, Fireside Chat is not overly sweet, avoiding the pitfall of most spiced ales. 21st Amendment is one of a slew of great breweries that make their home in the Bay Area, knocking out well made beers in stylish 12oz cans. Fireside Chat is my favorite 21st Amendment beer, but their core lineup and other seasonals are rock solid.
My beer suggestion for Seattle fans: Elysian Brewing Company, Dark O’ The Moon
Thanksgiving marks my unofficial end to pumpkin beer season, and Elysian Dark O’ The Moon pumpkin stout is a fitting end to the fall season. Elysian is rightfully lauded for their pumpkin beers and is one of the few breweries in Washington to distribute outside of the Pacific Northwest. Elysian’s Night Owl pumpkin ale is better known, but I love how the stout characteristics of Dark O’ The Moon balance out the pumpkin spice flavor. For me, nothing marks the end of a great day like a nice dark stout, and this one would make a fine conclusion to Thanksgiving.
Enjoy Thanksgiving and cheers! Look for my beer picks and game predictions for the upcoming NBA slate on Christmas Day!
No comments:
Post a Comment