Thousands of diners vote for beer with food

News release
21 July 2009

Thousands of diners vote for beer with food

Pairing food with beer is proving to be popular, judging by the tally of votes in the 12th annual Monteith’s Beer & Wild Food Challenge.

For more than a month, nearly 120 bars, cafes and restaurants’ chefs from around the country have been preparing wild food meals and matching them with one of seven Monteith’s beers for the public to critique. More than 5,000 votes have been collected from the public via text voting and post.

Monteith’s marketing manager Russell Browne says the dishes in the competition are not only challenging chefs, they are also challenging diners to be adventurous with their meals and try something new

“People are used to the idea of matching wine with food. The Monteith’s Beer & Wild Food Challenge gives them the opportunity to try beer as a food match,” says Russell.

“We hope their dining out experience also encourages more people to experiment with pairing beer with their own dishes at home,” he says.

The ultimate challenge for participating outlets is to create a culinary sensation using a range of locally-sourced wild food.  Wild food is defined as anything that is not usually raised on a farm.  The most successful dishes are a combination of rare ingredients, unusual cooking methods and exotic presentation.

The focus for this year’s Challenge is for chefs to be adventurous with fresh local ingredients ideally sourced within a 100 kilometre radius of their kitchen.

People have until July 26th to dine at one of the 119 participating bars, cafes and restaurants nationwide and try the beer and food match on offer. Public text votes determine the highest scoring dishes that will then be judged by Convenor of Judging Kerry Tyack and special guests at a live “cook-off”  on August 10th.

There will be six national finalists taking part in the live event. These six will be announced by Kerry on 31st July. The grand winner will be announced following the live event.

Information about entrants and a running tally of votes can be found at www.monteiths.co.nz

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For more information, please contact:
Gina Williams, 09 259 3165, 027 667 6664, gina.williams@monteiths.co.nz

Monteith’s Beer & Wild Food Challenge - background

The Monteith’s Beer & Wild Food Challenge is the longest running beer and food matching competition in the country. There are 119 restaurants participating nationwide. The 12th annual Challenge runs from 1st June until 26th July.

Hints for beer and food matching

Lagers and Lighter Ales (e.g. Monteith’s Radler and Monteith’s New Zealand Lager)

Mild lagers and lighter ales are great with food with more subtle flavours (like shellfish or chicken). However, if you are looking for a contrast, try these beers with spicy foods or a good curry.

Pilsners and More Bitter Beers (e.g. Monteith’s Original and Monteith’s Pilsner)

Dishes with herb flavours, tomato or capsicum sauces and those that have used smoked ingredients are superb with more bitter beers. The distinct hop aroma and flavours complement the herbal and grassy ingredients in the dishes. Some Pilsners also work well with spicy food.

Malty Beers (e.g. Monteith’s Celtic Red)

The malty flavour and well-balanced bitterness of robust ale styles are ideal for the meat connoisseur. Enjoy these with lamb, beef, veal or even roasted pork. Ales also go well with more strongly flavoured foods. Increase the seasoning or choose more strongly flavoured ingredients and the beer flavour must also be more intense.

Dark Beers (e.g. Monteith’s Black and Monteith’s Doppelbock)

Dark beers are balanced by red meats in rich sauces and gravies. To establish your own benchmark try a glass with a thick juicy steak cooked to perfection on the grill or roast beef served with lashings of rich dark gravy. To appreciate how well old favourites have stood the test of time, try the traditional pairing of a dark beer with raw oysters. The dark beers also go with some cured meat such as corned beef served warm.

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