Best Beer for Carbonnade

Having had the dish made with Gulden Draak, Rochefort 10 probably won't be too strong, but I'd go with a less expensive N. American Belgian and drink the Rochefort with the meal. I've also seen Flemish Reds/Oud Bruins recommended instead of a Dubbel or BSDA/Quad.

 

Yea, I was thinking along the lines of something from Unibroue; New Belgium is another cheaper possibility if you get them. Plain Rodenbach should also be cheaper if you go that route.

 

It would definitely be a lighter and tarter stew than e.g. using a quad, but I think it'll work fine when compared to more complex/rich Flemish Reds. In my experience, you lose a lot of the nuance of a beer once you start cooking with it.

 

Do you get the Ommegang Abbey Ale? That would be one of my top choices.

If not, you might substitute the Rochefort 6 for the 10, or 1 of the two lower ABV St. Bernardus beers, the 6 or the 8.

 

Shame.

As you may have spotted from the earlier post, I'm a big fan of using a Dubbel in the Charbonnade. :-)

 

Carbonnade is one of my favorite things, the first time we made it we used Chimay Grand Reserve, and trying that beer opened my eyes to Belgian beer. We usually use Trois Pistoles now, and save the Chimay for drinking with dinner if feeling classy, otherwise stick with Trois. Made it last week with Rodenbach Grand Cru and was very happy with the results, it didn't translate into a particularly tangy or vinegary stew though, which surprised me. The Rodenbach was the best pairing to drink with the stew I've tried without a doubt.

 

For sure. I'm inclined to using high quality beers for cooking dishes such as that one and the Ommegang costs less around here than do the Belgian imports, but it seems that the situation may be reversed for you. I'm partial to the school of thinking that holds that the quality of the beer (or wine) used in cooking should match the rest of the ingredients.

 

I've used one a lot like this one:

http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Classic-Beef-Beer-Stew

thought the results were pretty good and reminded me of one or two I'd had dining out with friends in Belgium.

 

Michael Jackson's book on Belgian beers had some classic recipes in the back - his for Carbonnade Flamande calls for Liefman's Goudenband. It's all I've ever used when going the traditional route.

 

Somewhere I have a recipe for Flemish Carbonnade that calls for two 33cl bottles of Chimay Red. It has been at least 10 years since I've made it. If I can find it I will post.