Wagyu and beer

I don’t eat meat.....what is this meat you are talking about?


Enjoy

 

Something like a La Chouffe would work really nicely...

 

La Fin du Monde with cherry pie sounds incredible...one of my desert island beers....

 

Beeradvocate'ism be damned, I would go with a great cab. There are some beer and food pairings I enjoy, but if we're being honest there are some things just flat out go better with wine. For me, elite steaks and chocolate are two of those things.

BUT if you really want to go the beer route Id say an aged barleywine or aged old ale. If I were pairing beer with wagyu, which I wouldn't, I would want something lower on carb, heavier in body, malty but not roasty, with a firm ABV backbone. BWs and OA's hit those marks, and the age would take some of the edge off (whether it be bitterness which I don't think would go well with that cut of meat) and in general somewhat mellow them out.

Those that are saying high carb, light in color styles I just don't get at all. But to each their own!

 

Got to agree here....dry/semi dry red wines IMO always pair best with a good steak over any beer style. And I’m a 95%+ beer drinker for alcohol options and pretty much never have wine unless its with a juicy steak.

 

Compliment or contrast. If you want compliment go with something that is rich/heavy. If you want contrast go with something on the acidic level. Depends on what your mood is. Personally I would go Belgian single, farmhouse or not too acidic fruited sour.

 

My go-to wagyu yakiniku restaurant in Tokyo only serves Kirin Ichiban. That works.
Here in the US, I can sometimes find it marked down on the last day of sale in the Asian supermarket or go to a steakhouse on the company's dime. In that case I like a bitter dry IPA.

 

I've only been graced with A5 a few times in my life on travels to Japan as well as a hidden gem in PDX. Each time I've always enjoyed alongside a French Red Wine. From my experience its all about contrast, something acidic to cut through the unctuousness of the meat. So, if you're pressing for a beer please make it a Wild or Farmhouse for the sake of your investment. A dark beer will only add another heavy layer and take away from what is so special about Wagyu.

 

I usually don’t drink beer with meals like steak, but when I do I prefer a high ABV Quad. Trappist if available. My $0.02.