Heaton-based Anarchy Brewery is joining forces with the multi-award-winning Blackbird at Ponteland for a beer pairing evening on Thursday August 28.
Along with the chance to sample some of the brewery’s most popular craft ales, guests will have the chance to enjoy a specially created menu of locally sourced and seasonal ingredients.
The meal will begin with a starter of hot house-smoked salmon with focaccia, salmon eggs, orange and dill – which will be paired with Anarchy’s Citra Star, a light-bodied IPA with notes of grapefruit, lemon and lime.
This will be followed by confit featherblade of beef served with shimeji mushrooms, baby onions, garden peas, dauphinoise potato and a thyme jus accompanied by Anarchy’s Blond Star – chosen for its yeasty lemon, grapefruit and passionfruit flavours.
For dessert, the Blackbird’s team of chefs has chosen a rich, dark chocolate cremeux with cherry, milk chocolate crumb, cherry curd and caramel sauce paired with Anarchy’s Dark Forest Theory beer – which begins with a fresh, sweet burst of dark berries accompanied by a clean, sharp sourness and finishing with a subtle bitterness.
The meal will be rounded off with a cheeseboard featuring Baron Bigod cheese, fruitcake, celery curls, apple, and a chutney purée. This will be paired with Anarchy’s Wall of Death – with flavours of raisins, plums, figs, sour cherries, dark chocolate, coffee, roasted nuts and toasted caramel.
Mark Thompson, general manager at the Blackbird, said the event has been great fun to plan. “We are very familiar with designing menus to pair with wines,” he said, “so it’s been a really interesting experience to work with Anarchy’s brewers to devise menus to pair with their beers.”
The event will be hosted by Anarchy’s Simon Miles and Phil Beaty, and Phil said the brewery’s team was also very excited about the event. “The event will hopefully challenge the belief that great food is best paired with wine,” he said. “Our beers offer such a complexity and variety of flavours that there really is something to suit every type of dish and cuisine, and we are very excited to give people the chance to explore that for themselves at this event.”
The beer pairing evening at The Blackbird begins at 7pm with starters served at 7.30pm. All attendees will be entered into a draw to win a brewery tour and tasting experience for two, with gift packs and cans to purchase from Anarchy on the night. Tickets, which cost £35 per person (£10 deposit) can be booked by calling the Blackbird on 01661 822 684 or by emailing admin@theblackbirdponteland.co.uk
