The key to pairing beer with dessert is for the beer to be as sweet or sweeter than the food. If the dessert is sweeter than the beer, the beer will seem watery and lifeless. DAB Export is rather dry. Further, it is very low impact making it even harder to pair with dessert. Meringues to the rescue!
Meringues are light as air and very low impact, yet seem luxurious. Here a bit of Campari is added to cut the sweetness that is there with a sharp bitter note, which also teases the hop flavor out of the beer. Truth be told, these meringues are a touch sweeter than the DAB Export, but any bits left in your mouth dissolve quickly into the beer allowing the pairing magic to happen.
Aroma: very very low egg with a faint hint of bitter orange |
Flavor: lightly sweet marshmallow flavor with a hint of caramel gives way to bitter orange and herbs; bittersweet aftertaste with very low orange pith and thistle. |
Texture: light and air; crisp exterior with soft chewy center that slightly sticks to teeth. |
Impact: very low |
Pairing: The meringues seem much sweeter with a medium toasted marshmallow flavors dominating and bitter orange only emerging in the aftertaste where it takes over at a low level. The beer seems much drier against the meringue; at first it has a water-like impression as it dissolves the remaining meringue but quickly presents low rich grainy malt with low bitterness and very low sage hop flavor; dry finish, low grainy aftertaste with Campari flavors growing and eventually dominating though grainy flavors never fade completely. Overall impression of Campari smores (sans chocolate). |
Campari Meringues
Campari is a bright red bitter liqueur from Italy, with a pungent bitter orange flavor. It is commonly available where liquor is sold. Feel like it is a big commitment to buy a bottle of Campari for this recipe? Use the rest for cocktails like a negroni or an old pal; you will find you want Campari around all of the time!
90 g egg white (about 3 large)
½ tsp cream of tartar
100 g granulated sugar (about ½ cup)
20 g powdered sugar (about 2 T)
1.5 t Campari
1. Heat oven to 275 F.
2. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar with a hand mixer until soft peaks form.
3. Combine sugars in small bowl, then gradually add sugar mixture to egg whites until fully incorporated. Beat to stiff peaks.
4. Add Campari, incoperate and beat back to stiff peaks.
5. Scoop 1 T mounds onto parchment lined baking sheets.
6. Bake 40-45 minutes until outside is dry and crisp; remove from oven and cool 5 minutes on pan; then transfer meringues to wire cooling rack.
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