Beer & Wine
BEER
By James Figy
southern mn style
Sweet draughts for your sweetheart
F
lowers. Jewelry. An intricate interpretive dance accompanied by spoken word. There’s no limit to what people might give each other on Valentine’s
Day. But it can prove tricky to strike the right balance between creativity and tradition. And if you mix both to create something special and your sweetheart doesn’t love it, well, it can feel like an arrow in your heart. Fortunately, there’s one combination that’s sure to please: beer and sweets. Now, you might not want to show up to that romantic dinner with just a six-pack. However, the right sweetsinspired beer provides the perfect refreshment for your festivities. And brewers across Minnesota continue to release solid craft brews with flavors of candies and cookies, cake and pastry. Sometimes the flavors are more open to interpretation, such as Mankato Brewery’s Cake’d Up Celebration Beer series. These brews, which unfortunately drop in September, highlight flavors like vanilla or chocolate layer cake as well as triple berry cheesecake. Sweets-inspired beers can also re-create the flavors of specific products. For example, Tin Whiskers Brewing 40 • FEBRUARY 2022 • MANKATO MAGAZINE
Company in St. Paul has collaborated with Pearson’s to translate nine of its popular candies into tasty brews for different seasons. Bit-O-Honey Blonde Ale and Nut Goodie Porter rank among the most popular. Mike Willaford, head brewer at Tin Whiskers, is no stranger to adapting unbranded flavors either, like chocolate chip cookies, pineapple upside down cake, crisped rice treats, popsicles and more. The process always begins with deconstruction. “When we look to make a new candy or pastry beer, we think conceptually about the candy or pastry first. What do you taste? What kind of texture is it? How do the flavors layer on your palate?” Willaford said. “From there it's looking at the ingredients and applying them to a style that fits. Then we work the malt and hops to provide the best base we can to highlight the ingredients that are being added.” When drinking something based on baked goods or confectionery, sweet is good. Cloying flavors, on the other hand, can leave a bad taste in your mouth and make it difficult to enjoy a pint or more. Sweets-inspired brews must be kept cold and enjoyed fresh. Unlike other styles, they won’t age well when warm and could
