Beer Tasting Party

"A fine beer may be judged with only one sip, but it's better to be thoroughly sure." ~ Czech Proverb

A party is the best way to get out of our routine life and go out and have some fun with our most cherished friends! There is good food, drinks, music, and loads and loads of talking! But doing this almost all the time can be monotonous at times. I mean there comes a point when going to the party is not exciting anymore! Like life, parties should also be introduced with some interesting twist! How about a beer tasting party?! We all know about wine tasting parties, I mean they are popular everywhere. Although, beer tasting parties are not that common, they sure are a great way to refresh your beer tasting skills, as well as have an interesting time with your friends. Don't you think?

How to Host a Beer Tasting Party?

You need to pay special attention to the needs of the guests... but I guess that's the case with every party, right? Mentioned below are some specific details that will help you host the perfect beer tasting party!

Invitations
When it comes to the number of beer party invitations, the lesser the better! Usually 4-8 guests are perfectly manageable, unless you want to do it on a larger scale, which again depends on you. Make sure that you have 3 ounces of each beer for each guest! You can also go for some interesting ideas, like, get different beers from different regions, like Belgium, for example! Arrange about 6-12 different beer types for the party! And do keep in one extra bottle of each beer type, just in case your guests feel like having more of it! Especially, after the tasting and the judging is over!

Food
Drinks and food are the main necessities of a good and memorable party! When it comes to the combination of food with the beer, you must choose your menu carefully depending upon the versatility and the beer brands that you have selected for the party. If your beer has a stronger flavor and aroma, make sure that you complement it with equally strong tasting food. But this rule does not apply to all beer types. Have a look at the list below which would help you get an idea of the best combination of beer and food.

• With strong flavored beers, which are bitter in taste and malty, barbecued meat or roasted beef works best. The meat also goes well with porter, ales or even pale ales!
• Mexican or Southwest food like the burritos, go well with Chinese beer or even Mexican gold beers.
• Dry beers like the brown ales are a perfect combination when consumed with pizza! These beers have a more delicate flavor and complement the flavor of the pizza.
• For Belgian Trappist dark ales, scotch ale and beers of similar kinds, combine a sweet dessert which complements the taste of the drink.
• Fruit flavored beers like the Belgian fruit limbic, go very well with some complementing fruit desserts. It not only enhances the flavor of the beer, but also works great when it comes to enjoying the food with drink!
• When it comes to delicate light beers like the wheat beer, there can be no better combination than a nice helping of fresh fish!

How to Serve Beer in the Party?

Unlike wine tasting, wherein only a little sip is enough to judge its taste, beer needs to be gulped in larger quantities! This is so because your taste buds located at the back of the tongue play an important part in exploring the flavor of a good beer. Therefore, make sure that you use wide goblets and fill at least 1/3rd part of the beer mug. Another important point that you should keep in mind while serving the beer, is to make sure that the glasses are properly clean. Even a slight residue of dish washing soap can ruin the flavor of the beer. Make sure that you start with the lighter flavors first, and then move on to the heavier ones! Don't forget to rinse the glasses while you serve different beers so that the taste of one, does not trigger with the taste of other. Also make the guests drink a lot of water to clear out the taste of the previous drink so that you taste the new one with a fresh approach!

Beer tasting parties can be a lot of fun! To make it even more interesting, you can also print out many score sheets for each guest, wherein they can mark the score of each type of beer that they taste. To add to it, you can also arrange a folder for each guest containing the menu of the drinks to be served. You can also keep the brand of the beer a secret while serving them. This would not only make your party interesting, but also avoid people from going with a pre-conceived notion when it comes to judging the beer. If you have some more interesting ideas to add to it, please feel free to post a comment for the same. Have a wonderful party!