Unibroue Dinner at Sheffield's in Chicago
by Tony Gonnella
The night was freezing, but the back room of Sheffield’s Wine and Beer Garden in Chicago was warm and cozy with a couple of logs in the fireplace and a nice warm beer in your glass….WHAT? That’s right, I said a warm beer. HOT, to be precise! A stovetop heated version of their Quelque Chose was served along side warmed bread pudding with strawberry compote for dessert. This was just one of the surprises that Karl Braun of Unibroue had in store for the guests of this five course feast. Ric Hess, Joe Waizmann, Karl Braun Hosted by owner Ric Hess, the fixed dinner menu was the inaugural launch of a planned series of events promoting beer and food. Sheffield’s, located on the corner of Sheffield and School streets in the Lakeview neighborhood just north of Belmont, recently added a full time kitchen and enlarged their capacity to include a private backroom and outdoor garden for the summer. It’s a great place to go for great food, great beer and great times. So, did I mention this place is great? Ric and his staff are really serious about great craft beer and have a selection of over thirty-six on tap and many more in bottles. In fact, I would recommend it up there with the Map Room and Hopleaf as a craft beer destination. Karl Braun, Unibroue’s regional sales manager for the Midwest, worked the room along with Joe Waizmann, promoter and founder of AleFest, an annual celebration of craft beer out of Dayton, OH. Throughout the evening, they shared their enthusiasm and knowledge of craft beer, going back to when they started out working at Merchant du Vin together. Karl gave some background on the Canadian brewery from Chambly, Quebec; near Montreal. He emphasized their passion and dedication to the Belgian brewing philosophy. The first course of appetizers consisted of Crustini slices with roasted pepper, tomato, herbs and balsamic reduction along with smoked Wisconsin bratwurst and a Brisket with roasted pepper coulis. The beer pairing was Blanche de Chambly; a white ale with a pale golden color and a frothy foamy head. It is mildly malty and sweet with citrus and spice overtones.
Cream of Tomato Soup with goat cheese and pesto The soup course of Cream of Tomato with goat cheese and pesto was served in a colorful handled mug reminiscent of enameled metal camping gear. My wife and I were sitting right by the fireplace and were warming up quite nicely by this time; we welcomed the cold, dark and smoky Chambly Noir, a heavily roasted black ale with a beige foamy head. It has some spice to compliment the malt and a clean dry finish.
Green apple salad with citrus vinaigrette and pecans The third course consisted of a Green Apple Salad with a citrus vinaigrette and pecans. The white ale Ephemere was paired with it. This interpretation was brewed with Granny Smith apple must and its sweet and tart overtones complimented this particular salad very well indeed.
Roasted pork tenderloin in cherry demi-glace, Smoked chicken with Sheffield’s Memphis BBQ reduction, Maple syrup sweet potato mash and vegetable medley The entrée was a duo of meats, Roasted Pork Tenderloin in a cherry demi-glace and Smoked Chicken with Sheffield’s own BBQ reduction sauce. This was accompanied on the plate by a vegetable medley and mashed sweet potatoes drizzled with maple syrup. The beer paring was the other Unibroue surprise. As it turned out, Karl had discovered a cache of their 16th Anniversary Ale, brewed in 2007 and which was allowed to age in the bottle. As the name implies, these ales are brewed in limited batches to commemorate their years of brewing. Unibroue’s in the bottle re-fermentation process allows their brews to age like Champagne. This gives them a longer shelf life without using preservatives. They do, however, require strict quality control. This particular brew stood up well against this meat course. It was a little musty, almost gamey, with a dark amber body and aromatic bread like head. By the time the fifth and final course came to the table, my memory cells were dulled to the point where I forgot to take a picture of it. Not to mention my shock when I grabbed the hot, steamy glass of Quelque Chose to wash down the dessert. So I’ll do my best to recreate the image of wisps of steam coming off both the hot bread pudding with strawberry compote and also up over the rim of the Unibroue tulip glass. The Quelque Chose is a cherry flavored Lambic style brew which I thought a little too sour against the sweet strawberries. My wife, however, loved the sour flavor… to each their own, right? I guess the contrast was their intent. The bread pudding was a silky, light, yet firm custard- like concoction. It was so smooth in texture, I was hard pressed to find the bread in it. On this, my wife and I agreed, it was the best we’d ever had.
Chef Jesus Garcia, Ric Hess The evening extended into the fourth quarter of the PM hours with a lot of chitting and chatting going on between guests extolling the pleasures each had experienced during this gastronomical orgy. Everyone was sated and spent, basking in the afterglow of the evening’s well orchestrated climax. Not wanting to leave this beer boudoir and brave Chicago’s sub-zero January night air, at least we knew, this would not end up as a one-night-stand. Ric assured all of us that he “will call”! Check out Sheffield’s website for details on their next “rendezvous” with brew!
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