FSR magazine April 2018

Liquid i nteLLigence Beer
ThinksTock
How to Host an Imported
Beer Dinner
By Liz Barrett Foster
Create a menu
that marries
globally
inspired fare
and authentic,
imported beer
for a theme
night guests will
be talking about
for weeks.
There’s no denying that Americans love
beer, and what they are really loving right now
are craft and import beers. In 2016’s $107.6 billion
beer market, craft beer sales grew 6.2 percent
and import beer sales grew 6.8 percent, according
to a report from the Brewers Association. With
imported beer’s growth now outpacing craft beer’s,
it only makes sense to take advantage of the trend.
Hosting a themed dinner night that pairs ethnic
food with its respective beer can attract guests
hungry for new experiences, new foods, and new
beers.
Choose a theme
If you run a restaurant that’s a natural fit for
imported beers—such as Mexican, Japanese, German,
etc.—half the work is already done. Choose a
theme that makes sense with the restaurant’s
brand, but also allows for a menu
that features several country-specific
courses that pair with that country’s
imported beer.
“For the most part, depending on the
type of food the restaurant specializes
in, beers from Belgium, Germany and
the U.K. are the easiest beers to pair and
sell,” says Morgan Herzog, owner of The
Beer Junction, a Seattle-based beer bar
and bottle shop where Belgian and German
imports are most popular. “A wide
variety of imports from all these countries
are readily available in most parts
of the United States, and they pair well
with food from their respective coun-
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