A Menù on the Grill with Riegele

8 Courses for 8 Riegele Beers

I have always believed that if to some extent you are creating something, this does not have to come in a forced way but that at least in part it has to arrive by itself. Before the lyrics of Vasco Rossi’s songs became sequences of monosyllables, one of the stanzas I’ve always liked the most was

But the songs are like flowers. They are born by themselves, they are like dreams. And we just have to write them quickly because then they vanish and won’t remember them anymore

N.B.: Vasco Rossi is a very famous italian singer-song writer who composed amazing lyrics for 20 years but his songs creativity lost a lot with the passing of the years

This is how it works for me. If a work has to be done within a certain time, it will be done within that period of course. But I have learned that for those works with a high creative content, I have to take the right time anticipation for not being forced to hurry up things and to travel always with pen and notepad at hand. The right idea, the perfect technical passage for that context, the exact phrase that you’d been waiting for two days will come by themselves and generally will do it in the least suitable moment. The stories of when, during the long car trips with my family are epic, I force everyone to pull over to take notes of what came to my mind, often three times in a row in 10 kilometers. And I have to do it right then, because then I know that if I try to put the puzzle together again later, It will never be exactly as the way I had thought in that moment.

You have to know that in recent weeks I went to held an event in a pub recently bought by a friend. His imprinting was immediately that of the search for special beers in turn, without paying too much attention to agreements with distributors but aiming at an assortment of 8 quality draughts, able to range in an excellent way between the various styles. On that occasion he let me taste a Noctus 100 by the German brewery Riegele. This beer is part of a line of special beers named Manufaktor on which Riegele believed so much to take it to create a dedicated factory. Needless to say, I was madly in love with its breadth, complexity, richness of flavors and aromas. I have always loved those beers that I like to call “multifaceted”, meaning those that can be appreciated under different interpretations keys and which are usually those that tend to “override” the canons of classic styles to assume a their own identity. I love them because they allow me to play a lot on pairings, even in a very particular and distinctive branch which is the barbecue. On these same assumptions we strongly also wanted the collaboration with the brewery Hibu for ouri catering.

I have inevitably been interested, I have tasted different of them and I have discovered that the whole line of Riegele has a strong gourmet orientation and a strong inclination to the gastronomic world promoting itself through collaborations with excellent representatives of the world of cooking, also Italians. I was very impressed, but like many other things I have stored it in my mental drawer, returning to follow the thousands of projects opened during this period. But it happens that “the songs are like flowers” and while I was trying to work on something else, I started to think of a possible pairing, I stopped and marked it on the notepad. I was going back to work but after a few minutes I was reminded of that bridge ingredient, which worked so well in that case. Then I would start again, to stop shortly thereafter to write down a possible variant. In short, the fact is that after a couple of days without realizing I found myself in front of a full menu of 8 courses, from appetizers to desserts, each combined with a Riegele beer

These are all new recipes, never tried before but on paper they should work and in particular the combination with the 8 beers. The desire to test them is so big but the time is unfortunately tyrant and will allow me to proceed only “by steps”. So I decided to turn it into an opportunity to make you participate in the result gradually, in a sort of “dynamic” post: in random order I will complete the menu grid that you see below as I go on shooting the recipes, updating the post. Who makes me do it for free? Nobody. To write this post I did not contact Riegele and neither they contacted me. But you know how it works: when those “flowers” are born, you have to catch them. After all, who does my job, he mainly does because he feels pleasure in doing and in sharing it.

The tasting menu in itinere with the organoleptic description of the beers is as follows (click on the “+” button next to the courses with description of the dish, to see the complete recipe and the features of the Riegele bee in pairing).

Starter #1: Smoked Lobster Ham

Starter #1

Smoked Lobster Ham

with Sea Urchin Sour Cream and toasted Pine Nuts

For the Lobster Ham:
2 big Tropical Lobster Tails (ab. 250 gr. each.)
1 Lt. of Water
60 gr. of Marine Salt
1/2 teaspoon Instacure #1
30 gr. of Dill
50 gr of Butter
1 teaspoon of American Rub

For the Sauce:
50 gr. of Sour Cream
2 teaspoons of Olive Oil
30 gr. of Sea Urchin’s pulp
20 gr. of Pine Nuts

With a pair of scissors cut the Lobster carapace for the long, pry up the flaps and free the whole pulp. With a small knife, trim the ventral conjunctions until the lobster’s pulp has a tapered and regular shape.
Heat a glass of water in a saucepan without bringing it to a boil, remove from heat, add the dill and let it rest for 5 minutes.
Add salt and Instacure to the water, stirring until completely melted. Then add the entire contents of the saucepan, stirring well.
Put the lobster meat in a large frosting bag, add the brine, seal it and let it rest in the fridge in a basin for 48 hours.
Take out the lobster from the brine and rinse it thoroughly. Melt the butter in a saucepan or in the microwave, add the rub and mix well. Brush the lobster gently over the entire surface
Take a bullet smoker with water in the water pan at 80 degrees, smoking moderately with birch wood. Add the Lobster in the center of the grill.
When the Lobster will reach the temperature of 50° C, remove it from the smoker, put it immediately under vacuum and let it cool in the fridge for a few hours.
Mix the sour cream with a teaspoon of olive oil and the urchin pulp with the remaining teaspoon of olive oil. In a squeezer pour the two emulsions at the same time without mixing. Cut the spout of the squeezer with a wide mouth. In a non-stick pan toast the pine nuts, being careful not to burn them
Take the lobster ham out of the fridge twenty minutes before serving. Cut it into thin slices, arrange them in a serving dish and serve with a decoration made with squeezer, a few toasted pine nuts and a bunch of curly parsley

RIEGELE AMARIS 50

It is a classic Pils with a light body, characterized, as the Latin derivation of the name suggests, by a pronounced degree of bitterness due to the generous use of hops Hallertauer Perle, Opal, Hersbrucker and Tettnanger Mittelfrüh. 5 degrees, bright straw color, lively perlage and fine but persistent foam, fresh and slightly citrusy taste with herbaceous and lemon notes. Recommended serving temperature of 8 ° C. 

Starter #2: Tataki Salmon with Poppy Seeds

Starter #2

Tataki Salmon with Poppy Seeds

with Capers Ponzu Sauce

For Salmon:
1 Fillet of Salmon
2 tsp of SPG Rub
4 tsp of Poppy Seeds

For Ponzu Sauce:
50 ml. of Soy Sauce
2 tsp of Prime Uve Bianca
1 tsp Vinegar Capers
1 tsp of Honey
1 teasp of Lemon Juice
1 teasp of Worcestershire Sauce
1 teasp of Tabasco Sauce

Add the sauces, to Prime Uve, Honey, Lemon Juice, Worcestershire and Tabasco in a Bowl
Squish with a Garlic squisher capers in the bowl and mix vigorously with a whisk creating the Ponzu sauce
Toast quickly the poppy seeds in a non-stick pan to release the essential oils and free the aromatic component
Square well the Salmon fillet in order to obtain regular parallelepipeds and gently rub all sides with SPG Rub
Plate the Salmon on all sides on a well oiled hot cast iron plate, taking care to turn it on the next side as soon as it tends to detach from the plate
Put some ice in a deep dish and cover with aluminum foil and place the salmon fillet to cool for a couple of minutes, turning it on all sides
Brush the salmon on all sides with Ponzu Sauce and then pass it in the toasted poppy seeds homogeneously arranged on a tinfoil pan
Cut the parallelepipeds of salmon in slices half a centimeter thick and arrange them to climb on a narrow and along the dish
With a pipette put a drop of Ponzu sauce on each slice and decorated with some caper and a tuft of curly parsley

RIEGELE SIMCO 3

It is a very special IPA, fresh and light despite its appearance, characterized by the presence of the hops Hallertauer Perle and Opal and of course the American Simcoe to whom it owes its name, curiously added in zero-degree dry hopping during maturation in the cellar. 5 degrees, bright honeyed orange color, fine and persistent foam, very fruity taste with a slightly resinous finish, the nose is very aromatic and fragrant with a mango and apricot perfume and notes of elderberry. Recommended serving temperature of 9° C. 

First Course: Inverted Rice and Pumpkin in Ember

Fist Course

Inverted Rice and Pumpkin in Ember

with Stilton and Toasted Hazelnut

1  average size Delica style Pumpkin
250 gr. of Whole Rice
200 ml of Vegetal Broth
1/2 Onion
50 gr. of Butter
1 teasp.os Salt
1 teasp. of Bengal Long Pepper
1 pealed Garlic clove
80 gr. of Stilton Cheese
20 gr. of whole Hazelnut
1 teasp. of minced Marjoram

??????

RIEGELE AURIS 19

It is a very smooth DoppleBock, designed to emphasize the concept of aromaticity to the utmost. It is perhaps the one in which the Riegele tradition is more evident, using the favorite and sought after Steffi malt, decorticated with an exclusive technique. Powerful 9-degree beer but equally easy to drink, bright gold color, full-bodied and compact foam, full but elegant taste, malty with ample hazelnut aromatic notes. Recommended serving temperature of 9° C. 

Second Course #1: Glazed Duck Legs

Second Course #1

Glazed Duck Legs

with Maple, Oregano and Bitter Orange

For the Duck Drums:
2 Duck Drums
2 teasp. of SPOG Rub
1/2 Orange
10 cl of Broth

For the Glaze:
3 tsp. of Maple syrup
1 tsp. of Lemon Juice
1 tsp. Bitter Orange Jam
1 teasp. of dried Oregano
1 teasp. of Worcestershire Sauce

Trim the shape of the thighs while keeping the cut meat apart. Cut the skin around the bone and undid it as you would for a chicken lollypop.
Brown the trimmings in a pan over low heat. Separate the resulting drippings, add it to the broth at room temperature and emulsify with an immersion blender. Inject the thighs with what was obtained in small but thick doses.
Turn the flesh of the leg of the thigh towards the inside so as to give the thighs a very regular shape. Wrap them with some film and let it rest in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Mix the Rub with the squeezed orange juice homogeneously until obtaining a sort of sandy mixture. Punch the skin repeatedly with a toothpick over the entire surface and then brush it with the slather obtained
Put in indirect cooking at 80° C until they reach 60° C in the heart. If you want, add maple wood while smoking. Then leave the thighs out smoker until the heart temperature drops to 50° C.
In the meantime, change the set up in a two-point heat cooking by stabilizing the temperature at 220° C. Put the thighs in cooking until reaching 65 degrees to the heart.
Mix very well the maple syrup with lemon juice, jam and Worcestershire sauce, so to make a very homogeneous glaze
Brush the skin of the thighs a first and a second time after 2 minutes, until reaching 70° C in the heart
Let the Duck thighs rest for a couple of minutes at open air and serve them with orange slices, aromatic herbs at your taste and grated orange zests

RIEGELE AUGUSTUS 8

It is a Weizen DoppleBock, another beer with a strong Riegele imprint, produced with the exclusive double mash system and using a unique blend of yeasts, Monaco malts and wheat. An important 8-degree beer combined with a strong sweet tendency, dark amber-colored, full-bodied and compact foam, the taste is an explosion of tropical fruit, soft and powerful with ample notes of banana and finer of caramel. Recommended serving temperature of 10° C. 

Second Course #2: Picanha Pastrami

Second Course #2

Picanha Pastrami

Porcini Mushroom and Coffee Flavored with Walnut Chimichurri

For Pastrami:
1, 5 Kg. Beef Picanha
20 gr. of dried Porcini Mushroom
2 small cups of Espresso Coffee
1 peeled Garlic Clove
1 glass of Beef Broth Stock
1 teasp. of Nutmeg
3 Cloves
1 Lt. of Water
60 gr. of Salt
1/2 teasp. Instacure #1
1 teasp. of SPG Rub
1 teasp. Coffee Powder

For Chimichurri:
1/2 Green Pepper
1 small Parsley bundle
1 teasp. Oregano
1 peeled Garlic clove
1 bay leaf
1 glass Apple Sider
1/2 glass Olive Oil
6 shelled walnuts

Cut the Picanha in two by the long and shape it on the sides to obtain a rather homogeneous pair of fillets. Trim the fat until a layer of about 3 millimeters is left.
Heat the stock in a saucepan, add the coffee, the nutmeg, the cloves, the crushed garlic and the mushrooms and let it soak for about 20 minutes.
Add salt and Instacure to the water, stirring until completely melted. Then add the entire contents of the saucepan, stirring well.
Put the Picanha fillets in a large zip bag, add the brine, seal it and let it rest in a Fridge in a basin for 4 days.
The day before cooking grind the parsley, bell pepper, garlic and walnuts. Add the oregano, the bay leaf, the oil and the vinegar, mix well, film and let it rest in the fridge.
Remove the fillets from the brine and rinse them carefully. Mix the SPG rub well with the coffee powder and rub it gently
Take a bullet smoker with water in the water pan to 120 degrees, smoking moderately with Hickory wood. Add the Picanha fillets, keeping the side with the fat down. As soon as the bark is formed in a defined way, turn the fillets with the fat upwards.
When the Picanha has reached the temperature of 80° C in the heart, remove it from the smoker and let it rest in an isothermal box for a couple of hours.
Slice the fillets and serve with a spoonful of walnut chimichurri and a sprinkling of chopped parsley

RIEGELE ROBUSTUS 6

It is a light and drinkable Porter dedicated to the exaltation of toasted aromas. Use only Irish yeasts and a combination of six malts and toasted barley. Balanced and pleasant beer to drink with its 5 degrees, dark black color, full bodied foam and extremely compact, clean taste that leaves more room to the nose, malty and honeyed in equal measure, with a pleasantly ample aroma of coffee and bitter chocolate harmonized by an enveloping “roasted” note. Recommended serving temperature of 11° C.

Second Course #3: Pepper Jowl Stew

Second Course #3

Pepper Jowl Stew

with Lard, Chestnuts and Sage

2 Kg. of Swine Jowl Flesh
1/4 of Onion
100 gr. of Lard
100 gr. of Boiled Chestnuts
5 Sage Leafs
2 tsp os SPG Rub
1 teasp of Malagueta Pepper
2 glasses of Bock Beer
1 teasp of Worcestershire Sauce
150 gr. of Sour Cream
1 tuft of chives

Trim the cheek from the silver skins and the veining and cut into cubes of about 2 cm per side. Put it in a bowl with the Rub and a tablespoon of Bock beer. Stir until homogenizing the meat seasoning.
Put a Dutch Oven in heating with moderate heat and the peeled apart and finely cut onion, chop the chestnuts coarsely taking care to serve some whole apart for the decoration and reduce the Lard to matches or strips.
Add the lard in the Dutch Oven and let it cry gently until golden brown, add the onion, sage and chestnuts and let them sauté or make a tasty and tasty base.
Add the cubes of Jowl and toast it turning continuously until you get an inviting browning.
Pour the rest of the Bock Beer and add the coarsely crushed pepper with a grinder, close the lid and lei it cook slowly.
Periodically check the degree of cooking of the meat and its consistency, adding water if necessary. When it will be yielding and extremely tender and the whole preparation will have reached a density similar to that of a stew, remove from cooking.
Serve still hot accompanied by two leaves of sage, a spoonful of sour cream and a coarsely crumbled chestnut as decoration

RIEGELE ATOR 20

It is a DoppleBock, characterized by the perfect balance between freshness and maltiness, due to a long fermentation at low temperatures and equally long subsequent maturation. Personality beer with 7.5 degrees but combined with a great drinkability, dark amber color, compact and persistent foam, the taste is strong but surprisingly smooth, toasted malt with delicious aromatic nuances of caramel. Recommended serving temperature of 9° C.

Dessert #1: Apple and Mint Baklava Rolls

Dessert #1

Apple and Mint Baklava Rolls

with Acacia honey, Lemon Zests and Pistachio

400 gr. of Phyllo
300 gr. of Butter
2 Royal Gala Apples
2 tsp. of Brown Sugar
5 Mint leafs
3 small cups of Lime juice
1/2 teasp. grated Ginger
1/2 teasp. of Nutmeg
1 teasp. of fresh grated Lemon Zests
1 small cup of Rum
2 small cups of Acacia Honey
2 teasp. of Pistacho powder

Peel and twist the apples, cut them into very small cubes and let them caramelise in a low-heat frying pan together with sugar, 100 grams of butter, Rum, mint, ginger, nutmeg and the freshly grated lemon zests.
Keep on stirring until caramelize the sugar and make the compost to thicken. Separately, let the remaining butter melt and cool.
Cut the dough into rectangles of about 18 cm x 12 cm (one sheet divided into four) and make small groups of eight sheets each with a brush stroke of melted butter.
Put a thick layer of apple filling in a strip parallel to the short side in the first half of each group. Turn the sides towards the center and proceed to Roll them on themselves around the filling and seal the conjunction with an additional brush stroke of melted butter.
Brush again with melted butter before putting the Rolls in indirect cooking with two lateral heat points at 180° C for about 20 minutes, until they are well browned.
Mix honey with lime juice. Put the Rolls on a rack and pour the syrup over it. Let it set for a couple of minutes and then sprinkle the top with the pistachios powder previously lightly toasted in a non-stick pan.

RIEGELE DULCIS 12

Beer of surprising complexity, due to a 12-month refermentation with addition of honey and Trappist yeasts. Very important body and gradation of 11° C, antique gold color, compact foam, fine and persistent, rich taste, almost overflowing with a clear tendency to sweet, ample and persistent aroma of honey and candied fruit on a slightly ethereal, almost liqueur background. Recommended serving temperature of 14° C.

Dessert #2: Tartellette with Smoked Ricotta

Dessert #2

Tartellette with Smoked Ricotta

with Sheep Ricotta, Cocoa and Chestnut Honey

For the Tartellette:
120 gr. Flour 00
10 gr. Bitter Cocoa
60 gr. Butter
50 gr. Powder Sugar
1 Egg Yolk
1 pitch of Salt
1 teaspoon of Hazelnut crumble

For the Ricotta:
250 gr. Sheep Ricotta
2 spoons of Chestnut Honey
10 gr. Bitter Cocoa

Cut  the butter just removed from the fridge in slices with a knife so you can work it still cold. Mix flour, cocoa, hazelnuts and sugar. Add the butter and stir until a lumpy dough is obtained. Add the yolk and work until the dough is homogeneous. Wrap it in a film and let it rest in the fridge for an hour.
Roll out the dough between two sheets of baking paper and with a shape make some biscuits about 5 cm in diameter.
Cook the biscuits in indirect sider cooking on a sheet of baking paper or on a steel tray at 180° C for about 30 minutes. Let the biscuits cool at room temperature.
Mix the ricotta with honey and nutmeg and fill with it the silicone molds of your taste. Then put the molds in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
Change the set up to an intense central cooking and moisten a maple wood plank. Place the biscuits in the middle of the plate and in the center of each lay a small bowl of ricotta taken from the silicone molds. Sprinkle them gently with the cocoa powder, helping with a strainer.
Place the plank in direct cooking with the lid closed and ventilation completely open and leave to smoke for about 15 minutes or until the ricotta have changed the color to a delicate bronze.
Let the tartellettes cool and then serve with grated bitter cocoa and orange peel.

RIEGELE NOCTUS 100

It is a unique Imperial Stout, produced through a triple mash of a skilful blend of malt chocolate and toasted barley. Structured and full-bodied beer of 10 degrees but with a good drinkability, impenetrable black color, compact and persistent cappuccino foam, the taste is powerful, intensely malty and toasted with ample notes of bitter chocolate, tobacco and coffee. Recommended serving temperature of 18° C.

The first episode made us start with the second of the two appetizers, an exotic Tataki Salmon in a Poppy seeds crust, with Italian capers ponzu sauce combined with the fresh and fruity Simco, the second some Glazed Duck Legs with Maple, Oregano and Bitter Orange paired with a tropical Augustus, the third an autumnal Pepper Jowl Stew with Sage, Lard and Chestnuts, paired with a toasty and full bodied Ator, the forth some Apple and Mint Baklava Rolls with Acacia Honey, Lemon Zests and Pistacho paired with a sweet and wide Dulcis, the fifth a Rice and Pumpkin with Stilton Cheese and Toasted Hazelnut paired with an aromatic Auris, the Sixth an incredible Porcini Mushroom and Coffee Picanha Pastrami with Walnut Chimichurri paired with a toasted Robustus and the seventh a Smoked Lobster Ham with Sea Urchin’s Sour Cream and Toasted Pine Nuts paired with a gently bitter Amaris. But one course is still missing to complete the menu paired with Riegele beers. Are you anxious to know what it is?