Skip to main content

Three beers to pair with chocolate


The Sweetest Pint Downtown Beer & Chocolate Tasting Tour is sold out, but you can still try out these pairings at home.

Beer and chocolate: the pairing isn’t as far off as you might think.

To Nate Fochtman, the vice president of craft and business development at Ace Distributing, it all comes down to what someone wants to get out of the combination. But, he noted, even two people trying the same beer will taste something different.

“Beer is an experience,” he said. “Actually, beer is an individual experience, to every single person, uniquely.”

The Sweetest Pint Downtown Beer & Chocolate Tasting Tour, which pairs plates with brews, will be held on Saturday, March 26. The tour is sold out, but you have your own tasting at home with these beer recommendations from Fochtman:

 

1. Double Chocolate Milk Stout (Lancaster Brewing Co.)

The beer is a good option for someone wants to overdose on chocolate — “in a good way.” The combination is very sweet, he said, which some people enjoy.

A chocolate cheesecake pairs well with the Double Chocolate Milk Stout, he said.

Location: Lancaster
ABV: 6.8 percent
More information: www.lancasterbrewing.com

2. Perpetual IPA (Tröegs Independent Brewing)

Fochtman said the Perpetual IPA provides a “balanced contrast” with chocolate.

The bitterness from the hops will let someone get a little bit more out of a brownie, he said. The same goes for the citrus notes in the beer.

Location: Hershey
ABV: 7.5 percent
More information: www.troegs.com

3. Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout (Rouge Ales & Spirits)

Any stout or porter will typically work “very well” in complimenting chocolate, he said. Though there's no chocolate in the Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout, he said the malts give the beer some of those notes.

­Said Fochtman: “It’s a great breakfast beer.”

Location: Newport, Oregon
ABV: 5.8 percent                            
More information: www.rogue.com

All three beers can be found locally.

About the Sweetest Pint Downtown Tasting Tours:

The Sweetest Pint Downtown Tasting Tours are fundraisers that benefit Downtown Inc, a business advocacy organization in York.

Seven restaurants and shops are participating in the upcoming Sweetest Pint Downtown Beer & Chocolate Tasting Tour. During the event, people walk to each place and get a taste of a small plate dish, along with two, 2-ounce pours of beer, said Kristen Evans, the marketing and events coordinator for Downtown Inc.

The next event is planned for Nov. 5, she said, and will focus on pumpkin-flavored pairings. Tickets are $40, plus fees.

Ginger Walker is the co-owner of Pepper’s Grille at Central Market House, which is one of the places on the chocolate tour.

The event, she said, lets business interact more one-on-one with customers. When the restaurant took part before, it made a berry-glazed meatball.

“That was a huge hit,” she said. “It lets us experiment.”