As I was scoping out some of the different beer blogs that are all over the ‘net I noticed a post on B.C. Beer Blog about a cheesecake made with Russian Imperial Stout.  “I like Russian Imperial Stouts and I like cheesecake,” I said to myself.  I often talk to myself.  So I started perusing the recipe (adapted here for a US audience):

Russian Imperial Stout Cheesecake

1 1/2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp white sugar
1/2 cup melted butter

32oz (4 8oz pkgs Philadelphia) cream cheese at room temperature
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tbsp vanilla
1 lb dark chocolate melted in a double boiler
12oz Russian Imperial Stout (room temperature, degassed)
4 large eggs at room temperature

Preheat oven to 325°F (or 300°F if using a dark pan). Grease the sides of 9? spring form pan and cover bottom with wax paper. Mix crumbs, 2 tbsp sugar, and melted butter in a bowl until evenly blended; press firmly onto the bottom of the pan with a fork.

Beat cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth, then add remaining ingredients (except eggs) at medium speed until well blended. On low speed, add eggs one at a time, mixing each until just blended. Pour batter over crust.

Bake 55-60 minutes or until center is almost set. Loosen cake from side of pan by running a paring knife around the inside edge. Cool on a wire rack to room temperature before removing side of pan. Refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight. Store any leftover cheesecake in the refrigerator.

Adapted from Michel Brown’s Russian Imperial Stout Cheesecake by Fred Eckhardt in Northwest Brewing News, Feb/Mar 2008, Volume 7 Number 1, pg. 29.

The author of BC beer blog mentions a method of degassing the beer, personally I think it’s just easier pouring the beer into a bowl and whisking it until it seems degassed.  Also, the author makes no mention of the cheesecake being cooked in a water bath, but seeing how that’s the only way I’ve ever cooked cheesecake, I went about using one.  Using a water bath added about an extra half hour to the cooking time, but your mileage may very.

I ended up using Founders Breakfast Stout as my RIS of choice as I thought the chocolate and coffee notes in the beer would really enhance the cake.  Did they?  I don’t know, I’d almost have to make a separate cake using a different beer to see the difference. I think almost any RIS would work well in the beer, so use the one you like best.

I ended up using a very bitter chocolate which made the cake very bitter as well.  This wasn’t a bad thing for me as I love a bitter chocolate dessert, but if bitter chocolate isn’t your thing you may want to try a very high end milk chocolate and see how it turns out.  If you do end up trying this out, let me know your results.

I hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing holiday. If you’re anything like me, your brain is completely fried and not ready to start a new work week after a lovely 4 day vacation. But here we are.

Since we were having Thanksgiving at my parents house, I gave me an excuse (not that I need much of one) to visit Andrew at Bon Vivant on Wednesday evening. It’s always a treat to head over to Illinois and pick up beers you can’t find in St. Louis. In this case I picked up some Three Floyds Brian Boru and a single bottle of Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA. I wanted more 90 minute, but it seems like I can always find only a single bottle. Andrew also recommended to us a fantastic wine (I wish I could remember what it was.) My favorite part of the trip over was when Andrew rang up 2 22oz beers and a single 12oz beer for less than a single bottle of wine. While I’m in no way trying to stir up any beer vs wine cost debate, I’ll admit it brought a smile to my face.

As for the Turkey day, everything was perfect. The turkey was moist and flavorful, the sides were enjoyable and most importantly Mr. Oliver didn’t let me down. The Schlafly Biere de Garde paired wonderfully with the meal. Having a 750ml bottle also provided the opportunity to share the beer with the table. Any excuse for me to get people to try new beers is always welcome to me.

As for the rest of the weekend, I relaxed and hung out with my family. And while this is not at all beer related, do yourself a favor and find someone who owns Rock Band. After 6 straight hours of rocking, the only thing that stopped us was my failing voice. How does Thom Yorke hit those high notes every night?

Tomorrow’s the big day. For some of us, like me, it’s a day of cooking all day and trying to get a feast on the table for everyone. It can be fun and it can be tiring, but if you can pull it off, it’s quite a feeling. But for everyone else it’s one of the best holidays of the year. I mean how can you go wrong with football, turkey, family and of course beer?

Oh sure you could go to the old stand-by and have wine with your turkey dinner. But why not give your old buddy beer a shot? It’s been your friend for a long, long time so doesn’t it deserve a place during your holiday festivities?

But you may be asking, “What beer goes with turkey?” I’ll default to Garrett Oliver for the answer to that:

“Biere de garde is brilliant with turkey. And not just with with turkey – it is also brilliant with the turnips, the stuffing, the cranberry sauce, the potatoes, the whole darned thing. Biere de garde is the Thansgiving beer. My sommelier friends rack their brains every year, trying to answer the constant nagging question everyone asks them – what wine is good with turkey? The answer, or course, is not wine but beer.”

Geoff from What’s on Tap also has a few suggestion as well:

Orval – This would be a perfect beer to serve pre-dinner. It’s a refreshingly bitter and herbal beer that helps to cleanse the palate between different appetizers. One of my favorite beers of all time.

Any Saison - Saison just may be the most versatile beer style and would be a great choice to match the dizzying array of sides your mom might be serving this year. A complex mixture of spices and herb flavors combine with a sharp bitterness to make this beer stand out with any dish. Saison Dupont is the classic example of this style and is widely available. The Lost Abbey Red Barn Ale is a great choice from the new-to-Seattle brewery.

Any Biere de Garde – These complex beers are perfect complitments to dishes with strong herbal components (such as stuffing) and help to refresh the pallet. Sadly, I don’t have much experience with this style. I’m going to head to a local bottle shop tomorrow and ask them to suggest something. The Jolly Pumpkin Biere de Mars is fantastic, but I am not sure that is in stores at the moment.

Elysian The Wise ESB – If you’re looking for a more hop-forward beer for dinner, this would be a good option. There is enough sweet malt to go along with the roasted flavors of the turkey. I had this last year and was happy with the pairing.

North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout – This would be a fantastic choice to pair with dessert, especially pumpkin pie. It has lots of roasted malt with a dry, smooth finish.

If you’re looking for something a bit more unusual or festive, I’ll throw out a few suggestions as well. If you’re looking for something fruity, may I suggest a cranberry beer? Unibroue (one of my all time favorite breweries) makes a cranberry beer called Éphémère (Cranberry.) You can also find a cranberry lambic (though it’s a pretty loose use of the word lambic) in the Samuel Adams Holiday Pack.

Or maybe you just don’t have any more room for dessert. Instead of a piece of pumpkin pie, why not that pumpkin beer that you’re still holding onto? Even after a big holiday meal, there’s always room for beer. Maybe you’ll be lucky and you’ll find some Schlafly or O’Fallon Pumpkin beer at your local grocery store.

Also, don’t be afraid to use some beer in your recipes as well. A Belgian dark strong would be absolutely fantastic in your turkey gravy. Where a recipe calls for wine, maybe give beer a shot instead. Plus, it’s always fun to have a little beer while you’re cooking dinner.

Whatever you decide to do for the holiday, make sure you have a great time and be sure to stay safe.