The Craft Beer & Hot Sauce Pairing Guide
BBQ's, craft beer and hot sauce, are widely regarded as essential ingredients of a good summer. We've spent the last few weeks pairing some of our favourite hot sauces and craft beers from across the UK, so you don't have too. Read on to discover the best hot sauce and craft beer link up of 2022.
Vicky’s Kitchen - The Yellow One X Tiny Rebel - Pineapple Express IPA
This pineapple milkshake IPA for me screams summer day, BBQ and Caribbean food. When you first open the can you are hit by an instant scent of Pineapple, which is also apparent in the taste with a minor hint of grapefruit. This beer is seriously refreshing and crisp, perfectly balancing the sweet pineapple and malt with bitterness of the hops. You need a nice kick from a hot sauce for the sweetness of this beer, and ‘The Yellow One’ does the job. The scotch bonnet’s spice is perfect to cut through that pineapple flavour and create a perfect combination. Get your jerk on, splash on some Vicky’s and wash it down with the Pineapple Express.
Hopt Sauce - Red Mist Raspberry Reaper Weisse X Howling Hops Screwball Berliner
An easy drinking lemon and lime summer sour which has a powerful citrus aroma as soon as you open the can. This Berliner is seriously refreshing and is a great introduction to sour beers to even the most avid lager drinkers. The lemon and lime flavours work well with the light spice and Raspberries in Hopt Sauce’s red mist. The combination screams dessert and we’ve paired this with ice cream! Hot sauce and ice cream may sound butters, but don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
South London Sauce Company - Slapple X Hammerton Brewery - City of Cake Stout
If you love sweet stouts then this is a beer for you, the name City of Cake is a bit of a giveaway but it lives up to the name. This is deep and rich in flavour which has plenty of chocolate hints which pretty much make it a chocolate brownie in a glass. Barbecuing has to be on the cards with this beer, the chocolate sweetness is made for pork ribs which is why we’ve picked South London Sauce Company’s - Slapple to go along side. The apple based sauce adds another dimension to this flawless combination and your taste buds will thank us.
Shot’s Fired - Original Reaper X Northern Monk - Faith Hazy Pale Ale
This hazy pale ale has a great light malt aroma, then hits you with a mouthful of flavour with a hint of orangey flavours. The zesty and fruity flavours pair this perfectly with a thick, creamy and rich sauce and we have just the sauce. Shot’s fired is very vinegar based and has a buffalo consistency, packed with smoked paprika and cumin along with the world’s hottest chilli the Carolina reaper. The vinegary hit with the sweet cornflour will work perfectly with a Mac & Cheese, thick, rich, spicy and washed down with an orange zest IPA.
Grandma’s Hot Sauce - Hot Sauce X Wildcard brewery - Taurus Damson Sour
Lager based sour ‘Taurus’ has an abundance of damson fruits and lemon to give a perfectly balanced sour. The Damson and Lemon is added late into the fermentation process which proves to keep the levels for a very sessional beer. This inviting beautiful red beer requires a sharp hot sauce to cut through the sweetness, Grandma’s Hot Sauce is our choice as the wiri wiri pepper has the intense kick to offset the beer. Get a cheese board together for this duo!
Cool Chile Co - Habanero Hot Sauce X Brixton Brewery - Low Voltage Session IPA
Brixton’s brewery session IPA is the lower strength sibling to their electric IPA. In a lot of cases when beer is attempted to be recreated at a lower ABV it loses its flavour, but not in this case. This is a delicious tropical light IPA which is extremely fruity with hardly any bitterness making it inoffensive and a very drinkable beer. Tacos hit the spot with this one, and there’s nothing better than Cool Chile’s - Habanero Sauce. This Mexican table sauce has smokey notes which can splash all over your tacos and be the perfect partner to the Low Voltage.
