Pairing with Pringles

Photo courtesy of John Foyston

At some point, probably while perusing the chip aisle, we realized that there were a multitude of Pringles flavors. Obviously pairing them with beer was a task we should undertake, for the greater good.

Through the combined efforts of our group we assembled 16 flavors* of Pringles and while we may have jumped the shark with our latest [hair-brained] pairing idea, what is done is done. Therefore we present to you, dear readers, our findings.

Lesson #1

A moderate amount of Pringles is acceptable. Consuming large quantities of Pringles is a recipe for a salt hangover. Heed this warning should you choose to replicate such an endeavor.

Lesson #2

Just because a group comes to a consensus, such as “the Honey Mustard Pringles are unpleasant,” doesn’t mean it isn’t possible to find some beers that actually pair quite well with them. One such beer is Coalition King Kitty Red and another is Breakside Kids These Hazy IPA. Very different beers but each managed to mitigate whatever flavor components of Honey Mustard we disliked, transforming them into something that with the right liquid partner, we wouldn't object to snacking on.

Lesson #3

A German smoked beer lager worked really well with quite a few Pringles flavors. On its own, Brauerei Heller Bamberg Helles Lagerbier not something we would enjoy drinking more than a few ounces of but like Lesson #2, we quite enjoyed it with multiple Pringles flavors, including Jalapeno, Flame Grilled Steak, Cheddar Cheese and Loud Salsa Fiesta. For those who have not had the beer, perhaps a description that came out of our group will help: beer jerky.

As we undertake our next pairing, in which we return to cheese, lovely cheese, this beer will be making a return to our pairing table. Check back soon to read about that!

*16 flavors of Pringles: Loud Salsa Fiesta, Honey Mustard, Cheddar Cheese, Salt & Vinegar, Extra Hot Chili & Lime, Cheddar & Sour Cream, Sour Cream & Onion, Ranch, Jalapeno, Loaded Baked Potato, BBQ, Buffalo Ranch, Flame Grilled Steak, Ketchup and Dill Pickle.

Salty Snacks Pairing - Doritos Edition

Last July we broke off from our beer and Girl Scout Cookies pairing, venturing down a Kettle chips-guided salty road. Since then we'd been toying around with the idea of another chip pairing and last weekend we did the first, of which there may be whole series of, additional chip and/or salty snack pairings. 

Chris arrived at our local with four of the who-knows-how-many flavors of Doritos: 
- Sweet Spicy Chili
- Salsa Verde
- Chile Limon
- Tapatio
In addition, Dave happened upon our pairing party and contributed a bag of Lundberg Sesame Seaweed Rice Chips.

The chip that turned out to be most pair-able was Sweet Spicy Chili, working well with:
- StormBreaker Good...Not Great imperial red ale
- de Garde Imperial Peach Bu Berliner Weisse
- Culmination 4 & 20 imperial CDA
- New Holland Cabin Fever brown ale
- Anchor Porter
The sweet-spiciness of the chips married well with the maltiness of the StormBreaker, New Holland and Anchor while the darkness of the Culmination provided a nice compliment. Perhaps most surprising was how well the de Garde fruit sour worked, resulting in a sweet heat flavor reminiscent of Burnside's Sweet Heat beer.

Chile Limon, the spiciest of the chips and the one that made the most mess of one's hands with its heavily saturated dusting, was the second most pair-able, finding friends in:
- Zoiglhaus Zoigl-Pils
- Oskar Blues Old Chub Scottish Ale
- New Holland Cabin Fever brown ale
Not surprisingly the maltiness of the Oskar Blues and New Holland beers offset the heat of the chips. With the Old Chub the pairing took on a spicy tomato flavor and the Cabin Fever highlighted the lime flavor in the chips. Somewhat surprising was that the Pils was able to stand up to the assertive chip.

Tapatio, using one of our favorite readily available hot sauces, was best with: 
- Level Ready Player One Saison 
- New Holland Cabin Fever brown ale
- Oskar Blues Old Chub Scottish ale
In the case of the Saison, the hot sauce flavor transformed the beer into more of a lager profile. With the brown ale and Scottish ale, similar to the pairing with Chile Limon, the maltiness of the beers complimented the chip's spiciness.

Salsa Verde, the most mildly flavored of the Doritos, turned out to be one of the most difficult to pair with. Level's Ready Player One dry-hopped Saison overpowered it and the peppers were unpleasantly brought to prominence with Oskar Blues Old Chub Scottish Ale. Only de Garde Imperial Peach Bu really worked, with the flavor combination being similar to a fruit salsa one might find on a fish taco. 

Although we weren't previously familiar with Lundberg Sesame Seaweed Rice Chips the chips on their own had a pleasant flavor and hearty feeling in the mouth. They made for a three-way tie to be second most pair-able with beers that had paired well with other chips. 
- Zoiglhaus Zoigl-Pils
- Level Ready Player One Saison
- Culmination 4 & 20 imperial CDA
The lightness of the Pils and Saison seemed obvious pairings while Culmination's imperial CDA was quite a surprise. On the surface we assumed that the beer would easily overpower the rice chips however putting more thought into it, the sesame may have been the key ingredient that made it work. Tahini, the highly flavorful paste made from ground sesame seeds, is what gives hummus its distinct flavor and may have been what allowed the chips to stand up to the CDA.

As our salt-saturated adventure wound down we pondered how to proceed. With the vastness of salty snacks available we decided there would need to be categories/installments since like Doritos, each group has many flavors available. Those might end up looking like:
- Old school potato chips (i.e. BBQ, sour cream & onion, including Cheetos)
- Fritos
- Pringles
- Triscuits
- Wheat Thins
- Veggie crisps (including Funyuns because onions are veggies)
- Croutons
- Random Asian store chip aisle
- Pringles

For now, however, we'll continue recovering from our salt hangovers. 

Chips & Beer - What Could Go Wrong?

Potato chips and beer are a no-brainer combo that we've all enjoyed, right? We recently took that combo to the next (beer geeky) level exploring the Kettle Chips pairings that had come to our attention.

As it turned out the nearby Plaid Pantry had five of the seven varieties on the pairing sheet and were conveniently offering them at 2/$2.50. After grabbing the five from the sheet and throwing in Buffalo Bleu for good measure, and to get to six bags, we were off to meet up with a veteran pairing friend (he's been along for the ride for Girl Scout cookies, Halloween candy and breakfast cereal) at our favorite watering hole.

Each pairing had both a general recommended beer style as well as specific beers named. It came as no surprise that the specific beers mentioned weren't necessarily available in our market but it was nice to see that they were spread out across the country (Cigar City, Bell's and Deschutes to name a few). With that in mind we knew we'd have to use our own judgment if none of the specific ones mentioned were available or if they were beers we simply would prefer not to drink (which shall remain nameless).

Per our usual pattern we opted to start off with the pairing that had the mildest beer which was Sea Salt & Vinegar with ESB. Chris grabbed a Fuller's ESB and although fine with the chips, neither really did anything to enhance the other. As we continued we went back to those chips with other beers, finding that Arch Rock Gold Beach Lager was the best of our selections and that Sam Smith Organic Lager was also a good choice although it managed to cancel out most of the vinegar flavor of the chips.

Up next was Honey Dijon, suggested to be paired with a brown ale/nut brown ale, for which we went with AleSmith Nut Brown. Nothing amazing there but going back to the recently opened Fuller's ESB we were pleasantly surprised with the result, the Dijon providing enough kick to keep the ESB from being cloying.

Chip #3 was Backyard Barbeque for which an American IPA was suggested. All of us being IPA fans, we tried out multiple ones - Block 15 Sticky Hands, Claim 52 Fluffy IPA, Lagunitas Hop Stoopid - as well as the Ale Smith Nut Brown, both previously mentioned lagers and Sam Smith Taddy Oatmeal Stout. The standouts were Sam Smith Lager, which allowed some nice smoke from the chips to come out in the front, and Block 15 Sticky Hands, a powerful beer that was well matched with the powerfully flavored chip.

Passing the halfway point of the pairing it's safe to say we were starting to get the feeling we'd be salt-logged the next day but were having too much fun to quit. The Jalapeno chips were also recommended to go with an American IPA. Both the Sticky Hands and Sam Smith paired very nicely, with the latter's sweetness mellowed by the bite of the chip. Personally I'd have easily downed a pitcher of the beer and a couple bags of chips. Also acceptable pairings were Gold Beach Lager and Hop Stoopid, a big beer that the chips helped to keep in check my consumption of by intensifying the hop bite - not something for everyone.

Down to the final pairing from the sheet, Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper with an American Pale Ale, it appears from my notes that we realized we already had plenty of beers open and no pale ales available that we really loved. Therefore we went back through what we had open with Chris commenting that overall this was the best chip to pair with a variety of beers. Sam Smith Lager, as with Jalapeno, had its sweetness balanced by the Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper.

Finally we were down to the "wild card" chip - Buffalo Bleu. A wonderfully intensely flavored chip, it was well matched with Sticky Hands and went surprisingly well with ESB and Gold Beach Lager. I had been concerned that the chips would bring forward too much sweetness from the ESB but to the contrary it actually brought out the bitterness in it quite pleasingly. In the case of Gold Beach Lager my concern was that it would be overpowered by the chips, but no, it simply mellowed some of the lager characteristics and was easily one of my favorite pairings. I could see this combo being a great accompaniment to any brew day or BBQ-ing.

In the end it was another fun way to play with beer and food and I'm thankful to my tasting partners as well as the friends that helped us finish off all the chips. It spawned a related idea, a Crunchy Salty Snack Bracket, that if we go through with it will include things like Combos, Snyders pretzel bites, Gardettos, Cheetos, Funyons and all manner of horrible-for-you, salty, deep fried goodness. Please don't tell our doctors about this.

WARNING: Attempts at conducting a similar pairing may result in a salt hangover. It is a real thing. Proceed with caution and at your own risk.