The Signature Room

Next in line was Lolita, a 7-8% sour that is not available in retail and only found in restaurants.  Goose claims to let it age in Cabernet barrels with 40 pounds of raspberries until ready.  This was paired with a chicken liver pate and a raspberry sauce along with a wafer.  It smells enough of raspberries and has much of the acidic power you want in a sour; but a metallic mid-palate flavor crippled this effort a bit.

I was very familiar with Matilda, the fairly ubiquitous Belgian mild ale.  It's not a beer I seek out much because its flavor is dichotomous with the boldness I normally seek out in beers, but it worked well with its pork belly paring.  The earthy, graininess of Matilda kept it from being overwhelmed by the juicy, fatty chunks of pork with jam, as the Matilda, like a table wine, provided the meal with a pleasant foundation.

The Pepe Nero was the only moment that fell flat.  An unusual peppercorn saison brew with a cola's appearance, they paired it with a steak, an item that naturally pairs with pepper.  It takes some guts to bring a beer like this to market, but I can't imagine many will see them as having yet achieved their vision here.  The pepper is way too out of balance and suffocates any of the beer's subtleties.  The finish is punishingly long (make it stop!), kind of like that cough syrup mom gave you that continues to linger.  And linger.  And take up residence in your mouth like an infestation.  Anyone who has a gallon of Minute Maid for me to rise with, I'll remember you in my will.  Future bottlings of this may prove successful but this notable brew is not one I'd willingly accept in the near future.