You regular readers of my blipverts will know that it’s been an “interesting” week. I’m working to fill daily articles with interesting stuff the Chicago Craft Beer Week, in the middle of having a bit of “day surgery” that still requires the rest of the week for recuperation. But I am, in fact, feeling pretty good right now. Good enough to take some New York strip steaks that I had set to defrost last weekend, and put them on the grill with another beer sent by the brewer for my consideration. There are some compensations after all!
Founders Brewing Co. of Grand Rapids, MI, has gotten into the light lager derby by offering a canned PC Pils. In this case, “PC” does not mean “Politically Correct,” but as their description puts it, hopped with “Piney Chinook, pleasantly citrus Cascade and punchy Centennial.” I would have just assumed “Pacific Coast.”
My arbitrary choice of a Truner Pils glass was because with a 0.3m plimsoll, it could hold almost all of a 12 oz. can.
The pour is a very bright gold, which, like any light lager, looks great under the summer sun. Just a little haze at first, and a foamy head that settles very quickly. The nose still seems to have some noble hop spice to it, but after a few sniffs, there’s the pine resin of those 3C hops. They don’t overpower, though. Just the American equivalent of a German Pilsener nose.
The taste is where those American hops show up, with a big hit of pine resin up front, adding to its stated 45 IBU’s of hop bitterness. The malt is still light and crisp. The abv is 5.5%, so it’s not quite there as a session beer. I usually called light lagers “bowling” beers, but the extra hop in this makes it one of those camping beers; the kind of taste you want to bring on a long hike, and the reason small brewers started switching to lightweight cans in the first place.
Since I’m framing these beer previews in the context of grilling some food, how did the stuff I grilled turn out? Here they are. This is the result of more practice with the portable charcoal grill. I’ve realized it’s too small to set up as an indirect smoker, but I was able to build the fire at one end, topped with some soaked hickory chips. These strip steaks are about a pound each, from Trader Joe’s. I put salt and black pepper on both sides while the fire was starting, then put them on direct heat to sear for just a few minutes. Then I set the cuts at the other end of the grill and gave it 40 minutes to cook all the way through. The steaks ended up tender, with smoke throughout, and just a light crust on the outside. It takes a while to learn patience when grilling. But I’m working on it.
