cover image The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food

The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food

Garrett Oliver. Ecco, $29.95 (384pp) ISBN 978-0-06-000570-2

Oliver, the brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery, argues that brewing beer is far more complicated than making wine, and pleads with beer drinkers to reach past the shelves of mass-produced hops toward bottles produced in more specialized breweries. His message may seem past its sell-by date, but his tour of beers and his brew-and-food match-ups are anything but stale. After explaining beer-making processes, Oliver launches into his beer-food combinations; though he offers no recipes, his recommendations-- the classic pairing of Irish stout with oysters; the dark, caramely flavors of Trappist ales balancing a duck confit; the IPA from his own brewery complementing Thai, Mexican, and Vietnamese food--are excellent. Beer drinkers of all sorts will happily drift along Oliver's exhaustive tour.