We talked about the addition of sweetness to a spicy pot of chili. You can go for the rich malts of a time-honored favorite like Guinness, but imagine the possibilities. Hey, chili is a kind of stew, right? And we know that beef goes well with stouts. Stout is a perfect base ingredient for stew, so it’s also a natural ingredient for chili. Hey, why else would people drink beer with hot wings?Īnd if you start to like IPA chili, well, then you can consider graduating into the “big” IPAs. Hops and spice go together, so mixing them can help enhance both.

I’ve begun using IPAs in my chili primarily because I do tend to make it so spicy. Quarterpanel IPA (silver medal, 2019 NYIBC), would be a good one to start with. In fact, pretty much any American-style IPA, from a Cigar City Jai Alai (delicious!) to a Bell’s Two Hearted to a Gilman Brewing Co.

Think Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, or something a tad milder like Montauk Brewing Company’s Wave Chaser IPA (silver medal, 2019 NY International Beer Competition), which includes four hops and comes in at 60 IBU. I would be hesitant to use a really big IPA, like an 2XIPA or an imperial, but a good 50 to 75 IBU IPA has worked for me in the past. What I found was that the hop bitterness enhances the flavor of the peppers, while adding a distinctive bite to the mixture. Now you’re talking.Ī classic English-style pale ale, like the one from Schafly, works nicely here, too.Īs time went by, my taste buds moved toward American Pale Ales and then India Pale Ales, so I started experimenting with those as an ingredient in my chili.

With the proliferation of craft beer now, the possibilities are insane.įor instance, imagine putting something like Port o’ Points Brewing Company’s O’Dell’s Irish Red, which took home bronze in the 2019 NY International Beer Competition, into a bowl of chili, with all its caramel malt character and robust body. The times I made this beer I used things like Sam Adams Light (do they still make that stuff?) and Killian’s Irish Red. (This was actually a German-style altbier, but it did the trick.)īut the maltiness of a red ale, for me, adds just a bit of sweetness to the mix, a nice little hint of something that isn’t spice-and my chili has plenty of spice. The reason I was so into it is that red ale was sort of my gateway beer back in the 1990s, starting with a beer by Bluegrass Brewing Company in my hometown of Louisville, Ky. I don’t remember what specific beer I recommended to Kory back then (and I always wondered what he did with the other five bottles in the six-pack), but at the time I was heavily into making what I called “Red Ale Chili.” I guess that’s no crime, but if you’re going to make chili, why not go for it? Red Ale Oh, and be aware that many recipes just say “one 12-ounce bottles of beer.” Some even say absurd things like “one bottle of beer (such as Budweiser).” These are the ones who aren’t looking deeper for an added flavor layer. What I do is just choose the beer I want, pour in a twelve ounce bottle once all the other ingredients are there and the chili is ready to simmer. What I’ve found over the years is that different styles of beers can add different flavors and textures. And to me, beer is an essential ingredient. But when he decided to enter a chili contest a few years ago, he reached out with a question: “What kind of beer do you use to make your chili?” One of my best friends is a minister Kory is in his 40s and has never tasted alcohol before.

Tina mom of two and hubby flickr