Top Chef Winner Brooke Williamson Is Behind This New Beer
One of the many ongoing trends in the craft beer world is the idea of “culinary beers.” These brews go beyond simply pairing well with food – though they typically do that as well. But true culinary beers also utilize culinary ingredients and techniques to hopefully forge intriguing flavor profiles often ignored by brewers. So for its latest culinary creation, California’s The Bruery decided to reach out to someone who knows a thing or two about cooking: The winner of Top Chef Season 14 Brooke Williamson.
Of course, Williamson is more than just a Top Chef winner. At 17, she was the youngest chef to ever cook at the James Beard House. She co-owns multiple places to eat, drink, shop and even get an artisanal scoop of ice cream. And now she can add beer collaborator to that list as The Bruery is releasing Girl Grey, described as a “spring seasonal collaboration [that] features the character of a Belgian-style ale, ribbons of almond flavors and the piquant qualities of Earl Grey tea.”
“Last May, we approached Chef Brooke with the idea of introducing her culinary expertise to the craft beer world and helping us concept a new beer that craft beer drinkers and culinary fans alike could appreciate,” said Patrick Rue, founder and CEO of The Bruery, which is already known for excelling at a wide variety of styles. “Collaborating with Chef Brooke was a special experience and an eye-opening approach to discovering new ingredients and unique flavors for craft beer.”
Chef Brooke Williamson also explained her thinking on the project. “Being a chef, first and foremost, I felt like my ultimate goal with creating the perfect collaboration beer was to balance the important uniqueness in flavor profile, while remaining food-friendly. This beer to me does just that,” she said in a statement.
“It’s a perfect blend of creamy richness and complex floral notes, making for a wide variety of food pairing options. I’m inclined to go tart and sweet, like biscuits with lemon curd, or banana cream pie, but at the same time, it’s versatile and subtle enough to work with spiced mole chicken and toasted almond rice. It really is the perfect food beer.”
Girl Grey is the first of at least two beers that Williamson and the brewery collaborated on. This spring, Bruery Terreux – which is The Bruery’s sour beer production arm – will be releasing Kyuri Dragon, described as “an oak-aged sour ale with bright, tropical notes of dragon fruit, rambutan, kaffir lime leaf and lychee, balanced by the refreshing addition of cucumbers.” However, that beer will apparently be offered exclusively to members of The Bruery Reserve Society and Hoarders Society. Meanwhile, Girl Grey will be available starting this month in nearly 30 states that The Bruery distributes to.
