Beer And Food: Potted Shrimp With 8 Wired Hopwired Ipa

Potted Shrimp are a traditional snack from the North of England. I was originally inspired to try out this match after watching Zak Avery blog about matching Scottish brewer Brewdog’s 77 Lager matched with potted shrimp. 77 Lager uses New Zealand Motueka hops and I thought that if the fruity New Zealand hop character worked with that match then the hugely fruity hop character of Hopwired IPA might work. The recipe is based on one which features in Rick Stein’s ‘Seafood Lovers Guide’ (2000) but I have made a few alterations.

The Food

Method

Put the butter, lemon leaves, bay leaves, cayenne pepper, and smoked pepper corns in a pan and melt slowly over a gentle heat, so that the butter becomes infused by the spices.

Add the shrimps and stir for a couple of minutes until they have heated through, but don’t let the mixture boil.

Remove the lemon and bay leaves and divide the shrimps and spiced butter between 6 small ramekins. Level the tops and then leave to set in the fridge. Spoon over a thin layer of clarified butter and leave to set. Serve with brown crusty toast and lemon or lime wedges on the side.

The Beer

Hopwired is the strong American style India Pale Ale brewed with all New Zealand bred Hops that took the craft beer scene by storm towards the end of last year. Complex aromas of passionfruit, rock melon, and herbaceous citrus lead into a tangy tropical punch bowl of hop flavours a nice firm malt backbone and a dry lingering finish.

The Match

This match is predominantly about contrast with the fresh zesty fruity hop character of the beer contrasting with the rich buttery slightly gamy character of the potted shrimp preventing the dish from ever becoming too much. The firm malt backbone compliments the crusty toast and the fruity bitter finish of the beer finds some harmony with the lemon or lime notes from the wedges.