My last day of Toronto Beer Week was looking promising: a dinner with Michael Hancock, Black Oak beers at Volo, possibly Guinness and oysters at Ceili, and who knows what else?
Due to poor time-management on my part, I was totally late getting to the Monk’s Table. No worries though, Michael was still talking through the history of German wheat beers, while Doug, who is a Volo regular and was assisting, was pouring glasses of Michael’s Denison’s Weisse Beir from an honest to goodness oak cask. I took my seat and glass and happily listened to some beer history I was totally unfamiliar with.
As Michael was wrapping up the first course arrived, which was a hot-smoked salmon. The spicy sharp weisse cut nicely through the rich fatty creaminess of the salmon, and the dill dressing added a bit of zest to both. Michael chose to sit with Doug and myself, so we got a bit of an insider’s look, but Michael made a point of going round to every table to converse and lend insight. Which is hardly surprising, Michael is of the breed of brewers who would as soon change your tire, as recommend a beer.
The second course was Hacker-Pschorr Dunkle Weisen, with a bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin, mash, and steamed vegetables. I was amazed how the malty dark character of the beer really juxtaposed the sweeter fatty cuts of meat nicely. Of note as well, there were excellent Brussels-sprouts on the plate, which remained firm, despite being produced in a commercial kitchen. Proving once again, how hard the Monk’s Table kicks ass.
Dessert was Wehenstephen hefe-weisen with a lemon raspberry parfait. In this case an interesting effect took place: the beer has quite a sharp fruity note, with a nice herbal/spicy background. Once you had eaten some of the parfait, the sourness of the beer vanished, and it became a who’s who of the spice rack. Very cool way to get to dig deeper into a specific brew.
The meal and pairings were excellent, and getting to participate in the company of one of the top weisse beer brewers in the world made it even better. If you’ve never had a Denison’s, give your head a shake and get on it. If you’ve never been to The Monk’s Table, check your calendar and get there on your next available night. An easy walk from Summerhill station, Adam and his crew will not disappoint.
My thanks to both for an excellent time.
