It must have been nearly 15 years ago now when I ran my first Beer Dinner. Friends and friends of friends gathered (most just pretending they knew what was going on!) and the journey began. The whole concept of beer and food matching was a foreign one and it wasn’t until a stock-standard Stout and Dessert pairing that heads began nodding and the reason for this culinary madness became clear to the guests.

It’s a little bit easier today to gather a room full of foodies or beer lovers and to attract a decent response from a chef and their team in order to create a few interesting and rewarding taste and flavour sensations. If memory serves, it’s also cheaper to do in this day and age – certainly cheaper than if you were to do an identical service but with wine and a winemaker. In the early days we even bumped the price of our regular Beer Dinners to attract a crowd for that ‘special experience’.

Sydney Craft Beer Week kicks off tomorrow and among the many offerings for those after a ‘food and beer’ event that won’t stretch the budget but will offer great value for your beery dollar is a hosted 4 Beer, 4 Food tasting with an opportunity to try something new. Sydney-siders may not be as familiar with the Cavalier beers as we in Melbourne are so for under $30 this gig at The Duck Inn just might be the bargain of the Festival.

In addition to the Cavaier Pale Ale and classic Brown Ale, punters will be offered a couple of very special limited releases in the form of the Cavalier Oktoberfest (which was drinking beautifully last week at the Good Beer Week Showcase) and the collaboration brew with Parramatta’s very own Riverside Brewing – The Bitterballen Belgian Pale Ale.

You can hook a spot by clicking the link below which will take you to the SCBW website or, if The Duck Inn is your local, get on over and book now. At this stage, Cavalier beers are available in only a few select venues, so to find out up there what we already know down here get in and say ‘G’Day’ to Heath from Cavalier. Tell him Prof sent you and he might even top up your glass!

https://www.dropbox.com/s/zhrnhda9lutsfkc/Duck%20Inn%20Flyer.pdf