Brewmaster's Table

Andrew Stewart, owner Dr. Dremo's (l); Garrett Oliver (r)

I ran into the ever sartorially resplendent Garrett Oliver yesterday in Arlington, VA's Dr. Dremo's Taphouse. He was in town for business and to host a couple of beer dinners.

In his lovely book - The Brewmaster's Table - Garrett proselytizes for beer - and for beer with food - while avoiding the patrician haughtiness often affixed to wine writing.

Beer has always been present at the dinner table; we have simply, from time to time, taken it for granted. Some of beer's beauty lies in its comman-man sheen, the unadorned pleasure implied in that end-of-the-day invitation: "Let's go have a beer!"

On the topic of beer and food, I had an interesting encounter with Bill Owens - Buffalo Bill Owens - one of our craft beer pioneers - in the early 1990s at a craft beer conference.

I began a conversation with him -- or I tried to, at least -- about beer and food combinations (which at that time were just beginning to garner gravitas from beer writers).

Owens interrupted me, almost growling: "Food is for eating. Beer is for drinking." He turned away, shaking his head.