As Jim Gaffigan once said, “Bacon’s the best, even the frying of bacon sounds like an applause. Yea, bacon! You wanna hear how good bacon is? To improve other food they wrap it in bacon.”
The only thing that could possibly make a delicious handful (that’s how I measure) of maple-cured bacon better would be to wash it down with a tasty brew. Not just any beer will do, though. It has to be a roasted, malty stout or porter that will work well with the rich, salty magic that is bacon.
“Whenever you’re at a brunch buffet and you see that metal tray filled with the four thousand strips of bacon, don’t you almost expect a rainbow to be coming out of it? I found it, I found the source of all bacon!”
– Jim Gaffigan
It makes sense that bacon and beer would go together. Anything smoked works well with beer. You could smoke a pair of flip-flops, slather them in BBQ sauce and I would probably eat them if they were paired with a tasty, smooth, rich, dark beer.
If you’re like me and your love of bacon goes beyond the norm (in spite of it being rather unhealthy), the only way to wash down bacon is with more bacon. And no, I’m not talking about drinking bacon fat. That’s just crazy. It’s potentially delicious, but crazy. I’m not really trying to clog all of my arteries at once. I’ll wash down that tasty bacon with a bacon-flavored beer like Funky Buddha’s Maple Bacon Coffee Porter or Rogue’s Voodoo Donut Bacon Maple Ale.
Funky Buddha’s Maple Bacon Coffee Porter
Photo: Funky BuddhaLocated in Oakland Park, Florida, the Funky Buddha Brewery’s most sought after beer is their Maple Bacon Coffee Porter. “It’s basically brewed to be breakfast in a glass – like a complete roadside diner experience from the pancakes with maple syrup to the side of bacon and fresh cup of coffee,” says John Linn, Brand Director for Funky Buddha. “We use a blend of all natural ingredients and a pretty extreme recipe to achieve this effect.”
They first brewed Maple Bacon Coffee Porter at their brewpub, The Funky Buddha Lounge back in 2011. “It struck a chord with people right away and we basically started brewing it on the regular – of course, back then it was 30 gallon batches only, so it went fast each time it was made.” Since Funky Buddha Brewery opened in June 2013, they began to brew the beer every January as part of their Maple Bacon Coffee Porter Festival, an all-day street fair and bottle release at the brewery. You’ll have to wait a little while to try this beer as the next festival and release won’t be held until January 9, 2016. Plus, you’ll have to make your way to Florida or have someone else grab some for you. “We’d like to invite everyone to the next MBCP Festival – it’s going to be an amazing time,” says Linn.
Why Make a Bacon-Flavored Beer?
“Why not?” says Linn. “We definitely have a love affair with bacon and all things pork-related.” He says that when people hear the word “bacon” in relation to a beer they are either really excited or really skeptical, but either way they want to try it. They are usually pleasantly surprised by what the brewers were able to create. “Thankfully the beer has been good enough that they’ve enjoyed it afterwards.” What’s not to love? Beer? Check. Bacon? Check. Maple? Check. Throw in some coffee to really round it out and you have a very tasty brew indeed.
What makes bacon a great flavor for beer is the rich, smoky flavors that come with it. Funky Buddha’s Maple Bacon Coffee Porter sadly doesn’t actually have real bacon in it. The reason is that the flavor pickup in the beer would be minimal and therefore not create a strong enough flavor for the finished product.
Linn assures people that they won’t miss bacon because the flavor in their beer is as good as the real thing. “Instead we use a blend of spices and malts to achieve a smokey, salty flavor. It actually balances the sweetness of the porter quite nicely – it’s a very balanced beer.” Plus, you can always just add a strip of freshly cooked bacon to your pint if you feel like it is somehow lacking in the bacon department.
Rogue Voodoo Doughnut Maple Bacon Ale
Photo: Rogue Ales
Founded in 1988 in Ashland, Oregon, Rogue Ales moved to Newport in 1989. The brewery was founded by Jack Joyce, Rob Strasser and Bob Woodell. Rogue is one of the most respected craft breweries in the country and is most famous for its flagship beer Rogue Dead Guy Ale. On top of the brewery in Newport, Rogue also runs brewpubs in Oregon, California and Washington State and recently tried its hand at distilling. A few years ago, they opened Rogue Farms where they grow many fruits, vegetables and herbs that are used in their beers and spirits.
To say that Portland’s Voodoo Doughnut is popular is a ridiculous understatement. The shop has been open since 2002 and has a cult following in the northwest. It’s known for its unique doughnut creations including the Voodoo Doll Doughnut, Triple Chocolate Penetration Doughnut and their famous Maple Bacon Bar.
It made perfect sense when these two beloved Oregon institutions joined together to create Rogue Voodoo Doughnut Maple Bacon Ale, a symphony of bacon, maple syrup and beer.
Hand crafted since 2011, the beer came to be when Rogue decided that the time was right to meld the two popular businesses. What’s better than doughnuts and beer? Bacon doughnuts and beer. They refer to the beer as a “collision of crazies”. This isn’t the only beer the duo has collaborated on. There are three other doughnut inspired beers including:
Voodoo Doughnut Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Banana Ale, Voodoo Doughnut Lemon Chiffon Crueller Ale and Voodoo Doughnut Pretzel, Raspberry & Chocolate Ale. In November, Rogue is launching Voodoo Mango Astronaut Ale inspired by the Voodoo Mango Tango, a doughnut filled with mango jelly and topped with vanilla frosting and a tangy orange powder.
Have you tried a bacon flavored beer? Let us know in the comments!
