Culinaria

There are some obvious foods that go well with whisky. Cheese and chocolate are the most obvious ones. Nearly all cheese and chocolate pair well with whisky, some better than others and there are a few matches made in heaven. There are some other less obvious choices of food which also go very well with whisky, and there are certain whiskies that go particularly well with them. I tasted around twelve top whiskies with three foods I love to eat: oysters, caviar, and Kobe beef. I thought I knew which whiskies would pair well, but I was stunned at which whiskies paired the best.

Kobe beef is known for its high fat content, so I tried whiskies with a saline flavor in their profile and a few with a bit of smoke. These flavors and aromas cut through the fat and bring the flavor of the meat and whisky together. However, Springbank 18 year old stood out and created flavors that existed neither in the whisky nor the beef. Surprisingly, the whisky didn't overpower the Kobe beef. An experience worth trying.

Caviar I thought would be difficult, as good caviar can be delicate and easily wasted if eaten with strong alcohol, I thought whisky would certainly work the least well with this food. So I decided to pair light Lowland whiskies, which worked well enough. Still, the real surprise was Clynelish 14 year old, which has richer fruits and a waxy element that somehow welded together with the caviar becoming even more decadent and sumptuous. I reduced the whisky with a little water for even better results before taking the caviar.

Oysters are a good match for whisky, and there are a few different types of oysters that seem to work very well. Traditionally, I enjoy my bivalves with peaty, salty whiskies from Islay. I particularly like Lagavulin 16 and the Distillery Editions with all seafood. With this exercise, I had a wild card, and it was the standout match creating incredible umami flavors with the Whitstable Oysters I was eating. It was The Nikka Tailored; a Japanese blended whisky with a core of malted barely from Miyagikyo and Yoichi distilleries with a little Coffey still grain whisky. The sweet fruity, and bitter flavors in the whisky blended beautifully with the salty Oysters. That was my match made in heaven.