The Belhaven Scottish Ale paired perfectly with the vegetarian version. The caramel maltiness tempered the heat from the spicy Italian Beyond sausage as well as highlighted the Maillard flavors from the deep frying. The herbal and earthy hop flavors highlighted the beer horseradish mustard I paired with the Scotch eggs.

Like most people, I rarely rely on my own knowledge to recall anything and I almost exclusively rely on various software, apps, and algorithms to determine how I move through my daily life. This reliance naturally extends to my homebrewing.

As an adult, some nights I spend my time looking over open enrollment paperwork, trying to decide which plan really feels like "me." Other nights I tell my husband not to fill up on dinner because we have seven different kinds of candy to pair with beer while we watch Stranger Things 2.

Let's get bananimated about esters! Why does some beer taste and smell like banana? That banana flavor and smell are caused by isoamyl acetate, an ester, which is the largest group of flavor compounds in alcoholic beverages. Esters are formed by the reaction of organic acids and alcohols created during fermentation.