For us Michiganders, February and its freezing temps call for the warmth of some of our favorite rich and comforting dishes – and the best beer to wash those down with? None other than our Dirty Bastard Scotch ale.

Our Education Team‘s finest, Mike Willcox, shares his go-to Dirty Bastard comfort food pairings:

My love affair with Dirty Bastard started when my wife (a Certified Cicerone herself) convinced me to order it next to a pork belly dish at one of our favorite restaurants. The pairing kicked my ass (in the best way possible) and made me fall beard over butt for Dirty Bastard. The Scotch ale’s robust malts swim in your nose, skip over your palate and bathe you in notes of caramelized sugars, banana, toffee, and sweet grains.

I love pairing a Dirty Bastard with a rich dish and watch it sing like a fat lady trying to get something over with. This beer loves to mix it up with fat and salt and has the body to cleanse your palate between bites of richer foods. Set a glass of this bastard next to dishes with pork belly or bacon – maybe some corned beef – anything with some fat to it. Stews with heavy stock and a lot of root vegetables would be gorgeous, but definitely stay away from thinner soups. Dirty Bastard would take a thin broth soup and tromp it all to hell. In fact, screw soup and stew, throw this naughty boy next to some chili. Better yet, consider using it as a base to make your own chili and then drink it next to said chili like we do in our taproom/deli! The possibilities are staggering!

Aged gouda cheese would pair beautifully with Dirty Bastard. Look for gouda so old it’s crystalizing and starting to bite back a little or a young gouda that still has some creaminess and wants to borrow three dollars for some baseball cards. Those are still a thing right? Also you know what else is awesome with gouda? Chili.

Damn it, now I just want chili.

Let’s talk about the next best thing after chili: dessert. Dirty Bastard has plenty of smooth, caramel sweetness to it, making it a great complement to desserts like crème brûlée, apple cobbler, or bananas foster. Try sautéing bananas in butter and brown sugar and drizzling it with the Dirty Bastard… We’ll call it The Dirty Banana. Wait, did I just make that a thing? I think I just invented a thing.

Like I always say, every palate is different and it’s all about playing around until you find pairings that tickle your tastebuds. Let us know what you come up with!