From our favorite TV show host Morana Zibar!

Look at that, I’m older than Dante when he wrote the Divine Comedy halfway through his life. I’m in my forties. And they say that the forties are the new twenties… I don’t know, this beer lover seems even better. Yes, the body is no longer fit and quick to self-recover, it’s more like a Michelin mascot, slightly blown out, but who cares. There is wisdom, experience, security and that fine skill when you know how to appreciate good things and ignore shit. It is the same with beer, that is, the attitude towards beer.

YOUNGER DAYS

In our youth, we drank everything and anything. We did not choose, we just drank. Glo-glo! If someone had mentioned to me then the concept such as a proper glass, ideal temperature, choosing a beer according to the occasion, pairing with food, combining flavours… I would throw a can of lukewarm store beer at him. Well, I have to admit that fortunately I realised relatively early that there are better and worse beers, and that for these better ones, then mostly imported, you have to work hard. And over time, I became aware of my inner beer lover. Now, I can recognise the moment when a beer suits me and when it does not.

THE WISDOM OF A BEER LOVER

Generally I drink better before a meal or at the very beginning of a meal. Usually the one with a lighter body, more discreet but sufficiently ostentatious aromas. Of course, not just any beer. Take, for example, our dear Plavuša beer, the character of the blonde ale in the sea of ​​pale ale beers on our market. Mature and wise as I am, I approach it studiously. Yes, on a sunny and hot day I could deliciously pull it off before lunch, but I will gladly and adequately pair it.

PLAVUŠA BEER & SPRING ROLLS

The relevant sources say that blonde ale goes with lighter dishes, ideally with Asian cuisin dishese. Luckily, my favourite neighbourhood has both to offer! So the choice falls on Plavuša beer and Chinese Spring Rolls. Works well with weather in this time of the year as well. All I can say is that it works great together.

A certain number of days later it was sunny and warm again for more than an hour and a half, which is a rare occasion in Zagreb this year. And while I was walking like that, a spontaneous impulse drove me to buy an enticing croissant with raspberry cream in the bakery and to eat it on a bench with a bottle of cold Plavuša from nearby Vrutko store.

Would a beer sommelier approve? Hardly. Was the pairing successful? Well, not really. Does that mean my whole story on maturity, fine beer manners, and right decisions is falling apart? No, this is an exception that confirms the rule. It can’t always be all about strings. One should sometimes indulge in some unbridled irrational urge.

APPROACH WITH ALL DUE RESPECT

So, my point is that the beer should be approached with all due respect, enjoy it in moderation, in a timely manner and knowledgeably. Experience plays a key role here, but I don’t want to sound like an old Buddhist monk now when talking about the path to enlightenment.

Do I hear you think, OK, boomer? I just wave my hand at that and continue to carefully explore the bilateral relations between blonde alea and brie in a quiet afternoon…

Morana Zibar