On Wednesday Oct. 16 at 6 p.m., the Tony and Libba Rane Culinary Science Center hosted the Battle of the Beverage. The event consisted of a wine versus beer competition to determine which beverage paired best with the prepared menu.
The dinner lasted an hour and a half, in which the guests were served two main courses and a dessert.
Camiel Clarke, Anabel Dillingham and Mary Flavin were the senior culinary students in charge of preparing the dinner. The menu's first dish was lamb kofta with a salad of cucumber, vinegar and sour cream; a second dish that was a steak sandwich with bitter watercress, crispy shallots and sweet pickled tomatoes; and a peanut butter chocolate tart with sea salt caramel for dessert.
The battle took place in the culinary exhibition laboratory. Participants sat in an auditorium equipped with silverware and dishes that would simulate the tables of a restaurant.
Two professors from the Horst Schulze School of Hospitality Management, David Martin and Clark Danderson, had to choose the best drink that would pair with each dish. Martin was in charge of the wines, Danderson was in charge of the beers and guests had to choose whoever had made the best selection.
The brewing industry is continuously expanding its beverage offerings, elevating the standards for what is considered a sophisticated beer.
“Most people kind of think of beer as lagers or the things that you would find, you know, at a tailgate. But there's over 100 something styles, and that gives you a broad diversity. And they all have unique little characteristics about them that allow them to pair with all kinds of different food,” Danderson said.
The variety in the food choices delighted the guests in attendance. Some made the most of this experience and learned new skills.
“To me, it's also nice to learn how they can taste independently or together, or new cooking techniques. I learn all sorts of things from these classes and I like hearing about it,” said Leslie Krauss, a guest at the event.
Each dish was introduced by those who had chosen the drinks and prepared the food, giving details about the products they had chosen.
There was then a round of questions asked by the guests tasting the combinations, giving them the chance to ask about the decisions made or the ideal temperature at which to serve the wines at.
All students involved in the event made the experience more complete and unique.
"[Battle of the Beverage] was such a special activity because of the variety of students who worked together for the event," said Allie Milham, senior in hospitality management.
Milham noted that the culinary students collaborated with professors to apply their classroom knowledge and serve the local Auburn community.
As the night concluded, wine was crowned the winner of the competition and proved to pair better with the prepared dishes than the beer. The dinner served as a master class for all guests willing to learn about flavor combinations.
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