With summer finally here, the soaring temperatures and hazy nights are all the excuse we need for an impromptu drinking session. The St Pancras Renaissance hotel is just the place to head with the launch of their new own-label beer, a selection of other craft beers and some bites to pair with them.
For the month of August, the hotel is offering ‘beer and bites’ in the Booking Office bar to punters looking for a nibble to complement their tipple. The menu has been curated by one of the UK’s top female beer sommeliers, Marverine Cole, who has designed the perfect pairings to match your craft beer.
Hot Dinners sampled all of the beers on offer, all in the name of research of course, and were pleasantly surprised by the pairings. All the beers selected have been chosen from small, craft breweries.
Particular favourites included Meantime's fruity Wheat Beer, paired with cheese straws and scampi bites to bring out the creamy elements of the beer. Something a bit more unusual is the pairing of stout with haggis bon bons and crispy calamari. The dark chocolate and coffee notes in the stout are actually the perfect accompaniment to these robust bites and a must-try. Likewise, for the designated drivers among us, the non-alcoholic Dominion Root Beer worked well with the pigs-in-blanket and truffle fries with parmesan shavings.
St Pancras Renaissance’ own label beer is brewed exclusively for the hotel by Oldershaw brewery and is a citrusy beer which lends itself to balmy nights. This was our favourite drink of the night and was paired with herby salmon croquettes and mini cheese on toast, both devoured in record time and devised to bring out the zestiness of the beer.
And finally, for the truly daring, there's the beer mojito. Admittedly we sampled it with some trepidation but it turned out to be a delicious take on a classic mojito, albeit with added fizz. The St Pancras Beer Mojito is available for £12.50.
The Beer and Bites menu will be available throughout August at the Booking Office Bar - on the first floor of St Pancras Station.
