Students enjoy rare chance to sample beer for class

Many students would enjoy any class that offered an opportunity to sample beer and wine.

In Wes Luckhardt’s FNS 263: Beverages in Foodservice class, students earn extra credit for it.

Two groups of students from the class took part in an exercise to help the Mount Pleasant Brewing Company, 614 W. Pickard St., pair beers with sandwiches on Thursday and Friday.

“It’s more about the food than the beer itself,” said Traverse City senior Dani Hook.

Hook, along with Port Huron senior Angel Assi, and Jackson senior Cierra Curtis, visited the restaurant Friday to help find an ideal beer match for eight different sandwiches.

Erik Bliss, operational manager for the Mount Pleasant Brewing Company, said many restaurants will match wines with entrees, but the brewing company is working with their selection of beers.

“What I’ve learned is not to expect anything,” he said.“Everyone has a different pallet. I’m excited to see the results.”

Students Sample Local Brew from CMLifeVideo on Vimeo.

The students were split into two groups to make sure their opinions did not influence the others. They received about one-third of four different sandwiches and eight cups filled with about four to six ounces of each beer.

The students then were asked to rate which beers matched the overall flavor of the sandwich on a scale of one to eight, with one being the best combination and eight being the worst.

Some combinations caused them to wince in disgust, but others prompted positive reactions.

“I don’t like the beer, but they go good together,” Assi said of the Second Wind Wheat beer and her cheese steak sandwich.

The students will return next week to sample the other four sandwiches. Eating eight sandwiches and drinking all the beer would just get them drunk, Bliss joked.

The assignment could net the students up to 5 percent extra credit in the class. The class work has called for them to sample beers and wines already, but this was a different experience.

“It was fun to use the skills from class to evaluate the beer,” Curtis said.

Bliss is a CMU alumnus and wanted to give back to his alma mater, and Luckhardt wanted to support a business in the community.

The class has helped the students gain a better appreciation for a drink’s ability to complement food, and beer itself.

While the samples were free for students, the endeavor was good for Bliss and the brewing company.

Curtis walked out with two six packs and Hook bought one for herself.