Sunday is the inaugural Republic Cantina Chili Cookoff. The judges for the first annual cookoff are Jill Nguyen, owner and baker of Capitol Jill Baking; Chris Svetlik, owner of Republic Cantina; Joe Neuman, owner of Sloppy Momma’s BBQ and Hill East Burger; and Tim Carman, food journalist at the Washington Post.
Tickets are sold out, but if you’re interested in replicating it, just go to Republic Cantina another time. Or, go to Sloppy Mommas. Or make your own and bring your chili to a local brewery!
Of note here, you don’t HAVE to be at Republic Cantina on Sunday to make a dynamite chili and beer pairing. We will reveal to you some of our favorite beer and chili pairings momentarily.
If you asked the judges, their opinions differ on which chilis are best in a bowl of chili. Similarly, their opinions on which beer is best in the preparation of chili. That being said, they weighed in thusly:
“I have no problem with a beer in a chili recipe,” Carman relays. I once told former Mad Fox Owner, Bill Madden, that I used IPA in my sauce whilst steaming mussels and the look on his face said it all. Never IPA he advised me, something more neutral like pale lager, American Adjunct, or even something with a bit more malt or yeast character like an American Blonde Ale or Franco or Belgian bière blonde would be far better.
For Nguyen, “something malty like a stout” is best. “Yes to beer,” Svetlik says “and it’s gotta be Shiner Bock.” This is no surprise coming from a man with Czexan roots. Two Augusts ago I covered the pale lagers that were brewed by Denizens for some tasty restaurants, some of which are mentioned above.
“Definitely beer in the chili,” Neuman says, affirmatively. I have known Mr. Neuman for over a decade now as his food truck, Sloppy Mommas, used to serve at DC Brau, when I worked at what was then the largest production brewery in DC. Today the superlative “largest” is held by Other Half DC, though high quality beers continue to crank out of DC Brau. As we witnessed two weekends ago, Brau won not one but two medals at the Great American Beer Festival.
If you want to check out Republic Cantina’s Brisket Chili you are always welcome to do so and take some home and try pairing it with the following:
Port City Porter, 7.2% ABV – This silky Porter is smooth and pours a dark color, think mahogany with a khaki colored foam atop. The notes of bittersweet chocolate complement the chilis used in Republic Cantina’s Chili bowl and the coffee notes found in the porter create a glorious gestalt.
Other Half Ivy City Festbier, 6.0% ABV – A much lighter bodied beer than porter, Festbier hums with Pilsner, Vienna, and Munich malts, and is single decocted giving it a nice head retention. The spritzy crisp finish is certainly more substantive than Shiner Bock, but a nice highly digestible beer to play sidecar to go along as a humble character to the main character energy of Brisket Chili.
DC Brau Dueling Grounds Vienna Lager, 5% ABV – Fresh off of a GABF medal this Vienna lager is a great accompaniment to chili whether it be full of meat or even a vegan chili (both my sisters in law are vegan). Are you tasting toasted bread crust flavor? Or maybe a hint of brown sugar and toffee? Surely the subtleties are not lost on me, though eventually they succumb to the brisket and the chili takes over as star of the show.
So go give the locals some love. The Republic Cantina Chili Cookoff may come but once a year, but Sloppy Momma’s BBQ, Hill East Burger, Capitol Jill Baking, and Republic Cantina need love 52 weeks out of the year.
Leave a Reply