Pride Pub: Orlando City vs. Seattle Sounders

Welcome back to the Pride Pub! This week, Orlando City welcomes the Seattle Sounders to the Campground. After the win against New England, Orlando City needs to keep on the front foot to get back into playoff contention.

Just a reminder on how this works: we choose a craft beer from the country/state/city of our opponent and we include an appropriate recipe to go along with it. Of course, we also choose a Florida craft beer to complement our other recipe, and to represent our Orlando City Lions here in the beautiful Sunshine State.

From Seattle – RedHook ESB, RedHook Brewery

Founded in 1981 by Paul Shipman and Gordon Bowker, Redhook is now a part of the Craft Beer Alliance (and full disclosure, a part of InBev…ugh), but they still make a good beer.

According to the brewery:

"Brewed in the style of a traditional British ESB (Extra Special Bitter), we’ve been making ESB continuously since 1987, and it’s now the benchmark for the Amber beer category. Despite having "bitter" in its name, Redhook ESB is really not that bitter at all. This brew is all about the balance of caramel malt sweetness completed by spicy, citrusy."

Pair with: Juicy Roasted Chicken. The delightful roasted chicken flavor will pair nicely with the ESB. Like it says above, ESBs aren’t actually bitter. Indeed, they are some of the best beers on the planet.

Dave's recommendation: Rich and Creamy Mashed Potatoes. What else would you have with roasted chicken, but mashed potatoes? I know it’s traditional, but sometimes traditional is best.

From Florida – Cottonmouth Belgian Witbier, Swamphead Brewery

According to the brewery:

"Indigenous to North Florida, it’s not hard to find this creature around the swamp. Its white head leaves wisps of lace on the glass and a subtle sweet finish. Indulge yourself with a home grown witbier brewed in the Belgian tradition.

Cottonmouth is brewed using traditional witbier ingredients and a Belgian ale yeast. The result is a crisp and refreshing Belgian witbier with a delicate mix of fruity esters and spicy phenols."

Pair with: Homemade Steak Fajitas. The slight spiciness of the fajitas, along with the grilled meat, will counter the lightness of the witbier, making this an excellent pairing.

Dave's recommendations: Mexican rice. Well what did you think we’d recommend for steak fajitas? Duh.

Thank you for stopping by the Pride Pub. As always, please comment below and let us know what you think. Vamos Orlando!