Jimmys No. 43

We hope you’ve enjoyed our regular updates about Liquid Lent. We’ve had a lot of fun reading about others who are foregoing food for beer during a season where you can “drink like a Monk.” Now as Lent draws to a close, we’ll be serving up a terrific list of beers on draft and in the bottle starting tomorrow (Friday-Sunday).

In addition, we’ll open at noon on Saturday (April 12th) for a pay-as-you-go celebration of the “Monk’s Trail,” with a ticketed guided tasting at 4 p.m. For two hours, you can drink with owner and Beer Sessions Radio™ host Jimmy Carbone at this sit-down tasting of 20+ beers that will include some rare bottle selections from the Jimmy’s No. 43 cellar.

Among the beers we will have throughout the weekend and at the ticketed tasting:

• Classic Belgians and Trappists (e.g. Rochefort 8,10; Westmalle Dubbel, Triple; Achel Brown; La Trappe; Orval; Vicaris Triple; Duvel Triple Hop; D’Chouffe Houblon Chouffe; Andechs Dunkelweiss)
• Rare Belgians (Het Nest Ace of Spades Saison, Hof Ten Dormaal/Stillwater collaboration “Bronze Age,” Blaugies Saison d’Épeautre, De La Senne Taras Boulba)
• Plus Belgian-style and sours from the USA and Switzerland (Crooked Stave Surette, Vielle Saison; Brouwerij West Triple from Los Angeles; The Commons Brewery Flemish Kiss, Urban Farmhouse from Portland, OR; Stillwater Brontide, Folklore; Trois Dames Grand Dame Oud Bruin Flemish Red from Switzerland; Jolly Pumpkin Bam Biere from Michigan
• Plus Food choices of charcuterie, bacon, cheese, mini-cheeseburger sliders, cheese plates and other brunch offerings

This past weekend we held two dinners of very different themes. On Saturday, we used our Wine v. Beer template and paired rare beef with roasted parsnips, which we paired to a Rhone red and a Trappist strong ale. Both brought out unique flavors in the meat, and it was a treat to enjoy wine during “liquid lent.”

Then last night, we held a five-course, five-beer pairing modeled on Game of Thrones, which returned to HBO for its fourth season. Interestingly, owner Jimmy Carbone has never seen the series but has read the books.

The dinner allowed us to launch Ommegang’s latest GoT beer, Fire and Blood (which we still have on tap this week for as long as it lasts). Among the pairings were:

• Cheese and Honey paired with Bell’s Oberon, a wheat/saison-style beer
• A “Dragon Egg” Omelette: a frittata that we paired with Le Trou Diable’s “Saison du Tongka” a traditional saison from Quebec
• “Pigeon pie,” which we actually made with ground lamb, roots and served with Ommegang’s Abbey Dubbel
• Bloody Duck: Hudson Valley-raised duck breast served over farro grain and kale and paired with Fire and Blood
• “Sweets” for dessert: baked apple crisp with oatmeal topping and Ronnybrook whipped cream paired with Grado Plato San Felice chestnut ale

These pairings show the best of Jimmy’s No. 43’s food and beer/wine offerings. We hope you will join us this week, as many of these items are available on our spring menu. And be sure to come to our Belgian beer tasting this weekend or to our next dinner featuring pork dished paired with sour beers on April 28th.

The weather finally seems to have given way to spring, and we’re celebrating this afternoon by bringing in a very special keg of Bell’s Oberon, a wheat ale fermented with Bell’s signature house ale yeast, mixing a spicy hop character with mildly fruity aromas. The addition of wheat malt lends a smooth mouthfeel, making it a classic seasonal beer. Plus, at only 5.8% ABV, it’s perfect for our Liquid Lent.

Jimmy’s No. 43 owner Jimmy Carbone recently had the pleasure of talking to Larry Bell on the 200th episode of Beer Sessions Radio, so we’re thrilled to have one of the kegs of his latest brews. Join us from 5 p.m. on, while supplies last. And, as always, our regular beer/restaurant service is available!

We hope you have been following us for Liquid Lent! For 40 days, Jimmy Carbone has been documenting his efforts to “drink like a monk” with simple foods and great beers. So which are some of his favorite beers thus far?

Other Half’s Lembeek 86 blonde: This beer will be featured as part of our April Sours theme, which we have every year at Jimmy’s No. 43. We think spring is a great time to celebrate the sours (and we’ll culminate this month in our annual April Sours beer dinner). Lembeck is the town in Belgium that “lambic” comes from. Classic sours. Other Half, Brooklyn’s newest brewery, created a classic sour with some hoppiness to it but all brettanomyces in the forward notes.

KelSo’s Rhubarb Gose: Another classic sour style, gose originated in Germany. Rhubarb is a beautiful sour spring vegetable, so this pairs well with our spring menu that features duck and early greens.

Finback Brewerys Double Sess: This is a spin on a traditional wit bier, with ginger, camomile, and Szechuan peppercorns. The name is a play on sessions beers, and it fits the bill, weighing in at 4.7% ABV.

Speaking of session beers, we love Evil Twin’s Bikini: a 2.7% ABV (!! – that’s lower than traditional kombucha) and a hop profile reminiscent of Carton’s Boat Beer.

Finally, we have spring’s favorite style, the saison. We’ll be featuring several saisons this month, including Ommegang’s Glimmerglass, which we’ll be featuring on Saturday April 12th, during our “Walk the Monk’s Trail” tasting event. This will be a two-hour walk-around tasting with beer reps and owners pouring their favorites. If you’ve attended our Battle of the Belgians in December, you will want to get your ticket for one of the two tastings we’ll have featuring Belgians and Belgian-style beers paired with brunch food items.