Bright White is a Belgian-inspired Wheat Ale fermented with a Belgian yeast, yielding a mixture of clove and fruity aromas without the use of any spices.

These traits make it the perfect beer to pair with food as you cook.

Here are some suggestions and inspiration of cooking with Bright White from our own David Munro, one of our resident food and beer pairing experts.

Mussels

Mussels and Bright White are an excellent combination. Here is a recipe from Munro:

• Gently sauté a finely diced onion, three or four finely chopped cloves of garlic and two tablespoons of butter. Do this in a large enough pan that can hold two pounds of fresh mussels and has a tight fitting lid.
• Rinse the mussels with cold water and remove any opened ones.
• Once the onions and garlic have become translucent, pour a 12 oz. bottle of Bright White into the pan and add the mussels.
• Bring the liquid to a boil and cover with the pan with a lid.
• Reduce to medium/low heat and set timer for 5 minutes, or until the Mussels have opened.
• Turn off the heat, add a handful of roughly chopped cilantro and a four tablespoons of butter. Put the lid back on and shake (be careful not to burn yourself).
• You can either do family style service or use individual bowls. Be sure to pour all of the delicious broth over the Mussels and serve with a loaf of freshly baked crusty baguette to soak up all of that delicious broth! If you want spicy, use sriracha on the side, not in the cooking.

Starters

Here are some ideas of how you can use Bright White with appetizers and smaller dishes:

• Leek and potato soup made with Bright White.
• Bright White Chicken Chili: You can also have as an entrée, served over a baked potato.
• Sautéed local mushrooms, with a Bright White cream sauce of onions, garlic and fresh parsley. Use local thick cream for cooking.
• Bright White Cheese Fondue.
• Poached Asparagus with a Bright White Hollandaise style sauce.

Entrees

For an entrée or main course, think lighter. Seafood and chicken are complimentary. Beef, for the most part, is too much. A possible pairing with lamb.

Here are other ideas:

• Scallops lightly poached in Bright White and served with a sauce of herbed chevre on a bed of stringozzi.
• Whole sole stuffed with leeks and crab, parchment baked with Bright White and served with Duchess potatoes.
• Seafood stew with Bright White broth.
• Eggs are also great with Bright White, including the omelet pictured above at the Eccentric Cafe.

Dessert

For dessert, pair with berries and cheese in combination or alone. Here are some more ideas:

• A layered mascarpone and berry trifle.
• Lemon Panna Cotta with Fresh Raspberry Coulis.
• Crepes with strawberry and cream cheese filling.
• A bowl full of fresh cherries, lightly poached in Bright White, chilled and topped with mascarpone ice cream.

Have you cooked with Bright White or any of our other beers before? Let us know what you made on Facebook or Twitter using the hashtag #bellsbeer.