Ein One Helles and Alternative Baking Company Lucious Lemon Poppyseed cookie
Counter Weight is celebrating their one year anniversary with this Helles beer called Ein One and a big event at their taproom with some other Connecticut breweries. I am sad I missed out, but I was sure to stop by and pick up a four pack of this brew - I’m sure they won’t be around long. On the way home I also paid a visit to Thyme and Season, a health food grocery shop in Hamden not too far from the brewery and found these unique looking vegan cookies with some great flavors, so I took a gamble and boy am I glad I did.
The Beer: Ein One literally means A one, so says my elementary translation skills. Maybe it’s supposed to be THE one, any German friends want to confirm?
**Update from my German friend Jens: “Hallo, aus Deutschland! Es heißt, ein helles Bier.” In other words, in English it would just be called, “One Helles Beer” I do think that the word Ein in German kind of sounds like “I’m” in English, in which case the name is a play on words that is announcing their age, which I kind of like, maybe some day I’ll ask a brewer and know for certain.
Whatever you call it, this beer is light, crisp, and everything I want from a german style beer. It has a bit of a bite but is super crushable. Very flavorful malty notes that balances very little hop profile. A bit bready and a lot of pilsner malt notes. This is a beer that just tastes like summer and is so refreshing you want a second one before you finish the first.
The Cookie: If you told me I was going to eat a vegan cookie and absolutely love it, and want to eat more, I would not believe you. This cookie rocks, for real. There is no dairy, but it is thick and soft and yummy. The lemon flavor is strong and natural tasting, the poppy seeds pop the way they should. This chewy cookie is quality even though it has “zilch dairy and zip eggs.”
The Pairing: The beer is light with that nice bread Pilsner thing going on which marries really well with the lemon and subtle bite of the poppy in the cookie. This beer solidifies my love of German style beers and I think they go with just about every cookie because they are so refreshing. Ein One washes down the soft, flavorful cookie in such a satisfying way, I hope this beer isn’t just a one off production.
