As far as overlooked snacks go, there might not be one worth digging into more than beer cheese.
Sure, the dip could now be considered a staple at breweries and bars, almost so much so that you expect the spread to be topped on the fanciest fried chicken sandwich just like you expect it to be on tap next to a pint of Pabst Blue Ribbon. Beer cheese has become a bit of a chameleon in this way, the way that this orangeish mesh blends into menus no matter if the brow is high or low.
But, it wasn’t always this way.
Just as pretzels have a surprising background ― they were invented in the image of praying children ― the origin story of beer cheese is one of twists and turns. They make a good pair in that way.
You might not remember the first time you saw beer cheese on a menu in the Louisville area, but, if you look, you’ll now see it all around.
What you might not see, or pay attention to, is that this cheesy concoction could be one of Kentucky’s claims to fame, right up there with bourbon and horses.
That's right. The cheesy concoction was purportedly invented right here in the Bluegrass State. This claim is stated on the website of the Kentucky Beer Cheese Festival, set for June 8 in Winchester: “Clark County was officially recognized by the Commonwealth of Kentucky as the birthplace of beer cheese in 2013.”
The website has more of the story, which goes back to the early 20th century.
“Beer cheese has a history as spicy as its flavor,” reads the site. “According to legend, it all started in the late 1930s on the banks of the Kentucky River near Winchester. The unique salty, spicy spread was created by chef Joe Allman for his cousin Johnnie, owner of the Driftwood Inn, who served it as a complimentary snack to increase his customers’ appetite for beer.Johnnie allegedly lost the restaurant, along with his recipes, in the early 1960s — and the debate about who has the original recipe has raged ever since.”
Allman served as the executive chef at Hall’s on the River, an iconic restaurant in Winchester that now sells its trademarked Hall’s Snappy Beer Cheese, billed online as “the combination of two of man’s most important achievements: beer and cheese.”
Decades later, “the popularity of beer cheese reaches far beyond Clark County,” the site for the festival reads.“You can find beer cheese on menus from South Carolina to California, each with their unique twist.”
Another twist? According to Hall's Beer Cheese, Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain was apparently a big fan of beer cheese thanks to her trips to Kentucky, meaning the item’s fame has spread beyond the country.
In Louisville, you’ll find takes on beer cheese at places like Gravely Brewing, 514 Baxter Ave., Noble Funk Brewing Company, 922 S. 2nd St., and Monnik Beer Company, 1036 E. Burnett Ave.
It’s a top seller at Holy Grale, according to executive chef, Jill Vieracker.
“With the growth of microbreweries, beer cheese has grown, too,” she told the Courier Journal. “It’s a good vehicle to have people try something a little different.”
The beer-focused gastropub serves soft pretzels with beer cheese, infused with a slightly different type of beer in each batch.
“The beer definitely gives a different flavor profile,” she said. “It surprises people that something so simple can taste so different.”
As a chef who studied at the Culinary Institute of America, Vieracker has an appreciation for the Kentucky-born item.
“Everyone knows wine and cheese,” she said. “There's definitely more science behind beer and cheese.”
There’s a science to how it’s made, but there’s also an art to what beer cheese has slyly accomplished.
It might sound silly to make so much about something meant to spread on crackers, but for some Kentucky natives, it makes you think of home.
And sometimes it’s the thing waiting in the fridge after months of not being there.
My brother, a college football coach, has moved around a lot. When he has the chance to return to our childhood house in Lexington, he requests one thing: Beer cheese.
And not just any type. It has to be the stuff made by my mother’s best friend, Donna Willliams.
If there’s such a thing as a beer cheese historian, Donna is one of them.
A native of Lexington, she remembers stumbling upon beer cheese for the first time at Hall’s on the River about 30 years ago. It quickly became a favorite thing to pack for trips to the lake or tailgating.
Williams remembers introducing beer cheese to out-of-state friends and family.
“You’d go barely out of the state and people wouldn’t know what you were talking about,” she said. “It was so bizarre, because it was just a normal thing to us.”
She began experimenting with recipes, a process that took over a year, before perfecting her signature version. Williams entered the first-ever Beer Cheese Festival, which hosts professional beer cheese vendors and has a contest for “amateur” beer cheese makers.
WIlliams doesn’t remember how her beer cheese placed in the contest, but, ask anyone who has tried her creation, and they’ll tell you it’s some of the best.
She makes batches of beer cheese, with a mild or medium spice level, weekly for friends and family members. She makes so much, by request, that she’s started charging a few bucks. She fields other requests, too, for details on the dish.
“You can have any recipe, but that one,” she says.
One key ingredient? That it’s from Kentucky.
Reach food reporter Amanda Hanco*ck at ahanco*ck@courier-journal.com.
Kentucky Beer Cheese Festival
WHAT: The Kentucky Beer Cheese Festival has been celebrating this tasty local treat since 2009 and it has quickly grown into a favorite. Each year, thousands of festival goers descend on Beer Cheese Boulevard to taste beer cheese from all over the country, shop, and enjoy all that beautiful, historic downtown Winchester has to offer.
WHEN: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 8
WHERE: Downtown Winchester
MORE: For more information, visit beercheesefestival.com.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Beer Cheese Festival celebrates Kentucky's favorite dip
