Our local paper today had an article (picked up from the AP, though I haven’t found it online elsewhere) about pairing beer with the traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Once through the fluff of the article, the general recommendations are a Belgian-style beer, a brown ale, or a bière de garde, as single beers that are well-balanced against the overall dinner "package."

Myself, I would prefer to have more variety and pair beers with certain dishes or courses. They cover that too:

• Cream ales or pale ales with turkey and gravy
• Doppelbocks with salty ham and mashed potatoes
• A malty, spiced beer with dessert

I’d have to go with a pumpkin ale somewhere in the mix, but knowing me, is that really a surprise?

Looking around to see what other Thanksgiving beer ideas might be out there led me to this BeerAdvocate article—I’ve covered it before, but it’s good to revisit. To be fair, it covers the holidays in general, but I think it fits nicely. Recommendations:

• Apéritif: light-bodied Pilsner or lager
• Hors d’oeuvre: moderately-hopped pale ales
• Dinner: Strong Belgian-style ales, or Pilsners
• Dessert: "Rich and big" stouts
• Digestif: Barleywines

Naturally, they offer specific beer suggestions for each style.

Now I’ve gone and made myself hungry. So what’s everyone drinking with their Thanksgiving meals this year?