Day 49 (9/11/2011): Pizzeria Paradiso (Washington, D.C.)

I had been meaning to visit Pizzeria Paradiso since the first time I stayed in Dupont Circle for work last year. Good beer and good pizza? Very little can beat that. They have a great tap and bottle list and have a good happy hour on drafts during the week.

I ordered a 2007 Cantillon Iris, a wonderful unblended lambic that uses only pale malts and utilizes a 50/50 mix of dry and wet hops (More info here). This beer has a bit darker of a body due to the malt bill; almost amber rather than the typical straw color. Iris is definitely sour just like any other unblended lambic, but it has a slight caramel flavor that helps to counter a tiny bit of the tartness. A great beer for sure. Not my favorite sour, but it's definitely up there. I'll give it an A-.

They also had Founders Breakfast Stout on tap, so I got to try my first of these this season. If you like coffee stouts, this is your beer. The coffee flavor was a bit overwhelming for me, but it is what it is. There's definitely a ton of roast in the taste and then the rest is almost like a beer iced coffee. It seemed like the carbonation was high for an imperial stout, as well. I'm going to have to get some bottles of this to re-review, because I remember finding this a lot more outstanding than I did here. B+ for Breakfast Stout.

The meal was absolutely amazing. I started off with a caprese salad, with mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes, and basil, all covered in good, tasty olive oil. I was starving and scarfed it down before taking a picture.

For my pizza, I got an 8" Atomica, which featured salami, black olives, hot pepper flakes, and mozzarella. And not the crappy, shredded stuff that has become standard fare on pizzas today, but creamy, slightly browned real  mozzarella. I also added sausage to it, which ended up being a great choice. The chunks of flavorful, spiced meat added a lot to the pizza. Overall, a great pizza. Probably one of the better ones I've ever eaten before.

I definitely will be back to Pizzeria Paradiso again (most likely the next time I'm in town). Like I said before good beer and good pizza. Can't beat it with a stick!

Founders Breakfast Stout
Style: American double/imperial stout
ABV: 8.3%
IBU: ?
Beer Advocate: A/A+
Ratebeer: 100/98

Cantillon Iris
Style: Unblended lambic
ABV: 5%
IBU: ?
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 99/96