So, I walk into a bar restaurant in Maine a few years ago. We are there with pals and meeting pals of pals. We'd been going to Portland for years and heard the place was great - family friendly, good Maine beer and good food. That place is gone now but it's one of my favorite memories because when I came in the door I heard "hey, everyone, it's Al!" No one looked up. It was noisy and busy but there was Tom Whitehead on the small stage at the piano, waving and smiling at us all.

Between gigs around town, Tom can be found at Bar Lola on Congress Street where he had his first beer dinner last February. He let me know they are doing another couple of beer dinners this winter - one with Belgian brews next week with another in January with brews from local heroes Allagash. Next week's brews are all imported by Vanberg & Dewulf and include Saison Dupont, Witkap Tripel, Boon Framboise, Moinette Brune as well as a beer to be named between now and then. I am a big fan of Dupont's Moinette Brune and was interested what the picks meant. I asked co-owner Stella Hernandez whether any particular beers had opened their eyes to good beer or whether was it the broader beer scene in Portland? She replied:

A little bit of both. Guy (my husband, the chef and co-owner at the restaurant) and I have always been curious about beer. I think we really started to love it when we had a chance to travel to Munich about 10 years ago. But living in Portland has exposed us to a city that knows and loves its beer, too. In the last 8 years since we moved here, there's been increasing attention to craft brewing and local beers. Some beers I remember trying and really loving are Allagash White, made right here in Portland; Gavroche, a red, bottle-fermented ale from France; and the Saison Dupont Farmhouse Ale which will be a part of our Nov. 3 dinner.

Worried, as I know you know I am, about being too into the pairing thing, I asked whether she thought it was more important for someone to follow the wisdom of the venue in these things or to learn to explore along with the venue? Stella thought their place reflected a little of both:

We cook and serve food for a living, so we think about taste and how things go together. That said, it's always an exploration when you try and bring different flavor profiles together. It's fun to put something out there and then get feedback about whether it works or not.

So, they are building a beer stash to go with their established wine cellar as well as building their connections with local beer suppliers and brewers. And it also doesn't hurt that one of the guys in the kitchen, Josh, is a home brewer who has been sharing his knowledge as well.

Fifty-five clams. Tuesday, November 3rd. 100 Congress Street, Portland, Maine. Go and tell me how it was.