Beer and Food matching: What beer goes with roast gammon?

Gammon is a staple of the pub carvery as well as a menu classic in its own right - but when it comes to a beer to go with it, is it a matter of "all hail to the ale" or "there's no doubt, it's a stout"?

Fresh from their summer break, we asked our beer & food matching panel to bring home the bacon with some suggested combinations.

John Keeling, Fuller's head brewer​: Gales HSB has a natural sweetness, which would be a good complement to the sweetness of the ubiquitous pineapple. Alternatively, if you are looking for a contrast, try a big American hoppy beer such as Goose Island IPA, which is relatively easy to get hold of in this country.

Ben Bartlett, catering development manager, the Union Pub Company​: Gammon is quite a bland dish but can be enhanced with some caramelised pineapple slices and a honey and mustard sauce. To complement this pub favourite I would recommend Marston's Pure Blonde. This light coloured beer is brewed from best Pale malt with a touch of wheat to give fullness to the palate. A striking bitter hop flavour is also there to counter the fullness of the wheat. A late addition of Cascade hop to the kettle compliments this ale with a hint of citrus.

My mother makes the best gammon I know by boiling and then baking the joint, scoring the fat into a diamond pattern and studding the fat with cloves. Finally finishing with a mixture of marmalade and honey and returning the joint to the oven until the fat is a lovely golden brown colour.

Phil Vickery, chef and broadcaster​: With gammon I'd serve a dark stout-type beer. Bishops Finger would be a good match, or another slightly bitter beer to counteract the sweetness of the gammon

Michael Tuckwood, Craft Guild of Chefs member and patron chef at The Stag in Aylesbury​: You need a strong beer that will cut through the smoky flavours of the meat. My recommendation would be bottled Bombardier, Charles Wells' premium bitter, as it really complements the succulent flavours of gammon. I tried a few fruity beers with this dish but I felt that they weren't very good matches because of the fruit flavour from the pineapple accompaniment.

Bombardier has a strong malty flavour with a slightly bitter edge, and is deep copper in colour. It comes in a unique one pint bottle, which I serve chilled in a stem glass either for one person or shared between a group. I would also recommend serving a lighter beer with the starter and dessert course. At the Stag we serve our gammon with fresh grilled pineapple, salad with a variety of side orders.

Paul Drye, catering development manager, St Austell Brewery​: Good British regional ales are perfect with all manner of meat dishes, including cured hams and bacon, so finding a good match shouldn't be difficult. It's only when a sweet and fruity slice of pineapple or the odd creamy mellow fried egg makes an appearance that things start to become interesting. Taking these two contrasting accompaniments into account; I've chosen beers with both scenarios in mind.

So if your perfectly cooked gammon steak is sporting a brace of free-range eggs, go for Shepherd Neame's Spitfire Smooth. This creamier cousin of the original complements the egg at the same time as contrasting with the flavours of the gammon.

But if you've chosen the fruitier more flamboyant pineapple you can't go wrong with St Austell's finest Tribute Ale with tropical fruit flavours backed up by a hint of malt and toffee. This beer joins forces with the pineapple and again provides contrast to the cured meat. Another ale that takes on a similar role, but with a slightly more robust finish is Black Sheep Ale from the Black Sheep Brewery. This has a full flavour and a fruity aroma and works a treat with the bacon and fruit - so the choice is yours.

Phil Vickery, chef and broadcaster​: With gammon I'd serve a dark stout-type beer. Bishops Finger would be a good match, or another slightly bitter beer to counteract the sweetness of the gammon.

Rupert Ponsonby, R&R Teamwork​: Gammon is a vastly under-rated meat, which will work breathtakingly well with low ABV beers such as bottled Manns, Mackeson, or with all the fabulous milds now being produced in cask by SIBA's growing army. Milds, dark milds, or slightly sour 'vinous' porters, such as Battersea's Power Station Porter will really hit the spot. Their easy, alluring flavours and corderoy texture are a perfect compliment to the sweetness and well-grained smoothness of the gammon. So SIBA members should be in pole position here.

Wandering overseas, German wheat beers would really help me pig it, either the refreshing 'Weiss' wheat beers of about 5% abv (if the gammon is delicately spiced) or else their rummier meatier brethren such as Schneider's wonderful 8% Aventinus - a doppelbock full of ripe banana, plum and clove. Belgian Abbey ales such as Leffe are great and Trappist ales are a winner. But a lightly chilled cherry beer, such as Garden from Melbourn Brothers Brewery in Lincolnshire, served in a chilled champagne flute, would really fuse the lights.