BAR Talk likes a night on the nosh as much as the next man, but one thing always spoils it.

When you wave away the six-page wine list and ask for a beer, the waiter inevitably replies: "Certainly sir. John Smith's or Kronenberg?"

Why is it that restaurants which are rightly proud of their carefully crafted food and extensive wine cellar routinely neglect the vast range of wonderful beers?

Well they don't at Four High Petergate Hotel and Bistro in York. Alongside its wine list, the bistro has launched a Gourmet Beer Menu.

Mainly made up of fine Belgian brews, with the odd English, German and American variety thrown in, this lists ten beers with tasting notes and advice on which goes best with what food.

"A restaurant that serves Kronenberg is serving the beer equivalent of white sliced bread," says restaurant manager Neil Samms.

Neil and Four High Petergate owner Lewis Hull were determined to serve up beers with more bite.

The idea began to ferment when they worked together at Swiss and French ski resorts - initially, Neil said, "as chalet girls".

More recently he was a ski guide and part of his work involved taking out clients for meals. The restaurants routinely recommended beers to go with various dishes.

Meanwhile, Lewis was getting to know Belgium's wonderful range of beers living in Bruges.

After opening the York hotel and bistro they decided to put together a beer list based on their favourites. The list was refined via tasting sessions with Zak Avery, who runs Beer Ritz in Headingley, Leeds, and website thebeerboy.co.uk.

Zak said the dominance of wine in restaurants was "a historical hangover when wine was for the elite and beer for the masses".

Many people who consider themselves food and drink connoisseurs have no idea of the variety and quality of beer now available. He stocks 500 different bottled beers in his off licence which range in flavour from clean and crisp to dark and heavy, "almost like ports".

The basic rules of matching beer with food are simple, Zak said.

"Lighter food wants lighter beers. With fish you would want to be drinking fairly pale beers with not such an intensive flavour."

Red meat dishes can be partnered by more robust beers, and well-hopped beers go especially well with spicy foods such as curries.

When we visited, Chilean chef Carlos Martinez created some of his signature dishes, then they were matched with specific beers for us to sample.

The starter was Whitby mussels, which was partnered with Orval (5.6 per cent ABV). This Belgium trappist beer is triple fermented, which helps give it a richness to match that of the mussels.

To go with the main course, haunch of venison, Lewis and Neil selected the legendary Chimay Rouge. It is strong (seven per cent) and spicy and can stand up to the vigorous flavours of the venison.

For desert, chocolate truffle torte was served with Liefmans Frambozen, a 5.6 per cent raspberry beer which, to Bar Talk's untutored palate, tasted like some sort of alcoholic Vimto. In other words, fab. This was a classic culinary marriage of chocolate and tangy fruit, Lewis explained.

These beers are all quite potent, but drivers have not been forgotten. Lindermans Pecheresse is also available, a peach beer which is a featherweight 2.5 per cent ABV. All the beers cost £3.50 except the Frambozen which is a pound dearer for a bigger bottle.

The taste combinations were terrific. No wonder the Gourmet Beer Menu has proved so popular since its introduction two weeks ago.

Only three more things to add. Four High Petergate, sitting in the shadow of Bootham Bar, is now open seven days a week for lunches and evening meals. Demand is such that they have taken on a new chef, Calvin Goddard.

And Lewis, who comes from a family of racehorse owners, tips their runners Sporting Gesture and Top Dirham to win at York races today.

SHAUN Collinge: a clarification. The landlord of The Maltings, Tanners Moat, York, would like to publicly answer two questions which have been put to him on a tediously regular basis in recent weeks.

1) "Yes I am continuing to support Leeds United. I have supported them since I was six and I cannot help it."

2) "No I haven't fallen out with Bar Talk. But after 4,712 appearances, I couldn't think up a new way to gatecrash the column. Except this one."

Updated: 08:38 Saturday, July 24, 2004