Posted in Italy, beer, brewing, craft beer, pubs, travel on May 4, 2008 | 1 Comment »
The notes from my last stop in Bologna have been lying around - I never got around to typing them out. What I had hoped to be the highlight of my visit turned out to be quite a disappointment.
It was a warm day, but it was getting chillier, even if a visiting Northerner could be [...]
Posted in England, UK, beer, beer history, brewing, craft beer, pubs, travel on May 2, 2008 | 6 Comments »
The theme of The Session this month is how did it all start for you ?
Boak and Bailey have given us the following challenge: We’d like you to write about the moment when you saw the light. At what point did you realise you were a beer lover / geek / enthusiast? What beer(s) triggered [...]
Posted in Norway, beer, brewing, craft beer on April 30, 2008 | No Comments »
While I don’t worry much about Ringnes/Carlsberg whimpering about the rising price of raw materials, the same problems are now hitting the whole industry in Noiray, according to business daily Dagens Næringsliv. (The article is not online.)
Jens Maudal at Haandbryggeriet says that the price of malt is up 45 % this year, while hops is [...]
Posted in Denmark, beer, beer marketing, brewing, craft beer, travel on April 30, 2008 | 3 Comments »
After many years of decline, the value of the Danish beer market is growing again. The volume continues to slid, but the demand for more expensive craft beers compensate for the hectoliters of Tuborg lager.
Denmark is know as a market for dedicated beer drinkers, but, as in other core countries in the beer belt, the [...]
Posted in Norway, beer, brewing, craft beer, travel on April 28, 2008 | 3 Comments »
It is funny. I manage to get myself, usually on time, to meetings and leisure activities, all across Europe. I can figure out rather cryptic airline timetables, matching decent prices with convenient schedules. But when I try to organise an excursion to Drammen, forty minutes from Oslo by train, I manage to arrive at the [...]
Posted in USA, beer, brewing, craft beer, pubs, travel on April 24, 2008 | No Comments »
The Washington Post has an article on wood aged beers, both the local beer from the ChopHouse restaurants and bottled beers from across the US like Stone Brewing and Dogfish Head.
Posted in Ireland, beer, beer blogs, brewing, craft beer, pubs, travel on April 24, 2008 | 1 Comment »
When I was told I had a business meeting in Dublin, I was not hard to convince. There are direct flights, the taxi drivers are friendly, there are good beers to be had if you know where to find them.
Since my last visit two years ago, it seems the micro movement has evolved further, and [...]
Posted in Scotland, beer, beer blogs, beer marketing, brewing, craft beer on April 23, 2008 | 7 Comments »
Some brewers, often anonymous, grumble about the beer rating sites like ratebeer and Beer Advocate, nicknaming them hatebeer. They feel that they are put down by a small number of geeks who make hasty judgements and don’t appreciate the high quality some of the craft brewers are offering.
Some take the other approach - they embrace [...]
Posted in Denmark, Norway, Scotland, USA, beer, brewing, craft beer on April 21, 2008 | No Comments »
Out of a million beers - well, 2800 - in the World Beer Cup, the Nøgne ø Dark Horizon First Edition won a gold medal in the Other strong ale or lager category. Their Porter won a silver in the Robust Portercategory.
Lot of American ales that I only know by reputation, but there are some fine [...]
Posted in Greece, beer, brewing, craft beer, food, pubs, travel on April 18, 2008 | 6 Comments »
A bit of a back log now, but I won’t be travelling as much over the next few months, at least not abroad.
There was fresh snow on the roofs outside my hotel window in Switzerland, but I just had enough time to get some breakfast before heading back to the airport again. I already checked in, [...]
