France - Craft beer thriving again

[zane9]

Here's a great article on the re-emergence of craft beer, with some info on where to sample that beer in Paris.

http://thebea.st/ILddZt

[lister]

We were in Paris back in May. Of the three places mentioned in the article we went to La Fine Mouse and La Cave à Bulles. I definitely recommend going to both.

[Frere Ambroise]

I am heading to Paris in June. Will forgo the romance and will seek out these places!

[jmcnally]

I am heading to a town in central France called Clermont-Ferrand in a couple of weeks to attend the world's most important film festival for short film (i run a quarterly short film screening series here in Toronto called Shorts That Are Not Pants - all y'all should come!). I was told by previous attendees that there are daily "happy hours" in the film market and that I'd be a big hit if I brought some local brews.

My question is about travelling with bottles in my luggage: is this legal? Even if so, I wonder if airport security and/or baggage handling is going to mess with my stuff? I was thinking it might be easiest to bring a growler but that's a pretty big/heavy container to put in my (admittedly quite large) suitcase.

I just want to know if I'm going to have a problem. Anyone have any experience/advice they'd like to share?

Much appreciated!

[Ceecee]

My question is about travelling with bottles in my luggage: is this legal? Even if so, I wonder if airport security and/or baggage handling is going to mess with my stuff? I was thinking it might be easiest to bring a growler but that's a pretty big/heavy container to put in my (admittedly quite large) suitcase.

I just want to know if I'm going to have a problem. Anyone have any experience/advice they'd like to share?

It appears you can bring in 16L of beer duty/tax free.

http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/co ... dex_en.htm

As for airport security in France, don't know. I have brought beer to and from Britain and had beer brought back for me with no problems at all, however. It shouldn't be a problem in your suitcase. I always pack my bottles in as tightly as possible to avoid breakage and put them in ziplock freezer bags just in case.

[jmcnally]

Thanks, Ceecee. 16L is quite a lot! With current baggage restrictions and extra weight charges, I think I'll stick with a growler. But helpful to know...

[icemachine]

Thanks, Ceecee. 16L is quite a lot! With current baggage restrictions and extra weight charges, I think I'll stick with a growler. But helpful to know...

I'd avoid growlers, they are definitely more likely to break compared to regular shaped bottles, a few bombers would likely be a better bet

[jmcnally]

I actually bought a couple of 650ml bombers but worried about the crown caps. I thought the screwcap on a growler might be more secure?

[icemachine]

I actually bought a couple of 650ml bombers but worried about the crown caps. I thought the screwcap on a growler might be more secure?

Crown caps are fine, never had an issue with cap leaks on pry-tops. Do bag each bottle individually in case a bottle breaks, the glass and beer is then contained and doesn't contaminate the rest of your luggage

[Craig]

I just did a week in Paris. Beer wasn't the point of the trip, but I did go to a few places:

Les Trois 8:

I would call this the Paris equivalent of The Only. Definitely a little bohemian, the music tended towards punk/metal and the crowd was much younger and more out there than anywhere else I was in Paris. This was also the only place I went that really put a focus on local taps, most of which were quite good. Decent bottle list too. Fun place to spend a night, very worthy beer bar. Best place in the city I found to actually drink in. Mostly locals.

Brasserie O'Neil:

Basically a 3 Brewers in Paris. Same boring beer which only differs by colours, same generic food menu right down to the Flamenkuchen. Not worth a visit if you're after craft beer.

Brewberry:

There's the Cave (bottle shop) on one side of the street and the pub on the other. Very touristy area and on a pedestrian street, this place was full of tourists. I chatted with the bartender a bit and he said they pretty much only get Americans in there. They have 24 taps and I bet their selection is unparalleled in the country. Lots of selection from all over, they had good American craft on tap, along with lots of European but only a couple of French breweries. So not the best spot to experience French craft in particular, but a great spot if all you want is good beer. They had Rose de Gambrinus on tap (16 euro pint) and they had both the Gambrinus and the Kriek in the bottle shop (~20 euro for a 750), along with a slew of other desirable beers from around the world, including Drie Fonteinen Kriek. They also had bottles of DDC and a few Hopfenstark's, so I guess that's the impression Parisiens have of Canadian craft.

This place also lets you take a 1L growler away from any of their taps for 4 euro, plus they kick in a 50% discount from the tap prices. So you could get 1L of Cantillon to go for 20 euro. Not bad.

All the craft places in town had signs or these booklets out for Paris craft beer week. Sorry for the crummy pictures:

[Belgian]

Sounds like a cool trip!

Brasserie O'Neil: - oh why do these corporate pseudopubs do so bloody well,
a few brewers with real beer should figure out how those places draw so much traffic.

I think Amsterdam and Duggans both tried to figure that out, Mill Street pretty much IS that with worse beer.
I feel like I have to visit Duggans in Parkdale just to know what's going on over there.

The Fake Fancy Beer Bars remain a mystery.

[Craig]

Well you have to keep in mind that for most Parisians, beer really does only differ by colour. Even in bars with good selections like Le Sous Bock (which I also went to but forgot to mention. Decent beer selection, especially in bottles, but bad service) or Academie de la Biere (another place I went and forgot about. Good bottle list, tending toward Belgians) you tend to get beer lists that have the ABV and colour of the beer and that's it. Colour being blond, amber, brown or black and that's it. Hardly anywhere would give you tasting notes or even IBUs. Like you could go into a place and see Rodenbach listed beside Chimay with practically identical information.

How 3 Brewers survives in a city like Montreal or Toronto where there are ample alternatives and a more nuanced understanding of beer is beyond me.

[cratez]

Thanks for the rundown Craig. Heading to Paris in the fall for my honeymoon and I expected things to be pretty abysmal on the beer front. Glad to know there's at least a couple decent spots to hit. Also helpful to know about the colour-based descriptions and lack of tasting notes, IBU listings, etc. There's a still a good chance that I'll end up drinking wine most of the time, but Les Trois 8, Brewberry, and Academie de la Biere sound like they're worth visiting (high prices aside).

[rejtable]

How 3 Brewers survives in a city like Montreal or Toronto where there are ample alternatives and a more nuanced understanding of beer is beyond me.

Really?

There are thousands of shitty restaurants in those cities with way worse beer lists than 3 brasseurs that stay open and thrive. They aren't competing with Volo or Vices Versa for business.

[Craig]

Thanks for the rundown Craig. Heading to Paris in the fall for my honeymoon and I expected things to be pretty abysmal on the beer front. Glad to know there's at least a couple decent spots to hit. Also helpful to know about the colour-based descriptions and lack of tasting notes, IBU listings, etc. There's a still a good chance that I'll end up drinking wine most of the time, but Les Trois 8, Brewberry, and Academie de la Biere sound like they're worth visiting (high prices aside).

There's also a spot near Trois 8 (if you go there, be sure to check out the bathroom. Brace yourself, it's creepy.) Called La Fine Mousse that I didn't make it to, but since locals told me was their favourite beer joint.