IPA Fans Find Xmas Joy in Paris
Jan 30th, 2017, 07:46 AM
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IPA Fans Find Xmas Joy in Paris
We returned to Paris for the umpteemth time over Xmas. Our two adult children were flying in at some overlapping times, and we had landed a pretty good apartment in the 8th from which to meet our touring goals for the week.
Two of our goals were to find a decent IPA at a Paris bar and to stock our frig with IPAs since we'd never be able to find a decent cafe in which to drink one (we found out differently). Yes, one could go to one of the Frog beer/bar establishments in Paris, but we've never cared for their beer or their food.
After our dinner out our first night, our youngest, who had spent a semester in France, said, "I'm thinking we'll find some Marais bar that will have an IPA for us." Sure enough, we got off the Metro at St. Paul's and the lights of Stolly's Stoned Bar, right off the Rue de Rivolo at 16 rue Cloche-Perce, beckoned to us. Packed with Brits, Canadians, Irish, and Americans, this tiny dive bar welcomed us with a good Twisted Thistle IPA from the Bellhaven brewery. ABV? 5.6% Portion size? HUGE, thus defeating the low ABV. We had a great time.
Once we had apartment WiFi hooked up the next day, we looked for a craft beer store along our Metro Line 1 that was open on Dec 24. We settled on La Moustache Blanche, 16, rue des Tournelles, 75004. http://lamoustacheblanche.fr/#bienvenue
It was open! The owner, who spoke English, was simply a dear. He asked us what type of beers we liked and then he asked us what hops we preferred (OMG--we get a choice???). All three of us shouted, "MOSAIC!". He laughed, and he steered us towards several choices. We bought five different types, and after tasting them back in the apartment, we can tell you that our favorite was the French Crazy Hops Brewery's Mosaïc Boombastic. Strong on the hops, not bad on the ABV (6.3%), it fit our flavor and ABV profile.
When we remarked that we wished we could eat AND drink IPAs, he told us to head for Express de Lyon by the Gare de Lyon. He feared, though, that it would be closed. And he took it upon himself to call the restaurant. Yes, it was closed--and we did a quick trip to Gare de Lyon to check the hours for ourselves. Darn--it would not open until Monday. And our new fave beer store would not open on Monday.
We ate traditional food and drank traditional wine over the holiday weekend, portioning out our new favorite beer among us within the apartment, but by Monday, we reported directly to the Express de Lyon
1 Rue de Lyon, 75012
http://expressdelyon.blogspot.com/
before lunch.
Beer on tap? FIVE IPAs! Two were Imperials (we do not do Imperials), but in the mix was the Boombastic Mosaic. Yeah!!!
We would find a way to return here three more times before my husband and I went home. The food was typical French cafe food, which was fine by us. The service was great--they grinned ear to ear every time we came in, and by our last two stops, our beer was waiting for us before we could submit our food order.
And of course, we made sure to stop back at the La Moustache Blanche once it reopened Tuesday to restock the fridge.
There is quite a craft beer scene in Paris now, and there are many websites offering insights. But we were quite happy with our new favorite IPA, new favorite beer store, and new favorite bar/cafe. It's pretty sweet when one Metro line provides all!
Wishing you Happy Hops Forever,
AZ
Two of our goals were to find a decent IPA at a Paris bar and to stock our frig with IPAs since we'd never be able to find a decent cafe in which to drink one (we found out differently). Yes, one could go to one of the Frog beer/bar establishments in Paris, but we've never cared for their beer or their food.
After our dinner out our first night, our youngest, who had spent a semester in France, said, "I'm thinking we'll find some Marais bar that will have an IPA for us." Sure enough, we got off the Metro at St. Paul's and the lights of Stolly's Stoned Bar, right off the Rue de Rivolo at 16 rue Cloche-Perce, beckoned to us. Packed with Brits, Canadians, Irish, and Americans, this tiny dive bar welcomed us with a good Twisted Thistle IPA from the Bellhaven brewery. ABV? 5.6% Portion size? HUGE, thus defeating the low ABV. We had a great time.
Once we had apartment WiFi hooked up the next day, we looked for a craft beer store along our Metro Line 1 that was open on Dec 24. We settled on La Moustache Blanche, 16, rue des Tournelles, 75004. http://lamoustacheblanche.fr/#bienvenue
It was open! The owner, who spoke English, was simply a dear. He asked us what type of beers we liked and then he asked us what hops we preferred (OMG--we get a choice???). All three of us shouted, "MOSAIC!". He laughed, and he steered us towards several choices. We bought five different types, and after tasting them back in the apartment, we can tell you that our favorite was the French Crazy Hops Brewery's Mosaïc Boombastic. Strong on the hops, not bad on the ABV (6.3%), it fit our flavor and ABV profile.
When we remarked that we wished we could eat AND drink IPAs, he told us to head for Express de Lyon by the Gare de Lyon. He feared, though, that it would be closed. And he took it upon himself to call the restaurant. Yes, it was closed--and we did a quick trip to Gare de Lyon to check the hours for ourselves. Darn--it would not open until Monday. And our new fave beer store would not open on Monday.
We ate traditional food and drank traditional wine over the holiday weekend, portioning out our new favorite beer among us within the apartment, but by Monday, we reported directly to the Express de Lyon
1 Rue de Lyon, 75012
http://expressdelyon.blogspot.com/
before lunch.
Beer on tap? FIVE IPAs! Two were Imperials (we do not do Imperials), but in the mix was the Boombastic Mosaic. Yeah!!!
We would find a way to return here three more times before my husband and I went home. The food was typical French cafe food, which was fine by us. The service was great--they grinned ear to ear every time we came in, and by our last two stops, our beer was waiting for us before we could submit our food order.
And of course, we made sure to stop back at the La Moustache Blanche once it reopened Tuesday to restock the fridge.
There is quite a craft beer scene in Paris now, and there are many websites offering insights. But we were quite happy with our new favorite IPA, new favorite beer store, and new favorite bar/cafe. It's pretty sweet when one Metro line provides all!
Wishing you Happy Hops Forever,
AZ
Jan 30th, 2017, 12:24 PM
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What a refreshing change to hear from a beer lover, and one who knows her hops. Beer is thirst quenching in a way that, to me, wine isn't. When we're in France we split a small Chimay rouge every day. Next trip I'll look for Mosaïc Boombastic.
Jan 30th, 2017, 03:39 PM
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Patricks Le ballon vert, 33 Rue de Montreuil, 75011.
www.patricks-leballonvert.fr
This Irish outpost is run by a father and two sons from Ireland. They import microbrews, especially from the Galway area. Ireland, and much of the UK too, blithely assume that "bitters" means ale of any sort. Although the English invented the IPA style they don't make a lot with the hoppy power that North Americans have come to cherish. A large mural on the pub wall depicts the hot-air balloon that supposedly made aviation history from a nearby courtyard.
www.patricks-leballonvert.fr
This Irish outpost is run by a father and two sons from Ireland. They import microbrews, especially from the Galway area. Ireland, and much of the UK too, blithely assume that "bitters" means ale of any sort. Although the English invented the IPA style they don't make a lot with the hoppy power that North Americans have come to cherish. A large mural on the pub wall depicts the hot-air balloon that supposedly made aviation history from a nearby courtyard.
Jan 30th, 2017, 05:20 PM
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The micro-brewery trend took off a few years ago in Paris so finding an IPA in Paris isn't too difficult anymore. In the last two years near where I work on rue Poissonnière I've seen 3 new micro-bars open up and there is also a brewery that will brew special requests based on your preference. At the bar where I work we sell Twisted Thistle.
Jan 30th, 2017, 10:57 PM
#5
Yes, it is fair French beer is getting better, with some nice little micro breweries around the country, though cross shipping is still not a skill, still give it time.
Shame really as that leaves only the Netherlands amongst the nothern countries that has poor beer (unless they bring in Belgian ones).
Shame really as that leaves only the Netherlands amongst the nothern countries that has poor beer (unless they bring in Belgian ones).
Jan 31st, 2017, 02:54 AM
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Coquelicot--It's true about thirst quenching comparison. The problem is, I think, that beer drinkers tend to drink wine as they do beer, and it's not a good practice!
As demand for it increases worldwide, we'll find our IPA hunt to be easier wherever we go. Some of the Italian beers on our last few trips came close to the mark, and I bet I'd find many more today.
We were really pleased the last time we were in Dublin three years ago spring to see how the number of craft beer offerings, especially IPAs, had increased. Contrast that to the situation I found on three former trips to Ireland, when I was limited to malty Smithwicks or an occasional Bass Ale because I don't enjoy Guinness. Of course, ironically I could always have ordered a Budweiser,as if I ever would. It was so sad that such a beer represented my country.
Some of the guys who were exhibiting in the Craft Beer Fair three years ago told us they'd been making IPAs for years and had only been able to export them to places like France and Scandinavia because there had been no demand for them locally. All of a sudden, the Irish market had changed and they were able to recoup some of their investments. They were pretty excited that we were excited about their beers.
What we really liked about our Dublin sojourn was testing out so many solid IPAs--really hoppy ones--with a quite low ABV. At the time, we were not able to find those kind readily in the US. In fact, one would have assumed at the time that in order to get a really hoppy IPA in the US, one had to look at ABVs of 7.5 to 8 or way above, which is just plain stupid.
When we returned home, we told our bartenders about our Irish experience. They agreed that the US beer world had put too much emphasis on Imperial and Double IPAs, but they said that emphasis would be changing. And they knew some of the major companies were going to be pushing some pretty hoppy "sessions" very soon.
Ta-duh! It happened. Our favorite local always has at least two IPAs that are under 6 ABV, and often, they have one or two that are around 4.25.
My favorite US "almost" session is the 5.25 ABV Alpine Hoppy Birthday. We don't live on the West Coast, though, so it's hard to find.
But back to the Boombastic Mosaic from Crazy Hops...
We felt that beer was a good example of how a country can do so much better than a mere "copycat" approach to the American IPA scene. We're putting it in our top ten ranking for our faves this year.
As demand for it increases worldwide, we'll find our IPA hunt to be easier wherever we go. Some of the Italian beers on our last few trips came close to the mark, and I bet I'd find many more today.
We were really pleased the last time we were in Dublin three years ago spring to see how the number of craft beer offerings, especially IPAs, had increased. Contrast that to the situation I found on three former trips to Ireland, when I was limited to malty Smithwicks or an occasional Bass Ale because I don't enjoy Guinness. Of course, ironically I could always have ordered a Budweiser,as if I ever would. It was so sad that such a beer represented my country.
Some of the guys who were exhibiting in the Craft Beer Fair three years ago told us they'd been making IPAs for years and had only been able to export them to places like France and Scandinavia because there had been no demand for them locally. All of a sudden, the Irish market had changed and they were able to recoup some of their investments. They were pretty excited that we were excited about their beers.
What we really liked about our Dublin sojourn was testing out so many solid IPAs--really hoppy ones--with a quite low ABV. At the time, we were not able to find those kind readily in the US. In fact, one would have assumed at the time that in order to get a really hoppy IPA in the US, one had to look at ABVs of 7.5 to 8 or way above, which is just plain stupid.
When we returned home, we told our bartenders about our Irish experience. They agreed that the US beer world had put too much emphasis on Imperial and Double IPAs, but they said that emphasis would be changing. And they knew some of the major companies were going to be pushing some pretty hoppy "sessions" very soon.
Ta-duh! It happened. Our favorite local always has at least two IPAs that are under 6 ABV, and often, they have one or two that are around 4.25.
My favorite US "almost" session is the 5.25 ABV Alpine Hoppy Birthday. We don't live on the West Coast, though, so it's hard to find.
But back to the Boombastic Mosaic from Crazy Hops...
We felt that beer was a good example of how a country can do so much better than a mere "copycat" approach to the American IPA scene. We're putting it in our top ten ranking for our faves this year.
