What's Up in Beer: New Craft Brews, New Imports, and Outdoor Seating Changes

It’s almost summer, or it certainly feels like it, and the brewpubs and bottle shops in Beijing are stocking more new beers. 

Great Leap Brewing is launching Yunnan Amber, which is a co-brew with Boxing Cat in Shanghai. It’s the brainchild of GLB's Carl Setzer and Boxing Cat’s Michael Jordan (brewer, not basketball star), and equally represents two of China’s great cities, Beijing and Shanghai. Twice per year the two brewmasters come together in one place to make a unique beer that combines the best qualities of their respective styles. It's already on tap at GLB locations in Beijing.

Flow Brew is launching their new beer, Naked IPA, with 9 percent alcohol, but you can hardly taste the booze in it when it flows down your gullet, with full of floral aromas and sweetness. Maybe you’ll end up naked without noticing it.

Panda Brew is releasing its own new brew, Outlaw Witbier. It is a Belgian-style wheat beer, it has aromas of citrus and banana, with a cloudy and middle body. Using Golding hops adds some bitterness, making it slightly more bitter than Hoegaarden.

El Nido has 12 imported beers and ciders on tap so far, including Mikkeller USA Live, Rogue Yellow Snow, Cider Republic Cider, 8 Wired iStout, 8 Wired Double IPA, 8 Wired Hopwired IPA, Yeastie Boys Digital IPA , Mikkeller Peppercorn Smoked IPA, Nøgne Ø Two Captains Double IPA, Mikkeller Pils, Linderman Peach, and Chimay.

Drunk Begining [sic] has some freshly imported beers too, such as Harviestoun The Ridge Pale Ale, Miles Davis Bitches Brew, Founders Mosaic Promise Single Hop Ale. and ToØl Gose To Hollywood.

And some gossip:

Everyone enjoyed Jing-A’s outdoor benches last summer. Unfortunately, Jing-A won’t have as many al fresco seats as last year. Seems the landlord next door prefers quiet atmosphere while Jing-A is always busy, and is forbidding them from offering too much outdoor seating. That leaves Jing-A only six tables outside, and a bunch of people standing in the yard drinking. Jing-A’s chance to run for the best al fresco drinking award is getting diminishing. Well, people don't mind wandering around the yard while drinking, do they?

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Email: tracywang@thebeijinger.com
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Photos courtesy of Great Leap Brewing, Panda Brew, Drink Begining, Tracy Wang