A Closer Look at the Bar & Club Awards: Best Local Craft Brewery

With the "A Closer Look" series, we raise our glasses in recognition of the Beijinger 2016 Bar & Club Award winners, before giving a toast (in text form, of course) about why they were selected by our readers. 

In this year’s Best Local Craft Brewery category, Great Leap Brewing took home the prize. Their first location (#6, the hutong one) opened 5 years ago and the brand has seen a growing following since then, growing into a three-location empire. Favorite beers at the location include the beloved Honey Ma Gold, the Pale Ale #6, the Little General AIP, the Cinnamon Rock Ale, the Banana Wheat, and the Edmund Backhouse Pilsner throughout the year, as well as seasonal and limited edition beers.

We also love the Aggressor, the Beat the Landlord Barley Wine, the Leaping the Dog Barley Champagne, and the collaboration beers (Blind Monk Amber Ale, Yunnan Amber, the collaboration beers).

Jing-A Taproom and Slow Boat Brewery took home the Outstanding awards in this category. Located in Sanlitun's 1949 courtyard, the Jing-A Taproom is famous in Beijing's food an beverage scene for its endless creative marketing campaigns and parties. Providing Flying Fist IPA, Worker’s Pale Ale, Mandarin Wheat, Koji Red Ale, Black Velvet Vanilla Stout, and Airpocalypse Double IPA, they are also responsible for the popular co-brew Hutong Clan CDA (it has recently come back on tap) and the Nine Rivers Imperial Chestnut Ale.

Slow Boat Brewery is another one of our city's success stories, recently opening their second location with three floors in the Sanlitun area. We have also enjoyed their beers, such as the Slutty Mermaid, the First Immortal Double IPA, Monkey’s Fish IPA, the Flying Whale IPA, the Zombie Pirate Pale Ale, and the Sea Anchor Imperial Vanilla Stout. Be on the look out for the 3rd Annual Autumn Craft Beer Festival, which will be held in the form of a city-wide beer week rather than a set festival date. 

We believe that Arrow Factory also deserves a mention: both their hutong taproom and the riverside brewpub. We enjoy the beers as much as we like their interesting names. Grab yourself a Two Birds Lager, A New Leaf O.I.P.A, or a pint of Seeing Double IPA, drink it on the rooftop, enjoying what is most certainly Beijing's best season.

Thank you all for taking care of us steadily through all these years, and congrats to the winners!

More stories by this author here.

Email: tracywang@thebeijinger.com
Twitter: @flyingfigure
Instagram: @flyingfigure

Photos: Great Leap, Tracy Wang