A recent holiday in Italy turned into more of a beer journey that I'd expected. I already had plans to meet Italian friends who are regulars at GBBF but as the holiday got closer things started to fall into place in a most fortunate way.
We spent our first four days in Rome, a great beer destination.
We were staying in Trastevere, the old part of Rome and in walking distance of Ma Che Siete Venuti a Fa' run by the enthusiastic Manuele Colonna.
The Football Pub, as it is widely known, is, according to RB, one of the best beer bars in the world. Maybe an exaggeration, but certainly a tremendous experience. It is also one of the handful of bars chosen by Cantillon to host Zwanze day, and, as luck would have it, I would be there. 20 litres sold in under 20 minutes and the crowd went wild. As for the beer, well I won't be sorry that it was a one off, Cantillon do much better.
But it was the Italian beers I was interested in and they didn't disappoint, starting with the ever reliable Tipopils from Birrificio Italiano there were also beers from Ducato, Loverbeer, Rurale and more. Not a bad beer amongst them all.
On Saturday, whilst admiring a Carravagio in one of the many Churches, I got a text inviting us to visit Eataly to meet up with Luca Giaccone, Editor of the Italian Beer Guide, and Leonardo Di Vincenzo, of Birra Del Borgo, for lunch. Grabbing a Taxi we headed for Eataly and were blown away by this Foodie Heaven, we wandered round before heading to the Lift and bumped into Leo who was with Teo Musso, of Baladin. The two of them, along with Sam Calagione, are partners in various ventures including Birreria, the on site Brewery.
Eataly is definitely a place worth visiting, but make sure you have plenty of money as it would be all too easy to get carried away shopping for food and beer.
Another happy coincidence was that Rome would be hosting a Beer Festival, Fermentazioni, and yes I didn't know this was on when I booked A small Festival run by some very enthusiastic volunteers it was a pleasurable way to spend the one day that it rained during our holiday. Meeting up with Leo & Luca beforehand at Open Baladin we headed off to the Festival, right next to the Football Stadium.
We spent the hours chatting to various brewers and organisers about the Festival, the Italian Beer Scene, their approach to brewing and the difficulties they faced. We came away with a sense that Italy is forging it's own path, it has taken inspiration from Northern Europe and from The USA, but they want to put their own stamp on the beers they make rather than copy what happens elsewhere. Yes, you'll find Double IPA's, Espresso Stouts and Hoppy Kolsch, but you'll also find Xyauyu, a beer like no other. I also got the feeling that we'd see more Italian beers at GBBF 2014, and I'll be eager to try them.
I can't leave Rome without mentioning the other great beer destinations;
Brasserie 4:20
Open Baladin
Mastro Titta
Bir & Fud
We spent our first four days in Rome, a great beer destination.
We were staying in Trastevere, the old part of Rome and in walking distance of Ma Che Siete Venuti a Fa' run by the enthusiastic Manuele Colonna.
The Football Pub, as it is widely known, is, according to RB, one of the best beer bars in the world. Maybe an exaggeration, but certainly a tremendous experience. It is also one of the handful of bars chosen by Cantillon to host Zwanze day, and, as luck would have it, I would be there. 20 litres sold in under 20 minutes and the crowd went wild. As for the beer, well I won't be sorry that it was a one off, Cantillon do much better.
But it was the Italian beers I was interested in and they didn't disappoint, starting with the ever reliable Tipopils from Birrificio Italiano there were also beers from Ducato, Loverbeer, Rurale and more. Not a bad beer amongst them all.
On Saturday, whilst admiring a Carravagio in one of the many Churches, I got a text inviting us to visit Eataly to meet up with Luca Giaccone, Editor of the Italian Beer Guide, and Leonardo Di Vincenzo, of Birra Del Borgo, for lunch. Grabbing a Taxi we headed for Eataly and were blown away by this Foodie Heaven, we wandered round before heading to the Lift and bumped into Leo who was with Teo Musso, of Baladin. The two of them, along with Sam Calagione, are partners in various ventures including Birreria, the on site Brewery.Eataly is definitely a place worth visiting, but make sure you have plenty of money as it would be all too easy to get carried away shopping for food and beer.
Another happy coincidence was that Rome would be hosting a Beer Festival, Fermentazioni, and yes I didn't know this was on when I booked A small Festival run by some very enthusiastic volunteers it was a pleasurable way to spend the one day that it rained during our holiday. Meeting up with Leo & Luca beforehand at Open Baladin we headed off to the Festival, right next to the Football Stadium.
We spent the hours chatting to various brewers and organisers about the Festival, the Italian Beer Scene, their approach to brewing and the difficulties they faced. We came away with a sense that Italy is forging it's own path, it has taken inspiration from Northern Europe and from The USA, but they want to put their own stamp on the beers they make rather than copy what happens elsewhere. Yes, you'll find Double IPA's, Espresso Stouts and Hoppy Kolsch, but you'll also find Xyauyu, a beer like no other. I also got the feeling that we'd see more Italian beers at GBBF 2014, and I'll be eager to try them.
I can't leave Rome without mentioning the other great beer destinations;
Brasserie 4:20
Open Baladin
Mastro Titta
Bir & Fud
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