Beer, revisited


@SerenityNigh

Depositos - or something to that effect. You swap out an empty quart bottle for a filled one at reduced cost. Hooray recycling. Problem is some vendors ONLY will do this, so you need to buy that first beer before you have an empty to swap out. I was thoroughly baffled my first night in town, a Friday, when a gas station wouldn't sell to me at 7pm when the locals don't even start to go out until after midnight. This was why.

Essentially you have a run of watery lagers, a la Bud.

Pilsen
Polar
Ouro Fina
Victoria
Munich

And some Brahma from Brazil.

None of these cost much more than $2.25US for a quart from a bodega if you have an empty to swap out. It's simply a matter of finding the one that leaves with with the smallest hang over. You will pay more at a restaurant/bar, where they are served with a glass or two, in a metal bucket filled with ice. Serving ice cold beer mutes the flavor, which in this case isn't particularly tragic.

Sajonia does craft beer. They have a Pale Ale that has been available/found by me once (last bottle) since my arrival. It's a 3/5.

sajonia-1.jpg


Have seen the brown, not seen the IPA. Brown isn't my thing, but might try.

The big issue with Sajonia, aside from availability (thus far, only seen at Casa Rica - a/k/a "Paraguayan Whole Foods" in my time here), it costs as much as imports from Europe do. Without being as good.


Astoria Bier House makes their own beer. I've tried a couple, was not impressed.

Basically, Sajonia's Pale Ale is the best local beer I've tried, and the only I'd rate over 2.5/5.


We also get Patagonia from Argentina which is probably my favorite SA beer (3.1? 3.2?) but it's not terribly easy to find or I've not drunk it at bars because either it was the WC Final (iVamos Elemania! - I was repeatedly waved at/cheered by locals who thought I was German) or because a Paraguayan squad, Nacional, was playing an Argentinian side, San Lorenzo in the two legged final of the Copa Libertadore. Ordering an Argie beer might have been frowned upon.


Imports:

Standard US crap... Miller, Bud.
Spain - Estrellas - actually taken to this one a bit, out of a bottle. Out of a can? Not so much.
Englad - Fullers - Fulleres have made efforts here. Casa Rica has a big display with most their labels.
Germany - Not uncommon here. There is a bodega a 2 minute walk from me that has a sub-zero beer locker, which has Bittburger, some other wheat beers (not normally my thing) and they've carried box sets of Hacker-Pschorr, which is my favorite beer from Munich that I've found in the western hemisphere (and am sad I didn't visit their brewery while in Munich last year... ).

Pretty close to a beer wasteland. But it's so hot, 31C now, in the dead of winter, and humid (60% is as low as I've seen it in a month), that the Brahma stuff is not as horrid as I first feared.

I've adapted... and at least they have good wines from Argentina and Chile for not terribly much.

I've been more devastated by the coffee (all pre-ground WITH sugar) and hot sauce situation... though I did find a bottle of Sriracha buried deep in a Korean grocery in an offshoot of the massive, sprawling Mercado 4. I'd call it "the Mos Eisley" of Paraguay, but apparently that distinction is held by Cuidad de Oeste, where PY meets Brazil and Argentina near Iguazu Falls.
 
Total surprise tonight, bought a bottle of Manchester Star Ale to make up the numbers on a 3 for a fiver deal, blind buy. Was expecting a bog standard brown ale, its a 7.2 % rich black beer, almost a porter but with treacle flavour rather than the more usual coffee/chocolate. Made from an 1884 recipe with help from Brooklyn Brewery. Highly recommended.

IMAG0520_1.webp
 

Grabbed some of the Manchester Star when I was in Montana a few months back. Took the last 2 on the shelf. Had the first bottle last weekend; a lovely drop. I miss J W Lees. Used to go to their coffee bar/pub in Chester every weekend for brunch.
 
Unibroue makes good stuff. La fin du monde and trios pistoles are good (on a bet drank 6 trios pistoles in a half hour - bad move that)

Hoegaarden is nice in the summer (or really anytime). Sam Adams cherry wheat doesn't sound good, but it is also nice on a hot day (like today - heat index of 110...)

Chimay white is good - also like Blanche de Bruxelles

Moose Drool is also nice if you want something darker

Bohemia from Mexico is good

Love beer.......
 
Total surprise tonight, bought a bottle of Manchester Star Ale to make up the numbers on a 3 for a fiver deal, blind buy. Was expecting a bog standard brown ale, its a 7.2 % rich black beer, almost a porter but with treacle flavour rather than the more usual coffee/chocolate. Made from an 1884 recipe with help from Brooklyn Brewery. Highly recommended.

View attachment 3166

Been drinking this for years...lovely beer.
 
Got a big weekend ahead of me. It's our 3rd annual EBGA Real Ale Festival tomorrow. We were supposed to have 16 beers, but one brewer ignored our emails, one brewer forgot to register the beer so it could be shipped into the Province, and 2 casks exploded on the way; one from Yukon & the other from Manitoba. So, we have 12 casks of lovely, live ales pouring tomorrow, to serve to 150 thirsty people. Start setting up at 7.00am, for a 1pm start.....it's gonna be a long day; but FUN!!!
 


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