Visitors will be able to purchase over 50 types of  premium and craft brews, most not readily available in the local market; bottled, canned or draught, from Germany, Belgium, England, Scotland, Australia, Japan and the United States.

Some of d specials

There’ll also be drinking contests and beer games, which are sure to stir things up. Get ready to challenge yourself with a Guess The Beer contest and knock yourself out with n electronic bull ride. There’ll also be a Beer Pong Challenge, & limited edition Brewfest 2012 t-Shirts produced by Salty Customs.

Yellow fever

Some of the beers i managed to sample at the preview dinner at Brussels Beer Cafe include Hitachino, from what is a 100-year old sake brewery in Japan. It’s got a nose of light perfume. The ale is creamy in the mouth, with lil tickly bubbles. The finish is a very light bitterness that comes late.

Jepun mari

There’s also the Yona Yona, a Kilkenny-coloured American Pale Ale (Japan), with a in-your-face hoppines, while the Triple Karmeliet (Belgium) smells sweet, with malty flavours, and is creamy as well. I found the Chimay Peres Trappist similar – light, sweet and a lil malty.

Then there’s the Kwak, an 8.4% Belgian ass-kicker. If u like sumtin fruity, the Timmermans Strawberry is compulsory. Great flavours with a fizz.

Nice

There’ll be these beers n more at Brewfest. There’s a door charge tho – $68, which i think is high. U’ll get between one to two beers.

Action starts from 5.30pm daily Thu – Saturday (May 17-19), until 1am. Details checkout the FB page.

Tents were set-up in the garden.

Fancy tent

It was quite an event.

There are three varieties now, in lil 250ml bottles – the Blond (gold, abv 6.7%), Blanche (white, 6%) and Amber (dark, 6.5%). I’m impressed with the alcohol levels. The Blanche is also available in draft.

One of many

The Blond is an easy-drinking ale, light-tasting and a lil sweetish. Good for most situations. It’s been available here since April last year.

The Blanche has a fruity nose, some citrusy notes even, and in the mouth its light and clean, with no hints of bitterness at all. Refreshing.

Mad Max losin it

The dark guy, Amber (aka Grimbergen Double) is also an easy-going ale, and considering its colour, it’s only a light malt, and a sweetish finish.

Super colour

The beer is served in a chalice, to add a barbarian touch.

The fathers at the Abbey of Grimbergen founded by St Norbert in the village of Grimbergen near Brussels logically used the hops and barley that grew around the abbey to make beer, which was consumed by travellers at the attached inn.

The phoenix logo is actually the abbey’s coat-of-arms. The Carlsberg Group has acquired its license to brew.

Garden gig

The beers are brought in by Luen Heng, and the RRP is between $20-25 at selected bars. Brussels Beer Cafe definitely has them.

The sprinklers almost went off

Brain damage: 7.5/10

Only $12 NETT for an ice cold Guinness Draft, all day, all nite. Goin on for the entire month of March.

Arr!

And over at Jarrod & Rawlins (D’sara Heights), today (Thu) sees a St Patrick’s party from 6pm, with free/cheap Guinness, foodstuff, stand-up comedy & more.

'Perfect pint'?? Isn't that extinct? Very misleading term, GAB. It's not "responsible".

Go delve into the darkness of Guinness. Try and survive.

Wine has always been hogging the limelight when it comes to wining & dining. Maybe the whinos like to eat more than they drink. And also talk stuff about the various complicated-sounding flavours they’re experiencing. I managed to do that too once, when i was a judge.

But read this post for my personal version of wine-speak!

Did an awesome rum-tasting at the Cuban ambassador’s house once.

If you have an average tongue, it’s still possible to appreciate combining a particular dish with a particular drink. If the drink tastes ok with the food, or enhances / contrasts certain flavours well, then it’s a good pairing.

You generally might not notice a good pairing, but you sure as hell would notice a bad one.

One thing's for sure. U normally can't miss with deep-fried shit

Like, there’s nothing worse was than partying at a friend’s birthday, and then the fucking cake comes around. Eat that, and u will regret your next sip of booze, coz it fucks it up. I never touch cakes while drinking. Unless of course its a Quadruple Chocolate Mudcake.

That’s one reason cakes are banned from my birthday gigs.

We’re lucky, coz as Asians, our food tends to have spices, which makes it great for beers, and sometimes other beverages too. And the awesome chili burn in your mouth makes u drink more.

O yea, pizzas n beer! Da shit.

Lok-lok guys shd at least sell beer too. You dont a license when it comes to bottle / canned beers.

Anyway, came across this document re pairing craft beers and food.

Take your pick

Click on the image for a clearer view. One thing i like that is common for all these beers – meeeeat!

My last beer-paring event happened at Craft Brews in November.

There’s also this piece in the Wall Street Journal called The Art of Picking the Perfect Beer for a Meal. The writer mentions spiciness, recommending “hoppy” beers, whose flavor is somewhat bitter, herb-tinged and complex. “You want a real hoppiness to combat that spice. Such beers also work with burgers and steaks that have been touched up with jalapeños or tangy mustards.”

With many more styles of beer available now besides boring ol’ lager, it’s sure a good time to be adventurous.

One of ‘em is John John Hazelnut Ale. Named after two Johns.

When i last checked out the range of Rogue beers, the Hazelnut Brown Nectar, the base for John John, was one of my faves.

This brew spends six months in barrels that were used to age rum. Tried it recently, it’s quite yummy, a lil sweetish with nutty hints. ABV is 5.6%.

The Double Choc. O yea, there's also bingo Friday nights. Cash prize

Another addition is the Double Chocolate Stout, flavoured with bittersweet chocolate. This one’s in your face, full and robust. There are sweetish, cocoa aromas. In the mouth, it’s creamy with a long bitter finish.

Morimoto Black Obi Soba sounds like some Jap lizard dish, but it’s a beer with specialty malts & hops, making it full and crisp.

Tastes better than it sounds

The McRogue Scotch Ale was also tested. This comes in a little bottle, and is malty, hearty Scotch ale.

There’re various food options that can be paired with the beers there, and the staff can give recommendations. I usually sink my face into pork ribs. Always works.

This crazy-lookin rogue is found on many bottles

Brain damage: 7.5/10

While the can was mostly gold, it’s now got two shades of brown, making it look more attractive. A bit like a coffee i gotta say, but i prefer it over the old design. Bolder.

Special eh?

The bottle, in line with the redesign of Carlsberg’s bottles, has a more radical change. The new bottle is minimalist, with not much of a label. A lot like the Green Label beer, but in a brown bottle.

This classic lager has some history with me, tho not as much as the Night Train.

Kicked my ass a few times. Never could get used to the strong flavours though. At 8.8%, it’s a good bang for your buck.

The new large SB bottle (left), and the new Gold (right) vs old

Many drinkers have a past with this beer.

I’m tempted to try it again tho. It’s been years since my last dose.

With the number of brands of strong beers available here now, I feel Special Brew has a tough battle ahead. There probably 15 lagers above 8% around. (Some up to 13%! Haha). That was probably one of the incentives to change its looks. The other – all Carlsberg’s main brands are undergoing  a change, even the Gold.

The new look is currently in Malaysia only.

Amazingly, the beer was originally brewed by the Danes for Winston Churchill (England’s WWII PM). His visit to Copenhagen in 1950 was commemorated with a ‘special’ brew (originally 9%) produced in his honour.

Churchill’s favourite drink was cognac, so in brewing him a commemorative beer, the brewers at Carlsberg created a stronger lager with cognac flavours among its tasting notes.

Interesting eh? I bet 90% of Special Brew drinkers never knew that part.

Was there Friday, and got a sweet deal. Only $27.55 NETT for a pint of Jaz Fresh / Aromatic / Lychee, and you get two more free. So dats like only $9 per 500ml.

I think there’s a similar deal for the 5-liter kegs.

Sure beats any of ‘em, $50 for 3 pints thing.

Refreshing

Was never a fan of the bottled Jaz, but tried the Aromatic (draft) – its pretty good stuff and goes down in a hurry. It’s fruity, with  a creamy body too.

The outlet is at The Pyramid in Sunway, and is quite new. Brussels Beer Cafe also just opened there tonight.

17 Saloon is related to Overtime (Starker beer), and the original outlet is in Sunway Giza. The same deal is on at Giza. (Enquiries for 17:  012 321-3475)

Food is Asian & Western. There’s liquor too. It’s a large outlet, with cozy, chill sofas too.

And, this cool deal is daily from the morning – 11am to 9pm!

Pre, during and post-Christmas drinks anyone??

At these prices, the parties goin on in the Sphinx's belly sgonna get him wasted too

Party starts

To add some spice, beer fans will be pleased – GAB has introed three new German beers for the season – Hopf Ice Wheat Beer, Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier, and 111 Zwickl. Mixologist Ben Ng brought us thru a tasting.

Balloonhead got thirsty

The Hopf (ABV 5.5%) uses ice-conditioned wheat where excess water from the wheat is extracted through freezing, giving more depth to the flavor and body. Gives the beer its distinctive crisp and clean taste that is mild and refreshing.

Welcome to Malaysia

The Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier (ABV 6%) is synonymous with the Oktoberfest in Munich, and is its official beer. Its gotta rich malty aroma, pleasant taste, and a reasonably full body.

The 111 (5%) is light-flavoured, with a hint of flower, and a mild yeasty flavor.

GAB’s recommended retail prices for outlets  for these beers are:

• Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier (Draught, 500ml)        : 26
• Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier (Draught, 330ml)        : 18
• Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier (Bottle,500ml)             : 26
• Hopf Ice Wheat Beer (Bottle, 330ml)                      : 18
• 111 Zwickl Beer (Bottle, 330ml)                                 : 18

They can be scored at these outlets.

The new Souled Out, HSC tower

Some of the other games for Oktoberfest, besides drinking, is rolling the barrel, the chicken dance, and masskrugstemmen – basically holding up a stein (litre glass) up straight as long as u can.

More info on the Oktoberfest FB page here.

Steins. I like

One way to cheers in German is Eins, zwei, drei, g’suffa! (Pronounced aa-eens, zvai, dry, zuffa.) It means One, two, three, drink! Doesn’t get simpler than that.

Names, as expected, are weird. Brutal IPA, Mom Hefeweizen, Chocolate Stout, Dead Guy Ale, Juniper Pale Ale, Mocha Porter, OREgasmic Ale and Hazelnut Brown Nectar.

Rogue dudes

Tastes, as expected too, are unconventional. There are no lagers, only ales.

The launch involved sampling every beer generously. Senget.

Fresh meeeat

My flight began with the Mom Hefeweizen (Belgian ale, ABV 5.2%), an amber-coloured beer. It starts light, with a very hoppy (bitter) finish that lingers, almost metallic.

2. Hazelnut Brown Nectar (brown ale, ABV 6.2%) is a nice maroon colour, and it  gave me a nose of dodol. It’s a light-tasting, slightly sweet malt, with a pleasant bite at the end.

Cool brown ale

3. Dead Guy Ale (German maibock, ABV 6.5%) has a creamy body and gives out fruity maltiness. Tho its the strongest here at 6.5, i’m impressed that u wouldn’t notice it.

4. Juniper Pale Ale (pale ale, ABV 5.3%) is light and a lil sweet, crisp and bitter.

5. Brutal IPA (bitter ale, ABV 5.8%) has an IBU of 59 (the higher the IBU, the more bitter) has in-your-face creaminess, with a good bite of bitter, although it’s short. Nice body. (not talkin bout the waitress)

Sempat do a major "yamseng" shout

6. OREgasmic Ale (pale ale, ABV 6%) stays silent in the mouth for a second before it kicks. And kicks. A little too heavy for my palette.

7. Chocolate Stout (American stout, ABV 6%) The IBU is 69, but it’s definitely a pleasant bitterness. The aroma is of vanilla coke. In the mouth, it’s a bitter-sweet of dark chocolate and Kahlua, with a lingering finish of local kopi-o.

Great bites were served too (picture in my stomach)

8. Mocha Porter (porter, ABV 5.3%) is stout-like draught and a lighter-bodied ale, with a more bitter finish.

My personal top three are the Hazelnut Brown Nectar, the Chocolate Stout and the Dead Guy.

Lager junkies would be taken aback by the usually-intense flavours and body of these beers. It takes some getting used to, especially for unadventurous drinkers who stick to one brand.

Geeks

Half the ales are in 330ml bottles (1, 3, 4, 8), the rest draught (2, 5, 6, 7). The bottles go for about 30 nett. The pint draughts are $25.50 nett (before 6pm); $31.30 (6pm-8pm); and about $37 (after 8pm).

Nice rack

Hey lil birdie

In the pipes for later in the year are other Rogue ales, Somer Orange Honey Ale and Chipotle Ale.

As well as Morimoto Black Obi Soba.

What dahell they bottling, seafood?

Nice fridge

At the mo, we have the 1664 lager in Malaysia, launched last year. Now there’s this ale too, the Blanc (330ml, abv 5%), which is a wheatbeer.

Party on

It comes in an attractive blue bottle. The beer pours a murky yellow, and i got aromas of frangipani. Quite similar to the Starker aromatic.

The View also launched it's i-Bar, an interactive, touch-screen bar top. Pretty neat

Taste is very light, not as fruity as it smells, with a short finish, with no bitterness at all. I think i had 10.

This French beer is distributed by Carlsberg Malaysia.

A self-portrait, touch-screen Facebook-page camera

For now the ale is available at The Library (Puchong, Mid Valley, The Curve, Avenue K), La Bodega Pavilion, Ecoba, Bakita, and The Hill. It will be introduced nationwide from next month on.

On tap too (apologies, camera phone for now!)

Bartenders joining d fun

I reckon it will also appeal to those who dislike lager, or want something light, probably easy to pair with any meal without overpowering it in any way.

Brain damage: 8/10