Hoptards

Wittier than your average beer blog.

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Exploring the neighbourhood

But the explanation is simple, really. The place is in Nørrebro, a treasure island when it comes to beer places, as I was led to discover this past weeks. The place is Ølsnedkeren. Which would freely translate into "beer carpenter", which makes perfect sense when you think that the people here brew their own beer. "Handcrafted beer" would be their trademark, and as one of the bartenders said "It's bitter, it's hoppy. We just love hops, so there's a lot of it in all our beers." I must say I wasn't really impressed by the thing. But, at the same time, it's their place and they can do whatever the fudge they please with their beer. And they do it quite nicely.

The place is almost always animated - I've been there on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays - it doesn't really make a difference. The bartenders are super helpful and have no problem starting a whole chat trying to help you choose. It's really impressive how much patient they have, given that they only have a handful  of beers on the menu - and if you're not quick, they might just erase it from the board!

With nice music, hoppy and fresh beer Ølsnedkeren might just be the place you're looking for for an after-work beer. You can get experimental, have a chat with the bartender or buy some of their bottled editions.

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On the move

Investigating. You have probably noticed by now that we have "favourite places" to drink at. It's just by chance we end up in Fermentoren - both in Aarhus and Copenhagen. In Aarhus because it's one of the only decent alternatives to Studenterbaren  and in Copenhagen because it's plain cosy. 

The tourist take on Copenhagen made us end up in both Mikkeller Bar and Mikkeller & Friends. This last one takes the cake between the two branded bars, not only because it has a greater beer selection, but also because it's nicely designed, furnished and has a better vibe to it. Probably because it fits more people and the musical background is more consistent.

With that being said, I'd like to announce already one of our New Year's resolution - take you to a fantastic Copenhagen craft beer tour in the following weeks, together with places and brews' review.

Keep in touch!

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Cosiest beer corner in Vesterbro

And here's where everything gets interesting. Last time I was there I was welcomed with a large smile by the bartender who hurried into engaging about the beer selection. At first asking us what we want, then asking us what we feel like and ending by engaging in a long conversation about their selection. The guy was fun, knowledgeable about beer and very service-minded, being ready to satisfy any kind of customer - rookie, drinker or beer freak, like us. I must admit it was the first time I had stumbled upon great service coming from both niceness and knowledge. 

They always have around 20 beers on tap that they constantly shuffle. It's both interesting an nice to be constantly confused and eager with anticipation. The small beers are rather cheap, so if you get tricked into staying too long by the nice staff and awesome beer selection, you won't go bankrupt. 

Now this time I was surprised by the appearance of a "Fermentoren IPA", brewed together with people from Ølkollektiv. They started brewing their own beer, a thing that they (and us as well) are really excited about. Since their IPA was a nicely craft mix of Simcoe and Citra, bearing hints of peach flowers and a citrus flavour. Balanced and fresh, less aggressive than your average IPA, it still holds a bitter after taste. I wouldn't scale it higher than GOOD on our random scale, but most of the times good is exactly what you need.

So if you happen to be in Vesterbro check out Fermentoren, a cosy little place on a Halmtorvet corner, with a nice terrace for summer days and a cosy basement for freezing winter nights. The only danger is that you might be sucked into the hyggelig atmosphere and the cheap beers and spend your entire evening there.

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Random encounters #2 The beer that was never there

Crafted and aged in bourbon barrels, then re-fermented with Champagne yeast (I know, right?!), if you close your eyes and feel the aroma of this make-believe beer, you might be tricked into thinking you're going to have a sip of the finest bourbon. Pretty impressive for a beer that was never there. Yet once you've dug into it you're hit by a ruthless stout. You'd never see it coming, but this beer has an intense bourbon aroma with hints of smokiness and roasted malt. As any stout, it is thick, pitch black, a bit flat (or may have been because it was just a sample), with a nice caramel-ring as a head. Chocolate and vanilla flavours entangle to give this out-of-this-world stout a perfect finish.

I might say it was a perfect drink for a Thursday evening, but if you happen to stumble over a bottle of this, you should probably share it with two of your best buddies.

The Hoptard Arbitrary Approval Scale sets this one at what beer? Who said anything about a beer? (But if anything said something about a beer it would say confusingly awesome)

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Christmas is under way. Selection is great so not a day without a Christmas beer!

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Random encounters #1 The brew master

Today I'll tell you about the bar that was not on my list, its visiting being a random decision while catching up with an old friend over a dinner consisting of hindbærsnitte. And yes, my Copenhagen escapes need to be somehow tied with nice food and this time I crown the hindbærsnitte in Meyers bakery the best one in town! For now, at least. But I'm digressing. And this post announces to be long enough anyway...

The decision to visit Tap House was a quick search on Rate Beer's places option. The place looked fancy on the outside, and I was surprised to notice a little text on the blackboard outside their door, announcing that tonight they're welcoming Garrett Oliver, Brooklyn Brewery's master brewer. My eyes popped. What the actual shit?! I went in, unimpressed by the design - a bit too minimalistic and "cold" for my liking. A couple of tree chunks as tables, a lot of benches and even more unoccupied space. Yet behind a long bar 61 taps were glowing in the dim light. The listing of beers made you feel like you were at a horse track, delivering some feelings of nervousness, all revolving around the "Which one do I choose?" thought. I chose a To Øl Sur Mosaic to cleanse my palette while awaiting the wonders of the Brooklyn tasting. I was not disappointed.

While not being exceptional for a sour, Sur Mosaic is whatever you need when you're in need of refreshment - dry and fresh, with a flowery aroma and hints of citrus fruit, specifically lime and grapefruit. With a slight bitter after-taste, this beer delivers. I could easily be greedy and drink two of them on a summery afternoon, but not necessarily if there's anything else in the house.

And that night there was! Most important, there was Garrett Oliver, the master brewer from Brooklyn, who delivered a nice story about the beers he brought and the way they do things back in the Big Apple. I must say I haven't seen a nicer, more relaxed person talking about the thing he loves doing the most and the brewery that made history in American craft brewing. "We make what we want to drink" was one of the thing Garrett said jokingly about Brooklyn Brewery, and that makes a lot of sense. Because that is what craft beer is all about - daredevils brewing what they would like to drink and luckily sharing the result with us, profane followers of this great religion. 

After his talk, Garret had no problem talking with all the groupies gathered around him and, by God, I was one of them! I think I didn't approach someone "famous" for a picture in some good years but I could not help showing off. Shaky voice and sweaty palms, I approached him and his laid back smile made me chill immediately. I had to tell him how jealous my former co-workers would be if they saw me in a picture next to him, and then I asked him for a recommendation of course! Our short conversation was axed on their new take on barley wines and the creation of Hand and Seal. Which was his recommendation for a tasting that evening. But that is another story.He also gave my friend a tip on where the light was better for our picture, because he apparently also studied film...

  I mean look at this smile! How can he be anything but awesome!?

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Copenhagen beer bar tour continues with #Mikkeller&friends

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Bad Santa from #Gudenådalens as a season starter. Sweet with a hint of marcipan finish, it’s a great “opener” and an easy drink…

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Copenhagen beer tour continues with #Mikkeller&friends

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Our adventure in Copenhagen started here…

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Release the Psycho

But I am deviating. A couple of posts ago (and oh, boy have we been lazy with those!) my buddy talked about the ageing of beer. Buying a nice stout, maybe barrel-aged or something of that sort, a good Belgian or whatever deliciousness you find worthy of ageing and putting it aside for a special occasion. The beer changes. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse, sometimes revealing a whole different dimension to the beer.

A couple of nights ago I got the great news that Cocoa Psycho, one of my favourite stouts, was out of the cellar and into the bar, making my Friday evening and getting me high on hopes for hints of dark chocolate and beer deliciousness - especially because it was aged. What came next was a bit different than what I expected.

The nice dark chocolate aroma, the hints of vanilla, the sweet line you expect from an Imperial Stout have vanished. The way was thus open for a bitter beer, a tad roasted, a tad smoky. Not a bad stout at all - but not particularly special... The edge that the Cocoa Psycho has when it comes from a fresh batch fades away with time, leaving behind the toasty coffee notes, but this is not a coffee stout. It comes closer to Mikkeller's Beer Geek Breakfast, which doesn't make it bad at all, but it leaves you craving for more.

So my advice is - get a Cocoa Psycho - let it chill just a bit, open in and enjoy it for what it is - an excellent, fresh, intense, aggressive imperial stout. Don't be a psycho - don't lock it away, let it roam free!

On the Hoptard Arbitrary Approval Scale, this goes under ugly ageing.

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On the hump day all you need is a nice beer! I would go for a Moosehead, my favourite go-to after a day with a rather intense workload - sweet and bubble gum tasting, it's a refreshing lager that gives you exactly what you need - refreshment! But that is just a subjective opinion of an enthusiastic beer drinker... 

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Good Old Bourbon County

Unlike the International Beer Day, celebrated on the first Friday of August every year, the Danish Beer Day is celebrated on the first Saturday of September. It may just be that Danes are not really home during summer, and on such an occasion all respectable beer bars have nice events. Would be unfortunate to have a party where nobody drops by.

This Saturday I was thus going back to my old work place, the most diverse beer bar in town, to celebrate beer day. Yet, quite uncharacteristically for me, I was in no mood for beer. Tired from a long week’s work and a bit strained, I fell into a chair opposite a good friend of mine who was trying a set of very good, rare, intense beers. I could not look at them, even though I was longing for something to ooze my tension. So he kindly extended a glass of some thick, black, aromatic liquid. “You know I don’t really like Bourbon County.” My eyes popped open. He got my attention. What he was handing me was a Goose Island Bourbon County Stout from 2012. It’s not extreme, but as stated in a previous post - you’ve got to be careful when keeping your beer to enhance the taste - it just needs the right amount of time.

And the right amount of time it was. Perfect timing for the Bourbon County, which did not lose its chocolaty taste, but enhanced its bourbon flavour, with nice hints of comfit dark berries. Just like everyone knows it, but a bit stronger, a bit rougher. Perfect timing for a tired soul who wanted to celebrate a great day in a proper manner, but did not have the mood for any hipster experiment from a flashy craft brewery. Sometimes an old, rough, stout is all you need. Aged it in bourbon barrels. Then aged again in a dark, brick basement. Nothing can go wrong.

The Hoptard Arbitrary Approval Scale sets this one at once you go black, you never go back!

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Review: Brewdog - AB: 11

It is time for our first genuine beer review, and while we would like to give the beer the attention and carefully selected words that it deserves (or doesn't), we would also like to keep it conveniently vague. We like to focus on the subjective parts of the experience of drinking vis-à-vis the subjective-but-aimed-at-objectivity approach. In other words: we are not ratebeerians. We do not give grades and characters. We describe beer, we throw about some judgements of taste that come to mind, and then we give it a grade on the also conveniently vague Hoptard Arbitrary Approval Scale, which has no upper or lower limit, and no fixed points. And with that said, let's get down to the beer:

Brewdog Abstrakt AB:11 is something as rare as a black barley wine. And to top that off, it's made using black raspberries, ginger and chipotle chilli. On paper a seemingly weird combination perhaps. In practice? A complex, decadent beer that develops in your mouth and throughout the after-taste. This is good beer, let me just put it out there. This is where it gets interesting. I see a lot of attempts from brewers to "redefine what beer can be or taste like". This is one of the rare occasions, where I think they actually come close to that somewhat lofty goal.

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Copenhagen

Before getting all adventurous and diving into the Mikkeller bar hidden (okay, not hidden, but buried somehow) in a basement in Viktoriagade (apparently a part of the Meatpackers' district - I just HAD to say it) I had to have a lunch pit stop. Before taking all the credit for this discovery I must say that my friend was the one suggesting what I later discovered to be - probably - the best sandwich place in Copenhagen. If you don't believe me, just Google "best sandwiches Copenhagen" and Smagsløget will pop up as the second link. Scout's honour! Now I wasn't very inspired so I just went for the Smagsløgets hit, which was a roast beef delight, filled with chilli pesto and some manchego cheese that swiped me off my feet - both because of its deliciousness, its size and the fact that it was toasted. Now the place might not look like much from the outside, but the fact that they're basically slicing the roast beef, chorizo or cheese right in front of you makes it more authentic. And it's cheap.

Now after this kind of feast I just HAD to have a good beer. So I steered towards the Mikkeller bar. I wasn't impressed by the looks of the bar. It didn't strike me as cosy and the music was rather random and weird. But hey, who am I to judge?! After all I was only there for the beer. And beer I got...a bit pricey for the 20cl glasses, but then again I was there to "enjoy". My friends and I were a bit unimpressed by the lack of stouts (only two) on the menu, but we had to admit that the hot summer day called for different kinds of beer - kudos for adapting the menu to the heat. 

I only had two beers at the Mikkeller bar. One was the I Hardcore You Double IPA, brewed together with Brew Dog, which proved to be a hazardous choice for a first beer - a full taste, intense, bitter -sweet...more sweet than bitter, a hint of dried, confit fruit - a bit too much in my opinion, but then again it was a double-quadruple IPA sort of mischief by two breweries that know no boundaries when it comes to intensity. Well I might say that if for some this beer scores a 99, I would not go over the 20cl glass, even on a day where I hunger for taste. Intensity doesn't equal a good beer and sometimes less really is more...But then again, I'm the type of person who sees a meat lover pizza covered in sausages and kebab meat as an abomination. So what do I know?

I took a chance and decided to clear my buds and refresh my soul after the debauchery of a double IPA and went for a curious thing - a Mikkeller Vesterbro Spontan Ale, a lambic that is exactly what it needs to be - sour and fresh, not too intense, no pretentiousness, just a plain good beer. A thing that is so hard to achieve by Mikkeller. Not to dish the fantastic brews, but on a summer day intensity can be dangerous. I was pleasantly surprised but it might be that some others could find it too dry or too sour. I think it's exactly what I needed after a delicious lunch...

So if you find yourselves in Copenhagen on a sunny afternoon, go for a sandwich at Smagsløget and a beer in Viktoriagade. Do that even if the afternoon is not sunny. The sandwiches are warm and Mikkeller is bound to have a nice stout on tap.

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Hot weather

To be honest, it was by no means an exceptional beer. It was very ordinary: a light, malty-sweet lager with very little hops - and that's it. Despite all that, though, it still catered to my exact needs in that moment. Easily drinkable, light, and most important of all, super cold. And that is, for me, an important aspect of drinking beer in general. Different beers suit different contexts and situations. Cold beer on a hot day is, almost universally, a fool-proof combination. Never mind what beer it is, as long as it is cold! In other situations, those dark, heavy and indulgent beers that I mentioned before are perfect - but I wouldn't bring them to a party. Well, unless it was a party full of people who would appreciate it, but that would be an exception to the rule. And then again, sometimes it's just nice to hang out with friends try something new - not too special - and discuss the beers and maybe this weather. It is really hot outside, don't you agree? How about that..

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The Golden lady

There are some days when you just get tired. We all know that feeling. Whether you've had a long day at work, an exhausting exam or just a crappy day in general, the afternoon escape with your buddy is a haven where you don't want to get all the world's problems in. You might not feel like talking about life, the universe and everything. You might just feel like a heart to heart on a sunny summer afternoon where you complain about the fact that lifes sucks and then you die. For that you need a beer. A cold beer. Nothing makes the worries pour out like a nice, cold pilsner pourring in. It's like a drain cleaner - gets everything out of there, while leaving a fresh sensation of clean and relief. Those days you don't feel like diving in a dark Belgian, or even be tickled but the hoppy sparkles of an IPA. On the days when everything is tiring you just need a cold beer.

For those days a "Golden lady" - the Danish petname for a Tubrog Gold - is exactly what you need. Not too heavy, not too light. Just the perfect amount of bitter sweetness that life sometimes has to offer, just enough to refresh you and bring you back on track. Because sometimes all you need is a cold beer.