Drinking Beer Around the World – Part Four

Memorable Moments Drinking Beer Around the World

Part Four in a Series dedicated to drinking beer around the world.

As lovers of beer, we try our best to take a photo of every new beer that we sample while on the road, making for an awesome photo collection with over 300 different types and brands of beer. Because tastes and preferences are so subjective, our goal for this series was not to find the “best beer in the world”, but rather to find “amazing beer moments” or “incredible beer drinking settings”.

Below are ten more unforgettable moments drinking beer around the world.

Cheers!

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From Beer Around the World

Angkor Premium Beer – Siem Reap, Cambodia

Cambodia’s national beer. We enjoyed these tall, cold bottles of beer after our first day exploring the world famous Temples of Angkor. You can actually see the bottles sweating in the humidity. Though heavy on tourism, Siem Reap is a fun backpacker/traveler town with plenty of restaurants and bars to sample its popular beer.

The beer verdict – Light, sweet and refreshing, but weak on body and taste. We give it  6.5 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Alexander Keith’s India Pale Ale – Banff, Alberta (but from Nova Scotia)

Fellow Canadians will be the first to claim that there are much tastier beer options in Canada. We agree. But remember, this post is not only about the beer, it’s about the moment. There are few places on earth that match the beauty of Banff National Park in Alberta. This was the view from our campground just outside of the town of Banff. As if almost on cue, a flock of Canadian geese floated across the lake to get in the picture.

The beer verdict – Light, clear and sweet but limited on flavour. It shouldn’t be classified as an IPA (more like a lager). We give it a generous 7 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Tooheys New Lager – Surfers Paradise, Australia

This memorable beer moment comes from inside our oversized four-berth campervan. We drove the East Coast of Australia from Cairns down south to Sydney. We remember this evening well because we had to stay in a sketchy motor home park, with most sites being semi-permanent. We had no idea Surfers Paradise was so developed and posh. We foolishly assumed it was a hippy surfing town that would have plenty of cheap campgrounds – not the case!

The beer verdict – Clean, clear, slightly malty with good flavour. We give it 7 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

De Koninck – Amsterdam, Netherlands (but from Belgium)

Let us start by saying this – we love Amsterdam! Who doesn’t?  It’s a “must visit” on the Western European backpacker circuit and is arguably one of Europe’s best party destinations. We sampled several beers during our time in Holland’s sin city, so it’s difficult to match beer with location or moment. That said, this amber from De Koninck left a good impression on our taste buds and kicked off a great evening in the Dam.

The beer verdict – Great colour, fruity and flavourful but soft on body. We give it 8 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Tsingtao Beer – Hong Kong

Without question, Hong Kong is one of the world’s greatest cities. Tucked between the high-rise mega structures are dense alleys filled with street vendors and colourful markets. As China’s largest brewery, we had to sample its prized beer after an evening of shopping the popular “Ladies Market” in Kowloon. Why is it that a cold beer always tastes better when consumed at an outdoor food market?

The beer verdict – Light, crisp and refreshing with a smooth bitterness (great compliment to spicy noodles!). We give it 7.5 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Brahma Beer – Huacachina, Peru

There’s so much more to Peru than Machu Picchu. Located on the Pacific coast of Peru, Huacachina is a desert oasis with giant sand dunes as high as mountains. We had to move indoors after baking by the pool in the desert sun.  As we enjoyed our afternoon beer, we noticed that our hostel was a little ‘out of the ordinary’. The walls were filled with paintings of aliens and outer space, giving it a weird sci-fi vibe. When we were offered to purchase weed at the restaurant bar we realized that we were staying at the ‘happy hostel’.

The beer verdict – One of the better South American beers. Good body, sweet and tasty. We give it 7.5 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Chang Beer – Koh Chang, Thailand

If you’ve been to Thailand and you enjoy beer, you’ve likely sampled one of Thailand’s most popular brew. What this picture fails to do is properly illustrate the quiet, peaceful jungle lodge surroundings. Our guest house was located high above Lonely Beach, just off the main street. We were there in the off season, so we had the comfortable restaurant to ourselves for the entire week. It was the perfect serene setting that you seek when visiting a lush tropical island.

The beer verdict – Nothing special, tangy sweet, little sour but refreshing. We give it a modest 7 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Philadelphia Lager – Aqaba, Jordan

After an unusually long day of traveling from Egypt to Jordan, we were happy to finally arrive at our hotel. As a Muslim country, we expected to have a hard time finding beer in Jordan. Not the case. In fact, there was a liquor store right across the street from our hotel. We enjoyed our Philadelphia Lager on our 4th floor balcony, high enough to overlook the bustling city below. It was the first night in what turned out to be one of our favourite countries.

The beer verdict – Not good, but it’s cold beer in the Middle East! We give it 5 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Ursus Premium – Brasov, Romania

Our day was spent exploring the fabled Bran Castle, proclaimed to be Dracula’s Castle, located in the Transylvanian countryside of Romania. We ran into a solo English traveler that we met in Veliko Tarnovo a week prior. We swapped travel stories over traditional Romanian food (lots of pickled vegetables) and live entertainment. It’s always interesting randomly meeting people for a second time while on the same trip.

The beer verdict – Average taste, sub-par when compared to other European Beers. We give it 6.5 out of 10

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From Beer Around the World

Beer Vending Machine – Yokohama, Japan

Cold beer + vending machine = awesome! Canadians can’t even buy beer from the grocery store; we need to purchase from government stores or heavily regulated merchants that overcharge. So you can imagine our delight when we arrived in Japan and were able to buy beer at all times of the day from a machine!

The beer verdict – Being able to buy beer from a machine gets a unanimous 10 out of 10

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Do you have a memorable beer moment that you’d like to share?

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