I learned something the other day. It’s really hard to take a photo of a box of beer. Unless you have a good table, a clean backdrop, and some props. I have a glass dining table and it just didn’t work. I debated using my bed as the flat surface but that seemed weird, and then I had the backdrop problem so there really was no good solution.

So you will have to forgive me. I’ve stolen a photo of a Flavourly beer box from Flavourly’s web site rather than showing you what mine actually looked like. Their photo is MUCH nicer.  (See, good table, plain backdrop and PROPS!)

So what is Flavourly? Formed in 2012, Flavourly is the UK’s fastest growing artisan food, snack and craft beer discovery service. Through their monthly deliveries, they help foodies and craft beer enthusiasts discover artisan foods, snacks and craft beers.

If that sounds like I took it straight from the PR, you’re right. I did! I never said I wasn’t a little lazy.

But here is what’s funny. The PR contacted me about Flavourly and then I went to the opening of the very nice cocktail bar WM Barker & Company under Dirty Dick’s on Liverpool Street, and I met the very lovely Hannah from Hiver, the honey beer, there. We got to talking and I mentioned Flavourly, thinking I was coming up with a really unique idea that would help her grow her business. Hah, such misplaced confidence. Hiver is already in with Flavourly, and when my box arrived, there was Hannah’s beer, right there!

Here’s what I received in my box…

• 19th Brew Golden Ale by Eden Mill: Refreshing and well-balanced golden beer.
• Amber Ale by Fourpure: An American amber ale with toasty malt character.
• The Brown Honey Ale by Hiver: Honey complements and adds depth to darker roasted malts. Very, very interesting.
• Black IPA by Stewart Brewing: Fresh pine and tropical aromas.
• Black Saison by Firebrand: Dark and full or roasted malt flavors.
• Azimuth IPA by Hardknott: A balanced hoppy beer.
• Seven IPA by Seven Brothers: Classic American IPA. Possibly my favorite.
• Rose Wheat Beer by Ticketybrew: A rose wheat beer, probably my least favorite.

I also got some snacks which I ate immediately. They were from Man-o-Masa. Chipotle & lime tortillas and some white cheddar too. They were nice…maybe a little too grainy for my taste. I was much more interested in the beer.  And well, if I were Flavourly, in making snacks part of the package, I might work on my snacks to beer ratio. I know eating is cheating in the UK but still…

I’ve done some research on Flavourly since my box arrived and learned that they went on Dragons Den and EVERYONE wanted to invest. Flavourly then turned them all down and went on to earn their own money through Crowdcube. SMART guys, very very smart. They earned £300,000 through crowd-funding, which is amazing. The company has grown a tremendous amount…I found one article that says that they’ve grown more than 500% a year since 2012. When they launched the club in 2013, they received 4,000 orders on the FIRST DAY. Check out this article for more deets.

OK, I’ve given it some more thought and maybe my photo isn’t too bad…I took it on the kitchen counter and then Instagrammed it up…

Flavourly costs £24 quid a month and includes 8 beers and 2 snacks. It’s a great Christmas present for the beer-lover in your life.  If I drank more beer at home, I would totally subscribe! It is now definitely on my list as my new go-to birthday present for folks that like beer.

Flavourly was kind enough to send me a beer box for free. I enjoyed my Flavourly experience and would highly recommend it to beer-lovers in the UK.

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Back in December, I hosted a little tea and cake and Champagne party at mine, and the estimable Paige Worthy (a most excellent name if there ever was one) arrived  bearing a six pack of assorted microwbrews. Why haven’t I thought of this sooner??? Buy six SEPARATE beers. Not six of the same type. Bring as a hostess gift. Perfect.

And so tonight, for the Superbowl, I will be watching David Beckham get down to his skivvies while drinking some of the above. In case you can’t see the details, here they are:

Three Floyds, Jinx Proof Lager. Munster, Indiana. “A crisp, pale and refreshing lager with a light malt sweetness and plenty of noble hop notes.” $2.25 a bottle at Lush. 5.10% abv.

Goose Island Sofie. Chicago, Illinois. “Belgian Style Ale.” Price  unknown. 6.5% abv.

Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock. Aying, Germany. “Finest Bavarian double bock beer.” $3.50 at Lush. 6.7% abv.

Lagunitas, Little Sumpin’. Petaluma, California. “12 fluid oz’s of hops, malt, hops, hops, yeast, hops, water and hops.” $2.25 at Lush. 7.5% abv.

 Great Lakes Burning River. Cleveland, Ohio. “A handcrafted pale ale.” $2.00 at Lush. 6.0% abv.

Cisco Brewers Whale’s Tale Pale Ale. Nantucket, Massachusetts. “Whales’ Tale is an English style pale ale, characterized by an abundance of fruity hops.” $2.25 at Lush. 5.6% abv.

And then of course, for those of you not interested in beer, here’s Mr. Beckham…

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Date of Last Visit:  Wednesday, March 9, 2011

The Victim: Liz of Elizabites

The Damage: About $40 each

The Background: I love Liz’ blog, Elizabites. Her posts are simple and straightforward, and there’s always a contest or two thrown in for good measure. She doesn’t always write about the food…it might be the decor or a sign or something on the table or a product-find. each post is its own little nugget. There’s no messing around.

Liz is much the same herself and we had a very enjoyable dinner at Leopold in West Town talking all things food. (Seriously, have you seen that Wendy’s is hocking sea salt fries?)

We split the mixed green salad, which was accompanied by gouda croquettes. The croquettes were cold and hard. They could have been so much better. The salad dressing was nice though.

The home-made pierogi of cheese and onion were a bit on the stodgy side and had maybe a tad too much butter, but that didn’t stop us from finishing them.

Best was the cassoulet. Confit rabbit, braised pork belly, and German bratwurst. This was a ridiculously huge portion for one; I would highly recommend splitting it. But be ready to fight over all the juicy bits of meat in here. I really enjoyed this dish and finished my leftovers for breakfast the next day.

The Service: Quirky but attentive. “Working on his poetry,” and all that.

The Verdict: Enjoyable company and good food overall. I’d definitely go back for the cassoulet.

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First discovery? I can take the bus from my house nearly directly to  Haymarket Brewery on Randolph Street (aka Restaurant Row in Chicago). The only thing that would prevent me from doing this more often is the strong odor of bleach mixed with warm beer emanating from behind the bar in Haymarket. Reminds me of my summer job at the beach when I was in high school and college. Not exactly good memories.

Haymarket’s sweet potato tots were addictive and vanished quickly. But my white bean chicken chili was only okay, served tepid and without much bite. The number of televisions was distracting.

Beer-wise, I loved that one of their beers is called “I’m so lonely.” It’s a Belgian-style session beer (i.e., works well if your plan is to drink all day long), light in alcohol and crisp and clean on the palette.

The Verdict: Too much of a sports bar for me, but if you go, ask the friendly servers for a tour of the beer-making facilities.

Next up, Beer Bistro in the West Loop, which my friend Doug from New York had told me about when he was in town in February. Doug also makes his own beer at home in his closet, but sadly, I didn’t get a chance to introduce Doug to Matt.

Matt, Carolyn and I were obsessed with the old-school ceiling fans at Beer Bistro, and we loved the old-time Chicago bar with all its woodwork. We thought the beer menu was a bit pedestrian though, even though it was quite extensive.

The Verdict: If you’re in the area, drop in and have a beer. But I’m not sure I would make a special trip unless I was organizing another “Day of Beer.”

Our last stop was what is rapidly becoming one of my favorite places in Chicago, Bangers & Lace. I love the staff here, love the vibe, love the decor, and the beer list is really really interesting. Ah, and the corn nuts are highly highly dangerous. I really really liked the caramel-y and floral Numazu Lager from Japan. Had we not imbibed so much earlier, we probably would have stayed here all afternoon.

The Verdict: If you like beer, I’d say Bangers & Lace is a must-visit.

So tell me…where’s your favorite place to drink beer in Chicago?

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Look mum no hands!
49 Old Street
London EC1V 9HX

Date of Last Visit: Monday, 28 June 2010

The Victim: @leeturnerconn

The Damage: £6 each

The Background: Maybe it's the sunshine. Or maybe it's just Clerkenwell. I am in LOVE with London at the moment. And Clerkenwell in particular. Is it the red brick? The warehouses? The "new" Waitrose on St. John Street? Vinoteca? St. John? All these things?  I don't know.

But I do know that I'm in love with Look Mum No Hands.

Because you see, when I lived in Chicago, I used to ride my bike EVERYWHERE. Unfortunately, I also used to get my bike stolen a lot. (Don't ever believe Kryptonite when they tell you its theft-proof.) One set of thieves were particularly horrible. They gradually stripped my (3rd or 4th) bike down, one item at a time. (I always locked it up in front of my apartment building. Well. With many locks.) First, they took my odometer. Then, they took all the reflectors. (Is there a black market in reflectors? Is there?) Then there was the seat, which I had stupidly not removed before heading in for the night. And after I had replaced the odometer, the reflectors, AND the seat, they took the front wheel. And after I replaced that, they took everything. Everything.

I brought my (new) bike with me to London.

And in six years, I've ridden it ONCE.

Because I'm a scaredy-cat. Seriously. My perception after one failed outing from Tower Bridge to Greenwich is that London is not a relaxing city to bike in.

One of the things I often say about moving back to the States–and Chicago in particular–is that I can't wait to ride my bike EVERYWHERE. (I kinda want one of those cool retro bikes and a cape to do it in. Thank God I don't like animals because if I did, I'd also subject the poor thing to riding in my wicker basket.)

My point in telling you all this is that Look Mum No Hands is a bikers' cafe. And boy are bikers nice. The staff here were so amazingly cheerful and pleasant and helpful and  sweet…they could teach many a high-end restaurant a thing or two. (Cara has already hinted at the oddness of the maitre'd at Bruno Loubet over here.)

 
Look Mum No Hands! strikes me as the perfect place to go on a Saturday morning and hang out. And you know what they have? They have free wifi. Of course they do! (The other night, I had dinner at Bodeans in Tower Hill, and I asked the server if they had free wifi. Everyone looked at me like I was crazy. But after 2.5 weeks in the Middle East, where every server seemed to ask "Would you like some wifi to go with your meal?" I can't stop asking. Hey, I have an iPhone. But it doesn't always get reception. Like when you're in the basement of Bodeans Tower Hill.)

 
Look Mum No Hands has SALADS. Multiple types. A small salad plate will cost you £4.50. This, IMHO, is a very good value. Needed a bit of salt or a zesty dressing, but all in all, we felt quite virtuous. Even though we weren't riding bikes.

The Verdict: Go. Save me a seat. Maybe I'll even ride my bike there. But please let's hope they don't become too cool for school. Stay sweet!
 

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Sambrook's Brewery Limited
Unit 1 & 2 Yelverton Road
SW11 3QG

Date of Last Visit: Monday, March 2nd

The Victims: Many. Thanks to the folks at social review site Qype.co.uk.

The Damage: This was a freebie.

The Background: You might know that I'm a sucker for entrepreneurs. So I was fascinated by the story of Duncan Sambrook, who left his job as an accountant and started up Sambrook's Brewery in Wandsworth last year. There's not much, if any, beer being brewed on a large scale in London these days, so Sambrook's is a bit of a milestone.

The Tour: Duncan takes us on a detailed tour of the beer-making process. I discover I like barley, and Niamh and Lizzie and I wonder how it would taste in a salad. The brewery is in an old warehouse and it's all a bit chilly until we warm up with a half of Wandle Ale.

The Beer: Duncan has a great map on the wall that shows you where you can buy his beer. The Cow is on there, as is The Wenlock. Many others. There's a list of current stockists on the Sambrook's Web site. Now he just needs to mash it up and create a Google map.

The Verdict: I liked Duncan's Wandle Ale, and I liked it ever more so when I heard it came in at just 3.8% alcohol. Keep an eye on Sambrook's. It's likely that we'll be hearing a lot more from them.  

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The Dovetail
9, Jerusalem Passage
EC1V 4JP

Date of Last Visit: Sunday, December 7, 2008

The Victims: Chris, Evelien, Seona, and a guy whose name I really didn't catch

The Damage: Not so much. £12 each or thereabouts?

The Background: I like having a Belgian friend. I use her for her Belgian-ness. Specifically, I'm talking beer. Evelien knows her Belgian beer.

Perhaps all Belgians know beer as well as Evelien does. Maybe it's a national trait. (Or at least, a Flemish trait.) But I don't know many other Belgians besides for Evelien. (And Damien, but I haven't seen him for ages.) Oh, and I suppose I've got at least one Belgian co-worker. OK, and a friend from grad school. So that's four. I know four Belgians.

So after our lunch at Mien Tay, our party disperses and the last of us head over to The Dovetail because it's baby friendly (indeed, there are many babies in The Dovetail while we're there), it's Belgian, and it's relatively close to home.

I'm presented with three different Belgian beers during our sojourn in The Dovetail. The only name I've written down is Leffe Radieuse. I wish I could present you with tasting notes, but we weren't being very serious. We were playing pass-the-baby while giving legal advice. Plus, there was all that MSG to contend with.

The Loos: Odd. Like they're under construction. But they're not. I think they're going for an industrial feel, but it just looks like plywood to me.

The Verdict: I've been here a few times. It's nice. But there's something a bit dirty-feeling about it. Like it's missing a crucial element of the decor. (Maybe it's the candles…with all the kiddies about, there were wisely no candles melting into Duval bottles.) But I like drinking Belgian beer with Evelien, so I'll probably be back.

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Paper Planes – M.I.A. (You gotta listen to the whole song. Give it more than 15 seconds. Thanks to David Byrne Radio, again, for introducing me to this classic.)

It’s 1997. I am in Russia! With Aileen, one of my best friends in the entire world. She was a Russian major in undergrad. And she wants to go to Russia. And so I say Da. And we fly British Airways from Chicago to London and then London to St. Petersberg and they give us Yorkie Bars on the plane and we think that’s the funniest thing ever–and we also live off our Yorkie Bars for days. Those things are pretty hearty.

But one of my favorite memories of Saint Petersberg is Baltika, the beer. I forget how we were introduced to it. But we were. And we got very into it. (OK, maybe I got very into it?) Because I loved how numerical they were about it. There’s just something so easy about saying "I’ll have the number 7!" I’ll come back to that in a moment.

So Baltika–they are the most popular beer brand in Russia, and they are the second largest selling beer after Heineken in Europe. (I have to guess it’s because they have a somewhat captive audience? I’d love to see their market share in the former USSR.) They’ve got 10 different varietes of beer to offer and here’s their thing–they number them. Now I used to think–and tell people–that they were ordered by alcohol content and/or lightness/darkness, but this is (sadly) not the case. I’ve just checked their Web site. They are just numbered. That’s fine. Although I think it would be SO much cooler if they were numbered in some sort of order.

So I was SO excited the other month when I walked into the Tube and I saw a huge poster about Baltika and the U.K. And then on the escalator at Angel, I saw these little mini posters.

Number 3 is here.

Spasiba.

P.S. OK, I just checked their financial results and here’s their market share as of August 2006:
Russia: 35.6%
Ukraine: 17.7%
The Baltics: 43.8%
Kazakhstan: 29.6%

Oh, and I learned that Baltika is now a product of Scottish & Newcastle, who have three of the top ten brands in Europe by volume: Baltika, Kronenbourg 1664 and Foster’s.

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