25 Costa Rican Craft Beers Reviewed
Biertravel
Michael James' Worldwide Beer Adventures
We Remember Michael
On June 29, 2019, Michael died in a river surfing accident on the Arkansas River, near Buena Vista, Colorado, a few hours south-east of Boulder.
Michael was a software developer and engineer, as well as an accomplished and published Photographer, a certified Beer Judge, a world traveler and a fan of disc golf.
The world lost a good soul. He has been missed by family and friends. If you're visiting Boulder, make sure you get a chance to sit on Michael's memorial bench, near the 18th hole of the Valmont Park disc golf course.
Read Michael James Obituary, 2019 Portland Oregonian
Tribute to Michael from Unidata, Boulder, Colorado, where Michael was employed.
Read about and, hopefully, visit the Michael James Memorial disc golf Bench in Boulder
Send a message to site admin, who maintains this site in Memory of Michael
Bier Travel Brewery Summaries Bier Travel Beer Ratings Bier Travel Photography
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Note:The term Franconia describes an area of three Landkreise administrative district in north-eastern Bavaria. Lower Franconia (Unterfranken), Middle Franconia (Mittelfranken), and Upper Franconia (Oberfranken). Situated between Nürnberg and Bamberg along the Pegnitz river valley is the heart of Franconian beer country; an area with likely the highest brewery density per capita in the world.
;Haner is a farmstead Zoiglstube located on the outskirts of Puchersreuth, Oberpfalz between Windischeschenbach and Neustadt a.d. Waldnaab. They serve the commercial Eismann Vollbier Zoigl, a generic but serviceable landbier&hellip On the road west of La Fortuna, Costa Rica is this exceptional wood-fired barbecue restaurant called La Garrapata (The Tick). It’s actually one of two locations, the first being on…
Kramer-Wolf’s front room walls are stunningly yellow, adorned with various musical instruments and farm implements. Luckily the beer is as charming as the house, their Zoigl is lip-smacking and minerally…
While I was in the islands I tried and reviewed 11 beers from the two Faroese breweries. Seven selections from Okkara and four from Föroya, including a pale lager made…
Seinsheim, Lower Franconia, population 1000, home of what may be the smallest brewery in Franconia. Seinsheimer Kellerbräu is housed in the side of the town church, where self-taught Frank Engelhardt…
Photos from a visit to a modern Faroese production brewery 7 km south of Torshavn It was the day before the total solar eclipse in the Faroe Islands, I had…
The first FrankenBierFest in Rome opened on Friday March 20, 2015, but I was in Copenhagen for a stopover after flying from the Faroe Islands earlier that morning. That morning…
Photos from a shoot at Ölvisholt Brugghús in March 2015. Located an hour east of Reykjavik near the town of Selfoss, Ölvisholt produces 30 hectoliters per batch on modern equipment…
Occasionally you have to stop for a minute and take in the sight of the beautiful building you’re about to enter for beer. A combination of old world aesthetics and…
The French village of Cassel in Region du Nord serves as a convenient hub for the beer traveler. We’re visiting this often under-looked classic beer region of the word to…
Our visit to Brasserie Dupont wasn’t the most memorable, but it fulfilled a sort of pilgrimage to this world classic and personal favorite brewery. We sat at La Forge to…
In August 2014, I spent the day at Gänstaller Bräu while brewmaster Andreas and his daughter Daniela created their new bottom-fermented Amber Weizenbock. These photos are at attic level for…
In November 2014 I visited Brauerei Gradl in the tiny Upper Franconian village of Leups, to drink their superb unfiltered 4.9% Dunkel from gravity barrel. This beer, or something like…
The sleepy green L’Hogneau river valley is home to the village of Gussignies, literally meters from the Belgian border. This is the French border region of Bavay, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, home to…
I’ll be upfront: I consider De la Senne my favorite brewery in Belgium, and I consider Yvan De Baets the best brewer in Belgium. Taras Boulba and Taras Runa, Crushable…
In the heart of Prague is the John Lennon Wall, a collection of street art and murals continuously renewed with new artist’s ideas and dedications. On Google Maps you can…
Thanksgiving Day 2013 was spent with Andreas Gänstaller at his brewery in Hallerndorf-Schnaid as he went about making the latest batch of Affumicator (9.6%). This meaty and savory melanoidin bomb…
Notes on New Zealand hop strains and New Zealand-made beer representing each. Nelson Sauvin12-13% AA, 6-8% beta High acid strain. The big one you’re heard of. Volatile thiol compounds are…
From large public space mural projects to the smallest inspiring dead-end alley, Wellington is certainly the most colorful town in New Zealand, and perhaps one of the most-painted in the…
The Kirchweihfest of Lohndorf-Litzendorf filled the grounds of Brauerei Hölzlein on the night of August 10, 2014. In addition to the standard Hölzlein Vollbier, a 10 liter gravity barrel of…
Beer in Iceland is expensive, it’s no secret. Expect to pay upwards of $10 USD for a draft pint of craft beer, and 12oz bottles are not any cheaper on…
Blå Gungan translates to Blue Swing, if you’re interested. I love the amount of activity in this photo. Three window shoppers, a shopkeep, a runner and a few more people…
Because I so dearly love Braurei Roppelt Stiebarlimbach, Roppelt-Bräu Trossenfurt gets called the other Roppelt. Further away from civilization, up the mountains 20 km west of Bamberg, sits this cozy…
The world’s largest penis collection resides at Laugavegur 116, Reykjavík, housed inconspicuously between a convenience store and the Social Insurance Administration building. Boasting 280 different penises from 92 species of…
I visited Iceland on a three day stopover en route to Oslo and Germany, making use of the convenient Iceland Air direct Denver-to-Keflavik route that drops you in Iceland in…
Some 30 km north of Bamberg sits Brauerei Hetzel in the town of Frauendorf. A short drive east of Bad Staffelstein brings you to four other breweries along the way:…
Expect to pay $10 for a pint of beer in Oslo, where alcohol tax accounts for nearly 25% of that total. Oslo is known as the most expensive city in…
Zum Posterer is a charming hobbit hole Zoiglstube tucked nicely in to the center of Windischeschenbach. Their Zoiglbier is lauded as one of the best on Ratebeer.com, a delicious concoction…
It’s not far from Bamberg to Lohndorf. It’s reachable by bicycle for the bold and the fit. In the winter the ride can be cold, windy, very dark. While Brauerei…
With the front entrance to Brauerei Heckel right on the street, not a meter from passing cars, it’s a gamble with your life to spill out into the street after…
Brauerei Witzgall recently became known to a wider online audience when their Landbier overtook Mönchsambacher Lagerbier as the #1 Kellerbier on Ratebeer. In May of 2013, three Ratebeerians who frequently…
Andreas Ganstaller moved his operation from Brauerei Beck Trabelsdorf to Schnaid-Hallerndorf in 2011. He retained his recipes from Beck, and some equipment, and renovated the interior operations of the old…
Brauerei Lieberth is another favorite but inconsistent Franconian brewer. Their best batches of Lagerbier, Pils and Kellerbier are some of the best in the world, and a perfect example of…
Brauerei Rittmayer Hallerndorf is a difficult favorite brewery of mine. They are capable of making remarkable landbier but they are also wildly inconsistent. At Rittmayer Keller am Kreuzberg I was…
When Bryggeri Helsinki opened their doors in February 2013, the on-site brewery was not ready. Two batches of beer, a 4.7% German-style Pilsner and a 4.5% English-style Brown Ale, were…
With over 40 Franconian breweries in attendance, and spanning five rainy days and nights in the Nürnberger Burg, the 2013 Fränkisches Bierfest took place in late May / early June,…
Asturias is known for sidra natural. Nava, 30 km east of Oviedo and 40 km south of Gijón, is known as the heart of sidra within Asturias. Called Villa de…
“lo que es la marca de la sidra?” Without knowing a word of Basque I’m relieved to find my simple Castilian Spanish suitable for asking to see the producer label.…
The rolling green hills and apple orchards some 7 km south of San Sebastian make up the heart of Basque Country sidra natural production. The towns of Astigarraga and nearby…
I arrived on an overnight train from Germany and took a room at a local hotel around the corner from a couple of notable watering holes. I dropped my things,…
Drinking and driving, a big taboo subject among the beer drinker / traveler community. If you bring the subject up on a travel board, the most common response you see…
I do not have nice things to say about Budapest. Budapest is a fantastic wine and food town. Shopping and sightseeing make exploration fun. But there are a few things…
Restaurant La Garrapata
Zoiglstube Kramer-Wolf, Falkenberg
11 Faroese Beers Reviewed
Seinsheimer Kellerbräu
Okkara Bryggjarí – Velbastaður
FrankenBierFest in Rome
Ölvisholt Brugghús
The Beautiful Symmetry of Franconian Brewhouses
Estaminet ‘t Kasteelhof – Cassel
Brasserie Dupont – Tourpes
Gänstaller Bräu Brew Day for a new Amber Weizenbock
Brauerei Gradl, Leups-Pegnitz
Au Baron – Gussignies
Beer Reviews: 22 New Zealand Lagers
Brasserie De la Senne – Brussels
Brauerei Gasthof Erlhof – Erlheim
The John Lennon Wall in Prague
Brewing Affumicator Rauchdoppelbock with Andreas Gänstaller
New Zealand Hop Strains
Wellington Street Art
Vikingskipshuset – The Viking Ship Museum in Oslo
Festgottesdienst zur Kirchweih, Brauerei Hölzlein
Reykjavík Pub Guide: Where to Find Icelandic Craft Beer
Colorful Gamla Stan, Old Town Stockholm
Brauerei Roppelt Trossenfurt
The Icelandic Phallological Museum
10 Iceland Beer Reviews
Brauerei Hetzel Frauendorf
5 Places to Drink Beer in Oslo
Zum Posterer, Windischeschenbach
Privatbrauerei Reh, Lohndorf
Brauerei Heckel Waischenfeld
Brauerei Witzgall, Schlammersdorf
Inside Gänstaller-Bräu, Hallerndorf-Schnaid
Brauerei Lieberth Hallerndorf
Rittmayer and Kreuzberg
Bryggeri Helsinki
Fränkisches Bierfest in Nürnberg
Asturian Sidra and the Museo de la Sidra in Nava
Sarasola Sagardotegia, Basque Country
Astigarraga Festival of Sidra Natural
Brno, Czech Republic
Rental Cars and Beer Travel
Budapest