Birraire - Beer Blog

I remember the day I met Nereo  Garbin . We had arranged to meet at the offices of the Instituto de la Cerveza Artesana ( ICA - Institute of Craft Beer ) in the neighbourhood of Poble Sec, also with Daniel Fermun , whom I had previously met in Madrid, at the extinct pub Animal Picar & Beer. We had a long talk in which we could know each other, exchange views on the local beer scene and drink some beers. They told me about their long career in the brewing industry and their future projects. They showed me a black, greasy store in the basement of the same building, in which a car workshop had operated in the past, and where they planned to locate their brewery . " Lots of work ahead! ", I thought. "Abirradero is the retail extension of ICA, with 40 rotating beer taps and a well-equipped kitchen"

You could say it was an intense Friday. At 4:30 am my computer was already on at full throttle to buy some time. I had 2 recruiting interviews ahead and an important report to finish (and to start). The theoretical last working day of the week promised lots of fun. I also had tickets for the theatre at 8 pm in Barcelona. It was a productive morning, though. No doubt, at midday I could even foresee that I would have some spare time before meeting my friends for the play, near Les Rambles. Conveniently enough, there was a presentation of a new brewpub at 6 pm just near there. Impressive to see how beer-related businesses have been growing in l’Eixample lately.

Last summer I could once more enjoy everything that my beloved Wales has to offer. Gastronomy, dramatic landscapes, hikes, castles... as well as lots of pubs in which to recharge my batteries while meeting some interesting local people and learning about their culture and life experiences. The intention behind this post series is to review every pub we visited, whether they were top-notch or just average, describing what was special about them. In this sense, the CAMRA Good Beer Guide was an invaluable companion to lead my way to the best places: an authentic vade mecum on British beer. To begin with, let's talk about the first of the long list of pubs in which we drank lovely cask ales during our trip. We are now headed to the north-western part of this little and charming Celtic country.