Talking Pints: Free Pisco Cocktails, Craft Beer On Tour and Red House Sanlitun
Two doses of Talking Pints for you this week, with this first installment focusing on drinks. The headlines: Great Leap and Slow Boat are on tour with their respective beers, Terra are slashing rum prices by 20 percent, and we've got news of where and why the Peruvian Embassy is giving away free Pisco cocktails next week.
The craft beer roadshows continue apace. Great Leap bring home-brewed joy to Wudaokou at Lush on Thursday night (Feb 16), with RMB 200 getting you all you can drink from a choice of four beers. If you're only having one, it's RMB 40 a glass. The event runs from 6pm to midnight. Slow Boat are doing their thing at Grinders from 7-10pm on Friday (Feb 17). If you're allergic to Shuangjing, you can get your Slow Boat fix anytime you want at Home Plate, who now have two taps pumping out Slow Boat brews.
Terra are offering 20 percent off all rums and rum cocktails from now until the end of February. Their ten rum cocktails are all RMB 68 (minus 20 percent that's RMB 54.4, according to my calculations), and include favorites like mojitos, caipirinhas and pina coladas, as well as creations like "La Cevicheria" (dark rum with lemon, mango and coriander) and the "Sichuan Rise" (dark rum with spicy peppercorn, thyme and lemon). Otherwise, you can do the rums straight up (prices run RMB 28 for Myer's Orignal Dark up to RMB 180 for a Zacapa X.O.). There's a "Bites" menu to accompany the rum, with cassava croquettes, empanadas and churros.
From a ceviche restaurant to the country that created that delicacy, the Embassy of Peru is hosting a Pisco Festival from February 19-22. Most of the events taking place around town to promote the grape brandy are limited to F&B industry types, but there are two events open to the public, as follows:
Feb 20 (Monday)
Guided Pisco Cocktail Tasting
A variety of Pisco cocktails and Peruvian canapes will be prepared for your tasting delight. Free. 7-9pm. Scarlett
Feb 21 (Tuesday)
Epicurean Pisco Tasting
More pisco cocktails, and more Peruvian snacks, but this time we're told to expect some more daring cocktail creations "featuring Peruvian food." Gosh. Free. 7-9pm. The Bar at Migas
You did read that correctly - both events are absolutely free.
If you didn't read our earlier post on the subject, look out for Luga to convert the first floor of Luga's Villa into a German-themed bar/restaurant. The place will be called "Taps," and Luga tells us construction will start soon, with the aim being an April 1 launch. If any readers fancy kicking off an all-new round of the popular Beijing parlor game "Whatever Will Luga Do Next?," feel free to launch in via the comments space below.
Bob Louison is back with another of his Spirit It! cocktail classes this Saturday (Feb 18) at Zeta Bar. RSVP to bobspirit.it@gmail.com to book a spot. It's RMB 188 per person, and class is in from 7.30-9.30pm. The next class will follow on February 24 - email Bob for all the details.
Finally, Wudaokou pizza-and-beer hangout Red House has opened a branch on Chunxiu Lu, right next to the Holiday Inn. They're doing local draft beer for RMB 5. Beijing Boyce has a Red House-based cautionary tale over on his blog.
PHOTOS: Wikimedia Commons, Marilyn Mai
