Aegir Project is kid-friendly and dog-friendly, with the brewery’s namesake dog Aegir the perfect, patient host

Friday Beers is back! Or should that be are back? Either way, here we are. Of course, the tradition of drinking Friday beers never went anywhere – I’m pretty sure you’ve been partaking pretty much every Friday since I published my last suggestion a little over a year ago.

Before I continue, I must be honest – for me Aegir Project isn’t usually a Friday Beers destination. Aegir is actually my preferred place for Sunday Beers. Long afternoons that start with a table for six under the Milkwood trees but then see us taking over a second and third table as friends and acquaintances wander in to sample whatever’s new on tap. Dogs roam around the patio, kids dangle from the trees, all to the soundtrack of live folk music on the stoep.

On cooler days people vie for tables in the upstairs bar – a cosy place to retreat from Noordhoek’s weird weather, which always seems to be doing something different to the weather everywhere else in Cape Town.

But of course, all of this can be enjoyed on a Friday as well. And the added bonus is that Friday is beer launch day! Not every Friday, admittedly, but when new beers area released (which is often), it’s always on a Friday. Which is a nice segue into telling you about the latest beer release from Aegir, which launches today…

Aegir is probably best known for their pale ales, often showcasing a single hop or debuting new or experimental hop varieties, but this latest release is not a hop-forward beer at all – it’s a rich wintry brew. Raspberry Pie is a 9% ABV dessert stout with, to quote Aegir’s co-founder/brewer Rory Lancellas, “ludicrous amounts of toasted coconut, cacao and raspberries”. It’s a limited edition release, available in 750ml wax-dipped bottles (R240). At the moment it’s available only from the brewery, but beer lovers elsewhere in SA will no doubt be happy to learn that Raspberry Pie will also be available on the online shop soon.

Aegir Project has a lengthy and ever-changing beer menu

You’ll also still be able to grab cans of last week’s Friday release, Tarot Card Baltic Porter (9% ABV), which comes in cans featuring six different tarot-style labels designed by Noordhoek based tattoo artist Carvel Tattoos.

If you’re looking for something a little lighter, there’s always a new pale ale on tap, alongside the core range beers – California Common, red rye ale, lager, porter and the hard-to-get-but-superb-when-you-do Giant IPA.

And it’s not all about the beer. The pizzas are undoubtedly some of the best in Cape Town, the burgers are epic hangover fodder and the simple hotdogs are a tasty and affordable way to line the stomach. They even serve breakfast.

There’s a great jungle gym for the little ones and always a fine classic rock playlist on the speakers – in between sets from local folk band Gravel Road. I’ll see you there on Sunday, for belated Friday beers…

Aegir Project Independent Brewery is open seven days a week, from 9am-11pm. Bookings highly recommended on weekends.