Half price pints during happy hour, 4-6pm on a Friday.

It has been a while since I last did a Friday Beers post. Which is not to say I haven’t been partaking of the tradition. Indeed this past Friday I was indulging in a few beverages with my best drinking buddy Cam, and with one Robert Heyns, of League of Beers fame. It was the perfect Friday Beers session – in by four, out by six(ish), a few snacks to soak up the pints and a lot of laughs – those great big belly laughs that keep you smiling for a few hours afterwards. The venue was one of my favourite Friday Beers spots: Jack Black Brewing Co in the southern suburbs of Cape Town.

Now there are a couple of reasons it’s one of my favourites. The fact that it’s less than a kilometre from my house certainly plays a pivotal role. I also love that it’s become a real locals’ spot, capturing the folks that live in the surrounds and converting them to craft beer rather than relying of craft’s typical audience. It kind of epitomises what Friday Beers are all about – colleagues popping for two or three post-work pints, families grabbing a beer over dinner while the kids play foosball, locals grabbing a quick pint while they wait for their growlers to be filled, groups of friends shooting the shit, excited to get their weekends started. And best of all, it is happy hour from 4-6pm, with all pints half price. Now if that isn’t a celebration of the joys of Friday, I don’t know what is.

As one of our larger breweries, Jack Black doesn’t tend to have as much variety on tap as places like Aegir and Afro Caribbean, but the core range is solid – I usually start off with a lager or two, maybe switch to Cape Pale Ale and if I’ve had something to eat, I might finish off with a Skeleton Coast (their West Coast style IPA).

There’s often live music on a Friday night

There are seasonals to be found too – Fresh Hop should be making an appearance soon, Lumberjack returns in autumn, Wolves of Winter in, surprisingly, winter and then Jack and the Giant – the annual collab with Johannesburg’s Mad Giant – returns towards the end of the year. And there’s the cherry or grapefruit Super Crush for those who like a bit of fruity sweetness in their beer. Food wise, the menu is inspired by American bar food, with burgers, tacos, deep fried goodness like jalapeno poppers and mozzarella sticks, and what I consider to be some of the best fries in Cape Town.

Perhaps one of the best things about Friday Beers at Jack Black is that you can make a proper night of it. You can partake in the traditional afternoon beverages – and the happy hour deal almost makes that mandatory – but if you want to you could stick around until late. There’s often live local bands on from around 7pm, and the taproom – which seats just under 200 people – can really pump, especially just after payday. Keep an eye on Jack Black’s social media for announcements of weekly events – including mid-week food specials and pub quizzes as well as the Friday beers and bands.

I’ll hopefully see you there soon for a CPA or a pitcher of lager, to toast the arrival of the weekend.