2015 IBD Africa Convention
It's been a busy month in Brewmistress land and I've neglected the blog a bit, for which profusely apologise (and would like to say thanks to those of who who still stop by every day regardless). It seems a long time since I attended the IBD's Africa section...
Starting your own beer appreciation club
Once a month or so I meet up with a group of beer geeks and taste a range of tough-to-find brews. It's not like I only see these guys once a month of course, I see them all the time. And our What's App group has exchanged almost 15,000 messages in the past year...
Beer Boot Camp featuring John Palmer
Every year around mid-Feb I roll out some vaguely Valentiney blog post like how to pair beer with chocolate or how to choose a beer that will help you get what you want on Valentine's Day. Well I'm not going to do that this year. Instead I'm going to point you in...
Six South African towns that should have a microbrewery
Over 100 breweries visited, more than 300 beers tasted, around 5000 km driven and close to 70,000 words written. Beer Safari has been a hell of a journey. You'll have to wait until November to read the finished product but for now I thought I'd share some musings...
Restaurant Review: Occidental Grill Bar, Kimberley
Big Hole Complex, Kimberley. Tel: 053 830 4418. Mains R60-115. Bottle of South African craft beer R25-45 If you're doing touristy stuff in Kimberley, then you'll be right next to the Occidental, for this Victorian-themed bar is in the mock-up mining village found...
Beer review: Brewdog 2014 Prototype Series
My beer reviews tend to stick to just one beer but since these four essentially come as a package deal, it makes sense to do a complete roundup. It's that time of year when BrewDog puts out its prototype beers for public appraisal. The most popular makes it into...
10 ways you know you’ve been in SA’s craft beer scene for a while
1. You have a We Love Real Beer pint mug in your cupboard. 2. You remember when KZN had more breweries than any other province. (Note: this was my first ever published piece on the SA beer scene, printed in June 2009, but written and submitted in early 2008) 3. You...
Beer review: Stellenbrau Governor’s Red Lager
Late last year, when beer lovers heard about Red Dawn's patent, which basically attempts to prohibit the use of rooibos or honeybush in a beer (or wine, or cider), they were understandably livid. Not only was it, according to people who know a lot more about patent...
Craft beer and the cold chain
Imagine if you brewed a beer, left it on a shelf for four months and just remembered it now? Imagine if the shelf in question was in a working kitchen, with temperatures rising over 35C? And imagine if said beer was unfiltered and unpasteurised? There are those who...
