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Cuivré, 2 Rue de Pouilly, Reims, France
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Pub L’Escale, 132 Rue de Vesle, Reims, France
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Le Balto, 22 Rue de Mars, Reims, France
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Le Shed, 49 Rue Gosset, Reims, France
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My god, I have so many more breweries, brewpubs, and great taps to write about from this year’s travels, including from Fresno and Bakersfield in California, plenty more from the San Francisco Bay Area, and some new ones from Edinburgh. But I don’t want to forget about my trip to France back in March. I already wrote about my amazing beer-finding experience in Lille; but I also visited Reims, where I discovered more than just fine bubbly.
The twelfth most populous city in France, Reims is situated on the Vesle River in the Marne department, 80 miles northeast of Paris. Originally founded by the Gauls, it became a major city in the Roman Empire. Reims later became known as the traditional site of the coronation of the kings of France, with the royal anointings performed at its truly impressive Cathedral, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In fact, Reims is often referred to as la cité des sacres or the Coronation City. The styles of the city’s architecture range from Romanesque and Gothic to Art Deco.
Known these days as the heart of the champagne industry, with its first Champagne house being developed in the 18th century, Reims also is known as the location where, in 1945, Germany surrendered to the Allies and the Armistice was signed which ended World War II. It’s also home to an expansive automotive museum, which is a pretty amazing experience for classic car aficionados like myself.
So needless to say, in my short visit I was very busy, including a half-day champagne tour I took down in Epernay, Hautvillers, and Cumières. But naturally I was interested in investigating the local beers as well.
The day I arrived in Reims I’d had a full day of trains, first from Sheffield down to London, then Eurostar to Paris, then a short walk between Gard du Nord and Gare de l’Est, and finally the train to Reims. It was a short walk from the station to my AirB&B, where I met my host and checked in quickly. As it was already evening, I headed straight over to the first place on my beer list, Cuivré. When I walked in, the place at first seemed a bit fancier than I was expecting, and I was worried that I wasn’t dressed appropriately. But when I told the nicely-dressed man behind the bar that I was mostly interested in beer, he brightened up and led me over to the menu of 18 beers posted on the wall. The menu looked very much like your typical British or American brewpub or tap list, so I instantly felt more relaxed, and of course it was then that I noticed there were quite a few people dressed in jeans like I was.
I had originally hoped to find a beer on the menu featuring yuzu, because I’d seen that wonderful Japanese fruit mentioned in some of the Instagram photos of this place. But I settled, quite happily, for a pint of Supersonic Tumbleweed Session NEIPA (5.2% ABV, Brasserie L’Instant, Pontault-Combault, France). And I was impressed, as it was quite a fine example of a NEIPA.
The food menu featured mostly sharing plates, sort of a cross between bistro and street food. So as I was quite hungry I ordered an appetiser of Camembert de Normandie rôti, which was a lovely melted dish of Camembert spiked with dried apricots and walnuts, and of course served with plenty of French bread to dip in it. And after I had some of this, the taste of my pint increased in gorgeousness until I was nearly moaning. It was all quite wonderful, and I was very happy with my first tasting experience in this city. I would love to have tried the Doc-Mosaic by the same brewery; but as it possessed a wallop of 7.5%, and it was already 10pm and dark outside and I’d only just arrived in town, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to find my way back to my accommodation, Google Maps or not.
Other beers that were currently on tap included a couple of Tripels, with one described as an American West Coast version, whatever that might be. There was also a sour, a stout, an Earl Grey Pale, and a West Coast pilsner.
I was hoping to visit this place again on my trip; but as I was only there for three days and there was so much more to see, I didn’t make it.
The next evening, after we returned from my afternoon tour of some of the champagne houses and vineyards in Epernay, I was hungry and didn’t feel like waiting in a huge queue just for a table and a light meal. So I found myself walking up Rue de Mars, which was only an eight-minute walk from my apartment. The street was lined with cafes, restaurants, and bars, but a lot of them had queues outside waiting to get in. When I walked past the Market Brew House, there were crowds outside at the tables, but there weren’t many people inside. So I went in and found a friendly long-haired barman who spoke English well enough to explain the beers to me, and he was also happy to offer me tastes, so I ended up with a pint of Triple Hop IPA (5.2% ABV, Brewpoint, Bedford, Bedfordshire). Checking my phone I quickly learned that “Brewpoint" is actually how the Charles Wells Brewery in Bedford has rebranded itself for the French market, and it currently manages 19 pubs in the country, including in Paris, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Montpellier, Lyon, Lille, La Rochelle and Reims. As I recall, it was always a pretty good brewery. And my pint, hopped with Goldings, Galaxy, and Simcoe, was a surprisingly good IPA, especially considering it was served in a British-themed pub in the very french city of Reims.
The food menu featured two items of interest to a pescatarian like myself. Sadly the fish & chips had just run out, so I went with the Goat Cheese Salad. It was perfectly satisfactory and quite huge, of course, and I could eat only a third of it. And my pleasantly hoppy pint went very nicely with it.
As the Wednesday evening settled in, the place started buzzing with young people, and I noticed there was some sort of French football on the screens. Besides live sports the Market Brew House hosts quiz nights, cocktail nights, bingo, and darts.
The next day, after having a nice breakfast and then visiting the Musée de la Reddition, where I stood completely alone in the room where the Armistice was signed, I still had a full marathon of walking planned for myself on my final afternoon in the city. So to gird my loins I stopped for a quick half pint at L’Escale. This Belgian-style cycle-friendly bar, which specialises in craft and artisanal beer, was dark and quiet when I walked in. The decor seemed very Belgian-inspired, and the 18 beer taps featured Belgian and Trappist beers as well as IPAs and other styles, and there are also around 120 bottled beers. I went for a half pint of Harria NEIPA (6.0% ABV, Gross Brewery, Donostia, Spain). A dry hopped hazy New England IPA with Mosaic, Citra, and Simcoe hops, offering notes of mango, peach and pine, this was a great starter to my afternoon. I sat at a table with a display under the glass top of a wide variety of Belgian beer bottlecaps. (Sorry, have I used the word "Belgian" enough times in one paragraph?) As I sipped I scanned my surroundings. I saw lots of large bottles of Belgian (oops, once again) beer on the far wall, plenty of Trappist posters on the walls, a vintage prop plane hanging from the ceiling, musical curiosities, various quirky memorabilia, and I think I saw the obligatory fusval table in the back room, as well as a door to a back interior courtyard. The music currently playing on the sound system was mostly rock and metal, and then it moved onto Franz Ferdinand, so they definitely had a variety of styles on their playlist.
Apparently L’Escale is considered a craft beer pioneer in the city, offering a wide selection of styles. They also have cocktails and a selection of whiskies, rums, and gins--and champagne, of course.
Later on that afternoon, after walking way out to the Musée Automobile Reims Champagne and rhapsodising admidst their vast collection of over 250 cars, I ended up back at Rue de Mars where I still had an hour before my next destination would open. The pavement tables outside the cafes and bars were all occupied with people enjoying the warm day. But as I’d already walked five miles in my brand new Fly London boots, with one pinky toe quite sore and another two miles ahead of me before the end of the day, I badly needed a rest and another half pint. Peeking inside Le Balto I spotted the bar, and I always like sitting at bars, so that seemed good enough for me. The only available stool had someone's bag on it; but fortunately the man sitting next to it offered to move it for me.
Looking at the taps, there were five options for beers, including Goose Island IPA and a red Belgian beer. I asked the barmaid about the beer on the end of the taps, and after strugglig a bit to answer me, she was quickly relieved by a woman who seemed to be in charge and who told me the brewer of the beer was located only 123 miles across the border from Reims. So I decided to go for a half of that: Saint Basle (6.8% ABV, Brasserie St-Feullien, Le Roueulx, Belgium). It was a full-flavoured Belgian blonde with a slightly sweet introduction, but I became used to the sweetness immediately. I was too busy enjoying the French banter at the bar to have any objections at all to my beer. And I could easily have had another half, or perhaps even a glass of wine or a cocktail, because I really was enjoying this place. And then, when I heard the barmaid open a bottle of champagne with that distinctive “‘mmPOPP!" I felt foolish for not having had a glass of champagne instead. Oh well, I did have plenty of champagne the day before, so I would sit and enjoy my Belgian blonde beer without any guilt whatsoever.
I really enjoyed this bar: it seemed very friendly, with plenty of regulars, and of course it was very dog-friendly, which always pleases me.
From Rue de Mars, after having walked 6.5 miles all over the city, I continued on to my final beer stop of my visit, Senses Brewing Company. Nighttime had fallen as I entered a rather suburban area that reminded me a bit of suburban Southern California. Fortunately my map app directed me to a small business park where I found the brewery’s tap, Le Shed, with the tall brewing vats visible at the end of the park. As I entered the tap, the large front room was jangling noisily with the romping and cavorting of a group of giggling little girls, so I made a beeline to the back bar to order. I immediately went for a pint of JAH (6.0% ABV, Senses Brewing, Reims, France), a hazy NEIPA with a good dose of nice hops. I took my pint to a table in a far corner. Perusing my two non-meat choices on the day’s food menu, instead of the falafel veggie burger I mistakenly went for the fish and chips, which were surprisingly atrocious. But hey, this was a brewery tap, not a gastropub. Oh, well. As I nibbled my food, savoured my decent pint, and enjoyed my little corner of peace, I took a couple of discreet shots of my tiny feline travelling companion, Plastic Doug, standing proudly next to my pint. As I looked around the room I noticed a very long and fascinating list of beers on the side wall, all created by Senses Brewing. I could have easily talked myself into a second experimental (and undoubtedly stronger) pint; but sadly I had a long walk back through the lonely suburban streets to my apartment in Old Town, with my sore pinky toes, so I wanted to remain sober enough to handle it.
Senses Brewing was originally founded in 2017 by Yves Lebœuf, who worked as a brewer at Brasserie BFM in Switzerland, and at Brasserie Chouffe and the Brussels Beer Project in Belgium, and he also learned a trick or two from his oenologist father. The beers are matched to the senses, with the recipes inspired by American pale ales and NEIPAS, but using methods similar to those that produce classic European beers like Hefeweizen and Gose. The microbrewery relocated to Reims in 2019 where it opened its adjoining taproom.
The next day I bid farewell to Reims, at least for now, and headed off to my next destination. I was happy to find that this city, famous for its champagne houses, is also producing some decent beers.
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PUB UPDATES:
- BLAKE HOTEL, SHEFFIELD: On a recent Tuesday afternoon I stopped in and had a pint of Shakuru (4.4% ABV, Neepsend Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire). Hopped with Simcoe, Citra, and Chinook hops, this was a nicely bitter and well-kept cask ale. I was feeling a bit bored this afternoon, even though other customers, a couple whom I knew, were buzzing around. I just didn’t feel like forcing myself into any of the little social conversations.
- OLD SHOE, SHEFFIELD: I stopped in here after work one day by myself, because I wanted a bit of a change from my local pubs, and none of my friends are really available these days to meet up for a pint. So I shall please myself. I had a pint of a beer I’d had a couple of years ago, also while I was by myself: Existence as a Radical Act Pale Ale (4.0% ABV, Queer Brewing, London). And once again this was a most pleasantly hoppy and wonderfully named pint.
- THE HALLAMSHIRE, SHEFFIELD: Recently, on a sleepy Monday afternoon, I had a pint of Hay Z Hazy Pale (5.5% ABV, Bianca Road Brew Co, London). Hopped with Citra, Ekuanot, and Azacca Dry Hops, this hazy New England style pale is described as offering “a biscuity malt profile followed by a citrus and grapefruit aroma". It was quite a good quaff, if a bit strong for me while sitting in the pub with the walk home still to confront. But I managed to have an interesting conversation with Rich and Ken about computer programming and logic puzzles.
A few days later I stopped in and went for a pint of Razzmatazz (4.0% ABV, Bianca Road). Another beer from the same brewery, this is a raspberry sour which is quite well-balanced as far as raspberry and sourness is concerned. It was a good ending for a day spent going to the dentist and getting a flu jab. In other words, it added a bit of pizzazz to a mundane task-orientated day. Or perhaps a bit of razzmatazzy pizzazz, I should say. I suppose I should have ended the day having pizza and a glass of zzinfandel shirazz, finally ending up snuggled in bed copping some good zzzzs.
- WALKLEY BEER COMPANY, SHEFFIELD: On a quiet Sunday afternoon I stopped in to have a pre-Cousin-Zoom pint. As autumn is crashing down upon us with much cooler air, even though the skies are still quite bright, I decided it was time for a decent porter--and there it was: Amarillo Porter (4.6% ABV, Redwillow Brewery, Macclesfield, Cheshire). And ooh-mmm-yes, this is the kind of porter I like: nice and dry without becoming tired, and with the addition of a quite wonderful hops as well. Yes, just what the doctor ordered. And what a gorgeous head, too.
On a later visit I had a pint of Party Wave (4.5% ABV, Howling Hops Brewing, Hackney Wick, Greater London). This is a West Coast Pale that the brewery is calling a Westie. Since I have a couple of canine cousins who happen to be West Highland terriers, and I used to have a Scottie myself, I like the definite Ruff! character of the wonderfully bitter hops--but I can’t find anything about what particular hops are used. Perhaps Simcollie, Spaniamarillo, Pekeanot, and Chihuazacca, dry hopped with El Doradog? Anyway, my pint was nice and clear and quite amber in colour, so it was being a very good little doggie.
- TWO SHEDS, SHEFFIELD: Recently I had a pint of Stratus (4.7% ABV, Triple Point Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire), hopped with Cryo El Dorado, Cryo Mosaic, and Nectaron hops, oats, wheat, and Maris Otter malt. What can I say? Peachy keen with citrus, and an indefinable tropical fruit that I get as well. This is definitely a nice change from the usual hops profile.
Another time I stopped in and had a pint of Sun Drift (4.6% ABV, Vocation Brewery, Sheffield, South Yorkshire) Brewed with Australian hops Topaz, Ella, and Vic Secret, this is a nice sand-strollingly bitter pale. It was a very crowded Friday after work, but I found a place to sit, across from an older couple, the woman staring wildly at me the entire time. (Was it my hair?)
And yet another time I had a pint of Nazca (4.6% ABV, Triple Point). Hopped with Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, and Harlequin, the taste of this beer was described as citrus, grapefruit, and tropical, and that was pretty damn accurate. For the dull, drab, and suddenly cold day, it was nicely crisp and refreshing.
BOTTLED/CANNED BEER UPDATE:
- Sheaf NEIPA (6.2%% ABV, Triple Point Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, collaborating with Sheaf & Porter Rivers Trust).The can was covered with completely illegible writing, but at least it had some nice colours. After taking a photo, which I zoomed way up and increased the contrast, I finally managed to decipher what it said. Apparently the brewery’s mission is to conserve and improve Sheffield’s urban rivers, the Sheaf and the Porter Brook, by restoring the biodiversity, reducing flood risk, and creating public pathways for walkers and cycling along the riverbanks. And 5p from every can or pint sold of this beer will be donated to the trust.
But what about the beer inside? A Hazy IPA hopped with Citra, Galaxy, Krush, Riwaka, and Simcoe, it’s described simply as “mega hoppy and decadent". So that sounds good to me. And the taste of the beer? I’m getting to understand what Krush hops tastes like. The beer to me is tropically fruity, and I’m getting guava, passionfruit, loquat, pineapple, and lime. It’s zingy and makes me think of a good sprinkling of course-ground black pepper on the tongue.
- Hobbamock NEIPA (6.0% ABV, Neepsend Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire). Opening this can, I was really excited about the Citra, Idaho 7, and Strata hops, and also the Lupomax Mosaic hops. I mean, I always get really excited about anything “Lupo". Housed in a very basic orange and brown can, this beer is just a good, clearly hoppy tasting brew, good for calming me after work, calming me after a murder just down the hill, calming my soul in this sort of really screwed up and violent world. This is a nonviolent beer, with an exciting but natural taste.
- Hopstravaganza Hazy IPA (5.5% ABV, The White Hag Irish Brewing Company, Ballymore County Sligo, Ireland). Apparently this is a birthday beer collaboration with Yakima Chief. Hopped with Columbus, Citra, Dynaboost, Riwaka, Motueka Cryo, and Krush Hyperboost hops, and also lime zest, passionfruit, melon, and Minch malt, this is a classy hopmonster! I'm thinking honeydew with lime zest, which is definitely quite classy. I feel like I should slip into a slinky black dress and say “Dahlink!" a few times as I sip this out of a stemmed glass.
- Easy Answers IPA (6.0% ABV, Burning Sky Beer, Firle, East Sussex). This pleasant brew is hopped with Simcoe and Mosaic, and then some Centennial Hyperboost added during fermentation. The can, which features a Buddha-like young woman wearing a blissful smile while she thinks, promises that "Easy answers will come easy." Yep, this is a zippily icy hops massage on the tongue, very therapeutic after a very productive day at work. I suppose it's the yellow and green colour scheme on the can that particularly appeals to me. So both the can and the beer are calming, zippily calming...
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