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GTG Extra! : Brussels Countdown
A Special Daily Supplement from The Grey Town Gazette |
Seven Days : Seven Beers : Seven Reasons to Live
Mon 30th Aug 2010
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T minus 1
and counting...
Final Bulletin!
Tomorrow: 1st leg
Amsterdam!
Wish you were there?![Heaven's Door](http://ih.constantcontact.com/fs026/1102437387163/img/88.jpg?a=1103645469525) |
Its that time of year again: the time when the devout don their drinking boots, pack their beer resistant clothing, dig out last year's surplus bottle tops*, pick up some bulk packs of aspirin and head off on the annual pilgrimage to the Brussels Beer Weekend.
Organized by the internationally renowned WorldDrinkingTour.com the trip - like any worthwhile challenge - is sometimes arduous, often hazy, but always a fulfilling experience allowing true aficionados to connect with their beer induced spiritual side.
The GTG is keen to support cultural events and our reporters will be there on the ground, reporting from the frontline.
Countdown Reviews
To help those of you who are making the trip get in the mood and as a general celebration of the event, we're publishing a special series of 7 daily bulletins featuring reviews of our favourite beverages and bars. Who knows, perhaps we might also entice those who aren't joining us this time to make the effort next year!
But it's not just about Belgium. All serious athletes know it's essential to follow a disciplined and balanced training regime ahead of major events and so this year's programme includes expert designed warm up excursions to Amsterdam and Antwerp.
The Beer Weekend itself starts Friday 3rd September.
We can't possibly cover all of the worthy beverages in seven bulletins, but we hope these little tasters help wet the appetite and get the heart pounding.
Cheers!
Ed.
* those in the know, know... those who don't, need to find out! |
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Beverage of the Day
It'll end your day, whatever the time
Process Control
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Vital Statistics
Purveyor: Floris Bar (numerous brands)
Style: Spirit
Strength: The purple one broke our Geiger counter
AI Value:* 25
Killer App: Brings out the Bohemian in you.
Medicinal Qualities: Makes your hair stand on end, then fall out
Tasting notes: Sudden Impact
Grey Scale Rating:** Platinum
* AI, or Alcoholic Index is a key parameter in the temporal equation defining (perceived) Drink Time. Ref. Alcohol Induced Time Dilation Effect, 'Quantum Qorner' GTG Dec 2009
** The official GTG product review Grey Scale ratings:
Coal (pants) Charcoal (bearable) Gravel (average) Ash (good) Platinum (ace) |
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Brew Basics
Absinthe is a fearsomely strong anise-flavoured distilled spirit. Anything up to 80% ABV, it's normally diluted to suit the drinker's taste, sometimes with sugar, or in the case of certain Czech varieties set on fire, and interesting contraptions are available for punters to practice these enjoyable rituals.
What's so special?
Strength. Reputation. Ritual. Nicknamed the 'Green Fairy' on account of its traditional (though not exclusively) green colour and no doubt hinting at its effect on the mind, Absinthe has long been associated with the bohemian excesses of late 19th and early 20th century poets, philosophers, writers and assorted brain-addled nutters, with 'wormwood' in particular being fingered by folklore as the 'poisonous' ingredient. Whether true or not, these concerns led to the drink being banned in many countries for much of the 20th century until the 1990s when it was again legalized throughout Europe and the drink can now be enjoyed by anyone who has first drunk enough beer to get them past the aniseed flavour.
Footnote: Floris Bar
If you would like to try this beverage in some or all of its ritualistic glory then the previously mentioned Floris Bar is a good place to start. You won't run out of options and should you tire of absinthe they have dozens of alternative spirits with which to dilute your brain.
Floris Bar, Impasse de la Fidelite 12, 1000 Brussels |
Watering Hole
A great place to enjoy..well..drinking!
Small but perfectly formed![Small but perfectly formed](http://ih.constantcontact.com/fs026/1102437387163/img/105.jpg?a=1103645469525) | Cafe Belgique
We've recommended a number of bars with English and Flemish names in Brussels, so we thought it was time to suggest one with a French-Belgian name in Amsterdam.
Cafe Belgique can best be described as small but perfectly formed. The establishment consists of a single small room. A tiny staircase leads up to the toilets - a facility that some punters have been known to confuse for overnight accommodation. Its easily done.
In fact it's a place where you can't help but rub shoulders with the other customers. Before visiting for the first time your reviewer was advised by SkippyTheLizard ( www.WorldDrinkingTour.com) that we would end up talking to someone from a random part of the world. As it panned out, after one or two Westmalle Triples and perhaps a Rochefort 10 we had an interesting conversation with a chap we'd just met about how Britain and America had helped with the redevelopment of downtown Cologne, and our new German friend didn't seem at all fazed by this.
The bar stocks a good selection of bottled and draft beers and you don't have to walk very far to order them.
Cafe Belgique, Gravenstraat 2, 1012NM Amsterdam |
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Small print:
Copyright August 2010 The Ministry of Light.
All Rights Reserved etc.
The Grey Town Gazette is published by The Ministry of Light, a division of Borg International Ltd, London.
Disclaimer:
The Grey Town Gazette is published in good faith. The accuracy of the stories is questionable and is certainly not guaranteed. If you think any are true we respectfully suggest you consider therapy. Any reference to persons living or dead is unintentional and purely coincidental.
Product and venue reviews are purely subjective and reflect the views of the reviewer(s). Product and supplier details are based on published sources and not guaranteed to be correct.
The Ministry of Light - Croydon's Leading Think Tank |
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