Alpirsbacher Klosterbier, Alpirsbach, Germany at Paris’s le Pantalon
Date: Sept. 17 , 2018
The Story– We’ve been to Europe dozens of times and we’ve seen most of the major sights. Good thing, since researching our next book brings us near, but never to, great art and beautiful parks. On a hot July day this summer while thousands of Parisians and tourists alike fanned out into the expansive and cool Luxembourg Gardens, we trod the back streets of the neighborhood looking for a good bar to recommend.
Bingo. Finding a place like Le Pantalon makes all the times we’ve come up empty worthwhile. To be clear, it’s a dive. But it’s a wonderful dive with character and soul to go along with the beaten-up furniture. You won’t find many tourists here, but those who are there are the ones you want to meet. It’s not a beer specialty bar by a long shot, but it’s a cool place where you can find a decent beer, and we can assure you that if you’re looking for a place near Luxembourg Gardens, you can’t do better.
Alpirsbacher Klosterbier was one of a handful of OK choices on tap, and was a happy hour special. A half liter was under four bucks! — $7.20 a liter, which is cheaper than you can find it in Germany. It was the best beer bargain we’ve found in weeks of Parisian searching.
The Beer– It’s a long way from Alpirsbach to a Belgian abbey and if you can find any similarity to any kind of Trappist, you’re more discerning than I am. It’s sweet with a breath of honeysuckle and Juicy Fruit that is not uncommon in German lagers and pilsners. There are just enough hops to clean it up into the finish. Kronenburg drinkers who want to adventure into monk-made beer will love this, but this isn’t a “sip and ponder” beer. But never mind the abbey, it’s a good clean, refreshing, slightly dangerous session lager.
Value — Excellent!! It’s hard to get a shot glass of beer for four bucks in Paris.
ALL THIS WEEK– HIGHLIGHTS OF EUROPE 2018– Surprisingly good beer in “bad beer cities.” Prizes and surprises that we’ve found in researching our next book – a guide to great beer in European tourist cities, which we plan on publishing in 2019.
About these posts: We taste and evaluate over a thousand beers every year. The beers posted here rank in the top quarter of those tastings. Values: “fair” is a good beer at an above market price, “good” is worth the money, “very good” is a bargain, and “excellent” is a steal.
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