WEEK 128---MORE than just a "BEER FESTIVAL"

Less than a month to go---by 5th May, the city of Copenhagen will see thousands of geeks descending from different corners of the world--all for one common reason--the Mikkeller Beer Week, which is kinda like the extended version of the 2 days beer festival--Mikkeller Beer Celebration Copenhagen or MBCC2018. 

下个月5号开始，哥本哈根将引来一批又一批从世界各地飞来积聚的啤迷们。

无他，大家都只冲着一件事情，毋庸置疑的Craft Beer界年度盛事，哥本哈根啤酒庆典（Mikkeller Beer Celebration Copenhagen简称MBCC2018）而去，除了11-12号两天四个场次的“啤酒节“，从5号开始到13号，这城市好多跟啤酒庆典关联的不同酒吧餐厅将出现各种“占领啤酒泵”，“品酒会”，“美食啤酒配搭”，“瓶子首卖会”等或限量或小型活动等着啤迷参与。

到底是什么样的啤酒庆典每年能吸引那么多不同国家城市啤迷不远千里也要去？不如来看看除了11-12号两天啤酒庆典之外（已知大约一百家不同酿坊参与），今年啤酒周有什么活动阵容等着：-

For the uninitiated, while #MBCC2018 is happening on 11&12 May, the beer celebration is more than just a 2 days fest, in fact it has become a week long(or slightly longer) celebration, this year, from 5th to 13th of May--this city will become the best place to be around for awesome beers/mead/hard cider(plus some food too).

The beer week activities has been announced by the organizer, you can check details of what's coming here:-

mikkeller beer week 2018

Looking at the activities--there's tap takeover--there's smaller tasting session--there's food related pairing dinner--and new releases....there's so much going on--sometimes it could kinda felt like work/or trying to catch on certain schedules :)

Personally speaking, some of these activities would be high on the list of "things to do" during the week:-

 

Tap Takeover

After what Hill farmstead did in 2016 with 29 beers on tap + no less than 14 different bottles on site at Warpigs brewpub---the bar has certainly been raised for a tap takeover during MBW.

This year there will be 2 different tap takeover--both highly anticipated breweries famous/infamous for their black magics on black color brews---on the 9th and 10th, BOTTLE LOGIC and then CYCLE will be showcasing what they've got during tap takeover of their own at Warpigs.

These two will draw in the geeks--so expects to Q-UP early.

占领啤酒泵活动(Tap Takeover)

字面上意思就是把一家酒吧占为己用，啤酒泵上的都是同一酿坊同一品牌的不同类别风格啤酒，可以是一次过上十多款，也可以把所有二三十个啤酒泵都占用。

可以在哥本哈根啤酒周做这样“霸道”活动的酿坊当然不会是等闲之辈，继近年一直被评酒网站票选为世界最佳酿坊的Hillfarmstead前年在Warpigs酿吧做了一次让啤迷疯狂的占领啤酒泵活动後(29款“鲜啤”+14款瓶子），今年会有Cycle和Bottle Logic 这两家以不同风味黑啤为人关注的美国酿坊将在9号10号两天举办各自的占领活动。

Cycle酿坊，在2015年当啤酒庆典还在旧体育馆举行并还是简称为CBC时就已出现在芸芸众多参与酿坊中，当时的“单车”酿坊还没有近年那么备受追捧，也还没登上所谓的世界十强酿坊榜单，不过，过去两三年来，这家酿坊的一些黑啤作品是很多啤迷追逐的瓶子，同样的，另一家近年也受热捧的美国酿坊Bottle Logic算是新贵，因为一款黑啤Fundamental Observation (FO) 而大热，这两家的首次海外“占领啤酒泵”活动可以预见将引来大批啤迷排队捧场。

Tasting Session

If you love sweet & sours---then these two sessions on different days will be perfect.

First up on the 9th is Superstition meadery having a session at Baghaven--**if you are not familiar with mead--the most important thing to remember is that mead is NOT ONLY ABOUT SWEETNESS--it's a lot more complex and tasty than one can imagine it to be.

If you are a sucker for sour beer--particularly Lambic then you won't want to miss out on the session by Bokkereyder at Koelschip on the 10th.

品酒会(Tasting Event)

这是比较小型活动，可以是因为当天可供品尝细味的酒比较小量有限，也可以是酿酒师想在比较小活动空间中跟啤迷有近距离互动/导饮。

今年啤酒周活动中就有一酸一甜(当然不是单一调调那种）品酒会等着，说的是比利时天然发酵果酸啤酒新贵Bokkereyder作坊和顶级美国蜜酒作坊Superstition，这两家也会在9号10号两天不同时间段举办各自活动，可以一次过品味多款或限量或庆典特酿完全不同风味表现顶级佳酿是啤迷非常乐见之事。

*if you're a fan---Jester King is also doing their rounds at both Baghaven and Koelschip on the 9th & 10th.

Food & Pairing activities

As shown in the link above, there will be many restaurants related to the Mikkeller brand doing their rounds of various food related activities--but the most interesting one has got to be Chef Dan Bark of Upstairs@Mikkeller Bangkok popping up at Hyggestund doing a 2 evenings dinner--fresh from winning a 1 star Michelin in Bangkok--it will be interesting to see if Chef Dan serve his entire Bangkok menu or would do a twist on certain dishes/create MBW new dishes...

**for the uninitiated---the Bangkok menu is a 10 course dinner( with 2 desserts)--pairing is only with craft beer/mead or hard cider--NO WINE is served.

美食啤酒搭配(Food & Pairing)

哥本哈根啤酒庆典一直以来都跟食物搭上关系，两天“啤酒节“场内一直有精挑细选合作摊位提供食物，这些年来“米记“品牌也伸向餐饮业拓展，除了原有丹麦开边三文治餐厅，跟美国酿坊Three Floyds合作的酿吧其实也是美式烤肉店，然后还有拉面店，墨西哥玉米饼店，美式早餐店等等。

这次啤酒周，米记旗下所有餐厅都有不同活动，其中最让人瞩目的是将近期得到米其林一星的曼谷米吧楼上餐厅主厨Dan Bark特地请过来做只有8号9号两天的美食啤酒配搭晚餐，不免让人好奇这次身在“客场”厨房的Chef Dan是会将曼谷菜单照搬过去还是说就地取材做些更改或提供新菜色？

Of course there are many other activities not mentioned here--you can check the link above and take your pick. As for those who are familiar with Copenhagen craft beer scene--then perhaps it's even more "challenging" for the week as there's also other non-MBW related bars to visit.

对住在亚洲啤迷朋友来说，当然不是每个人都认同或有时间精力为了一个啤酒周飞那么远去哥本哈根，也或许会有人问说即将在今年九月首次在亚洲亮相的啤酒庆典会不会有哥本哈根版本的啤酒“天堂”周，虽说目前主办单位还没公布东京版本详情，看起来东京版本很可能只有两天“啤酒节”重点活动。无论如何，要是没去哥本哈根体验原版，九月东京版仍将是亚洲前所未见高水平啤酒庆典，是了解什么叫Craft Beer文化的好时机，值得去。

To say that week in particular is the best time to visit Copenhagen for varieties of awesome brew is no exaggeration whatsoever--though the city itself is not lacking in selections of awesome craft beer/mead/hard cider on any other days--this time of the year--the MBW in May will be like beer heaven on earth--if you are willing to fly in from far and wide.

WEEK 127--Let's go TOKYO this SEPTEMBER

And so it's here, the one beer fest i been wishing to one day somehow making it to ASIA is coming to Tokyo this September.

To have a beer fest of level this high coming to ASIA is something i been wishing for and spoken with some closest geeks friends ever since coming back from CBC few years ago, partly due to the fact that craft beer festivals in ASIA are either mostly commercial interest first, or drink all you can so you can fall flat on your face or simply monotonous(yes, there are a few guys in different parts of ASIA working on more crafty festivals aiming at spreading craft culture but nothing come close to MBCC/CBC level), so to have the organizers of one of the world's best craft fest taking it all the way to ASIA is really a big tick off the craft wish list.

终于来了。

备受啤迷推崇关注的哥本哈根啤酒庆典---Mikeller Beer Celebratiin Copenhagen  （简称MBCC）主办方上周正式宣布将会破天荒第一次出现亚洲版本。 

这个全亚洲第一次选择了东京，英文简称MBCT，最后一个字母指的就是Tokyo ，和今年5月11-12哥本哈根版本不同的是，东京选在户外举行，地点是新宿区明治神宫外苑一个棒球场，日期是9月23-24两天。

如果你没去过也没听说过MBCC或比较早期简称CBC的哥本哈根啤酒庆典，以下是一些基本概念：-

Scheduled for 23rd & 24th(a Monday but it's a public holiday in Japan) September, the first ever Asia version of the Copenhagen originated MBCC(Mikkeller Beer Celebration Copenhagen) or CBC(Copenhagen Beer Celebration) when it first started will be held at the rubber ball base ball ground at Meiji Jingu Gaien in Shinjuku area, and since Tokyo is the venue, the ASIA version is naturally being called MBCT.
You can watch the official announcement video here:-

If yo have not been to a CBC/MBCC or don't really know what it's all about, here's some basic ideas:-

1) Limited Supply--First come first serve

TWO days fest---FOUR sessions--no less than few hundreds varieties of beers/mead/hard ciders to choose from--but for any single session it's highly likely that a particular brew has only 1 keg--you want that brew you better go first in line or line up for it--but if that keg is finished--then sorry--there's no more---better luck next time. 

1）有限供应，先到先得，完了就没了

两天，四个不同时段，有好几百款不同品牌类别风格啤酒选择但是每个时段每款很可能只有一桶，要喝只能排队领酒，先到先得，一旦那桶啤酒分完就没了。

2) Your Taster Glass is your pass to get serve

There's NO cash/card transaction needed when it comes to drinking beers/mead/hard cider(except if you are buying food or other things)---to save everyone's time during the fest, tickets are sold ONLINE way in advance.(will come to that in the later part of this post)---your ticket is entitle for a taster glass at the door which is effectively your pass to get serve any and every beers/mead/hard cider out there that you fancy during the fest( provided you follow scenario 1 mentioned above)

2）凭票换杯，杯子就是领酒通行证

啤酒庆典以预购门票方式进行，场内喝酒只需排队伸手递杯子就可，喝酒不需另外给钱找钱浪费大家时间，你唯一需要做的只是每次喝新酒前自己找洗杯机冲冲杯子，再去领酒。

3) Small Pour/Drink Less Taste More

Yes, many would think beer festivals is the perfect setting to get slam/gulping down as many beers one can handle( or in fact cannot handle)---Well, that mentality does not suit a fest like MBCC/MBCT where firstly the taster glass will be a lot more smaller in size than your usual bar pint glasses, secondly the serving size is mostly only half filled or even lesser---this is a fest which encourages drinkers to savour the different flavours of varieties of brew, not gulping. So if you are new to the fest--do not complaint if your glass is only half filled or lesser--this is the norm--most geeks would understand--and you should too.

With few hundreds varieties of brew available, unless you are prepared/wanted to drink til you fall flat face down( really?)--the best way to enjoy and taste so many different styles/types of brew is to drink a lot lesser in volume while trying out as much varieties your alcohol tolerance level/stamina can take in.

3）小杯子小量喝

“啤酒节等同大杯畅饮“的旧思维在这里不适用，这是个鼓励小量啜饮细味品尝的“啤酒节”，如果手上小杯子每次只分到一半或更少，不要惊讶不要质问，这是这个啤酒庆典的文化，啤迷们都知道，你也应该知道。

庆典每天两个不同时段会有至少过百种不同品牌不同类别风格啤酒选择，除非是要拼命喝到趴下（需要吗？有意思？），短短几小时内如何好好品味不同啤酒是关键，少量多尝是自然动作，也因为很多款啤酒只有一桶，参与酿坊每次只给少量是正道。

虽然主办方还没公布太多详情，包括参与酿坊阵容（只说不少过40家美国欧洲亚洲酿坊），购票详情等，不过既然东京版本以哥本哈根庆典为依据，来看看哥本哈根版本什么玩法：-

Though there's not much details as yet pertaining to the line up for  participating breweries( though it's announced that there will be no less than 40), as well ticket pricing and so on, but since MBCT is the ASIA version of MBCC, let's take a look at what the Copenhagen version is all about:-

The Ticket

Into the 7th edition, the Copenhagen fest is still a 2 days event with 4 different sessions--morning 10am to around 2pm and then 3pm to about 7pm another session.

You can choose to go for only 1 single session of RED/BLUE/GREEN/YELLOW ticket(indicating different session) or you could buy the PINK ticket for all 4 sessions.(there's also a VIP ticket option if you so fancy)

All participating breweries/meadery/cider house will be there during the 4 sessions serving mostly different brew for different sessions. As mentioned earlier--beer money is already paid for with that ticket of yours, all you have to do is hold on to your taster glass, go in front of a serving booth, pick up your brew and enjoy, rinse it and go to the next booth---NO cash/card needed UNLESS you are buying coffee/food/t-shirt and/or any other items/services available.

As of now it is understood that TICKET WILL OPEN FOR SALE ONLINE by mid or later part of MAY 2018.(do check their FB/Insta for latest news)

Do take note that there's NO ticket at the door during event day for Copenhagen version.

门票概念

今年的哥本哈根啤酒庆典已进入第七个年头，一样是分两天四个不同时段，早上到下午一场，下午到傍晚另一场，所有参与酿坊在每个不同时段都会提供不同款啤酒/蜜酒，啤迷可选择只买单一时段的红/黄/蓝/青/单场票或全部四个时段都能参与的粉红通行票，票价已包含所去时段全场所有啤酒任喝，在场内除非是喝咖啡买食物或纪念品或瓶子或现场纹身，不然都不需要另外给钱。

据了解，东京版本入门票预计会在五月中/下旬开始接受网上预购。以哥本哈根经验来说，庆典当天不设现场购票，想去的啤迷记得留意MBCT官网最新消息。

What's the FUSS?

There will be no less than 60 breweries/meadery/cider house joining MBCC 2018 in Copenhagen this coming 11-12May, it's true number is not the most important but quality of those coming--and that's exactly the main reason why year after year this fest keep attracting beer geeks from far and wide to travels/fly in just for that particular week/few days---with breweries ranging from the grand masters to the hot and in-trend to the unassuming solid ones--these are the reasons why the fest keep people flying in year after year--in a way, it's also some sort of get-together/reunion date for old and new geeks friends from different places around the globe. 

有什么那么厉害

今年哥本哈根版本至今已宣布参与酿坊不少过60家，数量不是最重要，有什么级别酿坊前来才是重点，这才是每年能吸引世界各地啤迷飞往参与主因，无论是Craft世界里的大师级酿坊或火红新贵或低调高手，应邀的都会出席，这年度盛事也是散布世界不同角落新旧啤迷朋友见面共聚分享交流的机会，那么多同好同处一个空间不是每天都能有的事。

Why Go Tokyo?

Of course if you would choose to go Copenhagen for the whole beer week with 2 days fest in the mix that would be awesome, but if you are not then the first ASIA version in Tokyo should help.

Basing on what Copenhagen has demonstrated over the past 6 years, this fest in Tokyo will certainly be something ASIA has never before seen or experienced---yes, it's true that what happen in Copenhagen might not be 100% applicable here in Asia with differences in culture and so on--but what MBCC represent in terms of breweries line up/the way geeks are participating/the serve small drink less taste more culture would certainly help ASIA craft community/drinkers to move forward hopefully with better understanding and appreciation of craft culture.

and, If you happen to have friends who think beer festivals is just an excuse to get slam/face down--try ask him/her to come along, let them see for themselves first hand how different one of the best craft festivals can be.

为什么要去

以哥本哈根经验来说，这绝对会是亚洲前所未见啤酒庆典，无论是酿坊阵容，啤迷参与方式，鼓励浅尝细味”啤酒节”文化等对新朋友来说会是新体验，如果觉得啤酒节只是个让无聊人拼酒喝死的借口，那就更应该来看看这个当今世上数一数二，备受各地啤迷推崇啤酒庆典会是怎么一回事。

EXTENDED READ:-
mbcc 2016 beer week

small-matters-of-cbc-2015.