Celebrate the Tour de France with French Beers

Our celebration of French beer continues! Many people don't realize that France has a very long brewing tradition, notably in the northern part of the country where the climate is too cold to grow grapes. Nowadays, beer is brewed anywhere that raw ingredients can be shipped so breweries have popped up all over France. Join us on Thursday and Sunday as we explore some of these breweries.

What:  Bières Françaises and French Disco
Where:  Brouwerij Lane, 78 Greenpoint Avenue, Brooklyn
When:  Thursday, 24 July, from 6pm onwards

DJ Jim "Bock Monsieur" Barnes will be spinning the disco tunes while the following beers will be on draft for your sipping pleasure:

• Page 24 Barrel-Aged Brune - unique roasty brown bière de garde from the north of France aged in Burgundy barrels
• Bretagne Celtika - earthy Belgian-style tripel from Brittany
• Bourganel Miel de Châtaigner - lager brewed with chestnut flower honey from the Ardèche

What:  Tour de France Finish Party

Where:  Mission Dolores, 249 4th Avenue, Brooklyn

When:  Sunday, 27 July, 2-6pm

Celebrate the winner of the Tour de France (care to make a bet on Nibali?) with French beers on Sunday. DJ Jim "Bock Monsieur" Barnes will also be dj'ing and we won't be taking any bets as to whether or not he'll play "Tour de France" by Kraftwerk.

• Page 24 Barrel-Aged Brune - unique roasty brown bière de garde from the north of France aged in Burgundy barrels
• Page 24 Réserve Hildegarde Blonde - modern blonde bière de garde with balancing hops in the finish
• Castelain Ch'ti Blonde - traditional, malt-forward bière de garde
• Bretagne Dremmwel Rousse - amber ale influenced by British brewing traditions as Brittany has a close affinity to the Celts

Belgium2Brooklyn and Christmas Beers

There are plenty of opportunities to drink an amazing array of beers this weekend.

Saturday and Sunday, 7-8 December, starting at noon on both days is the 8th Annual Belgium2Brooklyn at Mugs Ale House in Williamsburg. This festival, featuring Belgian-brewed and Belgian-style brews will be featuring some exclusive beers from our portfolio, some of which are having their New York debut.

Each day will feature a different list of beers and here are some of the highlights:

Saturday

courtesy of Bill Coleman

• Dieu du Ciel! Isseki Nicho - imperial dark saison from Québec
• Het Nest Oak-Aged Klevertien - quadrupel with anise (only keg in NYC!)

Sunday

• Ægir Julebrygg - winter warmer from Norway, judiciously spiced with juniper and ginger
• Het Nest Dead Man's Hand - bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout (only keg in NYC!)
• Jandrain-Jandrenouille VI Wheat - saison (only keg in NYC!)
• Sainte-Hélène Gypsy Rose - Belgian strong ale (only keg in NYC!)
• To Øl Snowball Saison - refreshing saison from Denmark

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Also on Saturday, Brouwerij Lane in Greenpoint will be featuring some of our Christmas beers and Jim "Bocky" Barnes will be spinning the festive tunes from 12-5pm.

• The Monarchy Happy Christmas from Aachen - Germany's The Monarchy brewed up a series of holiday beers that are like German Christmas cakes in a keg. Each one features the Christmas flavors of a different city. This version is made with gingerbread spices like the Aachen Printen cookies
• The Monarchy Happy Christmas from Dresden - the second in the holiday series. This version is brewed with candied orange and lemon peels and raisins liek the world-famous Dresdener Christstollen
• Ægir Julebrygg - winter warmer from Norway, judiciously spiced with juniper and ginger

Brewery Launch & Meet the Brewer - Pays Flamand

Please join us in welcoming French brewery Brasserie du Pays Flamand to New York this Thursday at Brouwerij Lane. We'll have 2 of their beers on tap plus brewer Mathieu Lesenne will be there to talk about the brewery, the beers, and the seemingly oxymoronic name of the brewery which means "Flemish Land" in French. In addition, DJ Jim "Bocky" Barnes will be spinning the tunes for this Soirée Francophone.

When:  Thursday, 24 October, 5pm onwards

Where:  Brouwerij Lane, 78 Greenpoint Avenue, Brooklyn

What:  pay-as-you-go

Les bières:

• Pays Flamand Anosteké - a hoppy blonde bière de garde brewed with local hops. The name is a phonetic spelling of a phrase in the local dialect meaning "see you next time".
• Pays Flamand/Nøgne Ø Protøtype - Norwegian brewer Kjetil Jukiun of Nøgne Ø swung through the north of France recently and brewed a few collaboration beers. This one is a porter brewed with juniper berries that Kjetil brought with him from Norway.
• Page 24/Nøgne Ø Rhub'IPA- another collaboration, this time with French neighbors Brasserie St. Germain who are fellow hop lovers. An IPA brewed with local rhubarb. Hoppy and tart.
• Trou du Diable Dubaï Pillée - not French but French-Canadian. A double IPA from Shawinigan, Quebec.

French Beer and the Tour de France

With this heat, does your workout consist of sitting in front of the tv and watching the riders in the Tour de France sweat for you? Then you deserve a cold beer! And why not make it a French beer?

When:  Thursday, 18 July, 6-10 pm
Where:  Brouwerij Lane, 78 Greenpoint Avenue, Brooklyn

Join Jim "Bocky" Barnes for another one of his installments of Soirées Disco. Starting at 6pm, he'll be spinning his selection of cosmic French disco and Brouwerij Lane will be pouring 4 French beers on draft.

Les bières:

• Ch'ti Blonde - a traditional bière de garde from the family-run Castelain brewery
• Ch'ti Triple - not a Belgian-style tripel but rather a stronger, maltier bière de garde
• Mont Blanc La Blonde - brewed with water from the Mont Blanc glacier, this blonde ale is delicately spiced with coriander and liquorice. Sorry, cold glacial water not available by the bucket
• Thiriez Blonde - earthy, hoppy farmhouse ale from the tiny Thiriez brewery in the north of France

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Rather stay in Manhattan? Jump on your bike and make your way to The Cannibal for their Tour de France Soirée. They'll be showing the re-broadcast of the day's stage on their flat screen tv and, after watching the 2 Alpe d'Huez climbs, you'll definitely need a beer. Free bike parking available in their back garden. 

When:  Thursday, 18 July, 7pm onwards

Where:  The Cannibal, 113 E. 29th Street

Les bières:

• Bretagne Celtika - a Belgian-style tripel with notes of fruit and spice and a hint of acidity
• Ch'ti Ambrée - amber bière de garde

French Disco Party - Brouwerij Lane

On Thursday night, 7 February, Jim "Bocky" Barnes will be spinning the tunes from 7-10 pm while the taps flow with beer from the French Craft Brewers at Brouwerij Lane - 78 Greenpoint Avenue, Brooklyn.


The drafts:

• Bretagne Celtika - Belgian-style tripel
• Bourganel Bière aux Marrons - chestnut beer
• Castelain Maltesse - strong golden ale
• Mont Blanc La Rousse - amber ale with hibiscus and elderberry
• St. Germain/Page 24 Brune - roasty brown bière de garde, limited draft-only beer

Enjoy une bière at the bar or grab some growlers to go if Daft Punk is playing at your house.

Brett Weekend - Brouwerij Lane

This weekend, 25-27 January, Brouwerij Lane is celebrating funky beers fermented with our wild yeast friend, Brettanomyces.  They'll have 6 kegs pouring including the following:



Jolly Pumpkin Oro de Calabaza - an 8% strong golden ale. Spicy and peppery with a gentle hop bouquet. Like all Jolly Pumpkin beers, this one is aged in wood barrels. Rated the #1 Belgian Golden Ale by The New York Times.

To Øl Sans Frontière - from Denmark, the "Two Beers" brewery have created a "tart, picturesque and rural beer". This is a dry-hopped Belgian ale, refermented with brettanomyces.

Freigeist Brettokolong - this is an unfiltered kölsch beer from Cologne, Germany. This version was fermented with ale yeast and refermented with brett which accentuates the lemon and citrus notes.












Brouwerij Lane is located at 78 Greenpoint Avenue in Brooklyn.

Oktoberfest at Jimmy's No. 43 & Brouwerij Lane

It's midway through Oktoberfest which means that it's time to break out some Franconian gravity kegs! If you've ever been to Bamberg or any northern Bavarian village, then you're familiar with these naturally carbonated kegs that sit on top of the bar, dispensed with the help of that mysterious friend - gravity. Many of these beers are only poured in the town of the local brewery but, thanks to Klosterbrauerei Weissenohe's Urban Winkler, we bring a varied selection to the US each year. A limited amount just arrived in NYC and they're starting to appear a local bars beginning this weekend.

When:  Friday, 5 October - Sunday, 7 October
Where:  Jimmy's No. 43, 43 E. 7th Street
What:  pay-as-you-go

All weekend long, Jimmy's No. 43 will be pouring Franconian gravity kegs. They'll be tapping 2 kegs at a time over the weekend. Drop by for a few mugs or stay for the special $20 dinner:  3 wurst, German potato salad, and 2 mugs of gravity keg beer.

The list: 

• Mahr's Ungespundet
• Mahr's Unfiltered Pils
• Mahr's Hell
• Bayer Theinheim Landbier
• Niklbrau Michala Kellerbier
• Weissenohe Unfiltered Pils  
• Weissenohe Altfrankisch Kloster
• Weissenohe Monk's Fest
• Weissenohe Classic Bioland
• Lowenbrau Buttenheim Keller  
• Aufsesser Festbier
• Kraus  Hirschentrunk
• Sauer Rossdorfer Urbräu

When:  Saturday, 6 October 12-10 pm
Where:  Brouwerij Lane, 78 Greenpoint Avenue, Brooklyn
What:  pay-as-you-go

Brouwerij Lane will be pouring kegs of Mahr's Hell and Bayer Theinheim Landbier at their day-long Oktoberfest celebration. And Jim Barnes, aka Bocky, from Pretty Things will be spinning the tunes. All day. Expect some polka, schlager, Heino, krautrock, Weimar cabaret, and more. But no Falco. 'Cause he's Austrian.



What are Franconian gravity kegs? Check out Brother Daniel as he bikes through the Franconian countryside with Ray Deter: