Beer in Taiwan? Jolly Good

You know, a lot of people say to me, “Charlie.” I say, “Hello!” They say, “Charlie, you’re from Britain.” I say, “How can you tell?” They say, “No, but would you just listen for a minute?” I say, "Okay, sorry.” They say, “Charlie, you’re from Britain. But you live in Taiwan. Is there anything that you miss?”

And upon reflection, in the end I have concluded two things -- two particular items that I do miss from not living in my native land. One is the hard-pastry-encased cholesterol bomb which in my country goes by the name of the pork pie.

And the other? Well, in honesty, it’s the beer. Now I know my countrymen are often accused of only liking beer which is warm and flat -- and it’s a half truth. What we British truly appreciate in our beer is variety. We like rich oaky ales, we like creamy bitters, we like burnt chocolatey stouts. And we like lagers as well – why not?

But unfortunately for us Brits, in Taiwan variety is a little thin on the ground. It’s hard to find beers which don’t fall into the category of yellow and fizzy. The country’s home brew is Taiwan beer, whose best quality is that it’s inexpensive. Then there are the Japanese brands, Asahi and Kirin. The Americans have a presence with Budweiser, Miller and Busch. Singapore chips in with its Tiger beer. And then generic European brands like Heineken and Carlsberg are also widely available. All of them are drinkable. But – and feel free to disagree with me – none of them are special. They’re all pretty similar. And overpriced.

Now I admittedly am no great lover of lagers, but I would wager that a true lager lover would be disappointed to find that a bar’s beer list consisted only of half a dozen of the beers I have just mentioned. So what am I saying? Is Taiwan beer purgatory? Well, not necessarily. Like any wily ex-pat, I’ve found that you just have to know where to look. A pub close to my home is run by an Englishman from my home town. He serves an excellent pint of Abbot Ale – and even better, also shows cricket by satellite.

Moreover I was delighted to discover recently a fairly new bar in Taipei called Jolly. A microbrewery no less, which makes about half a dozen of its own in-house beers, from a pale ale to a wheat beer to a stout. And I was keen to sample all of them.

Charlie: Okay, we’re going to go light to dark. I’m going to start off with Jolly’s very own Pilsner beer, which it describes as having ‘a full and attractive aroma’ – smells clean, certainly – it says ‘its taste is… evident! When you drink it it has a smooth feel with no bitterness.’ Let’s have a go. Trish wants to try it as well. What did you think, Trish? Was its flavour ‘evident?’
Trish: It’s very bitter.
Charlie: No, it says here it’s not bitter.
Trish: Very bitter.
Charlie: Well, I think you’re wrong.
Trish: I don’t think so!
Charlie: Well, that’s what it says here. Okay, well now moving on to the next lightest in the range, which is the Weizen – the wheat beer. And this is described as having a ‘slightly sour, slightly sweet taste. It’s greatly loved by the ladies’ (apparently) ‘and appreciated by those who do not usually drink beer.’ Well since it’s said that, I’m going to pass this over to our lady companions who don’t usually drink beer and get their opinions. Have a taste of that and see what you think.
(Trish pulls a yuck face which you can’t really convey on radio. Nadiyah?)
Nadiyah: No, it definitely made me pull a face (as well). It’s not as smooth as I usually like beer to be.
Charlie: So it seems the Weizen doesn’t get the thumbs up from the ladies after all, well never mind.

My Taiwanese friend Posan lived for a time in Britain – in Newcastle upon Tyne, a city well known for its enjoyment of potent potables. The area is home to some of the country’s best-known breweries – Newcastle, Federation, and the late-lamented Vaux among them. So a voyage of discovery for any young man.

Charlie: So Posan, you quite like your beer, don’t you?
Posan: My bear?
Charlie: No, not your bear, beer!
Posan: Beer.
Charlie: You like to drink beer. I believe.
Posan: Yeah, I like beer. Yep. I like all kinds of beer. I like to try the beer from everywhere.

Charlie: Now of course you studied in the United Kingdom, in my home country and in fact you studied in Newcastle… did you know beforehand that that’s an area well known for its beers?
Posan: Yes, Newcastle Brown I know. You told me it’s like the ticket to the space, yes? Journey into space!

Ah yes, Newcastle Brown Ale, the great export of the Northeast of England. Known locally by its nickname, Journey Into Space – which if you’ve ever tried Newcastle Brown Ale, should be self-explanatory. In truth, I find it’s more like a journey into space on the Apollo 13. It’s not too long into the mission before you’re saying, “Houston, we have a problem.”

Now, while I was bemoaning the preponderance of lagers in the Taiwan market, there’s actually a historical reason for that, as Posan explained.

Posan: Taiwan was the colony of Japan, so we got all the technology from Japan. And Japanese beer is very close to the beer from Germany. They adopted the brewing skills from the German guys.
Charlie: So that would be similar to how it was in China with the Qingdao brewery – the Chinese got their brewing from the Germans as well.
Posan: Yes, the Germans occupied Qingdao before.

So while we can at least thank the Germans that we have beer here at all, it's interesting that in the modern battle for beer in the East it's actually the Belgians mounting the largest offensive. Who'd have thought? Whether fortuitously or by a good marketing campaign, I am not sure, but Belgian beer has found a profitable niche in Taipei in recent years. I can count at least four or five cafes to my knowledge which specialize purely in beers from Belgium. In one I’ve been working through the menu for some time – and I’m only just starting to make inroads. My favorites are the Trappist beers. They’re made by monks for whom brewing beer goes hand in hand with their spiritual vocation. Or maybe it is their spiritual vocation. Either way, their devotion is felt, with each transcendent drop a truly uplifting experience. Chimay Red is simply chocolate in a glass. Back to the beer tasting now. But things were getting a little fuzzy at this point.

Charlie: My powers of description seem to, er, be on the wane the more I drink.. well, near the end of our beer testing. Scotch ale. Hmm. Strong. Quite nice. Smells like… never mind. Finally the stout – chocolate, caramel, sweet flavour. Slightly bitter taste of… roast malt but perflectly balanced. I like stouts. Yes. Nice. Can taste… sweet, bitter at the same time! Delicious! Yes!

So, in conclusion, Taipei too can be a haven for the beer enthusiast. Unpromising on the surface perhaps, but dig a little deeper and it willingly yields up a feast of treasures from the global brewing industry. I’m now off for a pint of Abbot and to watch England lose to India in the cricket. So until next time, I’m a nicely mellow Charlie Storrar, the Occidental Tourist.

The Occidental Tourist originally broadcast on RTI on Sunday 12th August 2007. Hear more programs at english.rti.org.tw