Cerevisia Craft Brewhouse / Botanico

Stopped in 2 days in a row on a recent trip. Beers were good and cold, charcuterie board quite tasty. Service was very good.This place is a little oasis in a courtyard tucked in off the street with only a small white sign indicating its presence.Recorded music is all over the map but is mostly all covers,sometimes they have live music on weekends.Decent selection of beers on tap -good IPA, an interesting smoked ale that could pass for an IPA, decent red, decent golden and a few others. One of my favorite spots in PP for the last 2 years.

As is the case whenever I travel to a different country, I make it a mission of mine to seek out the local craft brewery(ies) so as to catch a glimpse into the culture of the place I am visiting. Back in 2013 during my first trip to Cambodia, I made my way to Himawari, so this time, I was looking for something along the same lines (small and delicious) but with a bit more authenticity and local flavor.

Busy with work for the majority of my time in Phnom Penh, it wasn't until Friday night when I was able to slip away, taking a TukTuk down the main boulevard to reach my destination. Looking for "Cerevisia" what I found was "Botanico" so I entered the grounds, sensing that Hops were near. Passing through a verdant garden with live music playing from a guitar, I knew I was in the right place when before me appeared a selection of 10 drafts, underscored by the always-there-at-a-brewhouse Chalkboard. As the musician played some David Bowie, I pulled up a seat at the bar and immediately went to work.

As is always the case at a new establishment, I ordered a sampler paddle, with three at a time being offered of Cerevisia's finest. Since there were a total of 10 drafts, over the course of the night, I obviously went with each, about a four-ounce pour into respective glasses. They don't brew on premises, but rather a few blocks away, and since these types of beers are catching on with both the local and foreign population, Cerevisia can now be found on draft at a number of bars and restaurants. I was lucky enough to be served by one of the founding partners, Erich, who filled me in on the aforementioned details pertaining not only to his situation, but the larger craft beer scene taking place in Phnom Penh as well.

The vibe was beyond chill, and in retrospect, the perfect microcosm of what I took modern-day Cambodia to be. It wasn't like I was stepping off the streets for a bit of respite from chaos, rather, it was a simple diversion in my path which over the course of four days in Phnom Penh, had allowed me glimpses into varying sectors of Cambodian life. From the first sip of "Rattanak" Honey Ale (5.7%) to the last gulp of "Dark Star" Porter (5.4%), the quality of the beer matched the quality of the environment, reminding me of why I make it a priority to visit such places when traveling anywhere on the globe.

There seems to be a number of new and exciting craft breweries popping up within the country, and this is a testament to the positive direction places like Himawari and Cerevisia are taking. The next time I visit Phnom Penh (sooner rather than later), I will seek out another place to review, hoping that it matches the high level I experienced last Friday night under the gaze of a SouthEast Asian Moon...