I have looked over quite a few past threads of Amsterdam and the surrounding area previous to this thread. It has a been a while since one has come up so just wanted to check in and see if anything new has opened or one of these smaller breweries is really throwing out some good stuff right. I will be in town for about 3 days. Other than the various beer bars listed on most sites I do plan on taking the train to De Molen one afternoon. Any suggestions appreciated!
On your train ride to Bodgraven (De Molen) get off in Utrecht (you will change trains here) & walk two blocks to Café Oliver. Although the tavern is not a beer haven, the beautiful interior of this place makes it worth a visit. The building is a former church & they have kept things pretty much the same, (added a very nice bar of course). Trains run every half hr to Bodgraven, so you can take an hr or two & still get plenty of quality time at De Molen. Save your appetite for lunch at De Molen, the food is great & bring a backpack or strong bag for all the carry out beer from their shop! Have a nice trip, A-dam is full of great beer spots!
Thanks for the tip! I do plan on visiting Ij and probably de prael due to location as well. Any insight on some of the smaller places butcher's tears or odedipus?
Oedipus is a little out of the way, but nice enough. Ive never been to Butchers Tears. Amsterdam is full of great bars, so I don't really see much need to visit bars in Utrecht, but I guess if you need to see it all, why not. My favorite Amsterdam bar is In de Wildeman by the way, no music, nice interior, good mix of locals and tourists, and great beer.
Good to know, seems most of the smaller breweries beers are readily available throughout town. Specifically looking for sour beers, any go to's that you may have?
Although I agree w/ Maakun that Amsterdam has several great beer bars, (de Wildeman, Arendsnest, etc) I doubt you will visit a bar that is more aesthetically pleasing than Café Oliver in Utrecht, but I guess architectural appeal isn't everyone's cup of tea. Anyway, I say again, have a great trip. The beer in NL is great everywhere you go!
For sour beers go to In de Wildeman and ask for their lambic/vintage list with the beers that are not on the regular menu. Bierkoning is a shop with a nice selection and they often have some good 3F, Cantillon and Dutch lambics/sours.
Are the bottle prices in bars reasonable or extremely inflated? 3F/Cantillon would be a bonus but most excited about Dutch beers
Go to Arendsnest. All Dutch beers. A great introduction to the scene in the Netherlands. Butcher's Tears has a wonderfully bizarre location. And a cool taproom. Then there's this place that has Franconian beer and small-batch jenever: http://barclayperkins.blogspot.nl/2016/02/another-new-amsterdam-pub.html
I will check that place out. I am actually staying closer to Butcher's Tears the night before I leave so I will check that out as well. Keep the suggestions coming it seems new places are coming up
Here is probably a dumb question: Any Cantillon or 3F or De Molen beers for sale in shops in the Amsterdam airport? I will be laying over there for a few hours later in May.
No, but if you have a few hours you can take a train to Amsterdam and go to De Bierkoning, it will probably take about an hour and a half total.
Taking the train to Schipol for a short layover can be tricky if you don't have a boatload of time. A) Factor in the boarding time at the gate for your outbound flight. B) Schipol is a big airport. Know the approx distance between your gate and the train entrance (fortunately located at Schipol) C) Travel time between Schipol and the Centraal Station in Amsterdam is about 15 minutes. Figure in about 10 minutes wait time for the train at each station and a couple of minutes at the ticket office. D) Avoid the taxis at Centraal. Traffic is a little messy and the drivers often take the slow, less direct route. De Bierkoning is very walkable, but remember you'll probably be returning with a few beers. The trams are next to Centraal and run directly to Bierkoning. Get your tickets at the tram office just outside of Centraal. About a 6-8 minute ride down Damrak, close to the Royal Palace in Dam Square. Like Maakun said, three hours is a decent amount of time for a Schipol/Bierkoning run. Just don't be tempted to make a side trip to one of the coffee shops on the way. GL! FYI, local friends tell me De Bierkoning will occasionally have Cantillon. I've only seen it once.
Now it looks like I'll have a day and a half in Amsterdam. Thinking of taking a train to Cantillon and back (less than 2 hours each way). Good idea?
I was there May 4th and they had the kriek, cuvee saint gilloisee, gueze and rose. Plenty of all options on the shelf as well. The staff was super helpful with other recommendations as well. Highlight of my trip was the train ride out to De Molen, highly recommend the hour journey.
