We're going on Rick Steves tour next month. Besides Paris (which there is plenty of threads about) we'll be staying in: Bourges Amboise Mont St. Michel Bayeux Are there any places in these towns to get a decent beer? Or will the best I can hope for is ABInBev type stuff? Thanks
I don't know about these places specifically but France is hugely under-developed generally in terms of craft beer. You won't have any problems finding decent Belgian beer around. Larger supermarkets are starting to stock some more interesting stuff but it's still a million miles away from most other places in western Europe in my experience.
Ah you could check this fb group : frenchbeergeek There is a map with good bottles shop, bars all around the country http://www.frenchbeergeek.fr/Adress..._9uXeg_BKDRcbdlkzJ0ti6Q0F4UMtTvBseu0-EUDvWhiQ I think you need to be member of the group for view the map
Seek the stuff from Belgium. We've been in Bayeux twice. Neat smaller town. There was a great little restaurant on a walking-only street, but I doubt I could find it again without being there. It was narrow, but very deep and the hostess took our family back to a small (like 14x14ft) open-air courtyard and we enjoyed dinner there. She turned me on to Leroy Stout beer, which is little on the sweet side. The cathedral is neat to see and I assume you will be seeing the tappistry? MstM is a neat place as well. Many shops and places to eat there. Is there a theme for the tour or just some interesting spots?? We used Rick Steves' books almost exclusively on European travels!
Maybe we'll stumble across that place. I guess the theme is mostly castles. The itinerary is here: https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/france/paris-france Of course, the part about visiting Notre Dame will have to change.
I was looking on google earth, and I simply can't find the restaurant, but there are many and all are likely good. Be prepared not to eat dinner until well after 7pm. That's how they roll in France. Grab a Baguette to get you thru! Sounds like a great tour. If you get the time, I would recommend going up in the Eifel, but you should book in advance, so that may be a bit tricky on a guided tour. And it lights up at night; sparkling on the hour I believe. So unfortunate about Norte Dame! But there is much else to see. Humorously, I remember walking around one day and seeing a long line outside a business only to discover it was an American Breakfast restaurant! The Chateaux's are something to see for sure. So much detail it is incredible! One of our favorite vacation spots was the Normandy area. The recent WWII history there is tremendous! But the beaches are also very nice if the weather is good. Watch out for the tide as it rises and drops very fast! If you haven't watched Band of Brothers, I would highly recommend you do before you go. One very neat thing is the appreciation that is still there for the Americans and Allies. I don't know if you will have enough time, or how you'd get there, but north of Bayeux is Arromanches-les-Bains where there is remnants of the artificial port still there and an immersive 360* theater that in about 20 minutes, tells the WWII story. Very moving! That is called Arromanches 360. Sorry...all you asked for were beer recommendations! To that, I found Pelforth Brune quite nice for their common beer.
Thanks for looking and thanks for the suggestions. We do have time most days to explore on our own and only about half the dinners are with the group so we can try other places.
We did start watching Band of Brothers. We won't get that far before we go, but it is very good and should help our appreciation when we're at Normandy. Thanks.
Good advices all around considering the locations the OP intend to visit. I’ll emphasize that Arromanches was nice especially for the short but very immersive 360 WW2 theater. Good stuff. Not overly pricey. Otherwise, the topic being about beer to seek out while there; sure, Normandy like every place where alcohol is allowed to consumption will have local stuff but I can’t vouch for them. Local beers in France can be pricey and often disappointing; small breweries trying to make a living... Belgians brews aren’t unheard of, however. You’ll find most of the major ones in French supermarkets like Carrefour, Leclerc etc at much better price and possibly with more variety than in the USA. In bars, Grimbergen, Leffe, Affligem, Duvel, Chouffe or Chimay will be the go-to. Depend on the bar...
