What's Up in Beer: Your Guide to Golden Beer Deals During Golden Week

Oh, baby, you can count the days left until October holidays on nearly one thumb, and that first taste of sweet nectar isn't much further away. If you're not planning to get the F out of China or go on all of these day trips from Beijing, below are a number of other in-city solutions that could help you to relax and pass the time the easy way. There’s nothing that beer can’t help with, right?

First up, don't forget there are only two days left until the Third Annual Autumn Craft Beer Week finishes (September 30). To make the most of the event, grab a beer passport and compete for prizes such as T-shirts, pint glasses, openers, growlers, beer soaps, and a RMB 1,000 coupon, by drinking at the following locations:

• Slow Boat Brewpub, 6 Nansanlitun Lu
• Great Leap Brewing, all locations
• Arrow Factory Brewing, Taproom and Liangmaqiao
• Panda Brewpub, 67 Beixinqiao Toutiao
• NBeer Pub, 1/F Huguo Xintiandi, Huguosi Jie
• Jing-A (Taproom and The Big Smoke)

Also, Jing-A launches their seasonal Über-Jing Oktoberfest Lager again, with 6.5 percent ABV, a full-bodied beer brewed in the traditional style of German Märzen (March beer). This year they have chosen The Big Smoke to host the launch, and at 3pm on wards on Saturday (Oct 1) you can get a buy-one-get-one on liter steins of the freshly kegged beer (RMB 110). They will also offer a German Oktoberfest platter for RMB 80, which includes a huge pinwheel sausage, freshly baked pretzels, sauerkraut, and roasted potatoes.

Great Leap Brewing will select one beer at a discount each day during the holiday, at all three locations, selling these brews for RMB 25 a pop:

• Oct 1: Ghost General Wheat IPA
• Oct 2: East City Porter
• Oct 3: Iron Buddha Blonde
• Oct 4: Chesty Puller American IPA
• Oct 5: Honey Ma Gold
• Oct 6: Aggressor
• Oct 7: Cinnamon Rock Ale

Never one to fall behind, Arrow Factory go one better, offering buy-one-get-one-free deals at both of their locations throughout the holiday. Check the full list below:

• Oct 1: Longbowmen English Ale
• Oct 2: A New Leaf OIPA
• Oct 3: Flying V American Wheat (Liangma River location closed, Taproom only)
• Oct 4: ManMan Lai Session IPA
• Oct 5: Guanxi Pale Ale
• Oct 6: Whiter Shade of Pale Hefeweizen
• Oct 7: The Bitter End Rye PA

Something different now: Slow Boat Brewpub is lauching its new Cat’s Paw Cucumber Saison, using yeast from the Wallonia region of Belgium. This yeast gives the beer spicy, peppery, and earthy notes, which when coupled with cucumber juice from If Juice creates an 6 percent ABV ale that you'd be forgiven for thinking was groundbreakingly healthy.

The sailors now also provide good value lunch sets at the Sanlitun brewpub: buy a combination of a burger, fried chicken, french fries, or salad, with a soft drink or beer, for between RMB 55-70. Click here for more information. They've also just announced a weekday happy hour between 3pm and 6pm for laptop warriors, with every beer on the first floor available at RMB 30.

And last, but certainly not least, North Capital has just announced their new all-you-can-choose brunch menu, Monday to Sundays, 11am-2pm, which includes a build-your-own burrito and bloody mary. I'm glad someone's thinking of our poor heads the day after.

Have a great Golden Week, everybody. Prost!

More stories by this author here.

Email: tracywang@thebeijinger.com
Twitter: @flyingfigure
Instagram: @flyingfigure

Photos courtesy of venues