Bière de France: Part 4 - Falstaff
Falstaff Bastille
10/12, Place De La Bastille
Paris, 75011
France
I was happy to see that Falstaff Bastille, a popular beer bar, was about a block away from where the missus and I were staying in Paris. Hungry and in dire need of a beer, we sauntered over after unpacking.
Like most places in Paris, everyone is smoking - it's just how they do. The selection of beer on draught was nothing stellar but the bottle menu was great. Tons of Belgians and a nice selection of quality French ales. One problem is that everything is crazy expensive. Most bottles were in the 8€ to 9€ range. With the going exchange rate, that is roughly $14. Crazy. I settled down on a Grain D'Orge Biere de Garde (750mL for 13€) and the missus on Hoegaarden Grand Cru.
We ordered up some food: me the mussels, her a croque madame. Neither were very good. The mussels came with fries which were like something you'd find in an American highschool's cafeteria.
The service was okay. Our server didn't know much about beer but was nice enough. After seeing such a high score here, I was disappointed - then I checked back and found there were only 4 previous reviews. It's worth stopping by if you're in the area. Great beer is hard to come by in this country, I found. Make no mistake, France is not a beer country.
Grain D'Orge Bière de Garde79 / 100
Bière de Gardes had a big area in the Falstaff menu, many made in France - so I decided to go local and try a new one. It poured a lot blonder than I expected - basically the amber color the picture to the side shows. The aroma is fruity with a bit of woodiness (think cedar) to it. There is a good degree of hoppiness to the taste that helps warm the malt and fruitiness. I enjoyed it, I have it again.
