Brew pubs in Beijing

One night in Beijing, I joined another visiting professor, John Lawrence, from the University of Idaho, and his family to check out a couple of brew pubs.

First on our list was Great Leap Brewing, a place mentioned to me by AAUP staffer Eric Palmer, and later we went to Slow Boat Brewery.

Both breweries were located in Hutongs, which are small side streets off main roads. The Hutongs are where, historically, the real life of ordinary people take place. Business, hostels, hotels, bars, grocery stores, markets, everything can be found the Hutongs. As China develops and becomes more modern, these Hutongs are being eliminated by new construction. But many in Beijing are still alive and well. In Chengdu, the tradition here is not so Hutong-oriented and they are not really the same as in the north.

More later about the great Hutongs and especially the one where we found the Great Leap. It was a bit of a trek in hot weather through all these meandering alleys but eventually we found it. They have a great beer garden in a courtyard that dates back at least to the mid-Qing Dynasty. And good beer, too! I favored something called "Hop God."

We talked to a couple from Detroit who casually mentioned what a wonderful place they would like to move to called Missoula. Naturally, we had a good talk about the Big Sky Country.  Later, after walking down a narrow barely-lit Hutong to find the Slow Boat Brewery, we happened to sit at a table with some young men from the US, including one from Idaho. So, in China, over some beers, in a Hutong, we had a little get-together of folks from the northern Rockies. There was also a Chinese-American young man from Kansas City. Later, after we left and had nearly reached the street again, the kid from Idaho came running down the hutong after us - with my hat that I had left behind!

Below, we are relaxing the Great Leap courtyard, and next is our bartender and photographer, a young lady from California in Beijing to learn Chinese.