Happy new beer!

I come from a rather warmer part of the world than Amsterdam, and so am very lucky to be able to drink a cold beer on a warm day for about 8 months of the year when I'm home. This does however leave 4 months where inevitably one switches to red wine or whisky as ones tipple of choice. With a much longer and colder Winter, the ever industrious Northern Europeans have thought of a handy solution to this. Winter and Autumn "bok" beers are quite a bit stronger and darker than their summery friends. So while you might be in the middle of a post festive season detox, there are a couple of delicious beers waiting for you despite the cold weather.

For an environmentally conscious beer, the Ij Brewery (or Brouwerij 't Ij in Dutch) is based in Amsterdam and makes a number of delicious, fully organic beers. They have a number of seasonal beers like the Ijnde Jaars (a Dutch play on "Years end") available from November to January, the Paasij - March to May, and the Ijbok - September to November. Not only are the beers organic, they are delicious. Besides the seasonal beers, for summer I would recommend the Ijwit (a wheat beer), and in Winter the Columbus (which at 9% volume, packs quite a punch - but takes the edge off the cold nicely!). As an alternative to the pilsner (or Plzen - the most "normal", lightest beer), try the Natte, a little more tasty and a year round winner.

While the beers are available in more and more places in Amsterdam, the brewery also has a bar. It is a great place for a drink, with a good sized terrace which can be quite crowded on a sunny Sunday afternoon! The bar is open every day from 15:00 until 20:00 and serves some snacks - including a cheese made from sheep's milk. In a perfect example of reusing, the sheep are fed on the malt dregs from the brewing process. The brewery and bar are located to the East of the city centre, and you can spot them from a distance as they stand directly below the highest wooden windmill in the Netherlands. You will of course find them on the Eco Amsterdam map as well (see the link in the top right of the blog).

If you're really interested in beer, you can even do a tour of the brewery on Friday's at 16:00 or by appointment. I'd recommend this over the mass produced "Heineken Experience" ANY day! If your local bar doesn't stock this organic beer, they may have another, try asking for organic beer whenever you order - you may be surprised by a beer you haven't tried before, have an interesting conversation with the bartender or at the very least, show that there is a demand for beers that are brewed with the planet in mind.

Free ping pong!

To immediately veer away from the enormously consumerist nature of the first post, I thought I'd talk about something free. Table Tennis was a sport thought up by Victorian English people who were apparently bored a lot of the time. Every now and again in Victorian England, it would do something very unexpected, rain. Now when you are wearing about 10 kilogrammes of cotton and woollen clothing, wet is not something you want to be. This of course means lawn bowls, croquet and tennis are off, as well as the cucumber sandwiches and tea under the tree.

While it was raining, the Victorians looked around for something else to amuse themselves with. And when you can't play tennis outside, hell, play it inside. And thus the birth of table tennis. Originally played with a pile of books as a net and a champagne cork or ball of string and a couple of cigar box lids, table tennis has come a long way. Not only is it now an Olympic sport, it is played widely throughout Amsterdam. You can of course play it in a sports hall (or even with a whole lot of other people in Overtoom 301 on Tuesday evenings from 9pm onwards - recommended!), but I think the best way to play it is in a park on a sunny afternoon. Preferably with a sneaky beer in hand.

The two European cities I have lived in - Berlin and Amsterdam - both have many of these concrete outdoor tables. I think the best ones in Amsterdam are in Saraphati Park, but I would of course love to be corrected! They can get quite busy on a Saturday afternoon, as there is a hard-core of older gentlemen who play there, but they are very friendly, and very good. They'll happily give you a game, and probably a lesson! On top of the table and net, you'll also need a ball and paddles (unless you happen to roll with a handy stash of champagne and cigars...). Paddles and balls can be bought at any Intertoys store - click "Toon meer filialen" to see more Amsterdam store locations. I've added three table tennis locations to the Eco Amsterdam google map: Saraphati Park, one close to the Albert Cuypstraat and a third in Rembrandt Park. The last location brings me to what I hope is self-evident by this point - if anybody ever names a park after me, it BETTER have table tennis tables in!

---

Posted by Glen Tyler