Craft beer in Barcelona

Opened in 2014, this UK-style brewery is one of Barcelona’s most central stops for quality brews. Their laser-sharp focus is admirable: they are a “beer company” first, not a brewpub – the beer comes first, everything else is secondary.

And the quality of their beers shines through. They launched with three beers and currently regularly produce seven, including Riba lager, Blacksmith imperial stout and deliciously hoppy Garage IPA. They carefully add varieties one at a time, making sure they nail each one. Garage round out their offering with a selection of beers from other brewers too.

The food is worth a mention as well: tapas, sandwiches and finger food like nachos are on offer. Garage also host frequent cultural events and support local artists.

Little did Alex know that his move from London to Brussels to pursue a career in politics would change the course of his life. As often happens when one goes to Belgium, it didn’t take long for him to discover the joys of Belgian beer. The lusty lambics. The sultry saisons. Then Alex met a Barcelonian called Carlota and found himself asking, “What if?”

A couple of resignations later, Alex and Carlota were setting up home in Barcelona. Alex began guest brewing Barna-Brew’s range of Moreneta beers, distributing them to local bars and picking up awards along the way. Spurred on by the success, he found a space to call home on the suitably chic Carrer Parlament, where he opened an industrial-scale brewery and a beautiful bar where you can quaff your way through the Belgian-Catalan inspired brews. Later, they moved to the trendy Born neighborhood

The “beermut” tapas are perfect sipping companions, while the meaty Moreneta Burger is proper beer-drinking grub. And they lived happily ever after.

“Why buy it if you can make it?” Such is the philosophy at Caravelle, a creative café and restaurant on Pintor Fortuny. The brainchild of Zim and Poppy, an Australian-British couple who owned gastropubs in London before coming to Barcelona, this place pairs a minimalist, seemingly effortless style with a varied American-European menu based on homemade ingredients.

Hot sauces, jam, ice cream, cola, craft beer… it’s all made from scratch, and it all tastes amazing. The menu changes seasonally, but must-tries have included the mouthwatering fried chicken, slow-cooked carnitas tacos, double cheeseburger or salmon poké bowl. The Full Spanglish brunch (available in veggie form too) will make your weekend – pair it with a flat white from the La Marzocco machine.

And it’s never too early for Caravelle’s own craft beer – Galactic pale ale, Mixtape New-World Pilsner, Midnight IPA, or many more – all brewed onsite with brewmaster Ben.

Opened in 2016 by Alberto Coromina and Joshua Wheeler, Cyclic specializes in mixed fermentations. Initially inspired by the traditional beers of Belgium, the pair have developed their own mixtures of yeasts and bacteria that they cultivate. They work in close coordination with the seasons of the year, nourishing their beers with a variety of fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers. While they grow some on their family farm located in Alt Empordà, the rest come from small local farmers.

n 2019 they began experimenting with natural wines – making them without any additives, or filtering, using only locally sourced Catalan grapes, organically grown and naturally fermented with the indigenous yeasts and bacteria present on their skins. If you’d like to try their beers or wines, order online or head to the Cyclic bar attached to the factory in La Sagrera. We’ll see you there!

With a name like Dr. Beer & Mr. Fried, you know what you’re getting when you walk into this trendy fried chicken joint on Raval. A champion of craft beer and fried food, the new arrival draws inspiration from US-style cajun and creole cuisine.

Featuring a limited menu, Dr. Beer & Mr. Fried shoots for quality over quantity. Chicken is marinated for 24 hours before being fried up and served. Whether you’re hankering for hand-cut fries and your favorite house sauce, a smoked tofu burger, or a delicious combo of chicken and waffles, you won’t go hungry here. And you won’t go thirsty either.

Choose from “mule” cocktails (Moscow Mule, Kentucky Mule…) or craft beer, including this month’s featured local brews from Edge Brewing and Garage Beer Co.

“A beer a day keeps the doctor away,” or at least that’s the motto at this glorious craft beer bar and bottle shop in Poblenou. Boasting over 200 different brews from every corner of the globe, this lofty space is all about education and discovery.

Owners Kim and Angie (a husband and wife duo) are passionate about sharing their knowledge and love for good brewing and run regular tasting sessions. They’re always happy to share their latest finds, so be sure to ask for recommendations and prepare to taste everything from classic Belgian Tripels to Catalan IPAs and sour American wild ales.

Don’t miss their homebrews, which include the hoptastic Júlia IPA, which is named after the couple’s daughter. Kim and Angie also produce a small range of beers for the annual La Fira del Poblenou beer festival, which sees more than 40 breweries come together to take over the neighborhood every July.

After a decade living in the US, childhood friends Andres and Toni returned home to Barcelona, fulfilled but with a sense of melancholy. They missed the warmth of the bars of their youth where they’d made new friends from all over the world and developed a passion for American craft beer and food.

Determined to keep an ember of the adventure burning, they opened Coco Vail Beer Hall, the embodiment of their golden years abroad. Intimate and laid-back, the “SoCal beach bar” vibes are achieved with friendly service and long rows of chunky wooden tables that are perfect for making new friends. 24 beer taps offer the best from Catalunya’s brewers and a hearty menu features soul food classics such as pulled-pork sandwiches, burgers, sweet-potato fries and the house-special chicken wings.

Stop by on Tuesdays for college night with cheap shots and mixed drinks from 11pm, Wednesdays for wine-bottle deals or Sundays, which are all about NFL. As Andres says: “This isn’t just a bar, it’s a feeling, a community.”

If you’re familiar with Kælderkold, the revered Danish craft beer bar tucked away just off Las Ramblas, you’ll be pleased to hear its owners have upped the ante with another new bar in the heart of Raval.

Ølgod, which means “beer god” in Danish, boasts even more taps – 30 in total! – with even more of the best brews from Scandinavia, Spain and beyond. Physically bigger and decorated with ethereal paintings of mythical beings from Nordic fairytales, this clean and crisp space feels less exclusive than its older sister and more accessible to the more casual beer quaffer – in a good way.

Grab some friends and order a few nibbles from the tasty little tapas menu, such as nachos and guac, pickles, hummus and hearty vegetarian burgers, and try something from the “beer cocktail” menu, where names like Beer Pirinha, Ølgod Shandy and Nordic Sour are sure to arouse your curiosity.

Slip away from the chaos of Las Ramblas and find yourself in one of Barcelona’s most exciting craft beer utopias. Kælderkold (“cold cellar” in Danish) is small and intimate with fifteen taps that place the beer firmly on center stage.

The kegs rotate on a regular basis, showcasing some of Europe’s best and most progressive brews. And being run by a team of Danes, there’s always an excellent selection of Scandinavian beers, both on draft and by the bottle. Try the Sockerbruket Saison, a farmhouse pale ale from the Beerbliotek small batch brewery in Gothenburg, to see why this is such good news.

Taps one and two are reserved for refreshing pils and quaffable weizenbier (wheat beer) from the Aktien Brewery in Germany, but for something truly unique be sure to sample a few of the beer cocktails. Beer mojito, anyone?

The upstart Americans are having a run at ruling the craft beer world. But Belgium has a vastly deeper tradition, with a history of beermaking that goes back nearly a thousand years.

So it should come as no surprise that you’ve got a few (hundred) excellent Belgian beers left to discover, and this beer shop and bar is the perfect place to start exploring. Be guided by the expert crew of Henk, Joan and Albert as to which of the 400 kinds to try. Orval is a favorite, priced by how long it’s been aged, or attend one of their regular tastings.

They serve food like quiche, cheese and pâte too. Connoisseurs will appreciate the section of lambics, beers that’s been fermented spontaneously, one of the oldest, most natural brewing methods still employed. Check out their Facebook page for upcoming tastings and other events.

There is no shortage in this city of restaurants and bars offering deluxe burgers or craft beers, so you could be forgiven for thinking enough is enough. Quality can vary though, so it’s always good to hear of a place where you can sample both.

Chivuo’s, which opened in 2014, have deservedly gained a substantial following for their “Slow Street Food & Craft Beer.” Particular praise is due for having Philly Cheese Steaks on the menu; they’re the perfect accompaniment to a good beer. There are veggie options, pulled pork buns (with homemade salsa) and plenty of side dishes too. The décor is simple with a few hipster touches – but not too many.

They’ve also gained a reputation for friendly and enthusiastic service, as well as tasty food, making them a popular option for a night out in Gràcia.

Homo Sibaris takes its name from the citizens of Sybaris, the Greek city so devoted to pleasure it gave us the word sybarite – a fitting patron for a bar that has been teaching Sants to drink better since 2011. Founder Guillem Laporta, a brewer and one of the early evangelists of the Catalan craft scene, set up shop on Plaça d’Osca, a half-hidden, village-like square a short walk from Plaça de Sants that feels lifted straight out of Gràcia.

The pours chase the widest possible spread of styles – rotating taps and hand pumps up front, a deep bottle list behind them running from Catalan upstarts to continental classics, much of it to take away. And Laporta brews his own: the house HomoSibaris line pours alongside the guests, and he created D.O. Sants, a beer for the neighborhood’s own restaurant association – which tells you exactly how local this institution runs.

To eat there are cheeses, croquettes, olives and sandwiches, all built to hold their own next to a strong ale. Grab a terrace table on the square if you can – on a warm evening, with the right glass in hand, the sybarites would have approved.

Part brewery, part distributor, part bottle shop, 2D2Dspuma is the kind of place craft-beer obsessives end up calling home. The shelves carry a vast run of Catalan and imported labels, and because the team buys straight from the breweries they get small-batch releases – and the odd off-market oddity – you simply won’t find elsewhere in the city.

Catalunya is well represented, with bottles from Hort del Barret, La Mola and La Pirata sharing space alongside beers from Belgium, France, the US, New Zealand and Japan. Beyond the retail side, the venue doubles as a workshop space for tastings, talks and presentations on the one subject they know inside out.

Best of all is the taproom adjoining the shop: stop by some evenings for a beer and a pincho at a special combo price. Bottoms up.

What were once the blue graffitied doors of a mechanic’s workshop on Sant Antoni’s Parlament have now been transformed into the welcoming entrance of the very modern bodega Els Sortidors del Parlament. Upturned barrels acting as tables and casks offering vermouth, Tinto de Penedés or Priorat from the sortidors (taps) could lull you for a second into thinking this was just another dusty bodega. Yet through those towering folding doors and under the cool breeze of the rapidly spinning ceiling fans, this cellar opens into a den of gourmet food, drink and art.

Predominantly a spot for taking a glass or two of something cold, their vast selection of wines (both local and from further afield), craft beers, spirits and liqueurs are available to savor in-house or be taken away. But the best drinks should never be guzzled on an empty stomach, and the selection of accompaniments is impressive. Try some salted potato crisps with black truffle with that cold beer, or sliced, cured cecina beef, Picos of Europa cheese with a fine wine, or some prized Galician river canned shellfish (conservas) with a vermouth. If you can handle something richer, why not sample foie, with or without truffle or black chanterelles, or a petite dish of oxtail stew.

You can even leave with a few top-notch ingre­dients to spruce up the kitchen cupboard: crackers with smatterings of black olives, rosemary or Mo­roccan spices to embellish a cheeseboard, grapeseed or avocado oils and fruit-based vinegars to liven up a summer salad. Pursuing not only a passion for gastronomy, the owners have decorated the space with their own art. Contemplate the “caged” birds hanging from the roof and ask yourself if those fairground goldfish in bags are real or whether you’ve just had one too many.