Finding Beer in the Land of Wine

After a long day roaming a city, there is nothing like taking a break with a nice, cold beer. I have had so much amazing wine since traveling but it does not satisfy like a thirst-quenching beer!

 photo 062d90c9-8a9b-4bac-b637-d8a310fbe762_zpscdff392d.jpg

As most of you know, the south of France is definitely not known for their beer but more options seem to be coming available. Though the options are few and far between, I was excited to at least find there were choices!

 photo 77b377a4-fe7b-4dd2-96de-14cbd56dd2dc_zps75baea4b.jpg

Brasserie de La Plaine (Marseille)
Brewery

Marseille is a big city and it definitely takes some big walking shoes so a beer stop was a necessity 🙂 A couple from Chicago entered only minutes after I did and quickly expressed their dire need of a beer as well. They had been touring through wine country, just arrived to Marseille, and came straight here as they had not had a beer in weeks!

 photo 2dc21af7-8d12-4ead-94e6-7422bf27b85f_zps7ca0bc55.jpg

Bière de La Plaine is currently the only brewery in Marseille and it was very exciting to be able to visit them! This brewery is definitely very young though and only in the beginning stages with a very small tap room. When I went they only had bottled beers which you can drink there or take away. They typically have beer on tap but none were available at the time. They currently slap on each label by hand and they seemed to be understaffed (that is France for you) but I have a feeling it is because they are growing faster than they expected 😀 Nonetheless, they had some good beer. I really enjoyed the IPA! It was exactly what I needed. I also grabbed another one of their beers to take with me to Les Calanques which was delicious after hiking in on a warm day.

 photo eb1fcedb-4606-4679-b7f4-2424c6894258_zps87032323.jpg
 photo 609082e0-4227-46bc-ac9c-65929993d760_zps5a1152d4.jpg

Fietje (Marseille)
Beer Shop

Fietje is a beer shop right around the corner from Bière de La Plaine. I already had beer so I did not stop in but they have some good reviews on ratebeer.

 photo e83a5aaf-ce01-400b-bdcd-9cef9ec4f728_zpsb2c06caa.jpg

La Canebière (Marseille)
Beer Shop/Bar

La Canabiere is a beer shop that also has a few taps. One evening I met someone there for a beer. They are only open until 8 pm and when we arrived a little before 7 pm the place was hoppin’! They have a small outdoor area that was packed and people had started filling in the back seating area. There were no French beers on tap or in the cooler so I had a Belgian Tripel. They seemed to have a good selection of beer but I was disappointed with the fact that they did not have many beers from France.

 photo 624984fe-ca8b-4ca3-b52f-54d19cd4b22d_zps0b1b0e83.jpg

La Route des Bières (Aix-en-Provence)
Beer Shop

With my large backpack and no where to store it (I was in transition), finding a beer and drinking in a square with my baguette and cheese, of course, seemed the most appealing option! La Route des Bières is a nice little beer shop in Aix-en-Provence. They had a good selection of French beers and the owner was very helpful. The selection of cold beers was limited so I decided on the Vue Sur L’Amer American IPA by Brasserie L’Agrivoise. It was not too hoppy but had pleasant flavor. It was nothing too special but I enjoyed it for a mid-day beer in the warm sun in France 😀

 photo 1af8b159-e33e-4d08-be57-7d019c798775_zpsfabca8ac.jpg

 photo 20cc2bb6-e817-4de5-a69f-dbce8c46fe52_zps1721d5ec.jpg

This brewery was recommended to me but I did not get to taste 🙁


 photo 3be26772-e253-4963-9bfd-0ebd9c7888df_zpsd814c34f.jpg

Vue Sur L’Amer

 photo 991025e2-fa29-4630-ba9c-4b6bae2ef381_zps1c01efa5.jpg

O’Neills Irish Pub (Avignon)
Bar

After roaming around in the pouring rain I was craving a rich, strong and delicious beer. Luckily, Irish pubs are fairly easy to find in cities and in my experience have a decent selection of beers so you are never too far from at least finding beer. They might not necessarily have the rare local beers but will do the job and on this very wet day, it definitely did!

Clearly, at the beer shops there were options for beers from other countries but I always try to stick to trying the local beers 😀 These are by no means full reviews but a few suggestions when you find yourself in the south of France desperately in need of something cold and refreshing! Santé!

Tip: Always check hours before visiting because they definitely are not open everyday or all day. Most of them are not open for a couple hours during the day.

More To Love:

Tribulosi

Tribulosi

Edge Brewing

Edge Brewing

Comments

  1. I love finding the brews in the land of wine too – oh so much fun and a great palate cleanser 🙂 Happy Hump Day!

  2. Haha congrats on finding it, good beer is the best 😀

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

  3. Cool!

  4. And this is why you rock–beer in France 🙂 Curious: do you like wine? I much prefer beer myself! Love the colorful bottles you found.

    • I do like wine! I actually like it so much more since being here too but I think that is because good wine is so easy to find and at a good price. However, beer will always be number one! 🙂 Thanks Liz!