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Baler holds first craft beer festival featuring 11 PH brewers

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Jeeves de Veyra

<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6MZ9oPor6W4?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>BALER -- Beach and brews proved to be a winning combination at the first Baler Craft Beer Festival, which was hosted recently by the Baler Beach Club.</p><p>Previous craft beer festivals were mostly held in Manila and this was an opportunity for those outside the metro to try local craft beer.</p><p>Eleven Filipino brewers set up stalls near the beachfront and showcased their selected brews upon the invitation of the newly established Baler Brewing Company. </p><p>“The beauty of craft beer is that it actually brings your artist out when brewing a beer. So, you can actually brew like, almost anything. Like, from fruit flavor to coffee flavor, to sili, to lemon, almost anything that he can actually think of,” gushed Jun Flores, president of the Craft Beer Association of the Philippines. </p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/beach-1.jpg"/><figcaption>The scene at the first Baler Craft Beer Festival. <em>Jeeves de Veyra</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>Flores noted that the Philippine craft beer scene started with a small community around 10 years ago. Today, there are around 60 breweries all over the Philippines from Sagada up north to Iligan City down south.</p><p>The brewers happily talked to crowds about their breweries and their beer. The participants were a mixed bunch composed of established players to startups highlighting the vibrant craft beer scene. The spirit of creativity and collaboration was also on display as some participants had joint brews on tap.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/beach-2.jpg"/><figcaption>The scene at the first Baler Craft Beer Festival. <em>Jeeves de Veyra</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>The festival also showed beer trends. Notably, some brewers introducing New England IPAs, a new style of beer that became popular in the United States last year characterized by being hazier than regular beer that have a creamy mouthfeel suitable to tropical fruity flavors. </p><p>New sweet and fruity variants, as well as easy drinking beers were also on tap for beginner beer drinkers to savor and start their journey to sampling more complex stouts and IPAs.</p><p>Here are the 11 brewers who were on the beach for the festival.</p><div class="media-content"><div class="slider-for"><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b01.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b02.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b03.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b04.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b05.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b06.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b07.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b08.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b09.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b10.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/09/04/b11.jpg"/></div></div><div class="slider-desc"><div class="item-desc"><p>Andrew Chinalpan Jr. uses the bountiful produce of Sagada to make all sorts of wonderful, unique beers. Cerveza Sagada features black rice violet ale, coffee stout, turmeric IPA, wild sunflower honey and orange in its wheat ale, and banana in its brown ale. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Glenn Carberry is the home brewer behind Malate-based 63 North Brewing Company. Featured in his stall is the 63 North and Pedro Brewery collaboration, the Orange Creamsicle, with notes of orange zest and vanilla. Carberry says that 63 North is where he does his experimental brews angling towards more fruity flavors. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Baler Brew is a soon-to-open brewpub that will be located near the famous Sabang Beach boardwalk. A joint venture of hostel/surf school Charlie Does owner, Joseph Cole, and 63 North’s Glenn Carberry, one of their first brews will be Baler Brew’s Honey Wheat Ale made with Filipino honey, lemon zest, and pomelo. <cite> Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Joey Viray makes his craft beer in his brewpub, Joe’s Brew, in Poblacion. Besides bringing his crowd pleasers -- the Sierra Madre Wheat Ale, the Soothsayer Pale Ale, and the 34th Pursuit IPA -- Viray also debuted his still-unnamed lager which was relatively light, clean, crisp, and easy to drink. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Crows Craft Brewing &amp; Distilling Co. started nearly six years ago by Jose Mari Cuervo and Marisol Ramirez in a basement as home brewers. Not wanting to be mistaken with the tequila brand, they opted to use “Crows” which is what &quot;cuervo&quot; means in English. The brewery had bottles of its signature double pale ale De Puta Madre, White IPA Carte Blanche, Mala Hierba IPA and Crow’s Pale Ale for sale. Besides beer, Crow’s is also known for their much sought-after gin and whiskey. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>The dudes from Boracay brewery Amigos Dela Playa seemed right at home on Sabang Beach. Temporarily relocated to Quezon City after the Boracay cleanup, the Boracay boys showed off their new mango New England IPA, Life of Pablo, alongside their Del Sol Pale Ale made with Sagada sunflower honey and their Pendejos Double IPA. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Calle Brewery is the craft beer collaboration of chef Robby Goco and Joe’s Brew located in the heritage quarter of Vigan. Joey Viray of Joe’s Brew used ingredients indigenous to the Ilocos region to make his Bigote ni Antonio American Style IPA and Espada ni Lapu-Lapu Wheat Ale. <cite> Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Jaime and Nadine Fanlo are the husband-and-wife brewers that have made Pedro Craft Beer one of the fastest growing brands in the country. On tap at the festival was Pedro’s Coffee Stout made with coffee from Yardstick and and their new Gateway Pilsner, a refined easy to drink beer. These beers as well as their Endless Summer Wheat Ale, Procrastination Pale Ale, Elementary English Ale, and Wandering Wonderer IPA can be found at the Pedro Tap House in Poblacion. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Ivan Go, master brewer of San Fernando, Pampanga-based Bulul Brewery, introduced his new Juice Ko Po New England IPA at the festival. While the aroma was pretty strong, the new beer was refreshing, light and full of juicy flavor. Apart from Juice Ko Po, Go had his Tisay Blonde Ale, a pilsner, and a vanilla bourbon stout on tap for the festival-goers. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>CraftPoint Brewing Co. beers are products from the studios of the famed Edsa Beverage Group. While its Liberation Pale Ale is a favorite, sips of the Champorado, the Supremo Mango IPA, and the Summer Passion with passion Fruit and ginger showed the playful nature of this brewery. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Brewlab 2021 is one of the small breweries compared to the others in the festival. “We’re a nanobrewery, meaning we can only brew 50 to 100 liters per batch,” explained Lee David from the startup, adding that they plan to open a brewpub in Quezon City this year. David brought Brewlab 2021’s Hoppy Poppy, a light, fruity sweet pale ale suitable for easy drinking for the Baler crowd. <cite>Photo by Jeeves de Veyra</cite></p></div></div></div>

<p>Beach and brews proved to be a winning combination at the first Baler Craft Beer Festival, which was hosted recently by the Baler Beach Club.</p>

Beach and brews proved to be a winning combination at the first Baler Craft Beer Festival, which was hosted recently by the Baler Beach Club.