Good Libations: Global Beer Exchange Limited Release of Dogfish Head Beer (May 23, 2013)

One week after the Racer 5 and Lagunitas launch, I was back at Global Beer Exchange's Bottle Shop for another ThirstDay limited release. This time Jim and company had a very limited number of Dogfish head beers. Ever since I watched the Discovery Channel show Brew Masters, I have considered any Dogfish Head brew one of my holy grails. They may or may not be one of the best tasting beers, but I admired their belief and want to be unique or off-centered. Which is why I was so glad that I would finally be able to try it out.

Good Libations: Global Beer Exchange Limited Release of Racer 5 and Lagunitas IPAs (May 16, 2013)

Another late entry, but another one worth writing about was the limited release of two very highly regarded American India Pales- Bear Republic's Racer 5 IPA, and Lagunitas IPA. This was a very limited release, so when Global Beer Exchange announced that they would be taking reservations, I immediately made known my intentions, and freed up my ThirstDay night.

Good Libations: BrewDog Comes to Manila Thanks to Global Beer Exchange (April 4, 2013)

Okay, this post is WAAAAAAAYYYYY late as this event happened months ago. But still, I think it is worth posting such a momentous occasion

The craft beer scene here in the Philippines has slowly but surely become a phenomenon. More and more people are getting acquainted with craft beer, and local brewers are slowly coming up with their own product. This revolution is thanks in large part to the work of Global Beer Exchange. Jim Araneta's company has been at the forefront and has become the go to place to introduce yourself to craft beer.

Last April 4, 2013 (yes i know I'm 6 months late), GBEx finally released BrewDog to the Philippine market with a special event at The Bottle Shop. BrewDog is a Scotland based Craft Brewery known for their in-your-face attitude and being openly anti macrobrew. I was able to try one of their variants a couple of years prior to this event so I eagerly anticipated the launch and try out the others; and being that there would be unlimited pours of each, how could I resist?

Good Libations: Global Beer Exchange's Bottle Shop

The original theme of my blog was supposed to be about beer. My good buddy Phil was the one who first told me that I should write a blog about beer since I have always been and always will be a lover of finely brewed beer. But then I decided to not just focus on beer and make the blog about film as well. Unfortunately I haven't been able to write any sort of beer review yet, but I plan to change that with this latest post. I will be starting a new "category" in my blog called Good Libations, and these posts will not only be about the latest beers I have tried and what I have to say about it, but it will be about any finely made inebriating beverage under the sun. It is also fitting that the first entry under Good Libations be about the latest beer haven in the city: The Bottle Shop of Global Beer Exchange 

Let me start with a short anecdote. Coming from The Philippines, our selection of beers is very limited. 90% of the beer market here is controlled by one company. It was right around my late high school/early college years when my interest in beer really began to flourish. During my younger years, whenever we had an inuman (filipino for a drinking session), I would find myself noticing that the usual beer we drank wasn't really that delicious. So I tried the various beers of said monopolizing company and found that there was one beer that was superior to the rest. I found out that it was a Czech style pilsner and until now it is still my Filipino brand beer of choice.