Our second day in Berlin was all about BrewDog’s first European AGM. You can’t start a day like that without a proper foundation, so we started off with a real Berliner döner kebap at Rüyam Gemüse Kebab!
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Tag: Equity For Punks
We’ve been to quite a few BrewDog bars, and even have one in our home city, but somehow we’ve never been to an official opening night or EFP preview. Until now, that is: by sheer luck, BrewDog Paddington is opening during our visit to London, and we’re on the guest list for the special EFP preview tonight!
Union Street
Alea iacta est: @h–na and I will be going to Aberdeen in April next year!
The choice for this destination is mostly a result of BrewDog’s decision to organise their 2016 Annual General Meeting a bit earlier than usual. This means the AGM —which we, being Equity Punks, would like to attend — will be during our spring break this time, instead of right before our exams!
A new city to discover, new to the both of us, for a change. I just hope the whole city isn’t as congested as pictured above!
Our hotel is already booked, but we will still have to decide on what to do and what to visit in and near Aberdeen — apart from the obligatory BrewDog brewery visit, of course. Any suggestions?
BrewDog Hinterland (9% abv)
Walk with us through the ink black velvet portal. Journey to the place where secrets live and Darkness holds court. The Land of Hinter. Where Jackalopes and raven black rivers run free. Draw up your glass from the depths of the ebbing flow. Let the rich dark chocolatey aromas seduce you. And drink. Be enveloped by the candy roasted malty warmth. Fall into the liquid black pools of the Jackalope’s eyes. Then – clarity. The Hinterland comes sharply into focus. Lose yourself in black. Roam his inky kingdom, until the darkness melts, and your world slowly reappears. The Jackalope King will return. Darkness will reign once more.
Here lurks a rare beast, the mythical imperial vanilla and cocoa oatmeal milk stout, a beer I’ve been eager to experience since I heard those first hushed tales of it. If there was any doubt that the liquid darkness within would live up to Johanna Basford’s exquisite Jackalope artwork it was extinguished as a rolling wave of decadence enspelled my taste buds at first sip.
Sumptuous as all fuck, it starts sweet with cocoa, vanilla, dark roast coffee, hints of liquorice and stewed dark stone fruit flavours before a good earthy, spicy, hop presence brings balance to the roasty, malty goodness. The finish is long, dry and moderately bitter, the whole thing is full and so silky smooth it’s unreal.
I’ve said it before, although these Aberdeenshire craft beer legends are best known for their hoppy pales (note to my American beer chums: Avoid those bright blue bottles of Punk IPA, they’re 18 months old at best), stouts are where their true genius lies. And this is up there with their best, a beguiling, beautifully balanced brew that delivers an embarrassing wealth of complex flavours while managing to be effortlessly drinkable. A fantastical creation.
And the best thing is: some of this lovely beer is aging in an oak barrel in Ellon for me – and a couple of hundred other Equity Punks — right now!
In case you missed it: a new crowdfunding round has opened at my favourite Scottish brewery BrewDog. With Equity For Punks IV, BrewDog is quite ambitious, trying to collect £25 million. I have no doubt they will reach this number well before the closing date (20 April 2016), since they’ve already reached the £5 million mark after just a couple of weeks!
In 2013 I invested the absolute minimum of £95 in Equity For Punks III. Already within a couple of months, the amount of accumulated discounts — bar discounts, online shop discounts and Beer Bucks — outweighed my investment!
This time I invested some more in EFP IV, to qualify for even higher discounts. With BrewDog Brussels opening soon, I’m sure it will not take long before this investment will have paid off as well. 😉 And did I mention the value of my first shares increased considerably?
If you are a craft beer lover (in Europe) and interested in being a part of BrewDog, I strongly suggest you have a look at the prospectus.
Of course, the reasons for this post are not entirely selfless: if you decide to invest, I would be very grateful if you could use the referral code R088218 when asked. In return, with the first three referrers living near — or visiting — Brussels, I’d be happy to share one of the exclusive limited edition barrel-aged bottles of Hinterland I might receive thanks to your referral!
