Birra in the Ancient Land of Italia

Ah, Italy. The land of checkered history, from Caesar to Mussolini. The land of unparalled culture and architecture; Afternoon naps and sublime cathedrals. The land of "passeggiata" (the fine art of leisurely strolling after dinner), and painters (Da Vinci, Michelangelo). The land of cucina rustica (octopus, garlic and tomatoes), the land of vino...and of beer? Yes, the Italians have an affinity for beer, and as I discovered on my recent Christmas/New Year's trip to Rome and Sicily, there are some good ones to be found in the land where viniculture predominates.

My first stop was Rome. Staying in a charming, and quiet, hotel behind the Pantheon, it was a great base from which to explore the Eternal City. Amid the thrill-a-minute sites of cathedrals, fountains, piazzas, Roman ruins, motor scooters and smart carts, there are several birrarias and pubs in which to check out the local beer scene. "Birrarias", or restaurants that feature several beers on tap and in bottles, are dotted all over town. They are not a traditional American/English/German-style pub where one bellies up to the bar, rather they are a typical smaller-sized trattoria/osteria in which beer is a feature of the dining experience. I had the pleasure to stop in a few of these places and sample some Italian beers with my meals; consisting usually of a small pizza, a simple but tasty pasta dish, or a meat dish. Most of these birrarias feature Italian beers on the menu, but a few had good German beers offered (particularly hefe-weiss beers).

Most Italian-produced brews are lager beers, mainly blonde in color, and heavily influenced by the German lager-style of brewing. Most Italian breweries can be found in northern Italy, near the border with Austria and not far from Germany, but the bigger ones, such as Moretti, have breweries in the south, as far as Sicily. The most widespread brews I encountered were Moretti, Nastro Azzuro, Peroni, Castello, Menabrea and Wuhrer. Fresh Moretti was wonderful, especially after a long day of site-seeing. Peroni was kind of weak tasting, too lite on the palate; Nastro Azzuro was rather husky-tasting and off-putting; Castello was crisp and pleasant, but by far my most favorite Italian beer was Wuhrer. This beer had a great hop character up front, followed by a lovely and flowery crisp finish. The color was also a darker gold, and this was a nice change compared to most of the straw-gold color of the others.

Another thing I noticed on this trip, certainly in Rome, was a proliferation of Irish/Scottish/English pubs. The Irish, apparently, are a fairly large local immigrant group in Rome. There were no less than a dozen pubs around town staffed by Irish. These pubs featured not only standard Italian beers on draught, but several from the British Isles, including very well-kept Guinness. I managed to visit four of these pubs on my visit and all were within a 15-minute walk from my hotel. (Side note: the Italian culture doesn't really have a "pub" culture to speak of, but I will be the first to tell you that where there's an Irish pub, there were plenty of Italians queuing up to the bar to order pints of beer and from my observation, everyone seemed to have a darn good time in these places, laughing, singing and sharing stories). The following is a summary of the pubs I hit in Rome, plus the nearest site to it in parenthesis:

1. Trinity College Pub (Pantheon). This pub, all woody oak, is a popular spot for college kids in Rome. Run by Irish ex-pats and Italians, they featured the best pint of Guinness I had in Rome; other taps including Foster's, Moretti, Nastro Azzuro, Slalom (a Scottish strong ale, a beer specifically made for the Italian market, and which the Italians love), and Harp. T.C. turns into a DJ'd club after midnight most nights of the week. Good, friendly staff.
2. The Bulldog (Piazza Navona). This was my favorite pub in Rome, and I stopped in twice while I was there. The bar is staffed by Italians and American ex-pats and features several U.K. beers on tap, including Bulldog strong ale from Scotland, which was my favorite beer found in Italy. Labeled a strong ale, this beer was a deep golden brew, and had more characteristics of an IPA (6.5% abv) with a significant hop character. It was served at cellar temp (around 48F). It was outstanding. Other beers on their roster included Guinness, Slalom, Harp, Moretti, Foster's, and a cider (can't remember the name). I really chatted up the locals and the staff both nights I was there, and the DJs favor Brit-pop music and more (including Oasis, Killers, Raconteurs, etc.), and older classic rock (Stones, Beatles, old Aerosmith, etc.). Great place to nosh and swill.
3. The Scholar's Club (Piazza Venezia). This classy Scottish-run pub sits on Corso Vittorio Emanuele, one of the busiest streets in central Rome. It's a great place to while away an hour or two with a good pint, or two, and had a friendly, conversational staff. I chatted up a Swedish bartender, named Frida, and she was helpful about pointing out some cool sites to check out in Rome. The taps were fairly limited (Guinness, Harp, Bass, Slalom and Tennants), but I had a Tennants and Guinness while I was there. This was the probably the nicest, or classiest, of the pubs I visited in Rome. Big screen TVs were piping in an important football match between two Scottish teams and the pub was full of ex-pats cheering on their respective teams.
4. Mad Jack's (Campo di Fiori). This was indeed a 'mad', or crazy, pub for sure, but they also had a nice tap list. Run by Italians - especially two beautiful Italian women - this pub featured Guinness, Harp, Bass, Bombardier, Slalom, Tennants, Morretti and Peroni on tap. I bellied up to the bar late one night, chatted up a guy from South Africa and New York, plus chatted extensively with one of the Italian lady bartenders. My two pints were engine-pulled Bombardier (great, great, great), and Guinness. In the midst of this good beer and great conversation, the bartenders set me and my barmates up with shots of Italian liqueurs free of charge. They were either in a good, giving Christmas mood, or else they just wanted to see what would happen to someone who mixes British beer and Italian hard liquor! In any event I had a slight hangover the next day, but nothing a stroll in the pleasant Italian holiday air couldn't cure. Great pub.