Probably like most of you, when I think of craft beer, even European craft beer, I do not think of Italy. So when I first heard that Gabe over at Beachwood BBQ was hosting an Italian Beer Fest, I was surprised. What the heck is he gonna do with Birra Moretti or Peroni??

Turns out Gabe knew what he was doing. He organized a fabulous selection of Italian craft beers this past weekend and even brought some Italian brewers over for the Thursday night opening. I was able to make it last night (Friday) and enjoyed six surprisingly tasty Italian beers. I started off with the Pausa Cafe PILS which was highly carbonated but very good. From there, I enjoyed the Pausa Tosta, the Birreria Le Baladin Super Baladin, the Birrifico Grado Plate Chocarrubica, the Birrifico del Ducato Verdi Imperial Stout and finally the Birra del Borgo My Antonia, which is a collaboration with Dogfish Head. They were all really good although the Super Baladin was a bit too sour for my tastes. It was nice to learn that Italy has some really good craft beers even though they are obviously a wine dominated country. One of these days I will visit Italy and now I have some breweries on my list of places to go!