TOP5 BEER BARS

Article by XIANEASE

Xi’an’s brief dalliance with cocktails is ending and beer is once again becoming the hot trend. It seems like the locals’ taste for beer is getting away from Tsingtao and wading into the world of craft brews, and taps and brew kits are popping up in many restaurants and bars across the city. But there’s a vast difference between a proper beer bar serving up stouts and IPAs and more, and a couple of mooks in front of a shoddy tap asking if you want “white” or “black” beer. So, this month we’ll be taking a look at beer places around town—some of them old standbys, some of them newer places you maybe haven’t checked out yet. It’s time to separate the wit from the chaff.

NEAR WALL BAR
/XIAN BREWERY

The guys from Immortal Craft have had a busy few years (bet you didn’t know that’s what “Xianmai” meant, did you?), taking their talents from a small test kit above a random bar to the much larger setup at their Lijiang-inspired dive, Near Wall, to their huge commercial kit at the swanky-casual Brewery. But for all of that expansion and upsizing, quality hasn’t suffered a bit, and their brew-wizards keep coming up with new flavor concoctions that have expanded their offerings from just a handful of staples to more than a dozen, including seasonal beers.

No.40 West Section of Shuncheng South Road, South Gate
顺城南路西段40号

#9 Yannan 1 Lu, Man Di Guang Chang Xi Ce
雁南一路9号曼蒂广场西侧7-1

7-2

MOTOTO

The first of two bottle shops on this list, Mototo is the biggest brand that survived the Great Bottle Shop Culling of 2015. Not for no reason, either; though the original Xiaonanmen location has its charms and a couple of nice beers, the South Gate location’s legion of fridges and ample space offers a lot of variety to try out some imports and chill out with friends—a combination that puts asses in their seats most nights of the week.

Huancheng South Rd East Section
环城南路南门外向东100米7-3

7-4

CRAFT BEER BAR

The second bottle shop on this list, Craft Beer Bar keeps a much lower profile. Located in an alley just west of the West Tang Market (大唐西市), this intimate, unpretentious spot has a couple of Belgian beers on tap and some varieties of bottled beer you are unlikely to find anywhere else within the city limits. If you’ve already tried it all and aren’t interested in being somewhere noisy, this is the spot to try. There’s nothing like a little truth in advertising, right?

No.40 West Section of Shuncheng South Road, South Gate
顺城南路西段40号7-5

7-6

WELL BEER

One of the possible downsides of bottle shops is that, for all of their variety, those bottles might sit on the shelf for a long time. At Well Beer, the imports are bought by the keg-full and served through one of their many taps behind the bar. This means that for you, the drinker, the beer generally tastes fresher and better. But then again, there’s really not much of a contest when given the choice between a bottled beer and a draught.

#8, West of Ti Yu Guan Dong Lu
体育馆东路西侧8号7-7

7-8

WUMU CRAFT BEER

One of the latest contenders in the craft beer scene, Wumu brews up some very interesting flavors and keeps their offerings in a constantly changing rotation. One week you might find a mango ale, the next a coconut chocolate porter, the next they might just have a Belgian wheat. There’s also a banana wheat beer that, according to one of our reviewers, has to be tasted to be believed.

2rd Shop, Shun Cheng Lane, Xiao Nan Men
小南门里顺城巷第二家7-9

7-10