Hazy Pale Ale with a fresh and fruity burst from an eclectic mix of NZ and US hops. We kept it pretty relaxed on the ABV but it still jams out a punch for you hazy heads. A chill brew to make the birds sing whether the sun is shining or not.
Style: Haz
When our friends at Clayton hops came to us and asked us to try their new hop oils, we couldn't say no! We've brewed a classic West Coast style Pale Ale, using modern NZ hops, including Riwaka, Motueka and Nelson Sauvin. Dry hopped with NZ Cascade and "am
Hippy Berliner Cucumber Edition. A very pale wheat beer low in alcohol with light bread and clean lactic sour flavours.
Style: Berliner Weissbier
ABV: 4.5%
Vol: 440ml
We are proud to be part of the Bract Brewing Project, testing out experimental varieties grown by NZ Hops.
In our quest to continually expand our sensory and taste profiles with our breeding program looking for those ‘hops with a difference’, NZH-111 h
A refreshing, light, hoppy, sour and very fruity tasting beer inspired by traditional Berliner Weisse ales. Naturally soured by live cultures and hopped with American and New Zealand hops. It's Juicy, dude.
Style: Berliner Weiss
ABV: 4%
Vol: 330ml
Hopwired was one of the first, true new world IPAs made exclusively with unique NZ hops. Although there is plenty of malt sweetness, this beer is all about the hops. Punchy, aggressive, New Zealand hops that all add up to create wonderful, tropical flavou
The "I" might be in lower case, but beware - this is a capital beer. Brimming with luscious roasted coffee and chocolate malt flavours, iStout is balanced by a brisk bitterness and bold hoppy freshness. As with all our beers, this beer is a very modern in
Relax, what’s the hurry? It's time to turn down the tempo and enjoy a more chilled out brew. We have crafted our LO-FI range with Lower Alcohol and Low Carbs to keep things leisurely. Never compromising on flavour, we have your back. LO-FI, keep it chill.
Relax, what’s the hurry? It's time to turn down the tempo and enjoy a more chilled out brew. We have crafted our LO-FI range with Lower Alcohol and Low Carbs to keep things leisurely. Never compromising on flavour, we have your back. LO-FI, keep it chill.
Black as jet but easy on the ABV. This sessionable stout tempts you to land with big roasted malt notes but then soars to another level with the citrus kick from Centennial hops.
Style: Stout
ABV: 5%
Vol: 330ml
An indulgently decadent imperial stout, enhanced by the addition of miso paste and vanilla. To create this culinary delight, we've curated a complex malt bill, with plenty of chocolate and roasted malts. Additional chocolate in the form of roasted cocoa h
This year we teamed up with our friends at Clayton Hops again to produce a unique Farm Fresh Pilsner. Juicy 100% Motueka hop cones were harvested from Mt Arthur Hop Farm, which is nested in the shadow of the mighty Mt Arthur and overlooking the scenic Mot
Are APAs retro, or are we just old? Neon Sunset is a bit of old-school cool - a classic American Pale Ale! A proper APA that draws inspiration from those old-school West Coast brews, we’ve loaded this with Citra, Simcoe and plenty of Columbus hops. Think
A very special "Imperial Gueuze" inspired blend of selected barrels from our library. One third each of spontaneously fermented 8, 6, and 4 year old barrels create a perfect marriage of funk, fruit, acidity and sherry-like aged flavours.
We barrel age
A refreshing, light, hoppy, sour and very fruit salad tasting beer inspired by traditional Berliner Weisse ales but remixed with pineapple and habanero chillies for a bit of a kick. Naturally soured by live cultures and hopped with American and New Zealan
Desperate Glory is a sour brown ale inspired by Flanders Fields. The base beer is Three On A Match, a rich and complex Belgian Amber Ale with notes of dates, brown sugar and sweet spice. This spent a year resting in bourbon barrels to bring out rich oak a
The first cyder produced by Barry and Henry Chevallier Guild when they joined the business - seven years in creation - and still their favourite drink. Premier Cru is a sophisticated, sparkling cyder with a light floral aroma and a long, dry finish. Craft
Well you wanted a Hazy IPA, that is what you have here in your hot little hand. We have combined some of our all time favourite hops: Citra, Mosaic, El Dorado and Galaxy to bring you a medley of soft juicy flavours and aromas. We put the good things in so
Bittersweet in mouth with a dry finish packed with fruity notes and Goldings hops. Black Sheep Ale is a full flavoured, premium bitter with a rich fruity aroma. We use plenty of choice Golding hops which give it a roast coffee maltiness followed by Black
This strong, velvety ruby brown beer really is a wolf in sheep's clothing. It is deceptively clean drinking, with a wonderfully complex palate of coffee, bananas and liquorice which rewards you with a long, dry Goldings hop finish.
Style: English Stron
Boon Oude Geuze Mariage Parfait is a Gueuze style beer brewed by Brouwerij Boon in Lembeek, Belgium. It consists of 95% mild lambic, aged at least three years and specially reserved for this purpose, and 5% young lambic. The latter provides the fermentabl
Barrel aged sour blond ale. Collab with Magic Rock
Style: Sour Ale
ABV:6%
Vol: 375ml
A beautiful hazy Vermont Session IPA, generously hopped with Citra, Mosaic and Simcoe, bringing strong fruit flavours of citrus, mango and stone fruits. SIBA regional gold award-winning and national silver award winning pale ale
Style: Hazy Session IP
Introducing the latest incarnation of Tonkoko! The iconic Tonkoko cows are back and infused with the distinct flavour of peanut butter!
With a rich malt base and a soft vanilla sweetness, Peanut Butter Tonkoko delivers the classic flavours of our OG mil
At The Bottle Shop, we select our craft beers based on their flavours. When we started our import and distribution service in 2012, craft beers were defined by the volume breweries produced annually. The definition of craft beer has changed over the past two decades, and the term has gotten murkier as smaller breweries are acquired by large beer companies. Craft beer in Hong Kong has come a long way. New world varieties were scarce, and most craft beers in Hong Kong were English bitters and Belgium sweet fruit beers. Nowadays, one can find beers from all over the world.
Our store focuses on award winning beers, both local craft beers, and those imported internationally.
Below are a few types of craft beer that are popular in Hong Kong:
Commercial beers certainly have their place in the market. At (rare) times we enjoy a commercial lager as much as the next person. But even within the selection of craft beer in Hong Kong, not all commercial ones are created equal. Some beers can be mistreated during its transportation and storage, and suffer from oxidation, UV light, over-heating, and the list goes on. Some beers have an overwhelming amount of esters that contribute to banana flavours, which isn't really pleasant.
Synonymous with craft beers are Pale Ale, and Indian Pale Ale (or IPA). From these two styles come variations, including Extra Pale Ale (XPA), American Pale Ale (APA), Imperial IPA (IIPA), Double IPA (DIPA), Double Dry-Hopped IPA (DDH IPA), Triple IPA (TIPA), Hazy Pale Ale, Hazy IPA, Milkshake IPA, Black IPA, and the list goes on. What sets them apart are mostly the malt bill (the level and character of sweetness), and the hop bill (the amount and variety of hops). Traditionally, craft beers have higher levels of bitterness because the more hops are in the beers, the more bitterness there is. Recent IPA trend is less bitterness and more hop fruitiness (think Sauvignon Blanc but in beers). Local craft beers in Hong Kong are also hoppy forward, with low bitterness.
Since The Bottle Shop began operation ten plus years ago, the number of local craft beer brands has gone from zero to close to twenty - all thanks to hop forward IPAs.
Sour beers have been one of the biggest trends in the craft beer Hong Kong movement, especially ones with very big fruit dominant milkshake style sours. Sour craft beers are much like sourdough bread, it's a re-conceptualisation of old techniques popularised by Belgium naturally fermented beers. Contemporary sour beers are deliberately spiked with lactobacillus to lower their pH.
The most popular styles of sour craft beers include Berliner Weisse, Gose, Flanders, Lambics, and Geuze. Many contemporary Gose or Berliner Weisse have loads of fruits added to them, along with other adjuncts like lactose or salt. Sour beers are great for summer sweltering weather for refreshment, but they're also amazing as companions to a meal, or even with vanilla ice-cream.
Dark beers include Porter, Stout, Brown Ale, and so on. Dark beers are dark because brewers add heavily roasted barley in the brew, imparting roasted barley notes, coffee notes, chocolate, and nutty flavours. Craft beers that are dark doesn't necessarily mean they're bitter. Contemporary dark beers can in fact be sweet. You may have heard of pastry stouts, mud-cake stouts? These craft beers can have weird and wonderful adjunct ingredients, with equally exotic names, like imperial Porter brewed with Toasted Coconut and Maple Syrup, or Blueberry Hazelnut Coffee Cheesecake Stout. I guess you can't say craft beer is boring!!
The craft beer Hong Kong scene has been a dynamic and ever-changing environment. From its anemic beginning, to now an international hub of choices and an incredible array of local craft beers and breweries. Let us know if you can't find a craft beer you're looking for.