Beijing Boyce

(If you like this blog, please support it with a vote in the China Blog Awards, by clicking the “+” sign here. Support for sibling blog welcomed here!)

By Jim Boyce

I’ve spent a great deal of time drinking and thinking about wine this past year and have emerged with mixed opinions, but happily I just got an email from regular commentator 8 Songs that reminded me why I like both wine and the Friday night with Frank tastings in Beijing. There aren’t many places where you can have an impromptu cork versus screw top contest, try an Indonesian wine, and experience excellent comradery all in one night. So, here is 8 Songs’ take on just such an occasion, though he seems to have left out the parts about dancing on chairs and a regular dressing up as Santa Claus (yes, I have my sources).

“The Friday night wine tasting at Sequoia Café last Friday night yielded an unexpected and enlightening opportunity to pit screw top against cork.

“It came about because the evening was a “bring your own bottle” night. Amongst the treasures from the 14 who attended were two bottles of Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon 2004. One was under cork, the other had a screw top.

“A more diligent reporter would have gone to Penfolds to check the logic for why one of their premium wines should have two different closures….

“We did check the provenance of the two bottles before us. One came from the duty free store at Sydney Airport two months ago, while the other was lifted from a private collection in Melbourne.

“Our host Frank Siegel suggested we do a taste-off and supplied us with a second glass.

“The two wines were like chalk and cheddar, tea and turnips, or Pavarotti and punk – whichever imagery works for you.

“Though both had a deep purple, almost black appearance in the glass, one introduced itself with a full aroma suggesting a fine balance between fruit and tannin. The other had a fruit aroma but without the complexity. In the mouth, the first caressed our taste buds with an explosion of flavour at the start, a complex structure and a long slow finish with a hint of acid that suggested it could have stayed in the cellar another couple of years. The other was an ordinary wine with no complexity and barely any resemblance to its brother. (Or is it sister?)

“I need to reveal a few qualifications on this.

“- We had already “tasted” about a dozen wines before these two. I saw no one spit their taste at any time during the evening.

” - We had fresh glasses for the screw-top wine, but for the cork we used our same glasses as for the previous 10 or so bottles.

” - We did not give the two bottles any airing time. They were cracked and poured. Some time in a carafe may have helped the second wine.

” - Yours truly brought one of the two 407s.

“So which was which? We had 14 tasters, some with palates still maturing, others with quite advanced technical skills. But the verdict was unanimous – the wine under cork had aged magnificently and had developed into a great wine. The wine under aluminium had not done a thing in its three or four years in the bottle. It was truly stuck in a time warp.

“The group lamented that we had neither Jim Boyce [Thanks for the plug! - Ed.] nor Beijing’s ambassador for cork Ricardo Duarte there that night.

“By the way, we had another surprise that evening. A bottle of Indonesian white wine was offered for tasting. Called Aga White and from the highlands of Bali, the label urged us not to cellar this wine. But it was fine – a slight apple/citrus taste but well built and would be perfect on a long slow Sunday afternoon on Kuta Beach ["Is this a motion for a field trip?" - Ed.].

-

More on corks and screw tops:
Screw it? A video conference with Wolf Blass and George Samios
Cork it? An interview with Amorim’s Carlos de Jesus
The fault with no name: Frankie Zhao on corked wine in China

Besides being a writer, single malt aficionado, and bigwig at a PR firm, Kaiser Kuo has been rocking in Beijing for a over a decade, whether with Tang Dynasty starting in the 1990s, with AC/DC tribute band Dirty Deeds, or with current project Spring and Autumn (Chunqui). Here are his top five all-time Beijing live music venues. (Note: I’ll soon have a post on the top five current live music venues).

-

1) Keep in Touch: The biggest myth about the old Keep in Touch, which was across the street from the Kempinski Hotel and was in business between 1998 and 2001, was that it was owned by ex-Cui Jian keyboardist Wang Yong. To set the record straight the owners were Wang Yong’s (late) sister Wang Ling and her then-boyfriend Liang Jun in 1997, and as far as I know it never officially changed ownership, though Wang Yong certainly behaved as though it were his. Between its opening and closing, there weren’t really many other decent venues. KIT had a good sound system for its day, and acts like Overload, Cobra, Zhang Chu, Underbaby, Brain Failure, Again, Iron Kite, and Tang Dynasty used to play there quite regularly. The motorcycle Tang Dynasty’s first bassist Zhang Ju died riding formed a morbid but central piece of the bar’s decor. (Photo: Yiren)

2) Rhine River Sound Stage: The Sound Stage was the heir to Keep in Touch. It was jointly opened by Wang Yong and Tang Dynasty’s then-manager Sun Hao during the waning days of KIT’s glory. Located off of Xueyuan Lu just north of the Beijing Film Academy, Sound Stage inherited much of the gear and pretty much the same crowd of rock aficionados that Keep in Touch had. Things went downhill for the club after May 11, 2001, when the annual tribute concert to Zhang Ju (held at Sound Stage in 2000 as well) was shut down by the authorities after a crowd of roughly three times the club’s capacity showed up. Live shows were stopped soon afterward, and the bar closed some months later.

3) (Old) Get Lucky: Located in a nasty ghetto called Taiyanggong, south of the University of International Business and Economics, Beijing, the owner of the Get Lucky must have had some serious connect: Over the years, every business around his was flattened, and it became easier and easier to find his weird ramshackle club, vaguely Old West-themed bar. Its exterior was gaudily festooned in neon, which I thought was appropriate: Friends of mine and I fondly referred to the place as “the rock ‘n’ roll bordello,” because down a hall on the side of the bar away from the stage were these sleazy karaoke rooms full of sportin’ girls, who’d come tottering out on stiletto heels to check out the bands when things were really rocking. Between 2000 and 2005, when the New Get Lucky on Lady’s Street started taking over most of the live shows, just about every band — whether punk, metal, or whatever genre of rock — played at this place. It’s where Beijing learned how to mosh.

4) (New) Yugong Yishan: The old Yugong Yishan by Chunxiu Lu west of Sanlitun was an okay place to gig from 2005 to 2006 or so, but the new place gets it just right: A great cross-section crowd where Beijingers and expats can all come to enjoy a huge range of genres of live music. I’m not absolutely crazy about the sound system — it’s better at places like Mao — but the atmosphere, the location (in the old Duan Qirui government offices), the size of the place, and the feel of the stage all make it about my favorite place to gig in Beijing today.

5) Star Live: I know there are lots of people who wouldn’t agree that this place belongs on any list of best venues. The sound system can be truly awful in the wrong hands, and ticket prices sometimes keep the real rockers away. But if you have the right sound guy and don’t set your prices too high, you can really get the crowd rocking here. This is the only live house in Beijing that’s big enough to draw a really big audience and one of the few places with a stage big enough to really move around on.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

Question: Is it possible for women to drink free every night this week?

Answer: Yes.

Though “ladies nights” are typically a mid-week phenomenon in Beijing, the highly competitive post-Olympic bar and club scene is seeing them pop up even on Fridays and Saturdays. This makes it possible for the fairer sex to enjoy free beverages every day this week, though it might require one or more of the following: wearing a “sexy skirt”, dressing like a bunny, belting out a few love songs, and/or coughing up a minor entry fee.

Here is the prospective lineup:

Monday
TUN: Free cocktails from 8-11 PM (free Tsingtao for men, 8-8:30)

Tuesday
Kro’s Nest: First keg of beer free at 6 PM (applies for men)
Frank’s Place: First cocktail free for ladies in “The Cave” wine bar.

Wednesday
Suzie Wong, Zeta, Block 8, China Doll 3.3, and (if you dress like a bunny) Bling: Free drinks

Thursday
Song: Free drinks

Friday
TUN: Free cocktails from 9 PM-midnight

Saturday
Zeta: “Free bubbly to all ladies in sexy skirts”

Sunday
Lush: Perform for 15 minutes at “open mic” night and get a free beer (though there is a RMB10 entry fee).

Even in these hard times, it is still possible to get free hard liquor, as well as bubbly and beer. And if anyone knows of other deals out there, please post them in the comments section.

But think of all the money you saved!*

* This photo is just a reminder that just because the booze is free doesn’t mean your body should pay the price. Know thy limit and ye shall live to drink another day.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

The moose is loose (or is it a reindeer?).

-

I keep hearing about hard times in the bar scene. I keep seeing plenty of people out and about. What gives? No doubt, the economic crisis is leading some to tighten their belts, but even if times were good, the scene would still have overcapacity - especially at the high end - due to the enduring impact of all those pre-Olympic bar, club, and restaurant openings. Too many places and too few customers: It is a situation that tried and true places will survive, but some of the new ones will not. Here are four spots with decent crowds last night.

-

TUN
After Bad Apples rocked the joint, a team of orange- and black-clad Jagermeister fem-bots and their Jager-moose mascot performed around 1 AM for about 50 patrons. Things started with something akin to a disjointed conga line twice circling the bar, shifted into bar top writhing to a peppy version of Billie Jean, and ended with four provocatively dressed dancers putting the closed ends of test tubes shots between their lips and tilting the contents into the mouths of patrons.

(Being the academic type, I carefully noted that employment at Jagermeister seems closely related to leg length. Given my skill with tape measures and calipers, I see hope for further research. Just saying…)

What I expected to be a farce turned out to be fun for most, save a female friend who wanted her shot from the mascot’s mouth. “I’ll only drink one if the moose gives it to me,” said she.

Expect a repeat performance at midnight tonight to cap off ladies night.

By the way, Bad Apples expects to go into the studio in January for its first album.

-

Glen
I stopped in to chat with whiskey bar owner Wilfred Kwok, who gave me a taste of the recently arrived Monkey Shoulder, a blend of three Speyside single malts. (This whiskey gets its name from an upper arm injury once common among malt makers.) Expect some caramel, ripe apple, spice, and a very long finish. I’ll soon have a longer write-up on Glen, which Kwok says now has about 150 whiskeys priced from RMB40 to RMB420, but suffice it to say I found the place comfortable, with four groups - including a large one - providing a nice hum of background noise.

Note: There is a RMB30 sit down fee at Glen, but this is waived for first-time visitors (just mention it to the bar staff).

-

Beer Mania
I pass by this bar regularly and often see a good crowd through the window. Last night was no exception, with plenty of patrons sucking down Belgium and other beers.

-

Q Bar
I stopped for what I thought would be a fairly quiet drink, but instead found a sizable and fairly raucous crowd, two deep or more at the bar. This is one of those tried and true places I mentioned above, though I would love to see a few of their staple cocktails - the classic, dirty, and lychees martinis, for example - at an economic crisis-friendly RMB50. Even so, this place continues to make consistently good drinks.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

By Jim Boyce

On Monday night, I tried three Chinese wines at Duck de Chine with a group of beverage researchers that included visiting Aussie wine critic Jeremy Oliver and fellow Grape Wall contributors Nicolas Carre, Frankie Zhao, and John Gai. Here is the lineup and the results.

-

Yunnan Crystal Dry White 2002 (Yunnan / ~RMB30 if memory serves)
Made with a grape variety brought to south-central China by missionaries in the nineteenth century, this wine tends to elicit extreme reactions:

• Oliver grimaced with his first sniff, called it “foxy“, then refined his evaluation to “boiled pineapple lolly with stale dank old flowers.” A few additional micro sniffs confirmed that he did not like this one.
• Zhao found it both foxy and clean. In other words, he didn’t consider it his cup of tea glass of wine, but thought it properly made.
• Carre, who has tried it once before, described it as having some interesting aromas, but ultimately reminding him of a plum wine.
• I found ample tropical aromas (especially pineapple) and the body surprisingly fruitier than the younger vintages I have tried, though the body and finish were too light. Even so, I could easily drink a glass of this and think this wine ranks among the most intriguing in China.

Note: Oliver suggested this grape does not hail from the species Vitis vinifera that is used for most wine and I later checked on this with Ma Huiqin, professor at China Agricultural University, who said it is a hybrid. Along these lines, he said it smelled like jelly made from Concord grapes. True, that’s one thing about it that interests me!

-

Xi Xia Chardonnay 2002 (Ningxia / ~ RMB30)
This wine is served at French restaurant Maxim’s of Paris (Solana branch), where Carre is manager, but unfortunately my supermarket bottle turned out to be corked. In any case, Carre says this wine typically features pear, white flower, and citrus aromas, and is what he calls “fresh” (dry and fruity), though the finish is quite short. I thought I smelled some tart apple when I previously tried this wine.

-

Sino-French Chardonnay 2004* (Hebei / sample)
This one hailed from Sino-French Demonstration Vineyard, a nonprofit research outfit just outside Beijing. Unanimous agreement that this is a well-made wine, with Gai giving a positive nod, Carre saying he found white flower and “white fruit” (peach and apricot) aromas, and a few people picking up vanilla. The finish is superior to the Ningxia and Yunnan wines and I would put this on par with the Chardonnay produced by Grace Vineyard. Unfortunately, as Sino-French is noncommercial, this wine is not for sale. Go figure…

-

* I’m not sure of the year, but Zhao has tried Sino-French wines many times and pegged it as 2004.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

To mark five million visitors* to its pub and ranch since 1996, veteran Beijing sports spot the Goose & Duck is holding a party on Saturday that features free house pours and pub grub from 8 PM until midnight as well as live entertainment (I imagine that includes the regularly scheduled performance by the Chinese Basketball Association cheerleaders). If I can finish an appointment on time and make it to the G&D, it will also include some free butt kicking at table top hockey courtesy of yours truly.

Also of note, Goose and Duck plans to open a comedy show and theater space, with seating for about 100, on the floor above the bar proper.

Meanwhile, Club China Doll in Tongli Studio will mark its second year tonight, with the entertainment including hip hop and mash up DJs from Mixtape.

And Paddy O’Shea’s celebrates its first anniversary on Sunday, with two for one on house drinks and regular beer, happy hour prices on premium beers, and an Irish band from 7:30 PM. (Note to management: Please use the spelling and grammar checker before sending out invites.)

-

* Give or take a thousand (or two).

This is one customer Tongli security ain't messing with.

-

To those seeking something that unites monster movies, the world’s most reclusive regime, consumption of mineral resources, and cheap booze:

Koryo Tours is screening the 1985 North Korean flick Pulgasari tonight at Bar Blu, which I hear will offer drink deals. From what I gather, the movie is about a sensitive beer-drinking blogger massive iron-eating lizard that helps consumers peasants take on bars that add service charges dastardly overseers. The second feature is Friends of Kim, a 2005 documentary about an at-times wacky tour organized by the Korea Friendship Association. Maybe if people stick around, Bar Blu can keep the North Korea theme going with Team America.

Things get started at 7:30 but you might want to get there somewhat earlier to guarantee yourself a seat.

The parade of wine events continues in Beijing with the next few days seeing more than a half-dozen tastings and dinners. Tonight sees everything from a free Petit Bordeaux tasting at Amigo to an organic wine and food dinner at the Hilton to a Taittinger Champagne dinner at the newer Hilton in Wangfujing. Add in Aria’s World Series Wines, an Osso Bucco dinner at Sequoia, and a Pio Cesare Italian wine dinner, along with the I Am Paradox follow-up at OT Lounge this Sunday, and it kind of feels like Beijing sips while the world economy burns.

Here’s the lineup for the next week (for the longer-term view, check this events page. It is always best to confirm details with the organizer.)

-

Thursday, December 11, 7-8.30 PM, Amigo (Central Park), free
Petit Bordeaux wine tasting; buy two, get one free promotion during event; to RSVP, visit www.topcellar.com.cn, email to marketing@topcellar.com.cn, or call 13691-079-531.

-

Thursday, December 11, 7 PM, Chynna Restaurant (Hilton Wangfujing), RMB628
Taittinger Champagne dinner, with owner Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger matching wine and Chinese food; by Torres China; RSVP with Sophie Sun at sophie@torres.com.cn / 5165-5519, x208.

-

Thursday, December 11, 7 PM, One East on Third (Hilton), RMB400 + 15%
Organic wine and food dinner, with 5 Gerard Bertrand wines; by East Meets West; to RSVP, contact Wendy Jiang at wendy@emw-wines.com / 6445-5787, x8006.

-

Friday, December 12, 7 PM, Aria (China World Hotel), RMB1388
World Series of Wine: Hidden Gems, with Summergate; RSVP with Carol Gao at carol.gao@shangri-la.com / 6505-2266, x36.

-

Friday, December 12, 6:30 PM, Sequoia Cafe, RMB248
Osso Bucco dinner, with 3 courses paired with 3 wines; RSVP via E-vite; to get on the list, call Frank Siegel at 13701-178-073.

-

Saturday, December 13, 7 PM, St. Regis Hotel, RMB888
Pio Cesare Italian wine dinner, with the winery’s Cesare Benvenuto presenting Barolo and Barbaresco; by Torres China; RSVP with Sophie Sun at sophie@torres.com.cn / 5165-5519, x208. -

-

Sunday, December 14, 6-11:30 PM, OT Lounge, RSVP required
I Am Paradox, II; with 100+ wines available at 50% off; “Feel free to try, drink and buy”; by French Wine Paradox; RSVP with Charles Carrard at ccarrard.fwp@gmail.com / 8407-5067.

-

Wednesday, December 17, 6:30 PM Grand Millennium Hotel, RMB350
Chateau Ste. Michelle wine dinner, with ASC; RSVP with Helen Lu at eventsbj@asc-wines.com or 6587-3803.

-

If you intend to attend any of the above events, it is best to confirm the details with the venue ahead of time. To get a wine event listed, send event info to beijingboyce@yahoo.com.

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

Klubb Rouge, with which I will always associate this unique press conference, is closed for regular business at least until January, says a company source, who cites “decoration” as the reason for the break. The venue is still available for major events.

While it held some major parties, Klubb Rouge struggled with night-to-night business and recently instituted an all-you-can-drink special that, at least on my visits, didn’t boost the numbers. It shares ownership links with two other establishments in China View - Stadium Sports Bar and Drei Kronen 1308.

See here for more on Klubb Rouge.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

A Tuesday night pub crawl is usually a bad idea, but sometimes - as with meteor strikes, power outages, and wedgies - it just happens. Such forays are increasingly rare for me, with last night being an exception. Here are the places visited, with a two-sentence write-up for each.

-

Duck de Chine (1949: The Hidden City): I met a group of foodies and we sampled wines from Yunnan, Ningxia, and Hebei provinces and ate a tasty duck dinner (thanks to Justin Quek of Le Platane). Ducky does not describe the service, however, as the staff struggled to handle our pre-dinner drinks and understand requests (we asked for spittoons several times and kept receiving ice buckets full of cubes; we asked for another bottle of wine and received our bill; etc).

-

1/5 (1949: The Hidden City): We dropped in for Guinness and were (mis?) treated to some music that would make my “worst eighties” list. This place has the kind of decor and vibe that would make it appropriate for corporate types cutting loose.

-

TUN: Open Mic nights are a lot like golf - even if you have a horrible round, a birdie or two will inspire you to at least save one club from the lake and come back and play. Given that, there were a few triple bogeys last night that saw things proceed slower than usual, though two Tsingtao for RMB15 goes a long way in terms of compensation.

-

Maggie’s: A return visit to make sure the opening wasn’t a fluke. Nope, aside from the airier layout, things were pretty much same old, same old, with a decent crowd for a Tuesday, though it seemed ladies outnumbered gents (by the way, were the wine markups always upwards of 400 to 500 percent?).

-

Goose n’ Duck: Pretty much empty after midnight, which means we had the table top hockey and pitching cage all to ourselves! I like this place - the food is decent, there are plenty of seating options, a good smattering of TVs, etc - but I miss the convenience of the old spot near Chaoyang Park.

-

The Den: About 25 to 30 people were settled in and throwing down drinks, which the reliable staff ensured were available in ample supplies along with decent pub grub (deep-fried combo: yum). I noticed people who had been at Maggie’s earlier in the night trickling in as we headed out…

Old mascots never die, they simply graze away.

-

Yesterday marked not only the reopening of the city’s most famous / infamous bar, but also four months since the start of the Olympics. Coincidence? (Kidding.)

But seriously, it is hard to believe so little time has passed since The Games, and even less since The Paralympics. It seems like more than a year ago that I hit two dozen pubs with Nicolas Carre during the opening ceremony, headed to stadiums all over the city to watch soccer, wheelchair rugby, field hockey, beach volleyball, and more, met a cigar-seeking Michael Phelps at China Doll 3.3, and spent nearly every night partying with fellow Beijing residents, tourists, and athletes.

But that is part and parcel of living in Beijing. I often feel a bit like a time traveler, fitting a typical year’s worth of living back home in the space of a few months here. Which is why The Olympics seems as distant as last year’s vacation. Thank Buddha for the memories - and cameras.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

…is back. And so is the bar beside it, closed since early this year and now sporting a décor that takes this Ritan Park location yet another step away from its former earthy digs on Workers Stadium East.

The stripped down interior is highlighted by an island bar, by a more exposed dance floor and DJ area, by stools replacing sofa areas and cubby holes, and by a rainbow of lights that binds the club proper, the strategically placed racks of bottles, and the traditional roof beams replete with colorful scenes that are visible through a cutout that runs the length of the ceiling. This all takes the look up a notch, though it comes off as a bit sanitized, a situation that might change when a second area under renovation is opened.

But as usual, the attention to detail is evident, the service solid, the toilets spotless, and the dance floor swamped when ABBA is played. The average Beijing bar would do well to send its staff here to learn how to operate a place.

In terms of beverages, this still tends to a land of extremes, with two of the most popular drinks being beer, especially the cheapest item Tsingtao at RMB30, and Champagne, staring with Moet at RMB1200. And yes, the hot dogs (now RMB30) taste the same as always.

Last night saw a strong turnout, with a generally amicable crowd sprinkled with the typical handful of degenerates. I think we can safely call it a successful hard reopening.

Note: Thanks to 8 Songs for the photo. He and partner Ba Songs were the first couple to hit the dance floor at the reopening.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

What does Foreign Girl taste like?

Strawberries.

So concluded a group that last night tried a bottle of this liquid concocted by Chang Bai Shan Wine, located in Jilin province in northeastern China. I bought it in Beijing at Carrefour.

Actually, no strawberries here, but a friend who guessed “strawberries and herbs” gets points as this light (8 percent alcohol) somewhat sweet wine includes a few ingredients commonly found in Chinese medicine, including wolfberry.

I realize my photo is terrible (again) so here is the English written below “Foreign Girl” on the label (I reproduce it here with typos):

The wine is clear and transparent with bright color and lustre, mellow and tastelasting with charming fruity taste. Thanks to the nut ritions such as amino acid,vitamin C,vitamin B1, vitaminB2, schisandra element, schisandra alcohol, volate oil and multiple microelements, the wine moistens the lung,enriches the.

In other words, if you need your lungs moistened – and who doesn’t in this dry Beijing air – then this wine is for you. By the way, as much as I joke, we polished off the bottle.

Mmmm, berries...

(This entry is cross-posted here on sibling blog Grape Wall of China.)

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

After several futile forays in recent weeks, I finally found Club Sandwich around the corner from a 7-ELEVEN, just southeast north of Sun City, about 300 meters - including a street crossing - west of the April Gourmet that is a block north of Workers Stadium. If those directions don’t work for you, check this map.

I had the BLT (RMB25), my third choice, as a lack of ingredients meant I couldn’t try the first two (ham, after all, is a crucial component of a ham and cheese sandwich). And what this place missed in ingredients, it didn’t make up in service efficiency, as it took an effort to get the staff’s attention. But the sandwiches are tasty and made with TLC, though a side of fries or simple soup would have made it perfectly filling.

What is excellent value, though, is the coffee - it starts at an economic crisis-friendly RMB10 per cup.

Club Sandwich has a rough and ready look (think: white paint sloshed over brick walls) and the reasonably comfortable chairs, fairly high ceilings, and strong wireless signal - along with that bargain coffee - make it a nice and airy stop for the wireless gang. I plan a return, both for a caffeine boost and to try this place’s pizza.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

Downtown Irish pub Paddy O’Shea’s is taking over management of Shunyi-based bar and restaurant The Pomegranate, according to the latter’s weekly newsletter. Pomegranate owner Mike Hall cites the increasing amount of time he is abroad as the reason for the move. The Pomegranate opened more than three years ago and hosts a nice array of events, both weekly (quiz nights) and annual (Rynostock).

In related news, Glenn Phelan recently left Paddy O’Shea’s as manager, with amicable differences cited as the reason. Phelan is a veteran of the bar scene, with stints at The Pavillion, Browns, and Frank’s Place, and will no doubt soon be popping up in a new venture.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

Hard times and happening times in Beijing. People talking about the scene slowing down even as the pace of events and specials seems to be speeding up. In any case, a few things going on over the next few days…

I wrote earlier that Thai restaurant Pink Loft is moving to the former Browns / Revelations location. Management said today the new place should be open this Sunday.

Meanwhile, Gingko, in the former Room 101 space, will hold its opening party on Friday and the invite promises “a great evening of live music, discount drinks, free canapes and general mayhem!”

Rumors swirling yet again that Maggie’s will reopen. Yes, I have heard them. No, I don’t know if they are true.

If you haven’t been to 25 Degrees in G Hotel yet, the place will have “A Touch of Lace Party” on Saturday, with RMB30 standard drinks from 10 PM.

Culinary Capers and Sequoia Cafe will hold a steak throwdown the same day, with Australian and American rib-eyes, Caesar salad, mashed potatoes, toffee cake, and more for RMB168.

Sunday sees Yugong Yishan break out the “jazz electro pop” (6:30 PM) for a Children of Ningxia charity event. The event is called “snow harvest” in memory of when people would trap as much snow as possible to ensure water throughout the year. RMB50 at the door with some “original” gifts available for RMB100 for those seeking to do some Christmas shopping.

For those looking for more holiday spirit, Beijing Playhouse is performing A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, from December 5-28. For tickets, call 13718-908-922 (RMB260 in advance, RMB300 at the door; the play is in English with Chinese subtitles). See www.beijingplayhouse.com for more details.

And that’s just a few of the things going on. It’s not hard to keep busy these days.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

(To vote, go here and click the “plus” sign.)

-

What would Yan do? Vote for this blog, of course!

-

Being able to subsist on instant noodles, tea eggs, and draft beer, I don’t ask much, but would appreciate your vote in the China Blog Awards being held by Chinalyst. Last year, I pulled off a surprise win due to the support of readers and of Yan Xishan, the warlord who apparently blogs to us from 1941 via a Shanxi supercomputer and is backed by a “Juicy Pants Army” (hey, I don’t make this stuff up - it’s an actual blog).

This year’s awards have kicked off. Yan is again backing me and I hope you will, too. To vote, go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged to those who vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

Note: Unlike last year, I’m not going to point out that those who do not vote for me will be cursed by a lifetime of horrific luck followed by an eternity in that hell where you eat nothing but cardboard-stuffed steamed buns, drink fake booze distilled from window cleaner, and listen to the sweet music of a thousand expectorating taxi drivers 24/7. Because I’ve become a better person.

Several dinners with wine bigwigs on the schedule this coming week, including with Australian wine critic Jeremy Oliver, Spy Valley GM Blair Gibbs, Champagne maker Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger, and Pio Ceesare’s Cesare Benvenuto. Details below (for the longer-term view, check this events page. It is always best to confirm details with the organizer.)

-

Monday, December 8, 7 PM, Bei (Opposite House), RMB1398 +15%
A night with Australian wine critic Jeremy Oliver; eight-course dinner including demonstration of pairing wines and North Asian flavors; wines from The Wine Republic; RSVP at info@beirestaurant.com / 6410-5230

-

Monday, December 8, 7 PM, Pinot (JW Marriott), RMB350
Spy Valley wine dinner, with winery GM Blair Gibbs; five-course dinner with four wines from Watson’s; RSVP with Lily Li at lilyli@asw.com.hk / 6588-9229, x801.

-

Thursday, December 11, 7-8.30 PM, Amigo (Central Park), free
Petit Bordeaux wine tasting; buy two, get one free promotion during event; to RSVP, visit www.topcellar.com.cn, email to marketing@topcellar.com.cn, or call 13691-079-531.

-

Thursday, December 11, 7 PM, Chynna Restaurant (Hilton Wangfujing), RMB628
Taittinger Champagne dinner, with owner Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger matching wine and Chinese food; by Torres China; RSVP with Sophie Sun at sophie@torres.com.cn / 5165-5519, x208.

-

Saturday, December 13, 7 PM, St.Regis Hotel, RMB888
Pio Cesare Italian wine dinner, with the winery’s Cesare Benvenuto presenting Barolo and Barbaresco; by Torres China; RSVP with Sophie Sun at sophie@torres.com.cn / 5165-5519, x208.

-

Wednesday, December 17, 6:30 PM Grand Millennium Hotel, RMB350
Chateau Ste. Michelle wine dinner, with ASC; RSVP with Helen Lu at eventsbj@asc-wines.com or 6587-3803.

-

December, 7 PM, Aria (China World Hotel), RMB1388
World Series of Wine: Hidden Gems, with Summergate; RSVP with Danny Kane at danny.kane@shangri-la.com / 6505-2266, x36.

-

January, 7 PM, Aria (China World Hotel), RMB4888
World Series of Wine: The Ultimate Dinner - The Judgement of Aria, with Summergate; RSVP with Danny Kane at danny.kane@shangri-la.com / 6505-2266, x36.

-

If you intend to attend any of the above events, it is best to confirm the details with the venue ahead of time. To get a wine event listed, send event info to beijingboyce@yahoo.com.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

Nearly a week of healthier living built up pressure that could only be released with a pizza and burger binge, so I have been hitting some oldies but goodies in my Sanlitun / Workers Stadium neighborhood. I justify it as bulking up for the winter. A quick wrap:

Luga’s Villa: The tasty potato wedges save the day for the Mexican burger (RMB40), which I found a bit dry, so I recommend instead the fajitas (RMB40-RMB60), particularly the beef, as the serving size is huge, the ingredients fresh, and the wraps nice and warm in a basket. Good times if you get one of the comfy booths.

The Rickshaw: I’m a long-time fan of the medium wings, a newer one of the Oz burger (the ingredients include beetroot, pineapple, and egg), but went hybrid with the Buffalo burger (RMB40). It’s basically a chicken burger with medium wing sauce - the patty is a generous size and comes with a side of fries. By the way, this place is getting a good range of craft beers.

The Den happy hour: Carb-loading from 5-10 PM.

The Den: It still offers one of the best happy hours in town - 5 to 10 PM daily - as well as an efficient staff. I went last night with a friend and we had two tasty pizzas, two colas, and a basket of fries for RMB92. (For late-night eating, The Den deep-fried combo is hard to beat.)

TUN: A mini-burger is RMB10 to RMB12 and fries are something like RMB15 or RMB20. Given this, you can save a wad of cash - and buy another couple of beers - if you order the combo special. That gets you five burgers and fries for RMB40. By the way, wouldn’t the Beijing vibe at TUN go up a few notches if it had a few yangrou chuar sellers out front? (And yes, I realize this place is not an “oldie”).

Other options as the binge continues…

Second Floor: An unpretentious bar, with reasonably priced drinks, which gets pizza delivered from The Tree.

Kro’s Nest: I’m about due for a We Hate Tuesdays (first two kegs of beer free, then RMB5 pints) or Thirsty Thursdays (five craft beers for RMB80) visit.

Blue Frog: I’m also due to finally try Burger, Burger, the two-for-one burger deal every Monday.

Kiosk: Big bite burger!

The yet-to-be-named Saddle: This is slated to soon open on the south side of Nali and give patrons the option of picking their burrito wraps and ingredients, Subway sandwich style. Fingers crossed that they can do something close to a Taco Bell seven-layer burrito.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.

Some readers assume this blog wields influence in the Beijing bar scene.

True, a glowing review might inspire up to a handful of people to visit a given bar; the occasional op-ed piece can affect monumental change (case in point: my wet naps campaign at The Rickshaw*); and a few stakeholders - usually uptight pub owners or uppity magazine editors - have unleashed verbal tirades at me. But these are exceptions and more could be done if only the people in power simply did what I say (for example, we could have had those wet naps thousands of chicken wings earlier).

In this spirit, I introduce a feature known as If Beijing Bar Owners Gave a Crap What I Thought, by the terser version GAC (Give a Crap) Report, and by the handy acronym IBBOGACWIT.

It will look at what could be in the bar (and restaurant, club, and hotel) scene if I could snap my fingers and make things happen. From small details about a particular place, such as strengthening an anemic Gin Tonic or stopping employees who cut their nails on the bar top and sweep the clippings on the floor, to macro stuff, such as ending the “soft opening” insanity or vaporizing press releases with sentences that end in multiple exclamation marks.

I do so knowing the odds of affecting change are close to zero, but if even one suggestion in a hundred is considered, it’s something. And as the old Chinese saying goes, “Even when you talk to a post, at least you exercise your jaw (and make a new friend).”

Here’s the first GAC Report…

1. The Bookworm would fix its constantly rattling, regularly slamming, and always nerve-jarring front door. Oh, wait. It did. Three weeks ago. With a nice shiny automatic sliding number. People, what a start!

2. Luga’s Villa would become Lugaville. It reads and sounds better, in a Jimmy Buffet sort of way.

3. Klubb Rouge would become the new Maggie’s. Six reasons why:

• It is downtown, in the China View complex, yet fairly isolated from residential areas.
• The front entrance on Workers Stadium East is complimented by the more secluded back alley entrance near City Hotel, with plenty of taxi access.
• The place offers the stretch limo of long bars and this means space both for those negotiating “joint ventures” and those simply there to have fun.
• The excellent sound system and dance floor would let the much-loved Maggie’s DJ cut loose.
• The Den is nearby and could provide the hot dogs and other tasty eats (and a flashback to when Maggie’s operated just up the street where Jasmine and Buffalo now sit).
• The place isn’t working as a night club, as evident by the lack of patrons and a shift from expensive cocktails to an all-you-can-drink format.

Yes, Klubb Rouge would need cosmetic changes (the images of scantily clad women on the club’s giant pillars wouldn’t really fit) and there are issues of guanxi, but all I’m saying is that if Maggie’s does end up reopening in a new spot, then why not here?

4. All Star would cut its losses as a sports bar and invest in becoming a stocks bar. The 65 screens would be tuned to business programs and investment advice shows, and follow the world’s markets as they open ever westward, 24/7. Seriously, the only people willing to stare at a screen longer than sports nuts are stock market fanatics (exception: cricket followers), so I could see patrons bringing overnight bags and knocking back plenty of beverages, both in terms of quality and quantity.

Stocks down in London? Order a bucket of budget Tsingtao. Make a bundle in New York? Order Krug from Bling upstairs. Need a break from Tokyo? Go watch the bored pole dancer at nearby Sex and Da City. Manage to stay awake for 72 hours straight? Get a personalized All-Star coffee / Red Bull mug.

All Star’s isolation in Solana is also a benefit, since the risk of not finding a taxi for up to an hour will be enough to encourage people to bunker even longer. And if the owners want to retain a sports angle, shift toward betting, with coverage of Vegas odds, fantasy league shows, and the like.

5. Any five-star hotel chain with native English-speakers at the position of vice general manager or above that consistently puts out invitations, press releases, and promotional campaigns laden with typos, poor grammar, and Chinglish would lose a star. Another star would be lost for chronic use of multiple exclamations marks to conclude sentences in a pathetic attempt to make a minor benefit seem monumental (Five percent off!!!) or smiley faces in official correspondence.

6. Drei Kronen 1308 - which has few customers, good but pricey home brew (RMB58 per pint), and plenty of solid cold-weather food like sausage, schnitzel, sauerkraut, pretzels, bread, and mashed potatoes - would create a Wunderbar Winter Wonderland Sunday Brunch that includes a full buffet and all-you-can-drink beer for a reasonable price (RMB188?).

7. Flair bartenders would be exiled to Shanghai or some other hellhole.

(Just kidding, Shanghai expatriates, just kidding. Seriously, calm down, I didn’t mean it. Really, I… hey, look what I have! A shiny penny! Isn’t that pretty? Yes, I thought you would like it. It’s so… shiny… and… pretty. [Pause] Now, while I have you my under spell, one other thing: When you meet someone new, wait at least a dozen seconds before you ask his or her job and, if the job cited doesn’t interest you, wait at least another dozen seconds before you drift away in utter boredom. Trust me, we like you, but doing this one little thing will make us like you even more. Just saying…)

8. “Soft opening” would mean a bar, club, or restaurant is still getting its service, food, and drinks up to par and thus offers reduced prices or extra portions to compensate. “Hard opening” would mean the establishment is prepared to provide full value. Even better, there would just be an “opening”, with no adjective to indicate its firmness.

More items coming soon!

-

* OK, technically my mom got the credit for the wet naps.

-

Note: If you like this blog, please vote for it in the China Blog awards. Just go here and click the “plus” sign. Also much obliged if you vote for sibling site Grape Wall of China here.