Your Guide to the 8 Best Craft Beer Bars in Taipei
For those of you who have been living under a rock, Taiwan’s craft beer community has been steadily gaining favor over the past 3 years, with local international entrants gaining favor among locals and expats alike.
One of the fastest developing areas of alcoholic drinks in Taiwan is craft beer, with this capturing the imagination of consumers with large numbers of new and interesting products appearing on the market. Unlike mid-priced lager, domestic craft beer is performing admirably with drinkers drawn towards locally-brewed products, as they like to support small local businesses. Freshly-brewed craft beer and products with new and interesting tastes are also proving popular, while enthusiasts appreciate limited edition/release products due to their exclusivity. Given its growing popularity convenience stores and supermarkets have started stocking a growing range of canned and bottled craft beer, while also including some of these products in their promotions
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Craft beer bars in Taipei specifically are starting to explode in 2020, with new bars opening up each month. Moreover, neighboring city Taichung City (less than a 2 hour drive away from Taipei) is also burgeoning with a vibrant and healthy craft beer scene.
Craft beer distribution in Taiwan is a complex and competitive business, but is generally very welcoming to locals and tourists alike and there are many bars in the city. Bars in Taiwan are friendly, hip, and serve up some great libations.
Once you’ve explored your way around the city, you’re going to be pretty parched. Don’t worry, we feel your pain.
Here are the top 8 of the best bars to get your drink on in Taipei.
1. Crafted
After opening in June 2016, Crafted has been in the forefront of providing a great selection of craft beer to the residents of Taipei. They house many international brands, and are a great place to try some of the best Canadian and American craft beer brands in Taiwan. Try Parallel 49 Brewing Jerkface 9000 at this bar, one of the best around.
Hanko 60 is a hidden gem of a bar tucked behind an old theatre. To gain entry, you must push a button at the door where you will arrive at this secretive and magical bar.
A must-try cocktail here is the Cinema drink, which plays to the theatre vibe and has real popcorn spread over the top of the cocktail.
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3. Alchemy Speakeasy Bar Taipei
Across the street from Taipei 101, there is another jewel of the city’s bar scene, up on the second floor. Alchemy Speakeasy is your typical speakeasy bar with wooden furnishings to give it a classy finish.
Guests that come here come for the great cocktails – served in a wooden box and wrapped in newspaper – and live jazz music.
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4. Ximen Beer Bar
Come here for more of a pandemonium type of atmosphere as there will be loud music and constant loud conversations. It’s no wonder, as Ximen Beer Bar is located in the youth entertainment district of Taipei.
With rotating beer selections, come here for the best beers Taiwan has to offer. Whether it’s draft or craft beer, Ximen Beer Bar has you covered.
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5. Geography Bar
It might be hard to navigate to Geography Bar as there is no real signage outside. Simply head into the building, walk to the fourth floor and then take the elevator up.
Once inside Geography Bar, order a specialty drink from their menu. Each drink relates to a specific city in Taiwan so choose the city of your choice!
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6. Revolver
If you’re looking for a place you can listen to some excellent underground tunes, it’s here at Revolver. Spread over first two floors, there are live bands playing and DJs spinning the hits.
Escape the music on the third floor and chill at the lounge where they serve craft, local, and imported beers.
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7. Woobar
For sprawling views of Taipei, head up to the Woobar on top of the W Taipei hotel.
This place is the home of pool parties and Taipei’s upscale party crowd. Sip on one of their signature drinks as you party the night away while taking in those skyline views.
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8. On Tap
With a heavy British-influence, On Tap is one of the best bars to grab a pint of beer.
It’s not known as a sports bar, On Tap does have numerous big screen TVs where guests can watch matches from around the world.
Needless to say, this pub is a very sociable one. When you come here, you can expect a steady stream of European beers to be flowing into your glass.
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Its also important to note that craft beer is also seeing a growing presence through the on-trade with local craft breweries such as Sunmai and Taihu, which started out selling their beer in their own restaurants, increasing their distribution through other restaurants. Meanwhile, craft beer bars have been popping up across Taiwan with these attracting a young and enthusiastic crowd who enjoy experimenting with the wide range of beer varieties on offer.
We hope you check out these cool bars next time you’re in town, and let us know what you think!