Like much of the culture, food, and people, the local beers are equally unique and splendid. If you’re oscillating between choosing your trusted Heinekens and Carlsbergs over the local brews, this article should help convince you to embrace your vacation in Bali in one smooth gulp.
1. Bintang
Bali’s best-selling and best-known beer, you’ll find Bintang literally everywhere on the island. If you think the design and packaging is a rip-off of Heineken, you’d be partly right. The brewery is owned by Heineken and this gets reflected in the taste as well. A pale lager, Bintang has an alcohol content of 4.7%, with a malt and hop flavour. If you’re looking for a low-cal version, you can also go for the Bintang Zero, which has less than 1 per cent alcohol in it.
2. Stark Craft Beer
Touted as the only premium craft beer produced in Indonesia, Stark Craft Beer is brewed in the north of Bali with pure spring water from the Batu Karu mountain. This water is then filtered three times, before it is processed together with other ingredients, such as barley, wheat, oats, and hops. Brewed from 100 percent malt, Stark Craft Beer comes in a variety of exciting flavours, including mango, lychee, wheat, dark wheat, low-carb, and Indonesian pale ale (IPA), and is completely free of preservatives and chemicals. This beer is an epitome of an exotic vacation, and is sure to be something you brag to your friends on return.
3. Anker Beer
Seen as Bintang’s strongest rival, Anker is distilled in a Jakarta brewery and is a pale lager known for its distinctive taste and deep gold colour. In the market since 1932, Anker is a popular choice for those who prefer their beer strong (stronger than Bintang) with a delicious balance of sweet and bitterness.
4. Bali Hai
A cheap local beer that was earlier sold only in Bali, Bali Hai is now available throughout Indonesia and in 20 other countries across the world. Though the taste is a little weak compared to Bintang and Anker, Bali Hai has its fair share of loyalists, thanks to its cheap price and easy availability. The Bali Hai variants include Bali Hai Draft Beer, Bali Hai Premium Beer, El Diablo Lager, Panther Stout, Panther Ginseng Stout, and Folsom. Affordable yet tasty, Bali Hai is the perfect vacation beer to guzzle on a hot day at the beach.
No matter what draws you to visit Bali, its local beers are sure to keep you company and be an accomplice to the many memories you are sure to create here.
