to drink

Nunc est bibendum -- Now it is time to drink
Horace

This category shows some of our favourite 'water holes'. Some are cafés, often with a terrace, occasionally places where it is possible to taste and buy beautiful, strong alcoholic drinks, made with great craftsmanship. The producers are usually very 'normal' people, who cordially invite you in and are utterly proud of their produce. They are astonished when you tell them you've come all the way to taste (and buy) their products.

Bosch Wijnhandel
Wil en Carla Bosch
Kastelenstraat 105
1082 EB Amsterdam
Netherlands
+31 20 404 5777

http://www.boschwijnhandel.nl/

Wil Bosch has been in the business from the time he was 14 years old. At first with his parents; from 1974, with his wife Carla in his own off-licence...

Bernard Boutinet
Le Brissonneau
Bréville
16370 Cherves de Cognac
France
+33 5 4580 8663

http://cognacboutinet.free.fr/

Yet again, Bernard Boutinet is someone we met for the first time at the Van Wees’ Pot Still Festival in Amersfoort. He produces very good, artisanal cognac...

Calvados Toutain
Domaine de La Couterie
27210 Beuzeville
France
+33 2 3257 7076

http://calvadostoutain.fr/

For us, this was the revelation of the 2002 Pot Still Festival at Van Wees. It is absolutely worthwhile to visit this great artisanal calvados producer in Normandy...

Château de Montifaud
36, route d’Archiac
17520 Jarnac-Champagne
France
+33 5 4649 5077

http://www.chateau-montifaud.com/

In 2007, we met these cognac producers for the first time, again during a Pot Still Festival at Van Wees. The first time we visited the company owned by Michel and Catherine Vallet...

Cognac Jean Fillioux
La Pouyade
16130 Juillac Le Coq
France
+33 5 45830409

http://le-cognac.com/fillioux/fillioux.html

Just like Calvados Toutain, we discovered Cognac Jean Fillioux at the 2002 Pot Still Festival at Van Wees. The only difference: the origin of Fillioux is in the department of Charente...

Le French Pub ‘Le St. Jacques’
8, rue des Minotiers
16100 Cognac
France
+33 5 4582 2578

http://www.le-st-jacques.com/st-jacques/

Colin from the UK and Nadine from France opened Le St. Jacques about two years ago in the area called St. Jacques in the city of Cognac (department of Charente, France).

Pot Still Festival
Yearly, the first weekend of october
Location: "Het Klooster"
Daam Fockemalaan 10
3818 KG Amersfoort
Netherlands

http://www.potstillfestival.com/

In 2002, we visited the Pot Still Festival for the first time. The festival is organised by Van Wees, a big Dutch wholesaler and distributor of wines and spirits. We had no idea what we would find...

Cognac Ragnaud-Sabourin
La Vôute
16300 Ambleville
France
+33 5 4580 5461

http://www.ragnaud-sabourin.com

It was only in 2009 that we came across the cognac of Ragnaud-Sabourin... again at the Pot Still Festival in Amersfoort. That year, their stand was close to ours...

Reef Café
Via Borgo Santa Caterina, 25
24124 Bergamo
Italy
+39 035 237 677

facebook.com/reef.bergamo

November 2010 we went to Bergamo, Italy, for a conference by Etria, the European TRIZ Association, TRIZ Future 2010. The first two days, we had a lot of rain, drizzle mostly...

Café ’t Terrastje
Genthof 45
8000 Brugge
Belgium
+32 50 330 919

Our favourite pub in Bruges, at walking distance from ‘our’ B&B. Since many years we visit Bruges regularly: to eat and drink, to rest and to shop. We are regular guests...