Istanbul Beer?

We are visiting Istanbul for the first time to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. My husband LOVES beer. He likes to try new beer and log them into Untappd app. Do you have any recommendations for great beer bars or breweries? I am having a difficult time finding information on this.

Ahhhhh, travel priorities! :-)

Thanks for your help!

I would keep your (his?) expectations modest. While you'll find some local beer in Turkey, it is a predominantly Muslim country and more conservative Muslims do not drink alcohol. Wine, beer and other alcohol is fairly expensive.

Here is a little more info that may help, including mention of one craft beer in Istanbul:

http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/details/Food/Beers.html

Throughout Turkey you can get Efes, a very popular lager.

Thank you for the excellent website and information. Perhaps that is why I couldn't find much - they are not drinkers! :-)

Turkey produces some very good wines and they are available in bars and restaurants. For a decent one they cost about 20USD a bottle in a restaurant. Yes, Efes beer is available everywhere, including in the many Turkish restaurants in London!

Like LondonTowner says, Efes is the leading trademark which can be found all over Turkey. Turkish wines are excellent, mainly red, fairly strong

Yes, Efes is the local beer - unexceptional but very acceptable.

As cruisemom's post, most locals don't drink and there will be a number of "dry" cafes and restaurants. But the majority in the tourist areas will carry Efes & other beers, wines, etc.

No worries

JB :)

perhaps a bit off topic - but here is my funny wine story from Istanbul……

I spent months researching where to dine on our overnight in Istanbul on our second visit there. When we got in the taxi with SIL/BIL and dh and told the driver where to go he replied " I know a better restaurant " Well my SIL/BIL fell for it against my insistent comments NOT to go there……….

Well we did. After we were seated the waiter came over and asked what we would like to drink. I asked if they had any pinot noir (red wine) and he looked at me and said " red or white " I told him Pinot was a red and he replied again "red or white" So I ordered red.

Just a short time later I looked up (I was seated facing the bar) and happened to watch the bartender pouring what was left in one bottle of red into another bottle of red…… then I knew why they only had "red or white " :eek: LOL

I really wasnt too sure at that point if the practice went as far as pouring leftover wine from someones glass back into the bottle so I figured it was best not to finish my glass of wine :(

BTW: the meal was only so-so.

For the rest of the trip they did not question my choice of restaurants etc. since I had been the one to research everything for months before. ;)

Another note: my husband has drank Efes every trip we have made to Istanbul.

Efes is produced in Turkey and is the most common beer you will find. I enjoyed it regularly during a 9 night land vacation to Turkey. The most common Efes you will find is the lager, and I would compare it to a Stella Artois. It is definitely much better than a Budweiser. Apart from Efes, there are not many other beers available. I saw Miller Genuine Draft, and it was more expensive than Efes. (Efes is Turkish for Ephesus by the way)

Turks drink more than most Muslims, and are proud to be more secular politically than most Muslim countries.

If you want a drink popular with secular Turks try Raki -- it is an anisette flavored drink.

If you want a drink popular with secular Turks try Raki -- it is an anisette flavored drink.

You might know the Greek equivalent Ouzo. Raki has sharper edges, Ouzo is smoother.

Agree on the Efes - good beer, crisp and clean, best enjoyed as cold as possible.

Raki - I'd forgotten about that - yeah, that'll give you the local taste for sure!!

As an aside, we had a guide in Ephesus once who was giving us the ins and outs of Turkish culture. When someone asked about drinking in a mostly Muslim country, our guide (who was Muslim) replied that "The Quran tells us not to drink a single drop of alcohol. That is why when we have a glass of wine, we dip our finger into it...and flick away that single drop. Then we are okay to drink the rest."

I found that an elegant solution for a problem like that. :D

Although I am not a beer drinker, 2 family member love beer and always like to sample the local brews in each country we visit. They sampled Efes on a few occasions but what they really liked was a microbrewery that we went out of our way to visit. It was called the Bosphorus Brewing Company (think it is owned by English expats) & I remember one of the brews they had was called Istanbul Pale Ale.

Many corner stores will sell takeaways. They will have an Efes sign outside (blue). We collect beer cans and have Efes pilsen (blue),Dark, draught,fici,malt and Xtra.My husband liked the Xtra as it was very strong. Also cans of Marmara -red and green, think we also bought Tuborg and Miller there. some restaurants serve alcohol others not. Quite a few local wines. and Raki of course -drunk with water.