For many years, the beer options in Madrid weren’t great. The average bar would have one, maybe two, beers on tap, and if there were n’t two, the second was usually alcohol-free. Mahou was the usual choice, and if you were unlucky, he is his uninspiring cousin Saint Michael. In Spain, people didn’t drink beer to appreciate the taste: they drank it to cool off during Madrid’s notoriously hot summers. A few times a year, if you were a connoisseur, you could attend one of Spain’s beer festivals, but that was it.
However, as the craft beer scene swept across Europe, it was destined to hit Spain. In fact, countries without a great beer culture to speak of are often the easiest to develop a craft beer scene. Belgium, for example, simply doesn’t have room in its 180-brewery market for a craft beer community to flourish in the first place. And it turned into that, yes, you can actually get good beer in Madrid. Rejoice!
Still, you need to know where to look. Go to most bars and order a ‘ craft beer ‘ or ‘ craft beer ‘ and you’ll usually get some striped heads. And while there are half a dozen bars with some kind of craft beer to speak of, at the time of writing (2014) there are really only three places that are really worth visiting:
Best Artisanal Brewery in Madrid : Irreale (Calle Manuela Malasaña, 20, 28004, Madrid)
An excellent variety of Spanish and international craft beers in bottles and on tap. Excellently rated and with friendly staff. Usually finding a seat is also possible (this will likely change as the bar becomes more popular). He recently moved from Calle Ballesta. He often stocks Fabricas Maravillas beer (below).
The best brewery in Madrid: Fabrica Maravillas (Calle Valverde, 29, 28004, Madrid)
One of the few places where you can get beer on-site, Fabricas Maravillas brews a variety of American and Belgian-inspired beers, including IPAs and saisons. There aren’t many seats, the place is painfully lit at times, and the staff vary in sympathy, but it’s still the best place to get fresh-brewed beer in Madrid. beer made in Madrid.
The best craft beer terrace in Madrid: El Pedal (Calle Argumosa 33, 28012 Madrid)
This bar has the only craft beer terrace in all of Madrid, making it perfect to drink in summer. Its garden is surrounded by Japanese acacia trees, so it is also very picturesque. If you’ve had a partner and are looking to explore the area, you should visit Lavapies, the bohemian neighborhood where El Pedal is located.
Is a trip to Madrid worth it especially for its beer scene? No, not necessarily, but one of these bars will make a good stop. The craft beer scene in Madrid is still not as good as, for example, in Barcelona, but who knows, the way these bars are popping up, in the next few years the city could have a thriving craft beer community own.
