cafebabel.com

The Experimental Tropic Blues Band: 'We started in the playground and haven't stopped since'

('Hayley',) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:56:46 -0000

With the support of the independent music collective 'JauneOrange', the TETBB trio has been an explosive part of the Walloon rock scene for over a decade. Between a barge in Paris, recording in New York and a joint, the 'best Belgian rock band of all time' explain the then and now

Dinner for one in 2012

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:32:23 -0000

The Brits have spent the end of year in a 'lull' whilst the Germans are going through 'new year's fatigue'. In their new year's addresses at least, Europe's Franco-German leaders warned us it won't be getting any better this new year

Wine production in Georgia: ‘passport to civilised world’

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 11:14:28 -0000

If you are thinking of going on a wine-tasting holiday, skip the south of France and head to the Caucausus. Wine tourism and industry is booming in Georgia, as it is largely supported by the current government

Pan-Slavism, Slovio and Polish the 'status symbol'

('Francesca Reinhardt',) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 09:00:00 -0000

The Slavic languages all have their roots in Proto-Slavic. Since the twelfth century, however, they have drifted apart. One of them reached its zenith in the seventeenth century: Polish

cafebabel.com boys speak: what makes Europe’s twentysomething men happy

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:00:00 -0000

We girls probably think that macho attitudes, making money and succeeding are what make boys happy. After all, why is it so hard to get them to share on ‘happiness’? Apparently not. Winning a game, doing nothing, a tipple, the latest gadget, friends, girls - a pan-European select number of lads share what makes them smile – and why we girls are different. Vox-pop

Alcohol ban? Istanbul cafes versus Turkish authorities

('Alice Ravenscroft',) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 17:00:00 -0000

This summer a new broom was sweeping clean the streets of Istanbul – as well as the country’s football and armed forces. Who’s wielding the broom? What ‘rubbish’ are they trying to get rid of? ‘Turkey eats dirt’ is cafebabel.com’s response to the summer ‘dust up’ by the Turkish authorities. The final in our three-part series: Turkey cracks down on those famously dangerous things, street cafes

Sherry, an English love story

('Akli Hadid',) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 01:00:00 -0000

One of the most typical European wines has to be 'vino de Jerez', a white wine fortified with brandy which is known as 'sherry' in the English-speaking world and 'Xérès' amongst French-speakers. The name comes from the vineyards near the town on the southern tip of Europe

German tourists in Scotland: Scotch malt at airport and haggis for breakfast

('Annie Rutherford',) — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 10:32:23 -0000

German holiday-makers come to Scotland for a variety of reasons: for a sip (or several) of the water of life, to trace the steps of history in crumbling, misty castles – or simply because the flights to Iceland were too expensive. Whatever their reasons, a German's visit to Caledonia is often shaped by a few key food and drink experiences. Musings of a Scottish tour guide

Berliners: foreigners, stop boozing on the cheap in our city!

('hkeet',) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 12:17:31 -0000

In the Berlin borough of Kreuzberg-Friedrichshain people are celebrating for all it's worth. More and more tourists are cavorting in the cheap cocktail bars, the parks and in the streets. The locals are fed up and are stirring up opinion. Stag dos, pub crawls, behaving obnoxiously: is Berlin the new Mallorca?

Nightlife, footie and crooning in Azerbaijan 2012: Baku calling

('hkeet',) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 14:23:31 -0000

With Azerbaijan winning the eurovision song contest and celebrating 100 years of football with a visit from Blatter and Platini themselves, it has become clear to many Europeans that they have at best dangerous superficial knowledge of one part of Eurasia. The land-locked country in the Caucasus is approximately the equivalent in size and population to Portugal

On St. Patrick's day, drink Poitín, the world’s strongest alcohol

('Tim Mac an Airchinnigh',) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 15:30:00 -0000

You’ll often find it in a clear, unmarked glass bottle, innocently snuggled at the back of a neighbour’s fridge, but the real Poteen (pronounced 'putch-een') isn’t sold in any shop in Dublin. St. Patrick apparently brewed it, and few people in Ireland haven’t tasted this ultra-alcoholic brew, but the lethal concoction has been illegal here since 1661

Armenian brandy: soviet licks to elite entrepeneur kicks

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 12:30:18 -0000

You get a European and world champion arm-wrestler, a dollop of nineteenth century factory tradition, an anecdote with Stalin and Churchill, shake it all up and boom - the story of Armenia's second largest brandy factory, live, smooth and warm

More highs, fewer lies in Prague - the new Amsterdam?

('Andrew Christie',) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:00:00 -0000

15 grams of marijuana, five grams of hashish or even 1.5 grams of heroin. Thanks to a new law that came into effect on 1 January 2010, Czechs can stock up on drugs without fear of prosecution. The Czech Republic now has the most liberal drug laws in the whole of Europe, though its preventive measures still leave something to be desired

Mulled wine across Europe

('Annie Rutherford',) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 10:10:28 -0000

Sugarloaves, Swedish punch and grog: how Europe drinks to stay warm in the chilly run up to christmas

Party burnout in Paris, so go to Berlin

('Ellie Banks',) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:30:16 -0000

'Sssssh, go in quickly,' whispers the bouncer of the electro bar 4Elements on the Place de la Republique. The lights are out in the flat above. It is 11pm, a Saturday evening in Paris. The one-time nightlife mecca of Europe is turning into a sleepy little town, a trend that threatens to continue

‘Oysters’ vs. Coke: popular European hangover cures

('Paulina Dominik',) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:25:48 -0000

Have a read of these European hangover cures - it might make you not want to drink again. From a Polish ‘bull shot’ to a James Bond-style ‘prairie oyster’ via a good old hair o’ the dog, the advice is to get concocting

Why Swedes go next door to Denmark to buy alcohol

('Andrew Christie',) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 11:47:15 -0000

The Swedes are notorious for their heavy drinking; its government has been trying to counter the problem since the 19th century

Calimotxo, Blonder Engel or Advocaat: European cocktails galore

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:00:00 -0000

What would the Coen brothers’ film 'The Big Lebowski' be without its revolting milk and vodka cocktails (White Russians)? Roundup of the zaniest European cocktails, plus a recipe for Poland's 'Mad Dog'

British and French tourists behave badly

('Andrew Burgess',) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 09:45:00 -0000

A cross-portrait of the two worst European performers, after two alarming reports published in August confirm an inconvenient truth

Drinking trademark Budweiser beer in Bohemia

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:00:00 -0000

Czech beer came to the world’s attention again in April after a century-old dispute with the US over the naming rights to its Budweiser beer was settled in a Luxembourg court

Berlusconi's back

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 12:00:00 -0000

Add a dose of alcohol abuse and hail Europe’s volunteers and globalisation - it’s your latest news from Brussels

St. Patrick's Day: drowning the shamrock in Dublin

('Angela Steen',) — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 12:00:00 -0000

Alcohol, religion and fireworks - we swoop over Dublin on 17 March, feast (and party) day of the patron saint of Ireland

Videos: Bottle of vodka for the fallen Kaczynskis

('Rebecca Caulfield',) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 12:00:00 -0000

Dutch MP Pier Anne Nawijn dancing, that Bush-Merkel massage and Finnish MP Alexander Stubb fights for vodka in the European parliament

Beer over Gaudi

Wed, 07 Mar 2007 12:00:00 -0000

In Barcelona, unlicensed street performers, sleeping on park benches and drinking and urinating on its streets is illegal. How has the civic by-law affected society one year on?