Grapes or hops? Why choose when you have Aymeric Tissot’s multihyphenate background? Trained as an oenologist, the son of renowned Jura winemakers decided to complete his education at the iconic Cantillon brewery in order to become a top-tier brewer in his own right – just a bottle cap’s toss from Victor Hugo’s childhood home. Ever since, this child of the vineyards has been breaking boundaries in the beer world with his wild brews aged in oak barrels over savagnin, poulsard and pinot noir dregs, or on lees from local white wines. His bottles, stamped with the Levain label, are full of delicate flavors and fine bubbles, which get dealt out and savored upstairs in his alchemist’s lair featuring blackened walls and petroleum blue furniture. Take your pick: La Boucle, a light lager aged on chardonnay lees (€5 for a half-pint), a quince, grape and mirabelle plum maceration (€15 for 750 ml) or even a hypnotic creation spiced with Sichuan pepper (same price). And to share the stage, there’s an impeccable selection of wines produced by friends: bottles from the family estate at very reasonable prices (€6 a glass), Le Coup de Plou, a ploussard produced by Julien Crinquand (€42 a bottle), Gilbourg, an Anjou chenin by Benoît Courault (€35)… Not to mention the locavore snacks to soak up all the delicious libations: morbier, Comté aged for 18 months or a truly incredible terrine by Charles Thaurin. // Ari Beaux
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