*** Drink It is a regular feature on SmBj that cuts to the core of a given bar's menu, highlighting a specialty, favorite, or otherwise good thing to eat. *** Beijing craft beer obsessives, Great Leap Brewery are celebrating their 4th anniversary on Saturday night at both locations -- event details right here; it involves lots of beer drinking -- and in honor of the hallowed occasion, we thought we'd revisit this Beijing success story at their Number 12 to peruse the new stuff they've got on offer. Here's some new beer to stuff your face into from GLB. Excelsior! Now available while supplies last (should be about a month or so), is Great Leap's special anniversary beer, the Three Door Tripel (三重門). Aged for six months, this one only makes an appearance on the board for their birthday party and is a much-coveted libation for fans of GLB. It's a real special kind of thing. Look at it. Don't even point at it. This one packs a ABV of over 10%, making it ideal for blasting away a fair chunk of one's memories for the day. It's a "Tripel", which is a Belgian thing, denoting their stronger ales (high five, Wikipedia). It has a sweeter taste, brewed with Osmanthys tea, evidently, and sort of sneaks up on you. Tastes nice and unassuming, and then gets you blotto real quick. Had a few of these and all of a sudden I was an expert in all kind of things -- history, economics, politics, um... governments doing stuff -- just an expert, dropping all sorts of edifying shit to whoever within earshot. So, obviously, something good happens to your IQ with this one too. Really great and special beer though. Once a year only. Drink it up while you can. It also snatched up a few awards overseas (a bronze and a silver, I think) from beer folk who know more than I, so that's an official sanction for you. Sticking with new entries, here's their Masala Stout, which just went up on the board this week. A slick and spicy stout. Dark and smooth, this one's got a very strong, piquant sort of taste that presents itself in a silky, ink liquid that slides down your throat. Was a bit too much for me, but I tend to groove on lighter, blonder beers. In terms of spice though, it was a real interesting melange of flavors, and presents an interesting challenge to drinkers who like stronger statements in their pint glasses. Here's The Beijing Storm, which is a rum and ginger beer collaboration between Great Leap and Moroccan Bistro and Rhumery Cuju. We talked a bit about this one before here, but as we're on GLB's limited-time drinks, this is one. Just a very nice summer drink. Very much lighter than your standard beer. It's a great option if you're sick of straight-up beer and want something with a bit of hard booze in it. Infused rum from Cuju and ginger beer from Great Leap. Refreshing. Also on the menu is their autumnal pumpkin beer, GLB's Imperial Pumpkin Ale. Didn't get a chance to try that one as it wasn't ready yet when I went down, but it should be there now. Evidently, it clocks in at a burly 7% ABV. Something to sop up all that beer with. The Bacon Cheeseburger has made the jump from the limited to full-time menu. One of the best burgers in the city, now with bacon. Gnaaaarrr... *** So, the anniversary is this Saturday, replete with the obligatory Karl Long Challenge. More Great Leap stuff: the next Chef and The Brewer dinner-plus-beer event with Rob Cunningham of Feast is Sunday November 2nd, 5:30pm. Five courses including soft shell crab and short ribs, paired with GLB beer. 250rmb if you order your tickets before October 20. AND... Looking ahead to their Beijing Invitational Craft Beer Festival, they've released the brewers list for the participating vendors. The extensive and wide-ranging list includes an international cast of labels -- Victory Brewing Company (USA), Baird Brewing Company (Japan), Yeastie Boys (New Zealand), and more. Full details and tickets right here. Get your tickets before October 20 for the early bird discount.