Never fear, the Beer Gods were keeping an eye out for us and carried us from great beer bar to great beer bar over a well lubricated few days in Vilnius.
Spunka
We bolted out the door after arriving in a chilly Vilnius and were in desperate need of a refreshment and some snacks. Spunka delivered ten fold. Located in the very cool Uzupis, a neighbourhood within Vilnius that declared itself a republic in 1997 and has its own constitution*, flag and anthem, we enjoyed a few great Lithuanian micros and received an introduction to "bread chips". Yes, bread chips.
Bread chips are the best rye bread that you've ever eaten (sorry Germany) that have then been deep fried and covered in raw garlic. Best beer snack ever? Possibly. Worst passion killer ever? Yes, even worse than your nana's knickers.
Spunka was just what we needed to acclimatise back to Eastern Europe.
Snekutis (Uzupis)
Time for a change of scenery. More bread chips, this time with a garlic sauce, and more pig's ears (we hadn't really left Spain behind just yet).
Busi Trecias
House brewed dark lagers, the best goddamn pig's ear we've ever eaten (and we are connoisseurs of that part of the pig now) and the Lithuanian speciality beer snack of split peas and bacon for the win!
Bambalyne
The following day we headed here and opted for a v enjoyable DIPA and our first Baltic Porter in the Baltics! We also got talking to a couple of Belorussians here that enjoyed their conversation with us so much that they handed us 1,700 Belarus Rubbles upon leaving (the equivalent of about 18 Aussie cents...).
You've got to love a good cellar bar and this is indeed a goodie.
Snekutis (Old Town)
The Old Town sister to the Uzupis bar. This one's a touch more clean cut than the Uzupis location but it stocks a good tap and bottled beer selection and does a mean zeppelin - a meaty filled dumpling that's covered in garlic sauce and is funnily enough shaped like a zeppelin. Coming here you also get to be served by the quite bizarre, very eccentric owner who is somewhat of a cult figure within the Lithuanian beer scene. He's cult enough that people ask to get photos with him.
Unfortunately you feel like the ramshackle, everything you can ever imagine hanging from a ceiling Uzupis location is his home. He doesn't look at home at the Old Town location.
No Sugar
The Beer Gods are beings of refined taste and with good beer must come good coffee. They certainly delivered at No Sugar. They also delivered on the best looking barista front too. But don't tell Nix I said that.
A Monumental City
Vilnius' other big love is monuments. Here are but a couple of the more interesting ones.
That was it for Vilnius (and Lithuania).
*we didn't get a photo but after taking photos of the Uzupis constitution a dog dropped off a barker's egg right in front of it. A dog has the right to be a dog.
