Beery friendships extend across the world. They can enhance your understanding of a country’s history and culture, of the locals’ flavour preferences, perhaps even lead to blurry encounters in karaoke bars – and surprising reunions in Catalonian taprooms.

Last autumn, I judged a beer competition in Beijing, China. It’s one of my favourite beer judging experiences, but I’m not entirely sure why. Perhaps it was the excitement of being in a never-before visited country, so far away, judging a new competition. Or maybe it was because of a particular karaoke bar.

Let me explain. I had never been to a karaoke bar before, as it was my firm standpoint not to set my foot in one, ever. It just didn’t appeal to me, the spontaneous singing challenges and the far from tasty mainstream beers. But when in China…something happened. Convinced by a group of local beer judges, I found myself in one of Beijing’s many karaoke bars one evening.

Watching how they couldn’t wait to take the stage in the small neon-lit room, to blurt out Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On, Dire Strait’s Walk of Life or some Chinese superhit, was beyond fascinating. Somehow, baskets filled to the brim with beer appeared, and I had an out-of-body sensation of being in a movie. One of my brave European colleagues even did a high-level performance of Despacito, to the delight of the local crew, and me of course. That evening was mindboggling, as was my self-inflicted headache the following day.

Fast-forward to Barcelona Beer Challenge last month. I had the funny feeling of recognising one of the other beer judges, but I couldn’t place him in my memory. When visiting a taproom after judging one day, we happened to sit next to each other and started talking about this and that, as you do. All of a sudden he mentioned karaoke, and lightning struck. Yes! Indeed, we were both judging in Beijing and part of the group of troublemakers going to that karaoke bar.

Looking through photos on his phone, he quickly found me in a few, sitting across the table filled with beer bottles, applauding whoever was on stage and cheering with the person next to me. The same for me; there he was in my photos, in the blurry karaoke bar in Beijing. And once again at the same table, sharing beers and funny stories in a taproom in Barcelona.

Malin Norman Booking.com

Read the feature on issuu