Centro Commerciale "I Gigli"
Campi Bisenzio (FI)
Phone: 055-8969826

Circolo 50 is located in a giant American style shopping mall outside Campi Bisenzio. The place was originally designed as a pizza restaurant/bar for the shopping crowd and has subsequently been fitted with a small brew installation from BBG in Neustad-Wied. Due to the open storefront design Circolo 50 is not a place to sip your beer and meditate about the art of brewing in quiet. The steady stream of shoppers pouring in and out of "I Gigli" keeps up a fair level of background noise. Moreover, being located in a shopping mail it is not a place either to drink at night or on Sundays.

These inconveniences, however, are compensated for by the beer. Circolo cinquanta makes a "bionda" and "rossa", but the latter one was not available at the time of testing. The "Bionda" is unfiltered and has a fruity-hoppy taste with a rather subdued malt character. The yeast I suspect to be of British origin. Unfortunately the brewmaster was not available to confirm this. Circolo 50 does not have an in-house brewmaster. Instead someone from Gruppo PAM makes the trip down all the way from Mestre regularly to brew beer here.

Ton Notermans