Pub Trails

Last week saw the launch of the Surrey/Hants Borders CAMRA LocAle Pub Trail Summer 2013.  In the past pub trails have always excited me.  In the mid 80s when I lived in London I often had two or three on the go at any one time.  The prizes varied from the excellent (free tour of the Adnams brewery conducted by the head brewer) to the awful (a Shepherd Neame Steinbock Lager T-shirt sent to me for visiting over 50 of their pubs and consuming a pint of Master Brew in each).  The latter pissed me off in more ways than one.  The trail was specifically aimed at consumers of Master Brew and the T-shirt pictured bore the logo of this lovely beer.  The T-shirt I received was an abomination promoting their new lager.  When I complained the brewery did not even have the decency to send me a reply.    

The Youngs 135 club was quite a challenge.  147 pubs (the estate had grown from the original launch but the club name remained the same) in and around London and the requirement to consume a half pint in each.  There was no time limit but six months later it was done and dusted and my 36-pint minipin of Youngs Special arrived in time to keep me and my housemates happy whilst watching the 1986 World Cup Final.  One particular day stands out when we managed to visit 22 pubs (and this was in the day before all-day drinking).  Eight pubs at lunchtime, an afternoon watching Wimbledon play at home and a 14 pub crawl in the evening.  No problem.

Trails with time limits are obviously the most challenging.  A year in which to visit 90 Gales pubs when you live more than 25 miles from the nearest one can seem quite daunting but it was completed with one day to spare.  This was helped by visiting 44 pubs in one particularly mad week when I consumed more HSB than was probably good for me.

The King and Barnes Ale Trail had no time limit and different prizes for the number of times you completed it.  There may have been no actual time limit set by the brewery but when an American work colleague of mine decided to race me a time limit of 'as soon as damned possible' was imposed.  We were working in Horsham together at the time and after employing some sneaky underhand tactics I beat him by one day.  He has never forgiven me.    

Now I'm working in Aldershot and the lure of a lunchtime pub garden with these clear blue skies overhead means that the challenge of visiting 24 pubs by the end of September cannot be ignored.  It will also give me the opportunity to explore the local pubs as well as trying some of the beers from local breweries that I am yet to  have sampled.  I will create a single blog post for the trail and update it as each pub is ticked off.  The first pub is planned for tomorrow.

Happy drinking.

A mini Bristol pub crawl

After two weeks in this excellent beery city I was looking forward to trying another new pub as well as visiting a couple of pubs I have already discovered and enjoyed.

My first stop was a tiny pub down an old cobbled street.  The Seven Stars has a plaque on the wall about Thomas Clarkson, an English abolitionist.  I love a pub with history and this pub has buckets of it.  Thomas Clarkson visited the pub in 1787  and used it as his base for his research into the local slave trade.  For the full story you can read it here.  I can imagine the pub has changed little in the 200+ years that have passed since.  The tiny interior has a small area to the right of the central bar and a larger area to the left with a pool table at the rear.  The darkened interior was full of old wooden tables, the bar had a mass of 8 handpumps selling beers from local and not-so-local micros and despite the sunny evening outside there was a mass of people inside enjoying the gloom.  It is a fabulous pub!!          

As it was July 4th I chose a pint of Hopslinger (4.5% ABV), an American Pale Ale from the London micro By The Horns.  I retired to one of the benches in the narrow cobbled street outside and enjoyed the pint.  It had a lovely pale golden colour, a spicy hoppiness in the initial taste and a delightful mellow fruity finish.  A very fine beer.  Score 8/10.

From the Seven Stars it is a short walk across the river to the tiny Bridge Inn.  This pub is in fact smaller than the two micropubs I have visited!!  It has a small bar with four handpumps and there is seating for probably no more than 25 customers.  Thankfully there are five large tables on the pavement outside.  It may not be an idyllic pub garden and you do have the constant noise of traffic whizzing past but it is OK on a sunny evening.  I popped in earlier in the week and enjoyed a lovely pint of Dark Age (4.0% ABV) from the Celt Experience brewery.  Tonight I chose a Duck Blonde (4.2% ABV) from the Green Duck Brewing Co.  This had a cloudy appearance but it was a very floral and aromatic pale beer which was perfect for this particular sunny evening.  It reminded me a little of the Belgian white beers and it was very drinkable.  Score 8/10.

I could not leave Bristol without visiting the Barley Mow again.  This amazing pub is the subject of my previous post and tonight it was packed.  I ordered a pint of Acer (3.8% ABV) from the Bristol Beer Factory.  This beer is packed full of hops, predominantly the Japanase Sorachi Ace.  It had a delightful earthy taste giving it lots of great flavour for such a low strength.  This was my first 10/10 beer of the evening.  I simply could not fault it.  Fantastic.   
     

I ended the evening with an awesome cheeseburger washed down with a pint of RyPA (4.0% ABV).  I can highly recommend the food in this pub along with the amazing beer selection.  On my previous three visits to this pub I have given top marks to over half of the beers I have tried.  Tonight it was 100%.  This beer was truly stunning.  It is a collaboration between the Moor Beer Company of Somerset and the Beavertown Brewery of London.  It was pale and a little cloudy which I have found to be the case with most rye beers.  It had a gorgeous hoppy aroma and the taste was a lemony citrus tang with plenty of lasting hoppy bitterness.  It was divine.  I absolutely loved it.

I found Bristol to be quite a place for small perfectly formed pubs.  I only scratched the surface but it is a place to go back to at some point.  No guesses for my favourite but the Bridge Inn and the Seven Stars are both worthy of a visit too.

Happy drinking.
    

Barley Mow Bristol

By a stroke of luck I found myself in Bristol for an evening. The Barley Mow was recommended as a pub to visit and as it is close to Temple Meads station it was a good place to start. From the station I headed across the river via a modern S-shaped bridge, past an Ibis Hotel and through an area of modern flats before coming across a tidy looking pub. 

Once inside I felt at home immediately. The bar that faced me had a row of 8 hand pumps. Behind the bar were 10 taps serving keg beers and lagers. A truly modern pub.

The pub itself is one relatively small room. The bar is central and similar sized seating areas are at both ends.  Outside at the back was a covered patio area. Bare wooden floors, solid looking tables and chairs as well as cleverly constructed wooden benches gave the whole bar a clean modern classic feel.  To me this is the perfect pub. I would not change a single thing and I have not been in a pub where I have ever thought that.

The beer selection was immense. On cask there were the following choices

Arbor Ales Yakima Valley
Arbor Ales Hoptical Delusion
Kent Brewery Altered States
Kent Brewery Beyond The Pale
Dark Star Festival
Moor Beer Company Hoppiness
Bristol Beer Factory Bitter Californian
Purity War Lord IPA

The selection of keg beers were from the best of the new wave micro breweries that seem to be opening up all over the UK. Those available included the following

Tempest Old Parochial
Kirkstall Framboise
Magic Rock Dark Arts
Summer Wine Maelstrom
Stone Ruination IPA
Burton Axe Edge

With so many cask beers to choose from I ignored the keg. Well, if it isn't consumed quickly it will go off and that would be a tragic waste. With beers from four breweries that were new to me I began with a pint of Beyond The Pale (5.4ABV) from the Kent Brewery. This was an extremely pale bitter that looked fantastic.  It was a lovely hoppy beer with strong lemony flavours with a spiciness to it too.  Full of flavour it had plenty of strength and I loved it.  It very nearly achieves top marks.  Score 9/10.  

With other recommended pubs a considerable walk away and over a dozen other beers to choose from I decided to stay.  I ordered some chicken wings and chunky chips to go with my second pint which was the Arbor Ales Hoptical Delusion (3.8ABV). This was my first taste of Arbor beer on cask having previously tried a lovely bottled beer from them. Described as being packed full of hops it was surprising that it had little aroma. The initial taste was quite complex. It had a pleasant earthiness to it and it took a while to get more flavours. I should not have had the stronger beer first but the full flavour eventually found a way through and it was a delight.  I want to find more beers from this brewery for sure.  Score 8/10. 

There was time for one more pint before heading back to the station. The Bristol Beer Factory Bitter Californian was described as a hoppy brown ale.  What a beautiful beer it was.  Both hoppy and malty in equal measure it was superb and my favourite beer of the evening.  A definite 10/10 gold medal beer.
  

Awesome beers and excellent food in a modern simple pub with the friendliest of bar staff. This pub is perfect.

Happy drinking.

Sleepy Sussex

Last night the local CAMRA crew headed out to deepest Sussex.  The first stop was The Half Moon Inn.  This pub is on the main A283 in the village of Northchapel a few miles north of Petworth.  The second pub in the village is currently closed so surely the sole remaining village local will be full of thirsty locals.  The car park certainly suggested life but upon entering we were met with a grizzled landlord and one local watching TV together in a darkened bar.  The landlord didn't appear to be too happy to see some customers as he poured our pints.  The choice between Palmers IPA from Dorset and the local Hammerpot Harvest didn't appear to be too bad.  I chose the local beer.  Bad choice or probably the lesser of two evils judging by the comments from those who chose the Palmers.  Slightly fruity bitter but the harsh taste and lifeless character did nothing for me except make me wish I'd only ordered a half.  I could only give it a 4/10 at best.  The last beer I ordered from Hammerpot was a delight so hopefully this is a one-off.

The pub itself is a delightful treasure trove.  The vintage tractor parked outside the front has been there for years.  Hanging from the ceiling in the bar is an enormous amount of antique artefacts ranging from old tennis rackets and snooker cues to agricultural tools.  There is a gorgeous fireplace and all around there are antique signs and objects to catch the eye.  This pub should be a bustling village local so it was very disappointing to see it so devoid of life.

From Northchapel we retraced our steps back to Petworth before heading across to Midhurst.  At Halfway Bridge, located amazingly halfway between Petworth and Midhurst, you head off to the left where you stumble upon the tiny village of Selham.  The Three Moles is set high off the winding road through the village so you have quite a few steps to climb up to the front door of the pub.  The Three Moles has long been a favourite pub of mine having been one of the pubs on the King and Barnes Ale Trail I completed three times in the early 1990s.  Back then it did no food and the excellence of this pub was maintained for years culminating in it winning the Sussex CAMRA pub of the year in 2002.  Once the then owner/landlady Val retired some years back it has gone through a few changes of owner and this was my first visit for many years.

The inside of the pub did appear to have been updated substantially.  It is a very small single bar pub but food is available now.  The one room has seating for probably no more than 40 customers.  It certainly doesn't have the homely feel it once had and when we arrived the landlord was about to close as there were no customers at all (it was just past 10.00.pm).  He was happy to serve us a pint from one of two beers available.  There was Betty Stoggs from the Cornish brewer Skinners (4.0% ABV) alongside Swift One (3.8% ABV) from the Hampshire micro Bowman Ales.  Once again I went for the local beer but luckily the owners were happy to serve us some more so I ended up trying both.

Bowman's Swift One was a nice hoppy bitter balanced with a biscuity malt character.  It had quite a dry finish I felt and it was certainly a pleasant beer without being spectacular and I'd give it a comfortable 7/10.  Betty Stoggs is quite widely available now nationwide but I rarely drink it as I've always found it to be little more than average.  How wrong could I be though?  Tonight I found it to be a robust fruity beer full of flavour and character and on this form I'd lift it up to an 8/10.

Our journey into the heart of West Sussex found the locals asleep.  The Three Moles is not quite the pub it once was but the new owners have only been there a short time and are trying to revive it.  This weekend they are holding a beer festival from a marquee in the lovely garden and the beer list we were shown was an interesting mix of local brewers alongside highly acclaimed London micros such as London Fields and Redemption.  I'm sure this will prove a big success as their beer festivals of old were always hugely popular.  If you are in the area I would check it out.

Happy drinking.
    

Fade to black ....... four dark beers reviewed

1.  Thwaites Tavern Porter (4.7% ABV)

This was my first porter for quite some time and I wasn't disappointed.  Thwaites is brewed in the Lancashire town of Blackburn and as my wife has roots there she was pleased to give it a try.  This was a bit of a mistake on my part because it was difficult to get it back from her.  However, once I managed to wrestle it back without spilling any of it I was hit by the delicious smoky aroma.  It had quite an intense coffee bitterness and here's the strange thing.  I hate coffee.  I love the smell of fresh coffee but as for drinking it - no way.  Give me a beer with lots of roasted malt though and I love it.  This beer was quite smooth in the finish and a very good start to my mini exploration of the dark side.  Score 8/10.     

2.  Grain Porter (5.0% ABV)

This Grain Porter was one of the beers I purchased at the Norwich City of Ale brewers market.  This beer had the same jet black colour as the Thwaites but the taste was quite different.  It was described as an old fruit porter and the aroma was one of rich fruit berries with no discernible smokiness.  The intensity of the fruit flavours were apparent immediately with notes of blackberries and blackcurrant.  There was an underlying bitterness in the finish which was very pleasant.  It was velvety smooth and so easy to drink.  An absolute delight and the Grain Brewery is fast becoming a favourite of mine.  Score 9/10

3.  Black Panther (4.5% ABV)

I was on a roll now with my black beer theme so I opened another beer bought in Norwich.  Black Panther is from the Panther Brewery based in Norfolk as mentioned in a previous post.  The label displayed a rosette announcing it as the runner up in the Norfolk CAMRA real ale in a bottle for 2012 so I was expecting big things from this beer.  I wasn't disappointed.  This is definitely my favourite beer so far from this brewery.  There was a pleasant smoky aroma to it.  The coffee bitterness was restrained alongside chocolate and caramel notes making it incredibly smooth.  The finish was quite nutty and slightly dry and overall there was nothing at all to complain about here.  Score 9/10.

4.  Ascot Ales Penguin Porter (4.5% ABV)

Whilst planning to review a trio of dark beers I stumbled across this in the Prince of Wales, Farnborough.  This pub is superb with about ten real ales on at any one time and I will return shortly to conduct a proper review.  However, I was more than happy to include a fourth beer in this post.  Ascot Ales are based in nearby Camberley and this is my first beer from them.  To be honest the comments I made about the Thwaites Tavern Porter could equally be applied to this beer which is high praise indeed.  It had the same intense black colour, the same smoky aroma and the same coffee bitterness.  There was possibly slightly less bitterness and a few more chocolate notes coming through.  Finally, there was the same smooth finish.  Because of all this I will award it the same score.  Score 8/10.  

My journey to the dark side was a hugely enjoyable exercise.  It is easy to neglect these type of beers in the summer but I find them a delight all year round.  They all scored highly with me and I was possibly scoring them a point down if I'm honest.  I love dark beers so much and giving them all top marks would be a little silly perhaps.  Whatever the score all four of these beers are superb and highly recommended. 

Happy drinking.
 

Maypole, Yapton

The village

Yapton is a village in West Sussex close to the town of Arundel and about a mile from the sea.  In days long gone it was famous for smuggling and the doors of Yapton were always open to smugglers (so they say) at any time day or night.  In the Murrell Arms, a pub in the nearby village of Barnham, there's a warning inscribed on the door of the bar aimed at people forgetting to close the door with the words 'do you come from Yapton?'.  A friendly little dig at the nefarious past of its neighbour.

The pub

My wife and I moved to Yapton in 1997 and we soon made the Maypole our local pub.  It is on the outskirts of the village a few hundred yards down a single track lane that leads nowhere but you will find a large sign advertising the pub from the main road (North End Road) that takes you from Yapton to the A27.  The lounge bar was fairly small and it was often incredibly smoky.  The public bar was larger with a pool table and there was a door through to a traditional skittle alley.  It always had an excellent beer selection and it won the Western Sussex CAMRA pub of the year on quite a few occasions. 

Since moving from Yapton in 2006 I don't think I had been back to the Maypole until last night.  The only changes I detected were the lack of smoke (lovely), the construction of a wooden covered patio area (for smokers) replacing the couple of tables outside the entrance to the lounge bar and a new manager.  It had the same welcoming atmosphere and there was still a large stack of copper coins on the bar that they build each year for charity.  The skittle alley is still there too.

The beers

As I was there last night with lots of CAMRA members for the regular monthly meeting the lady behind the bar offered us all a sample of a mystery brew.  The pump clip for Ale Fresco (4.3% ABV) gave no indication as to the brewery at first inspection but it did have a description saying it was a fresh golden ale with a citrus hoppy aroma.  So this was a genuine blind tasting.  The aroma was not hoppy at all.  The colour was more brown than golden.  The taste was more caramel and malt than citrus and hoppy.  Finally, the harsh bitter aftertaste was not very nice.  Needless to say nobody bought a pint and we then noticed in very small writing Westgate Brewery and everything fell into place.  Another beer from Greene King masquerading as something else!! 
          
The remaining beer selection was very impressive.  I'm not sure which beers were regulars but I think the Dark Star Hophead (3.8% ABV) can always be found here.  This is what I went for first of all.  This beer does have a delightful citrus hoppy aroma and it was in excellent condition.  Judging by the number of members ordering it with huge smiles on their faces I think it is the favourite beer of this CAMRA branch.

The second beer I went for was from the Wessex Brewery.  This micro is based in Warminster in Wiltshire and is totally new to me.  Wyndham Pride (4.0% ABV) is a traditional well balanced session bitter with a nice malt character.  Plenty of flavour with caramel and peach coming through.  There was a slight bitter aftertaste to it that was both smooth and pleasant.  We were told that another beer from Wessex would be on the bar soon - a 9.0% ABV Russian stout (named Russian Stoat).  Sounds good!!

The third beer I went for was from Cheddar Ales who are based in Somerset.  It was a beautifully golden coloured 4.0% ABV beer called Gorge Best.  The aroma was very fruity as was the initial taste.  Lots of sweet fruit flavours came through such as peach, pineapple and orange.  It was very robust and the flavour held throughout before giving way to a lovely subtle bitter aftertaste.  

Finally, I tried a pint of Shark Head (5.0% ABV) from the Sunny Republic Brewing Company, a new micro based in Dorset.  Shark Head is described as a Friesian Pilsener which makes it a cask lager I guess although I found it to be a delightfully crisp and refreshing hoppy beer.  It is brewed using lager malt and the hops are the German Spalt and New Zealand Pacific Jade.  After being lagered for three weeks it is run through some of my favourite Citra hops.  The grapefruit notes from the Citra were very subtle and not overpowering.  I absolutely loved it.  I would probably say it was my favourite beer of the night (those Citra hops do it every time) but it was up against some very stiff competition. 

It is good to see that my old local is still a pub worth visiting and with my local CAMRA branch using it as their venue for meetings every couple of months I will look forward to sampling more delightful beers from their ever changing lineup.   

Bottled Beers Review

Off Beat Out of Step IPA (5.8% ABV)

My first beer is described as being brewed by a chick in Crewe.  It had a lovely deep golden colour to it and a classic fruity aroma.  The initial taste was one of citrussy hops with a lovely mix of lemon and grapefruit notes.  It was love at first sip.  It has plenty of strength and that comes through in the robust flavour.  It had a delightfully long finish to it with a lovely tingling bitterness.  It really is a classic modern American-styled IPA which I always seem to enjoy.  Score 9/10

Mallinsons Galaxy (4.0% ABV)

This beer is also brewed by chicks, as Mallinsons describe themselves as women who brew beer.  They love hops and this is my second single hop beer from this brewster.  The Amarillo (4.3% ABV) was superb and so I was looking forward to this one too.  Just look at the picture below.  This beer looks absolutely magnificent.  The hoppy, citrussy aroma was also very inviting.  The first taste was of grapefruit along with a little earthiness too.  Galaxy is an Australian hop and is described as giving both a citrus and passion fruit flavour.  There was definitely a richer fruity flavour coming through alongside the citrussy grapefruit notes.  The finish was quite dry but very pleasant.  I like this beer very much and hopefully I can find more of their single hop beers to enjoy in the near future.  Score 9/10

             

Two Towers Chamberlain Pale Ale (4.5% ABV)

Two Towers is a small micro brewery based in the Jewellery Quarter of Birmingham.  This beer was a nice pale golden colour.  The aroma was certainly pleasant with hints of grapefruit coming through.  It is a beer made with maize and wheat as well as pale malt and it is hopped with Fuggles and Goldings.  The initial taste was a little sour and I had to check the best before date on the bottle as I was not convinced it tasted right.  With the date showing March 2014 I persevered.  There were some grapefruit notes giving some bitterness to it but the aftertaste was quite harsh and not very pleasant.  This is the second beer I have tried from this brewery and the second one I have not enjoyed.  Score 4/10  

Ilkley Pale (4.2% ABV)

Talk about saving the best until last.  Ilkley Brewery is fast becoming a massive favourite of mine.  This 'premium blonde' looks magnificent and it had a lovely fresh lemony aroma to it.  It is brewed with the Nelson Sauvin hop from New Zealand.  The initial taste matched the aroma but this gave way to lovely richer fruit notes like passion fruit.  Everything about this beer was perfect.  The clean crisp taste continued throughout with more and more citrussy notes coming through and I was left with a very satisfying lemony bitterness aftertaste.  Score 10/10