MEMORIES

There was an article in a recent weekend newspaper supplement about memory loss. A study had concluded that middle aged men who drink the equivalent of two and a half pints of beer a day risk speeding up memory loss by six years.

Well I try to limit myself to 9 or 10 pints a week, so that's me in the clear then , or am I ? Sometimes, especially if I order a pint of a beer I've not had before, I'll sit down and think, what the hell is this again ? Writing it down or taking a picture of the handpull seem to be the only way these days.

Invariably on a pub crawl , and being Master of the Coin * I will forget to order one of the guys pint. Having said that,   on our last outing -  to Edinburgh, I forgot to order my own !

I can usually remember pubs Ive been in many years ago, but not the recent price of any foodstuff. Well its a question of priorities, isn't it?

Do you not think its somewhat ironic that we can remember events where we forget things ?

Now where's that publish button ?

* As in Game of Thrones

GREAT BRITISH BEER FESTIVAL - AFTERMATH

Well that's it for another year.  You look forward to something for twelve months, and its over just like that. I find that occasions like these are more about the people you meet up with than the beer you try. There were nine of us this year from various parts of the UK and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

My day to Olympia in London started with a cancelled train at Durham, and ended with a delayed journey going home the same day. I will spare you the details, perhaps relive those experiences in a train blog later ( oh no!)

It was raining in London and I managed to get to the venue just before opening time to join the ticket holders queue. It snaked round the building and onward towards Heathrow, so I had long enough to think " hang on, I travel the furthest of our group, but still manage to get here first !" 

In a previous blog, I referred to the great unwashed queue - those without tickets. Well with the rain tipping it down it was a case of the great washed queue this time.

Once in, you are immediately relieved of your ticket, £1 for the festival guide, and  £3 for a souvenir glass (refundable). You are then confronted by the vast hall that is Olympia and the 21 bars, 900 real ales, ciders and perries, numerous food stalls and CAMRA stands. So how do you choose which beers to sample? 

Well CAMRA always publicise on their website the beers that will be available, so I had a fair idea of what I would be drinking. I usually refer to the books 300 Beers To Try Before You Die, and its sequel, 300 More for suggestions to try.

I decided to fly the flag for a local brewery by starting with Maxim Lambtons (see photo left) then moving on to Potbelly Venom, with the claim the beer was green. Well there's green and there's green. See photo on right to form your own opinion. There  was nothing in the program notes about the flavour, just the colour. I was not impressed.

I'm not going to bore you with the full list but I did enjoy Sulwath Black Galloway Porter and  Thurston's Milk Stout.  

 

Musical Interlude

For each of the days of the festival, Tuesday through to Saturday, musical entertainment is provided. We were near the stage. We were also not far from, and new this year, a Portacabin gents toilet. You took your life in your hands being too close to the bowl when you flushed, as this intense sucking noise occurred, nearly removing all the oxygen from the near vicinity. 

Anyhow, this toilet edifice was directly behind the tables and seating facing the stage. So we were treated to a reggae band called Talisman (no me neither). Their view from the stage would have been a lot of disinterested drinkers and the gents behind them. I should have asked if they did requests, and would have suggested "Louie Louie" if they did. (sorry!) 

Feeding time

There were several food stalls dotted around, selling sandwiches, pasties and pies amongst other delights. While the others stuffed their faces with pasties, hot dogs and sarnies, I brought my own Chiabatti bread chicken paste sandwiches and a fantastic pork pie - well it meant more money for beer, didn't it?. This pie kept me going till breakfast the next day. In fact, the beer kept me going the next day as well but perhaps that's too much detail.

 

Best quote of the day  

One of the bars was a Shepherd Neame brewery bar. Britain's oldest brewer had six beers on offer including Spitfire, Red Sails Cheery Porter and Bishops Finger. I picked up a sheet of tasting notes and passed it round our group. One of them read down and declared " Ive had a Bishops Finger "  

So that's it for another year. 364 days and counting 

See previous blogs for other posts on the festival

GREAT BRITISH BEER FESTIVAL - EPISODE 3.

Well I see the Champion Beer of Britain 2015 has been announced.   It is ( drum roll) :-

TINY REBEL'S CWTCH. 

I am unfamiliar with this Newport based brewery and the beer. It won Gold in the Best Bitter Class and overall Gold as Champion.

The full list can be viewed here

http://www.camra.org.uk/news/-/asset_publisher/1dUgQCmQMoVC/content/champion-beer-of-brita-1?_101_INSTANCE_1dUgQCmQMoVC_redirect=%2Fnews 

Have been scratching my head about the beers' pronunciation. Found a Welsh dictionary which suggested either Cootch or Cutch. 

Now if it's anything like previous years, when we get there the winner will have sold out, with a promise that another cask will be available mid afternoon.Cue mid afternoon and a long queue will develop with punters gasping to try the winner. In 2014 you may recall the winner was Timothy Taylor's Boltmaker. The group I was with were not that excited so we didn't bother. I had drank it already so didn't waste time queuing.

It remains to be seen what will happen in tomorrow.

I was particularly pleased that Titanic Plum Porter triumphed in the Specialty Beer Award. If you haven't  tried it, I would seriously recommend it. Fitzgeralds in Sunderland have it as a house beer.

Finally , mention of a North East beer that achieved bronze in the Bottled Beer section ; Mordue India Pale Ale..well done !

One more thing. On the bus in London from Kings Cross to Olympia two years ago I spotted actor Julian Rhind-Tutt walking along Oxford Street.  I mentioned it with great enthusiasm when I met up with everyone at the festival. " Who?" seemed to be the most common statement. 

"Well you know, he's been in loads of things" without actually having a clue what. If you are reading this Julian, I tried mate. Anyhow, to put you out of your misery, I last saw him on TV in that Aussie convict drama Banished. 

Click here for the final chapter :- GBBF 2015 Aftermath

A WINTER LAGER IN SUMMER

I recently bought a couple of bottles of Samuel Adams Winter Lager from a well known national discount store(being an anagram of M&B), for the princely sum of 79p each. They were selling them off before the September 2015 expiry date.

This lager is in fact a Bock. So what is a Bock ? Well this beer style originated in Bavaria in Germany and has a strong rich flavour. Under Bavarian law, a Bock style has to be at least 6.4%.

Having said that, Sam Adams is, as you know, an American brewer and this seasonal Winter  Lager is a mere 5.5. Dark amber , this drink really packs a punch. Half way down the glass you get the warm glow associated with a strong winter ale, only in August ! Its usually available in the autumn and is flavoured with orange peel, ginger and cinnamon. I will be looking out for this drink same time next year. 


Now the only other Bock style beer I recall drinking, well I recall opening the bottle anyway, was Eggenberg Samichlaus. Samichlaus means Santa Claus and it is brewed in Austria. This comes in at 14%, which I believe is the strongest beer I have ever had. Its called Santa Claus because it is brewed on St Nicholas Day ( December 6th) every year and stored for up to 10 months before being bottled and made available for the forthcoming Xmas celebrations. I got mine for my birthday some 8 years ago and the rest I'm afraid, is blank.