OLD PECULIER - BEER OF THE MONTH

Last weekend I was at the Glasgow Beer Festival *  Many beers were tried of course, but one which I was saving for last ran out just as I was walking to the bar. All the beers were in metal casks as you would expect, except one - Old Peculier,  in a wooden barrel.

I wasn't too disappointed as at the beginning of June on a pub crawl in Bedale ( North Yorkshire) ** the first pint ( sorry 2 pints) I had was Old Peculier at 11 in the morning. It was absolutely magnificent. I was getting strange looks as I savoured the taste, with appropriate noises, of this well known beer. It is sometimes said that OP doesn't travel and tastes  better the nearer the brewery it is. Well Bedale is only about 15 minutes from the brewery in Masham so I can understand that.

In 2012 I did a tour of the Theakstons brewery, some photos are shown. We were staying the night in the White

Old Peculier bubbling away

Bear Hotel, their brewery tap,  so the OP was naturally top of the menu. It was actually the White Bear Beer Festival and during the evening a howling gale developed. Their marquee with the festival bar in actually moved sideways throughout the evening. Mrs Ken can confirm this, it wasn't the beer this time.

I believe I am correct in saying that Old Peculier was the first real ale I drank, back  in the early seventies. We were staying in a youth hostel in Hawes, doing the Pennine Way, and after a long days hike, the natural thing to do was head for the local boozer. 

I think it was called The Fountain and I will always remember our reaction when drinking the OP for the first time. We were all used to drinking S&N, Vaux or Camerons keg beers so this was a revelation. The colour and the underlying taste of liquorice hit me straight away . Needless to say I cant remember the stagger back to the youth hostel. Happy days

Some years ago when I was old enough to know better we had a pub crawl in York. The last pint I remember drinking was Old Peculier in the Old Starre Inn ( I think). My next memory is waking up in bed the next morning. Apparently we had left the pub to find another, had burger and chips, got the train back to Durham, had another pint in Wetherspoons then got a taxi home.  I cant remember any of it. Apparently on the train I got up to go to the loo. The swaying motion of the train cancelled out my swaying so I ended up walking in a straight line. Well at least this is what Ive been told.

How can one beer have so many stories ?  One more then I'm done . Ive been going to the Great British Beer Festival every year for some time now. In the early days Theakstons had their own bar, and for about three years two of us made a point of starting with Old Peculier . When I turned up the last time they had a bar, I made the point of  wearing my Black Sheep T shirt to wind them up. It worked  and but after the expected abuse, they still served me. Most beers that day didnt taste as good after drinking OP first.

You don't often see Old Peculier near where I live.(the bottled is not as good in my opinion). Its rarity makes it all the more enjoyable.  

So , no hesitation, my beer of the month.

  

*Glasgow Beer Festival

** Bedale Pub Crawl