My birthday is exactly 5 weeks before Christmas Day. So for my birthday I always get several bottles of beer from family and friends. Then 5 weeks later , I get a lot more from the family so at the moment I have 30 bottles stashed away in various cupboards. A lot of them have been brought down from Glasgow, which is no bad thing !
Now I don't have trouble drinking these beers , what I do have trouble with is sometimes trying to read the best before end dates. It really is an eye straining exercise these days as I get older - I am very shorted sighted ! The number of times I have to hold a bottle up to the light, or even open the back door and stand in the garden to see the bloody thing.
Some beers thankfully print the end date on the label. Most say " Best Before End - See Neck " or "See bottle top". Its the See Neck ones that invariably do my head in . Usually the printing is so tiny, faded or badly printed I have to remove my specs and peer with one eye shut about an inch from the bottle, slowly turning it round in the light.
If some brewers manage to get the date on the label, why can't they all. So here are my awards for the best and worst for dates that are not printed on the label. .
Worst - Inveralmond Brewery Edinburgh Pale Ale. On the label it says " best before see shoulder"
No it doesn't ! I cannot find the bloody date anywhere !
Confusing - Fullers 1845 . the date appears to be printed in Klingon just below the bar code. Although if I narrow my eyes sufficiently enough it could be 1st Dec 2019 ?? 
And the winner is - Robinsons Old Tom I can actually see this one without squinting or taking it outside ( its under the M of TOM). Well done.
End of first rant of 2018. Getting eye strain; time for a beer. Happy new year !
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