GLASGOW PUB SCENE AND A LARGE ICE CREAM

Last weekend was Mrs Ken's birthday so we had a two nights in Glasgow to celebrate. We met up with our daughter and the 3 of us  had a great time eating and drinking in a great city.

Now I have read a lot about pub closures and the fact that more breweries are springing up with less pubs to sell their beer to. Well tell that to the Glaswegians !!  The place was heaving.

I have had recommended by a CAMRA mate that Drygate Brewery is worth a look. This restaurant, bar and microbrewery is a joint venture between Williams Brothers Brewery and  Tennants Brewery just east of the city centre., and is co-located with Tennants. Walking along Duke Street to find it ( it was just before  sunset) you smell it before you see it.   

 The place was heaving but luckily we had a table booked for a meal . It was noticeable that most of the beer was keg or cans, there being only 2 handpulls. I was a bit disappointed with the beer quaility, being a bit lukewarm. You would think with it being brewed on the premises it would be better.

One side of the restaurant is a glass wall looking into the brewery. There was this hirsute bloke rushing around between fermentation vessels , presumably looking busy for the benefit of the few watching punters.

Job Description :-

• Grow a beard

• Look Busy.

Anyhow, they had a shop and I was struck by the number of cans on sale. Approaching the quantity of bottles.The next big thing? Most were Scottish brews but there was one bottle of Wylam Haxan,  who's new brewery could be modeled on Drygate.,

After the meal ( fish and chips) it was back into town and a pub in the Good Beer Guide, Babbity Bowster.

What ? Ed 

 Babbity Bowster is a old Scottish country dance.  This place was fairly busy as well so after a pint of Fyne Ales Jarl it was round the corner to the best pub of the night ; Blackfriars. This was also busy. There was a large blackboard which features a map showing location of all breweries that supply the pub. I had a superb pint of  Crouch Vale Brewers Gold which capped a great night. I also found this interesting quote on the menu which made me smile :-

 

Food interlude.

We have never visited the Ayrshire coast and our Glasgow based daughter suggested an Ice Cream Parlour in Largs which sold fantastic ice cream sundaes. So a drive across country to Troon, then  north to Largs. This is what we ate ; a Hot Fudge Volcano ( with 3 spoons). Truly excellent. ( PS cost nearly £15)

After a pleasant drive up the coast it was back into Glasgow for another night on the beer.

Back on the beer.

The pub we visit most on our now regular visits is Bon Accord, with an excellent range of beers and food. However one of the barmen failed one of my "mystery shopper" tests. There were 2 sets of handpulls with a chalkboard behind the bar in between, One of the beers I liked the look of, as it was the strongest, was called Red Rocker at 5%. I asked who brewed it as the handpull was at the other end of the bar. He had to and have a look at the pump clip. Should have known it was Cromarty.

This pub was also ticking over with most punters watching Scotland playing Lithuania ( 1-1).  We left the disgruntled fans when Lithuania took the lead and headed for our last pub, a Wetherspoons called Henglers Circus on Sauchihall Street . This place was heaving ( I believe the term is now rammed) with only one spare table. Loads of handpulls and I was pleased to find one of my favourite Scottish beers ; Broughton Old Jock. At  6.7% this is a sweetish fruity old ale and is fantastic in cask or bottled form.

So some great pubs and beers ; some better than others but what a great weekend, especially if you like chocolate ice cream. 

 

SUNDERLAND OCTOBERFEST 2016.

The Sunderland Octoberfest is currently underway so here are some notes on what has happened so far. 

The first day of set up was Monday ; I was on my way back from a holiday in Madiera so missed all the hard graft -  loading all the bar racking and other assorted heavy stuff from  our lockup into the venue, the Bonded Warehouse near the Sunderland Fish Quay. The beers, ciders and festival glasses had all been delivered last week to Maxim Brewery for safe keeping. ( thanks guys !). So....

Part 1 - Tuesday set up day.

Tuesday 4th October , bright and early. Correction, not bright but early. I'm waiting to be picked up in a hired van to collect the beers etc from Maxim Brewery - time for me to do some work !

While waiting to be picked up, time to reflect on the holiday week, having returned the previous evening. 7 days of heat lazing in the sun. And , no sign of any "Craft Beers or Black IPAs anywhere".

Anyhow,  we had to do 2 trips from the brewery and while this to- ing and fro- ing was going on the bar racking and bar front were being installed in the venue. 

Also available were some large brewery banners from Maxim and Camerons, two of our sponsors. The Camerons banner was huge and at various stages throughout the day some of the guys made many aborted attempts to find somewhere to hang it. The warehouse has a small paved area at the back with a high fence so,  at last a home for the banner !. ( see photo) . I have heard that since it went up it could be seen from the International Space Station !

There are many things that need doing to get a festival ready, some of which has already been mentioned. There is also the technical stuff ; installing the beer lines, connecting the chillers, and fixing the handpulls to the bar. While all this was happening, two of us were tidying up the  waterproof sheeting that covered the bar top and front. Yours truly, wearing a fetching pair of knee pads, demonstrated his skills trimming the plastic so it was less of a tripping hazard and to make it aesthetically pleasing. Although looking back, I guess the punters would be more interested at looking at the pump clips than what the bar looked like. 

Tuesday ended with all beer set up , connected to handpulls, nicely polished with their pump clips ready for Thursday and the Grand Opening.

Part 2 - Thursday and the Grand Opening.   

This would be my last day at the festival as a family weekend was planned in Glasgow. Difficult decision, beer festival or some great real ale pubs in Glasgow.

What I like about working at a beer festival, as well as being part of a team that helped set it up, is meeting the punters that come to enjoy some great beers.

27 beers and 6 ciders and perry's were on offer. Soon after opening one guy came straight across to pump number one ( Arbier Renaissance ) and boldly stated he was going to work his way along all the beers. In a way he was the perfect customer because I could work out from behind the bar which beer he was going to have next.

Unfortunately, after number 9 , ( half pints ) he lost his place and couldn't remember where he was up to- neither could I but we had an educated guess . Soon after that I never saw him again -  he may have dozed off somewhere  ; although he did say he was coming back on Saturday - let's hope they didn't run out for him.
 

Sometimes at festivals I have the odd cider, and believe me there was definitely something odd about the one I tried ;Beetroot and Orange. ( pictured). It smelt like a Beetroot sandwich and tasted , well of Beetroot juice. I couldn't detect any orange or any cider either! It was bloody awful.
There' s that term "craft" again ! - ed 





So, in between pulling beers, and drinking them, I had a great time and the 5 hour session just flew by. My favourite beer I hadn't had before was Maxim - Maximum Speed and favourite beer I had had before was Elland 1872 Porter.

Already looking forward to next year.

Next issue - food and drink in Glasgow 

A PUB CLOSES THEN REOPENS - THE SANDPIPER

I read recently that the number of weekly pub closures had slowed to 21 a week over the last 6 months. Welcome news but I have noticed a spate of recent local closures , one of which used to be my old watering hole.

In the 1980's my local was the Sandpiper in Washington, mainly because I was 5 minutes walk away. I don't recall if real ale was available at that time but I used to drink there at least twice a week. 

Later, when real ale made an appearance,  a Tuesday night quiz was always popular , although we were crap and hardly ever won anything. Half time featured a plate of roast potatoes ( between six of us!) . Worked at about 2 each.

I recall we had New Years fancy dress party at our house ( 1981 or 82) , so we started in the Sandpiper. One of my mates, covered in green paint and his clothes in shreds, came as the Incredible Hulk**  Having had to much to drink, he leaps on one of the tables as midnight approaches  , shouting and gesticulating. The Landlord was not pleased " Get down off that table or get out" Miserable sod.

After the party, we offered to let him stay the night. Big mistake - the sheets in the bed were all green and there were green hand marks on the staircase wallpaper when he left the next morning . We vowed  - no more Incredible Hulk guests. 

Back to the beer. At one time up to 4 handpulls were in use and the pub was one of the few to sell it at that time ( end of 80s ). Most of it was from the Greene King stable. 
 
In the last 2 or 3 years , the real ale had been hit and miss with less and less handpulls in use  .   The local CAMRA branch published a Washington  pub crawl leaflet in 2014 and included the Sandpiper. One reader commented to the branch magazine editor " The pubs only redeeming feature was the bus stop used on the way out ".

At the turn of the year they stopped selling real ale and the doors closed in July. It was then reported a new tenant had been found and sure enough , the pub reopened about 2 weeks ago and real ale is back on - Greene King Old Golden Hen. The Landlady assured me when I visited there would always be a real ale on.  Lets hope so  

**For those remotely interested I went as the Kenny Everett character Marcel Wave  

HERITAGE OPEN DAYS

For a few years now Heritage Open Days have taken place in England which allow locals to look around a variety of places for free. This year I visited a few places ( some with Mrs Ken !) I hadn't been to before.

The first of note beer-wise was the Darwin Brewery Open Day; where I HAD been before. It stated in the  Heritage booklet issued about the events " A tutored tasting event " Good enough for me, and I suspect the two dozen others that showed up. It was interesting that during talk, focusing on the historical aspect of the regions beers , after every question  " would you like to try some of this beer  ?" came a chorus of "yes". The same reply after the 2nd such question, and again after the third. People are so predictable, including yours truly.

As well as the welcome sampling, there was a fascinating presentation charting the history of their Flag Porter beer. I had seen it before the previous year , but it was still good to see it again. It must be one of the few beers in the UK that has such an interesting  history. ( see picture ) Their bar was open where I enjoyed a pint of Evolution then bought 3 bottles of the Porter for £5. A bargain, and in a gift pack!

So that was the Saturday ; on the Sunday just gone Mrs Ken and I had a trip to Durham Castle. This is used mainly as student accommodation for the University so wasn't expecting anything to do with beer. Wandering around the halls and galleries , I noticed a laminate about the visit to Durham of King James I                                                                                        

( See bottom of picture left). This tells the wonderful story  that the king bollocked the bishop for serving weak beer. It so stressed him out he pegged it 3 days later. 

I'm just wondering if this was the forerunner of Greene King IPA ?

Another surprise, that same day after we headed south from Durham, was the Head of Steam Railway Museum in Darlington. 

Walking into the reception ,my radar picked up a shelf full of beer bottles. Brewed by a newish brewery from Newton Aycliffe just up the road, Steam Machine had 8 styles of beer on offer, all for £2.50. Naturally I went for the strong dark ones, namely :-

New Age Brown - 6.5%

Smoked Porter 7.2%

Treacle Toffee Stout 10%

Ive not tried them yet and would probably be incapable of speech or typing if I did. I cant help thinking, however  if these beers had been around at the time of James I visit to Durham, the poor bishop may have lived a little bit longer.

BEER FESTIVAL HEALTH AND SAFETY AND AN INTERESTING PLACE FOR A BREWERY

You know those combined tables and benches you find in picnic areas, pub gardens and some beer festivals. As you know in most cases the benches are joined to the tables.

 Well over the weekend just gone Mrs Ken and myself visited the Berwick Food and Beer Festival for the first time.  Held in a large marquee outside the old barracks, the place was heaving when we arrived but luckily found some empty seats, sorry benches. Real Ale was supplied by mostly Northumberland and Scottish Borders Breweries such as Bear Claw, Born in the Borders and Hetton Law. They each had their own bar with 3 - 4 handpulls each. Beer was served in plastic glasses. 

There were dozens of the aforesaid tables, but unfortunately  the benches weren't  fixed. This had the amusing result of ; if one person was on one end, and another at the other; and if one stood up, the poor individual at the other end invariably nearly slid off the end. One poor sod sat down and his bench collapsed, spilling his pint dangerously close to yours truly. You know when spilt beer is coming towards you and you try to get out the way.

Still, along with the local beers, the music and the hogroast, it made for an entertaining afternoon.    

On Sunday we had a day in Edinburgh then on our way home on the Monday we decided, as the tide was out, to cross the causeway to Holy Island. The  main reason for the detour was to visit Lindisfarne Castle. Unfortunately it was closed for a wedding. All I have to say about this is I hope the speeches overran and they were stranded on the island when the tide came in.

Anyhow, I had heard that a new brewery called Beacon Brauhaus had been set up in a coffee bar called Pilgrims. Curious to learn more we battled through all the bloody tourists into the cafe & I managed to have a quick chat with one of the busy servers, who was very patient with me.

Apparently the beer, which  is only in bottled form for now, is brewed in the cafes kitchen ! It is to be hoped to move into a shed later, with real ale following next year. The unfiltered beer is only sold in the cafe and in a farm shop in Belford on the mainland. 

 The Beers on sale were Loss of Signal ( blonde), Lady Eleanor ( Elderflower Pale Ale) and Night Crawler , a porter which I bought.. At £3.80 a bottle - a bit pricey but obviously aimed at the tourists.

As we left the island before the tide rushed in I thought, bugger Ive forgotten to ask what the brewery name means, then I figured it out. Brauhaus is German for Brewery and the name Beacon comes from the 2 old obelisk shaped lighthouses you can see from most of the island. ( probably great from the top of the castle ha ha). Still not sure why use a German name but I'm sure all will becomes clear at some point. 

CAMRA ANGLE AUTUMN 2016

The Autumn edition of CAMRA Angle , the quarterly magazine of the Sunderland and South Tyneside branch of CAMRA, has  just been published. Copies will soon be distributed to real ale pubs throughout the area , and beyond. 

This is another  packed issue and well worth a read. 

This edition previews the forthcoming branch Octoberfest in Sunderland.

A regular section is a news update on pubs and breweries in the branch. A new feature lists the branch's Locale pubs and those that offer discounts. 

Building on the success of The Dun Cow,  Sunderland in the National Pub Design Awards, there was a presentation of the new edition of CAMRA's Britain's Best Real Heritage Pubs by the author; Geoff Brandwood.

There is two articles from our roving reporters in Barcelona and Australia. Once again  CAMRA Angle travels the world.  

The third pub walk features, this time  around Washington , ideal for an autumn stroll . There are 2 book reviews and a look at our newest brewery, Arbier. If that isn't enough, there is a Sunderland Real Ale Trail pull out centre section.

Issue 45 is rounded off by a  pub quiz and where am I.

If you cant find a copy, follow this link to download your own,  and for more branch news. .http://sst.camra.org.uk/

 

And remember, accept no imitations.