Hoppy New Beer!

Best wishes for 2021, let's hope things can improve very soon, I'm certainly missing pubs, ales and my social life... I shall be writing about my favourite ales of 2020 in the next couple of days, I was limited, for obvious reasons, notably not being allowed to travel! And remember! 😉

Amused me when I saw it, but do be careful, & hopefully find a decent beer to drink, cheers! 

Merry Christmas!

 Make the most of Christmas, but it'll be bottles for me, Merry Christmas & roll on normal!

Save our Pubs Petition

Do you remember the good old days before the Lockdown? Well, things are getting even worse for pubs and other businesses in the hospitality sector, indeed, the future of many is looking bleaker by the day as more and more lockdowns arrive, and more areas are being placed in higher tiers, despite virtually every other business in the country carrying on trading, even hairdressers and gyms in tier 3! 

Just what has this Government got against Pubs?!? There is very little evidence of COVID-19 being caught in pubs, indeed rates of infection only increased when schools reopened in September, and then rates shot up when universities and further education colleges reopened, whilst pubs have spent plenty of money on 'mitigations' and actually carry out the private track & trace system's work for them!

Then 'wet pubs' were offered a paltry £1,000 because they were closed under the systems of tiers introduced by the Government (blog), have the people in power no idea of the continued costs publicans have to fork out for?

Anyway, here's a petition urging a Government package to support the trade!

Please sign at this link, cheers!

Bad News for Ale Houses

The Government is offering just £1,000 as a one-off payment in December to pubs in Tiers 2 and 3 that don't sell food, that is 'wet pubs,' as announced by the Prime Minister earlier today (sky). What a disgrace! What is it that the apparent puritans in Government have against pubs?!? 

First, how the hell can publicans get by on just a grand, it's as though Government Ministers want pubs to go under, I wonder if they've been given stuffed brown envelopes by property developers? It wouldn't surprise me with this bunch of corrupt incompetents!

Second, why is it just the hospitality sector that is being hit by the Government? Gyms are returning, hairdressers are returning, museums, football crowds, everyone except pubs, the one sector that actually managed the COVID-19 Crisis between the lockdowns, spending out on 'mitigations' requested of them by Government, administering 'track & trace' records, sanitizing regularly, ensuring social distancing etc etc!

Indeed, the rate of COVID-19 is decreasing, see my other blog for example, whilst the Government puts at risk the future of our pubs, I'm sad, but also I'm very angry! 😡

Good News & The Roscoe Head, Liverpool

Great news regarding The Roscoe Head, 24 Roscoe Street, Liverpool L1 2SX (website), one of only 5 pubs that have been in every edition of CAMRA's Good Beer Guide, since the first edition in 1974! Formerly the pub was owned by Punch Taverns, until it was sold to New River Retail in 2015, but it has now been bought by the licensee, Carol Ross, after being run by her family for over 30 years (Carol took over the licence in 1997 from her mother), consequently, now it is a genuine free house (Campaign for Pubs), nice one! 👍

My best wishes go to Carol, and I shall definitely pop in next time I'm up there, cheers!

Covid-19 Incidence, Hospitality & Beer!

Before I get too serious, a nice bit of good news... Pubs, bars and breweries are again showing their common sense and, despite early noises from the Government, are delivering ales, ciders and perries, and providing Click & Collect services, thanks to a U-turn from the Government allowing these activities. Yet again, because of the COVID-19 Crisis and travel restrictions, I am limited in my 2020 ale experiences, mostly to Hastings and its environs, where The Jolly Fisherman (from my other blog) is providing similar services to the first lockdown, nice one!

Recently, with my other blog, I vented my frustration with our incompetent and corrupt Government and their handling of this crisis, and the then looming second lockdown, particularly regarding most publicans taking care to follow the guidelines, if not to be respectful of their customers, to ensure they were not closed down by the Police and/or licencing authorities. Indeed, any publicans who weren't following guidelines well deserved to be closed down, as happened to a few for periods in Hastings. Again, further to my other blog, it has been 8 months now for the Government to sort out their Test & Trace programme, wasting £billions in the process by giving contracts to their inexperienced friends in industry, instead of supporting experienced public health authorities, and which would have been a much lower cost too!  

So, I shall leave you to look at the graph above, with figures not much more than 24 hours old, there's up to date for you! I shall just add a few dates to help you consider whether pubs reopening from July the 4th were significant in the rising levels of COVID-19, and whether they really deserved to be closed down at 22.00 hours on the 4th of November, and noting that the majority of COVID-19 cases are now teenagers and young adults up to 24 years old, indeed, by the 12th October, 60% of new cases were university students. 

First, yes, pubs were reopened from the 4th of July; Second, schools were reopened from the 1st of September; Third, the university academic year began on the 21st of September...

Save Pubs, Cut Beer Duty!

I've written before about the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) and Long Live The Local campaigns to protect pubs and a previous petition to cut beer duty, now there is an updated petition from Long Live The Local; go to their website for further information.

Campaigns and petitions that I too support, and have signed, and even more necessary in these COVID-19 Crisis times; cheers folks, and stay safe!

International Stout Day II - Beer!

Well, the pubs weren't open yesterday, obviously, but I thought I'd better buy myself a stout/porter as I suggested yesterday (earlier blog talks about this), so I visited Marks & Spencer, for food too of course, and came home with their 5.5% London Porter, brewed for them in Greenwich by Meantime Brewing (website). OK, it's not called a stout, but as my older blog argues, whether a beer is called a stout or porter more often depends on the brewer's own interpretation...

So I sampled this 5.5% 'porter' which I considered as more of a 'stout' - but! It has elements of both when considering how I describe the styles, deep dark reddish brown colour and pale brown head, not as much body as you'd expect for the strength, and with hints of chocolate and coffee in the aroma. Taste-wise I got more chocolate than coffee with a hint of roasted malt/barley, a bit sweet to begin with and a dark fruity and dry aftertaste... Not bad at all, cheers!

International Stout Day and Covid-19 Lockdown!

Yes, today is, coincidentally, both International Stout Day (website) and the first day of Lockdown Mark 2 in England (BBC), not great! I have written about Stouts and Porters before, if you want a bit of history and details (blog), but I'd forgotten about today until I looked in my diary, so I shall have to go out shortly and buy something dark to drink for later, together with essential foodstuffs obviously, as the pubs aren't open sadly...

As expected, the numpties in charge kept offering different opinions about what was happening about alcohol sales, first saying that pubs and bars, and restaurants for that matter, couldn't deliver or sell alcohol as a takeaway. Well, surprise surprise, numerous Government spokespeople got that wrong, see the above regulations.

Anyway, 'lockdown' lasts until the 2nd of December, allegedly, but don't hold your breath, so enjoy the days until then as well as you can, enjoy International Stout Day, and be safe, cheers!

November: Save our Pubs, News and Views

I received my November copy of CAMRA's What's Brewing a few days ago and, unsurprisingly, the main theme was their campaign to "save our pubs from extinction" (website), also inside was the regular Roger Protz article which this month emphasized that we should "kill the virus not our locals." Obviously it isn't just CAMRA trying to save our local and community pubs, but the pub trade and brewing industry have their own campaigns (Campaign for Pubs), and, of course, we the customer do not want to return to a 'normal' life that has lost local pubs, which provide a social hub for many, a community service that the Government cannot provide, help prevent loneliness and depression, and help to ensure a good mental health for many, not to mention great real ales. I don't know about your locals, but the 6 pubs I have visited since the first lockdown all ensured sufficient mitigating factors were in place to ensure Covid Safety for their customers. But now a second month-long lockdown comes into force in England on Guy Fawkes Day, the 5th of November 2020, a lockdown that is very likely to go into 2021... Now is the time to save our pubs from extinction!

Oh yes, and this is the usual time of year to sample 'green hopped' ales, that is, ales brewed using hops picked that morning (though I doubt many stick to that 'purity') but basically, the hops used for the brew are freshly picked, not dried/preserved, which always provides a variation of tastes, and they are usually pretty excellent, as brewers are very careful with these seasonal beers. Anyway, I was going to walk up to the Tower (blog) last week as Louisa promised me she had 2 firkins of the always excellent Dark Star Green Hopped IPA (6.5%) in her cellar the previous week, so I was going to visit last week to savour this delicious ale... Sadly, the weather was atrocious and I didn't make it up the hill. But then, my more local 'local' the Dolphin (blog) had the same ale delivered last Thursday, and was going to have it available this week, but now the lockdown has stopped that happening, I'm not a happy bunny at all 😒 

Any more news? Well, Marston's has merged with Carlsberg, and any merger is a cause for concern, but we shall have to wait and see how that pans out...

Beer sales have plummeted, apparently, since March and lockdown, which is hardly surprising, and pubs, breweries and jobs are at risk even more now.

Whatever, look after yourselves during these bleak times, and be safe!

London Beer Flood 1814 Anniversary

The London Beer Flood, which I have written about a number of times before, was a distressing event that happened close by what is now the Dominion Theatre in London's West End, and occurred on the 17th of October 1814; some reports record this tragedy to have happened the day before, but the evidence to support the 17th as the anniversary looks to be stronger.

In those days, London drinkers were supplied by dozens of competing breweries, which resulted in some breweries building enormous vats in which to ferment and condition their ales. Indeed, the enormous porter vat of Maux & Company had a capacity of over a million pints! At about 6pm, on the 17th of October, 206 years ago, one of the steel restraining bands that enveloped that gigantic vat broke and released the contents. Together with the million plus pints of porter released from this vat, other vessels in the brewery were damaged and released even more beer into the flood. The resulting deluge damaged the brewery and a nearby pub, the Tavistock Arms and, sadly, flooded the basements of nearby homes...

Depending on which reports you read, between 7 and 9 people died as a direct result of the flood, most of them drowning in their own basements, and many more were seriously injured, including some of those who came to help rescue survivors... 

R.I.P. to those who sadly died in their own homes. 😢

Images, with thanks to www.history.info, and I cannot find the source again for the photograph of Maux & Company brewery, my apologies to that source!

Pubs to Revisit in England Part II - in t' North

It's a while since I wrote my first blog regarding pubs to revisit n England, so to Part II and up int' North! Heading up the M5/M6 to the North West and my first pub today is The Marble Arch Inn, 73 Rochdale Road, Manchester M4 4HY (website), an interesting listed Victorian building. The pub has wonderful tiling, some of which, apparently, was found by chance when the ceiling fell due to dampness! This used to be a brewpub, and you could see into the brewery out the back, and in those days I often chatted to the brewers about the ales on offer, hops used etc, but now Marble Beers (website) are brewed around the corner in larger premises, supplying organic, vegan-friendly, ales to the pub and the free trade, indeed, I last drank their 3.9% session ale Pint at the Tower Pub in Hastings not so long ago.

The Marble Arch Inn was built in 1888 and has an obviously sloping mosaic (not hoppy 😉) floor, and I've often seen objects/glasses rolling or slipping down tables. This pub sells not just excellent ales but very good food too, but be careful of your plate, as well as glass, on the table! I've most often visited just as part of a fun day out in Manchester, where there are many other great pubs as well, and I've visited the pub when in town for football too, for example, when I drank there with my brother and friend Teapot Dave from Haworth, during the afternoon before an evening football match at Old Trafford. Amusingly, before the match we ate and drank here and took advantage of their great jukebox, and Dave made us laugh because he confused The Clash's London's Burning (YouTube) with The Ruts' Babylon's Burning (YouTube), we laughed anyway, though not so much Dave. Anyway, I must return!

My second pub, and not too far away from my Manc friends, is The Philharmonic, 36 Hope Street, Liverpool L1 9BX (website), a pub I wrote about earlier this year after it become Grade I Listed (blog); if you haven't already read the blog I'd suggest you do so as it gives a bit of history of the pub, plus a bit of history of my interest. Indeed, many of these pubs have an element of football interest in them for me as well, as in me visiting with friends whilst in town for a football match, or meeting up with friends who support the opposition. However, I've also visited just for a drink when I hadn't even been living locally, that's how good these pubs are! I'm certainly looking forward to returning to this delightful building... 

Next, we need to travel north-east to The Bodega, 125 Westgate Road, Newcastle NE1 4AG (website), but why the name Bodega? The name comes from a small wine cellar or wine shop in Spain, indeed there are a few pubs called this around Britain, notably this excellent pub in very easy reach of Newcastle FC. I have also drank here before and after matches at nearby Sunderland FC too, which is very easy to reach via the Metro, and the people of Newcastle become extra friendly when they discover you're supporting the Mackems' opposition! I was a bit upset when I last came here for a Newcastle match as my mate Teapot Dave (again) became a pain as he was driving and had to limit his drinking; he got me away from The Bodega way too early, redirecting us to the 'Spoons, sadly, and I was getting on very well with the (female) manager of The Bodega too...

Anyway, The Bodega is another wonderful Victorian pub that has a lovely interior, with a long bar that extends way back, making it appear cavernous compared to how it appears before you walk in. It has an elaborately tiled floor and 2 stained glass domes, or cupolas, in the ceiling. I haven't visited for a while, consequently why I'd love to return, but last time I was there they had 8 real ales on offer; with 4 guest ales supporting 4 regular/semi-regular ales from 3 of my favourite brewers, Oakham Ales, Fyne Ales and Durham Brewery. No wonder I like returning! 

Next we head back southwards to Yorkshire, and I have to add at least 1 pub from the White Rose county. I'm not including any pubs in Sheffield, because I know I'll be revisiting Sheffield again, no worries, and I regularly write about Sheffield anyway, like in this blog. Plus, I'd upset too many people I know up there if I only included 1 or 2, there are so many excellent pubs in this part of South Yorkshire! So, I'm selecting a pub in Leeds that I've visited when in Leeds just for fun, not to mention business (football), and for a Christmas drink with 8 or 9 friends from Haworth, including good old Teapot Dave, who didn't do anything embarrassing, indeed, it's likely I may have, we did have a few to drink...

So, to Whitelock's Ale House, Turk's Head Yard, Leeds LS1 6HB (website - entrance via Briggate), which dates from 1715, and is the oldest pub in Leeds. It is situated down a long narrow yard, which you could easily miss if you didn't know it was there and that would be a shame! The interior hasn't changed since the nineteenth century, with stained wood, stained glass windows and, despite being narrow, a very bright interior, mostly due to the abundance of mirrors and glass. You can sit outside in the alley/yard, but it's a welcoming pub to stay inside with friendly service... we were tolerated with our Christmas visit! And they sell decent food and excellent real ale, with many ales from Yorkshire breweries; I seem to remember drinking a lovely pale bitter from Leeds Brewery on my last visit, and I'll be back! 

Next, the Midlands...

Cask Ale Week!

What an opportune day to begin Cask Ale Week 2020 (website, and which is more than a week, certainly 1 or 2 over the 8 😉), that is, on Thursday just gone, when rules for drinking in pubs became even more complicated, some may say farcical, but rules are rules... I have written about the updated Covid-19 rules in my other blog, and I apologize if I seem to spend more time on that blog, but, as I always do, I promise to try and write more here, especially now that a Google 'improvement' has messed up my website address, or lost it!

Anyway, put on a face covering, go into a pub or 3, and have a decent pint of cask ale, cheers!

New St Austell Brewing Director

OK, I appear to be a little late with the news, my apologies, but St Austell Brewery has appointed a new Brewing Director following the sad death of the previous incumbent, the excellent brewer who brought us Proper Job and Tribute, Roger Ryman (blog). 

Georgina Young has been their new Brewing Director since her appointment a month ago (website), and I thank them for the (slightly edited by me) image above. Georgina was a log-time friend to Roger, who had been delighted when she moved from her head brewer position at Fuller's to St Austell owned Bath Ales, as their head brewer in May 2019.

Georgina graduated with a MSc in Brewing and Distilling from the Edinburgh university Heriot Watt, before working at Smiles Brewery and running a pilot brewery at Camden BRI, then joining Fuller's as a production brewer in 1999; where she was promoted to head brewer in 2017. She is also a Master Brewer of the Institute of Brewing and Distilling.

My congratulations and best wishes go to Georgina and her career at St Austell and Bath Ales, may she carry on, if not improve upon, the great work started by Roger, cheers m'dear!

A Trip to Putney and 37 degrees Celsius!

Loved these on the floor!

I arrived at Clapham Junction railway station following a surprisingly not too uncomfortable 2 hours wearing a face mask during the journey, and decided to walk along the Thames Footpath rather than catch a bus to Putney, and I couldn't believe how hot it was, 37 degrees Celsius! Still not sure whether I should have caught a bus or not, but I was looking forward to going to the Harvey's pub to the east of Wandsworth Park, The Cat's Back (website), however, it wasn't open when I got there sadly (about 3.15 pm). So, still thirsty, I cut through Wandsworth Park...

... into Putney, and ended up walking along the Lower Richmond Road to The Half Moon at number 93 (SW15 1EU - website), a pub well known for live music in 'normal' times, and somewhere I haven't been to this century! Well adapted for 'social distancing' with separate doors for entering and exiting, took my name and mobile number as I entered, very quiet, although I was informed customers had been there for lunchtime, and I was asked to sit under the air conditioning, very many thanks! It was so lovely and cool, cheers!! 😓

And I was brought a lovely pint of the excellent again St Austell (website) Proper Job, a 4.5% modern styled, USA-hopped (Willamette, Cascade, Chinook), 'Cornish India Pale Ale.' I have written about Proper Job, named after a West Country colloquialism that I first heard when I visited Devon and Cornwall in the 1970s, meaning a job well done or quality, and used from Cornwall to Somerset. And the ale is a pale golden, dry, citrus fruity, bitter, very thirst quenching (I drank a second pint soon after 😉). I've written a number of times about this ale, for example when drinking a bottle-conditioned 5.5% version during the recent lockdown (blog) and, more recently following the sad death of its creator, Roger Ryman (blog).

Coincidentally, I was in Putney to 'house sit' (and look after 2 cats!) for my brother and his family because they were away across the country in Cornwall. Anyhow, I let you down a wee bit because the Half Moon was the only pub I visited whilst in Putney, it was too hot to go for long walks or to visit pubs really, and I had a nice garden in which to sit, although I mostly stayed indoors and watched DVDs supplied (virtually a self-imposed lockdown). But I did go just round the corner from the house to the Artisan & Vine at 195/197 Lower Rochmond Road, SW15 1HJ (website), which had a very interesting selection of canned beers to drink; I tested these 5...

2 were from the New Zealand brewery Deep Creek (website), first their 4.5% pale ale Lotus, New Zealand hops as you would expect (presumably Lotus), not too bitter, a hint of citrus fruit, and quite a pale golden beer with a dry finish, nice and refreshing. Then, their stronger 5.4% Redwood, an American Pale Ale, so presumably hops from the USA. Much more body as you would expect from the strength, a deep golden colour with a BIG fruity aroma, and citrus fruit/grapefruit in the taste with a hint of tropical fruits, again not too bitter, but with a dry finish.

Then, from much nearer to home, well Croydon, and Signal Brewery (website), and 2 of their beers. The 4.9% The Pale is an American style APA, using Cascade and Chinook hops, a golden beer with plenty of body and a big fruity aroma and tropical and citrus fruit in the taste; they describe the flavour as 'grapefruit & pomegranate.' Another that is not too bitter and with a dry finish. The second from this brewery was, also 4.9%, The IPA, cannot find out the hops used, could be similar, but an unfined beer, so hazy, very pale with a BIG fruity aroma too, and plenty of fruity taste, they suggest 'citrus & mango' and I shan't argue. Very good!

The fifth beer was again from New Zealand, but a different brewery, 8 Wired (website) Yes, Sensei, a 5.5% APA, described as a 'punchy little hophead.' A little bit darker than the other beers, nearer to a pale amber, and with plenty of body, I got peach in the flavour, guessing hops from the USA, with a dry bitter finish. The proprietor of Artisan & Vine comes from New Zealand, so may be a bit prejudiced, but he suggested this was his favorite, and it is very good, but so they all are. I may just agree with him, but enjoyed drinking the lot, every one a winner!

And to the sad loss of The Bricklayer's Arms to Putney, closed down during the lockdown. This has been the London CAMRA Pub of the Year many times in the past, but had been running down in recent years, and the beer garden has been built over with flats, consequently the regular beer festivals stopped. I suppose the writing was already on the wall when I wrote my blog (older blogspot) 4 years ago, when the council basically put a protection order on it, and many other pubs in Wandsworth, who knows?

But a shame, it has been a great place to drink ale, was the best in Putney for years...

Hoppy International Beer Day 2020!

Today is the day to celebrate International Beer Day, (Days of the Year) not to be confused with Beer Day Britain (blog), as this day's celebration (today's) originated in Santa Cruz, California. So, wherever you live, pick up a glass and raise it to International Beer Day 2020, and to thank and celebrate everyone who makes drinking fine beers possible, cheers!

My Second Pub Visited Post-Lockdown

A confident message from the publican, Louisa, and amusing too, the story is based on the events of Sunday the 23rd of May 1943, when a bombing and 'strafing' raid was made on Hastings during World War II, with one pub, the Swan Inn in the High Street in the Old Town, receiving a direct hit. The Swan Inn has a long history, indeed the Duke of Wellington was honoured with a dinner and dance there soon after he returned home from Ireland with his new wife, Kitty Packenham, in 1806 (blog). A memorial garden is now on the site, opposite St Clements Church. You'll have guessed by now that wasn't the pub I was in for a few pints...

No, I was at The Tower, 251 London Road, on the corner with Tower Road, in Bohemia, Hastings & St Leonards TN34 6NB, I've been there twice, actually, since my last blog. So, during that air raid back in 1943 an interesting wee story evolved when a 1,000 lbs bomb hit the road outside The Tower, which had its cellar doors open for a delivery, and it bounced along and dropped into the cellar of the pub, I kid you not, and it did not explode! I am certainly grateful for that, because The Tower is one of my favourite local watering holes, thankfully the building is still standing.

The Tower

The sapper who diffused the bomb that day rendering it harmless, and who returned the next day to remove it, was a gentleman from Coventry called Patrick Kavanagh. A photographer from the Hastings Observer recorded the removal of the bomb from the cellar, but the image was never published in the newspaper because of wartime restrictions. Coincidentally, Patrick's daughter moved to Hastings, just round the corner from The Tower in Springfield Road, and when visiting her in 1990 he strolled to the local pub for a drink. Not realizing he was in the same pub he was reminiscing with locals about his wartime experience and was told to have a look at a photograph on the wall, which was the photograph taken 47 years earlier, and the photograph is still on the wall now! I have found an interesting account written by his son 9 years ago (website).

So, drinks at The Tower, excellently served by Lou, and the pub that couldn't be closed by the Luftwaffe, even after they bombed the building, has been reopened with suitable restrictions taking into account Government Covid-19 Guidelines, following Johnson closing the pub!

The photograph immediately above is from my second visit, an interesting variety of styles, but the first ale I shall describe was the very good 'best bitter' I drank on my previous visit, from the Sussex brewer, Gun Brewery (website), their 4.4% Chummy Bluster, brewed with 7 malts and 3 different English hops. It is described as 'Vegan Friendly' being unfined, and gluten free, so drinkable for all! And it did what it said on the label, my notes say: "traditional coloured, plenty of body and flavour, like a good Best Bitter" which says it all!

I started with a guest session bitter for my second visit, from the Kent brewer, Northdown Brewery (website) Pale Ale Mary (4.0%), brewed with Northdown, Brewers Gold and Bobek hops, pale, but not as fruity and flowery as many contemporary pale ales. Indeed, quite subtle flavours with a nice dry bitter finish, a very decent session bitter. I've drunk and written about the 'classic' Dark Star Hophead (3.8%) many times, and I didn't drink it on this visit, as 'researching' and someone has to do the job! But I did try the very different beer from Cumbrian brewer Fell Brewery (website), their Cask O'Joe, a 4.6% 'Coffee Milk Stout.' Very smooth, rich and creamy, not too much coffee in the taste and with a hint of chocolate, a bit too sweet for me really, although it did have a slightly dry bitter finish, but I did drink a pint with no bother!

My last pint was another from Gun Brewery, a 6.5% Vegan IPA with a big citrus and tropical fruit aroma and taste, presumably hops from the USA used, as this is an APA style. It's advertised as being 'hazy' because 'Vegan' but hardly hazy at all, with proteins in the brew obviously dropping naturally. My favourite ale of the lot, hic... cheers to Lou, and to you the reader!

A Pint in a Pub, GORGEOUS TOO!

A wonderful pint from Kent Brewery (website), and I'm not apologizing for drinking from an Oakham glass because it's a nicely balanced glass to drink from and no Kent glasses available here. Anyway, their gorgeous (and I wrote that in my notes) 4.8% version of an APA, Prohibition, quality! I have written about this ale many times, not as much as I've happily drunk it though, a finalist in the 2019 CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain contest, and up there with the goodies, Oakham and Fyne ales, and many Yorkshire brewer's pale dry hoppy bitters too. 

I have had it since lockdown and the Coronavirus Crisis began, notably thanks to the life preserving delivery service of The Jolly Fisherman (website) a couple of weeks ago, but that fresh from the cask ale was wonderful. Okay, I'll have said it many times, Prohibition is a very pale golden bitter, straw coloured even, with a big citrus/tropical fruit aroma and taste, particularly grapefruit flavour. A good strength and body ensures you know you have had a drink, and it finishes with what I always rave about, a dry bitter aftertaste, I'll say it again, GORGEOUS!

And, knowing I can't travel far these days because of travelling restrictions brought in by the Government thanks to the Coronavirus Crisis, my drinking has to be in Hastings, or within walking distance of Hastings. So where did I have my first post-lockdown ale in a pub? The Dolphin Inn (website) at 11-12 Rock a Nore Road TN34 3DW, reopened on Monday, and it was great to meet up with people I'd not seen for a while, appropriate social distancing of course, and table service! As you can see from the interior photograph above, they have redecorated and re-planned the inside to a warm hospitable environment, not that it hasn't always been so.

Everything has been reorganized so that only one person can use each toilet at a time, during busy periods there will be someone on the door to ensure the numbers of customers in the pub are restricted at any one time, and services at the tables inside, though customers sitting outside can come to a set point for their drinks, and there is an off sales provision too. 

In the short-term there will be just the 4 ales on at any one time, including their 3 regulars still, Dark Star Hophead, Young's Special and Harvey's Sussex Best. This week the guest ales at the 4th pump will be from Kent Brewery (website), and as I said, they started off with Prohibition, of which they had 2 firkins, hurry if you want to drink Prohibition, as it is going quickly, but if you do miss it, it will be replaced by another excellent ale from that brewery, so no real concern. Oh yes, and they have a new chef, Tim, dishing up some very interesting looking food (website), specials on the menus are to be introduced as reopening lengthens, and a Japanese Evening is planned to be held soon, salivating at the thought. 😋

Whatever, wherever, remember to be careful fellow ale drinking folks, cheers!

Covid-19, Government Guidance & Pubs Reopening!

This is a slightly edited blog I wrote elsewhere, for Hastings, seeing as I can't get around the country like I used to! However, it should be pertinent wherever you live in England.

Happier Times, CHEERS!

It seems like we get new 'guidance' regularly (law, basically!) regarding Covid-19 and the Coronavirus Crisis from Her Majesty's Government, well, I'm sure you must be aware that newer guidance will be in force from the 4th of July, but hardly 'independence day' (website). So what major changes will there be from tomorrow? 

Your household will now be able to meet up with one other household, indoors or outdoors, however, you need to continue with social distancing from people not in your household or bubble (a group larger than 30 can be broken up by the Police!), and it continues that you may meet up outdoors as long as you maintain social distancing in a group of 6 maximum, from up to 6 different households.

Social Distancing will remain at TWO METRES or ONE METRE PLUS (website), that is "plus mitigations" which will depend on the setting. "For example, on public transport, people must wear a face covering... In other spaces mitigations could include installing screens, making sure people face away from each other, putting up handwashing facilities, minimising the amount of time you spend with people outside your household or bubble, and being outdoors."

All this is pretty much passing responsibility on to others, quite frankly, because, as we all know, the economic cost of the Coronavirus Crisis has been quite high to the Government, and they appear to want to get out of paying to support businesses, particularly in the Hospitality Sector, as early as possible, but not necessarily at the most sensible speed health-wise. So, guidance has been written up for Restaurants, pubs, bars and takeaway services (website) to 'support' pubs, restaurants and bars to reopen, and visiting such places ain't gonna be what we're used to!

I am not going to say 'yay' or 'nay' to whether people should visit pubs, bars and restaurants, that is our personal choice, bearing in mind the restrictions within the guidance offered by Government, how this is interpreted by local authorities and the Police and Courts, and not to forget, how the publicans, restaurateurs and managers interpret and implement guidance. It's a pig's ear frankly!

I have been asking around, and it looks like less than 50% of establishments in Hastings & St Leonards will reopen on the 4th, with many planning to open on Monday the 6th, quite a few later bearing in mind work being carried out in the meantime, some much later. I have added a photograph (above) of The Tower pub in London Road, which will be reopening tomorrow morning (it has been making off-sales during lockdown - blog) with details of changes to how it will appear, should you visit the pub.

The landlady has advised me that they are continuing today with the off-sales, as per my earlier blog, and will be open at their usual hours from the 4th of July, 11.00 am to 11.00 pm I believe. There will be table service only, no standing at the bar, so all customers will be seated, and no reservations in advance. I think this is pretty much the way it will be everywhere, except those with outside gardens/patios may have a few differences. Hygiene will be maximized and hand washing facilities and the use of sanitizing gel will no doubt be increased everywhere. Best wishes to Louisa and others! 

I can't provide details of who is opening, or when, throughout Hastings, but certainly in the 'old town' it appears that more pubs and bars will be closed than those open over this weekend. I presume similar will be happening throughout England!

Anyway, enjoy your weekend, wherever you go, and do be careful folks!

Pubs to Revisit in England Part I - The South West

Moving on from the previous 2 blogs, things are looking up regarding a vaccine (BBC), so I thought let's talk about great pubs, well worth reading to cheer us up!

This is my second attempt at this blog, it shouldn't be too hard to remember as I only just deleted 90% of the first relevant blog in error! Ggrrr... 😡

Anyway, I'm going to talk about, with a few anecdotes, 16 public houses I have visited before and loved, and want to return to. I shall write 4 blogs with 4 pubs in each, starting in the South West, an area where I have lived in the past (Cornwall and Devon), second blog will look at the North West plus Newcastle, third, the East Midlands, then the West Midlands down to London... 

Here I go, again, hopefully as entertaining as the original! 😉

The Royal Oak Inn, Lostwithiel

OK, calmer now... The Royal Oak Inn, 5 Duke Street, Lostwithiel, Cornwall PL22 0AG (website) was my local when I lived in the town whilst working in Bodmin. This is a lovely old building that had been a school before it was turned into a pub in the 19th century, and serves up excellent ales and food, indeed, it is in the 2020 CAMRA Good Beer Guide (GBG). I remember the first time I ever drank Phoenix Brewery (website) Wobbly Bob, it was down here in Cornwall surprisingly, and a very easy to drink 'traditional' bitter, though at a rather strong 6.0%! 

I have a few stories to tell about my time here, around 30 years ago, but I'll mention just 2. Whilst living in Cornwall heavy storms had brought down many electricity pylons, and a team from Ireland came over to help repairs, coincidentally they stayed at the Royal Oak, and we became friendly, so much so that I was regularly included in their 'expenses' bill, great to have Wobbly Bob and other excellent ales paid for by my electricity bill, and they were great company too, certainly we all enjoyed the craic, memories, cheers lads!

The other anecdote was at the end of a group of night shifts for me; people who know me well will also know I can't sleep during the daytime, indeed, I am an 'early bird' awake as soon as it's light outside. So, I had just worked 3 night shifts, if I was lucky I may have slept at most 10 hours since I started nights, consequently, I had a plan. Make sure my dinner was ready to re-heat (homemade curry), as this was just before all-day opening, I'd drink a few pints at lunchtime, then go home to my wee Two-up Two-down 300 year old cottage (cute wee place with walls a couple of foot deep!), eat my dinner, then pull out the bed-settee and fall asleep watching television.

It didn't work out quite that way, I got on pretty well with the landlord and landlady, and their daughter and her husband/partner*, as well as quite a few locals and, to cut the story short, about a dozen of us 'locals' though none of us were born in Cornwall, including the lad behind the bar* were 'locked in' after 14.00 hours (much nicer than lockdown). No doubt I was quite 'merry' as well as being tired, and when I eventually got home I successfully managed the reheating of dinner, no problem, I sat down on the settee with my food in a dish on a tray... I woke up hours later with the food scattered at my feet. I never told anyone at the pub though, or did I?!? 😏

The Dolphin Hotel, Plymouth

Time to cross the border into Devon/England methinks (many Cornish folk look on England as a foreign country, true, some have never visited England!), and just across The Tamar is Plymouth and The Dolphin Hotel down at 14 The Barbican, PL1 2LS (facebook page). The Dolphin is another GBG listed pub that was built over 200 years ago and is famous for selling the best draught Bass (now brewed by Marston's I believe) you will ever drink, and for the (then) local artist Beryl Cook's patronage, who was a regular customer, and sketched whilst drinking in the pub. A fine example of her paintings is Hen Night which depicts a group of women 'bustling' their way into the Dolphin, but many of her paintings were set inside the Dolphin and other pubs. Indeed, the walls of the Dolphin are adorned with copies of many of Cook's infamous prints.

And, maybe you are not fond of draught Bass, which I describe as the 'best you will ever drink,' well, maybe I exaggerate, but not much, I would certainly stand by the statement that you are unlikely to ever drink a better pint of Bass! There are a number of cask conditioned ales sold in the pub but when I first entered the Dolphin, I think it was in the 1980s, but may have been earlier, I remember seeing this line of kilderkins (18 gallon casks) of Bass lined up at the back of the bar, very impressive, and I do like to drink real ale gravity fed, nothing but the best!

The Dolphin is in the heart of the Plymouth fishing quarter at The Barbican, Plymouth's old fishing port, though the old fish market has been relocated across the quay, but nearby Cap'n Jaspers resides (website), where to go to fill your stomach after drinking copious amounts of ale! Cap'n Jaspers sells the best valued food in Plymouth, I first visited many years ago when it was in a hand-built hut, and you queued up at the serving hatch, but now it is in larger more permanent premises, but still selling huge portions at decent prices.

My last visits to this Dolphin pub were before and after visiting Home Park as away supporters, geed up before the match, less happy after the match, but still enjoyed the ale, cheers!

Pater Tavy Inn

Next, if you drive north from Plymouth on the A386, through another of my old stomping grounds Tavistock, and continue on a couple of miles more to the turn-off for Peter Tavy on your right (Dartmoor side), and you will reach the Peter Tavy Inn, PL19 9NN (website), easy to find really as it's at the end of the track, and close to the church, which is typical of small village pubs. This 15th century pub, on the edge of the Moor, has been in the GBG for years too, and sells only West Country brewed ales, usually 4 or 5, including regular ales from Dartmoor Brewery (website), Roam Brewing (website) and Branscombe Vale Brewery (facebook).

As with the Dolphin above, I am not positive when I first visited the Peter Tavy Inn, it may have been in the late 1970s or early 1980s when I made regular visits to Devonian friends, Steve and Jude, who I met in 1978 when on holiday in Austria with my girlfriend at that time, indeed, Steve and Jude are quite significant in my moving to the West Country in 1985! Or my first visit may have been 1985-ish. 😉 Whatever, I have driven there many times over the years, indeed, walked regularly there when I lived in Tavistock in the 1990s, a wonderful pub to visit it is.

Back in the 1990s, under different stewardship, it was not quite so dedicated to West Country beers as it is now, and I drank my first ever pint of Tetley's Bitter, another ale brewed by Marston's now too, there's a pattern emerging of this ever growing brewing company... That's maybe for another day, but Tetley's yes... Kind of strange that my first taste of this ale was in Cornwall, noting my subsequent removal to Yorkshire, but also my first experience of a swan neck and tight sparkler, used to ensure a big frothy head on the beer, much loved by Yorkshire folk (though not by all, I can assure you, nor by me!). Anyway, I do want to return to Peter Tavy. 

The Bridge Inn, Topsham

Moving eastwards across Devon, indeed, we could cross over Dartmoor from Tavistock to Exeter (a beautiful drive!), and then on to nearby Topsham. However, my many trips to The Bridge Inn, Bridge Hill, Topsham EX3 0QQ (website) have been by car, mostly by train from Exeter, and once by bus number 57 from Exeter (but no loo on the bus!). Although the village is on the River Exe, The Bridge Inn is on the River Clyst, a tributary to the Exe, and not far from the estuary. I admit I've never seen the pub in the snow, but I borrowed the photograph above from their facebook page because it's a beautiful image, many thanks!

My first trip to The Bridge Inn was in 1985, I believe (maybe before, but I don't think so), when I went in the old days of different opening hours in the countryside, with similar hours to Exeter in the summer (Summer Opening), but closing earlier from the end of the summer holidays. Anyway, fewer evening hours when I went with my girlfriend of the time, and future ex-wife Julie, presumably she knew about the pub and encouraged us to go. Anyway, a bit of a first when I visited, something I'd never seen before, mostly because my earlier drinking had not been in free houses, a BEER MENU, how excited I was, written up on a board, I can't remember how many ales they sold, but somewhere between 8 and 10! The other lovely thing was, they had to go down to the cellar to pour the ales straight from the cask into the glass and bring them back up to the customer, and I've always been dead impressed with ales delivered by gravity ever since, cheers to the Gibbings/Cheffers/Bridge!

Why do I mention those names? Well, this 16th century pub has been in the ownership of the same family since 1897, and what a great job they've done to keep it still such a homely place to visit. We were there midweek, and it was very quiet, with only us 2 and a couple of farmers in the room, and I seem to remember a roaring fire. Although we weren't listening to the other 2 customers, we were in the getting to know you phase of our relationship, we couldn't understand them anyway, they were speaking that fast and with a thick Devonian country accent, and I'd only been living in Devon for a few months. 😃

As you can see from the photograph, the pub isn't that small actually, and when I was living in Exeter, they used to open up a much larger bar in the summer/when more customers were there, and they served ales from handpumps in that bar. My brother, Dan, came down and stayed with us once (more than once actually) when he was attending a friend's wedding in Topsham. We drove him to The Bridge Inn to meet up with other friends of his who were also attending the wedding, and he was dead impressed with the pub too; very likely we went there together again at a later date. However, what I'm getting at is that it is a wonderful old pub selling excellent ales, usually 10 different ales from local brewers, and from afar, and I do want to return very soon.

Cheers to Devon and Cornwall, and to my coming 3 reminiscing blogs!

Covid-19 Guidance for Publicans Update!

OK, this is now online (website), advice for employers, ie publicans, it starts off with Health & Safety, making assessments, including staff in assessment, making a Risk Assessment. Workers and Customers who are unwell should go home/stay at home, wash hands and clean surfaces more frequently, using screens or barriers. 

Regarding customers, the publican should keep a list of customers for 21 days (!) in case NHS Test & Trace get in touch, as I suggested before, may get a few 'Micky Mouses'; indoors, people together should come from just 2 households including support bubbles; outdoors, there should be similar or groups of at most 6 people from different households, noting it is "against the law to gather in groups of more than 30 people" 

Steps recommended for publicans include reconfiguring tables and chairs to maintain social distancing; working with others in case there are queues (!); Managing queues and entry, this implies door security; Providing clear guidance on hygiene and social distancing; Encouraging customers to clean their hands with sanitizer; etc etc...

There is further advice about hygiene if selling food. 

OK, cutting & pasting the next bit, looks similar to what I was suggesting in my last blog, why am I not surprised? 

1. Encouraging use of contactless ordering from tables where available. For example, through an ordering app.
2. Adjusting service approaches to minimise staff contact with customers. Indoor table service must be used where possible, alongside further measures such as assigning a single staff member per table. Outdoor table service should also be encouraged, although customers are permitted to stand outside if distanced appropriately. Where bar or counter service is unavoidable, preventing customers from remaining at the bar or counter after ordering.
3. Adjusting processes to prevent customers from congregating at points of service. For example, having only staff collect and return empty glasses to the bar.
4. Minimising contact between kitchen workers and front of house workers. For example, by having zones from which front of house staff can collect food.
5. Encouraging use of outdoor areas for service where possible. For example, increasing outdoor seating or outdoor points of service such as stalls.

It goes on to deal with keeping toilets cleaned regularly, hand sanitizer available for all, then on to staff issues, above is pretty much what us customers are interested in.

We are heading for interesting times, and not a few pub closures I fear.