The Blue Anchor Inn and Spingo Ales!

I've even lived in Cornwall, so I am ashamed to admit that I never visited The Blue Anchor Inn, 50 Coinagehall Street, Helston, Cornwall TR13 8EL, with it's own brewery and Spingo Ales (website). Beginning its life as a resting place for monks at the beginning of the 15th century, or earlier, this Grade II Listed granite building with a thatched roof, the photograph above is borrowed from their website, many thanks, gradually became a tavern during that century, brewing its own ales. The brewery now used was built just behind the pub in the 18th century, and the Spingo ales they brew are brewed with water drawn from their own well.

So how did I come upon these 3 bottles? With thanks to friends who drink in my local actually, cheers to Brian and Sheila! 👍 I shall start off, as I did when drinking them, with the weakest of the 3, the Spingo Middle Ale (5.0%), and I shall use their description as, for all 3 of them the descriptions are close to how I would describe them, then I shall add my tuppence worth. From them: "Smooth, Reddish Malty & Lightly Hopped." 

My notes, and the photograph above, suggest a deep red colour. You will notice that all 3 of these beers are darker beers and, although I'm a bit of a pale dry bitter hophead, I can enjoy a good beer whatever the style, and I liked these. Certainly lightly hopped, I tasted dark fruits, slightly sweet to begin with, but with a dry slightly bitter finish and 'tasty' say my notes!

Next was the Spingo Special Ale (6.6%) "Smooth Strong Refined, Dark Reddish & Well Hopped." I noted it was a very dark reddish colour, with a reddish brown head, big body and certainly noticed the hops in this one. The aroma reminded me of a dark fruit cake at Christmas, without the almonds, but the flavour included dark plum and damson, with a hint of cherry, quite rich and a nice dry bitter finish, luxurious and pretty damn good!

Finally the Spingo Extra Special (7.4%) "Smooth Strong Refined, Dark Ruby With Rich Fruit Cake Flavours." Just how dark can you go with a deep dark Ruby Red?!? It had a more brown head though, and there was me waffling about Dark Fruitcake, and they've said it themselves for this one. Well, yes, strong with plenty of body, and I got the big rich dark fruits again in the aroma and taste. Basically, it's the Special with bells on, indeed you know you've had a beer! Again, a wee bit sweet and fruity with a nice dry bitter finish, oh dear it's all gone, cheers! 

I do need to revisit Cornwall, 'tis on my bucket list. 😁

International Orval Day

Abbaye Notre-Dame d'Orval

The 23rd of March 2025 was this year's International Orval Day. Why have an Orval day? Well, as often is the case, strangely for a specific Belgian beer though, the celebratory day originated in the USA in 2015 with the US importer of Orval, Merchant du Vin, holding an Orval promotion in a store in Ohio, calling  it "Orval Day." Because of the success of the promotion, the importer organised a national Orval Day the following year, which has developed into an International Orval Day since, held in March very year (hopculture).

The Abbey at Orval is a relatively new abbey, rebuilt by 1948 by the sites of earlier abbeys, the remains of the previous abbey which was burnt down by French revolutionary troops in the late 18th century, remain adjacent. The name Orval comes from a legend that Countess Matilde of Tuscany lost her wedding ring when it fell into a well, she prayed, and it was returned to her by a trout with the ring in its mouth, she proclaimed, "Truly this is a Val d'Or!" - Valley of Gold, and she established a monastery there in gratitude. The photograph above is from the VisitArdenne website, to which I extend my thanks, oh yes, and the Ardennes is going to feature a wee bit in another blog I have planned to share very soon. 😉

So, yesterday I visited the The Jolly Fisherman in Hastings (blog), because I happened to know that Oliver there sells Orval, consequently logical to me. 😁 Orval is a trappist ale brewed in the Brasserie d'Orval at the Abbaye Notre-Dame d'Orval, the brewery was founded in 1931 during the rebuilding of the abbey. Lay persons carry out the work in the abbey's brewery; the abbey also being known for it's cheese, the production of which I believe monks carry out.

Orval is a 6.2% ale, ostensibly, as there are more than one fermentation processes in it's development, including being bottle conditioned, so no bottled beer is exactly the same! And unique among Belgian beers, it is dry-hopped, thanks to the early influence of a brewer who had worked in England. Indeed, the hops used are Kent Styrian Golding (hopslist) and German Hallertau-Hersbruck (hopslist); I believe their first head brewer was German.

The colour is more golden than my photograph above shows, but with an orange hue, I think including some of the yeast at the bottom of the bottle was influential in the image, so a wee bit cloudy. The beer is dry and slightly tart with a bitter finish, and has a subtle spicy/fruity aroma. My taste has changed since I first drank Orval when I used to visit my brother in Brussels 20-30 years ago, and at the time this was my immediate panic buy when I entered a bar, always with numerous beers on it's beer menu. I did go off it a bit after tasting Westmalle Tripel, for example, but drinking it again, I really enjoyed it, cheers to Orval Day! 😁

Looking back at Ashley Routson's book (blog), she states that Orval is "arguably the best beer on the planet." I may argue with that myself, but she's right that it's pretty damn good, cheers!

St Patrick's Day/March Whiskey of the Month!

Appropriate for March, and Paddy's Night on the 17th of March, I bought a bottle of Drumshanbo, a 43.0% Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey from the Shed Distillery in County Leitrim (website). As usual for Irish whiskey this was triple distilled, the Drumshanbo being distilled from malted and un-malted Irish Barley, and a small amount of Irish Barra Oats to add creaminess, then aged in only once used Kentucky Bourbon and Oloroso Sherry casks.

As you'd expect, a deep golden colour, with a big butterscotch flavour, cinnamon and black pepper spiciness, vanilla, Christmas Cake dried fruit, and toffee aroma. To taste, I still got the big butterscotch flavour with hints of creamy vanilla and sherry fruitiness, finishing off with a quite smooth, refreshing and gentle, and warm dryness, very nice, slainte! 👍💚

Oh yes, and it comes in a very strong cardboard presentation box with luxurious golden interior, a wee bit challenging to break down for the recycling sack, Hoppy St Patrick's Day! 😁

5 Pubs Visited in London, 1 New to Me!

You'll realise by the gradually darkening photographs this visit was late afternoon/early evening, except for the last pub. First stop, The Albert, 52 Victoria Street SW1H 0NP (website), once a Taylor-Walker house, now Greene King. The pub is a Grade II listed building, built 1845-52, just over the other side of Victoria Street from the notorious Devil's Acre (Londonist), and originally called 'The Blue Coat Boy' until Artillery Brewery took it over, rebuilt it and named it The Albert in 1867 in honour of Queen Victoria's consort, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, following his death in 1861. Now I have to own up to not taking note of the beers we drank, obviously not great or I'd have taken notes, but I hadn't been in the pub for years, probably not this millennium, and it's a lovely old building that avoided bomb destruction luckily during World War 2!👌

These first 3 pubs are all close to St James's Park tube station, near where I worked many years ago, near the old Westminster Hospital, on the edge of the Devil's Acre! I only learnt about the Devil's Acre many years later when referenced in a novel, but I have investigated since. Next was a Nicholson's pub The Feathers, 18-20 Broadway SW1H 0BH (website), the pub being in existence since at least 1745, and rebuilt in 'the Flemish style' towards the end of the 19th century. This was the pub that I had never visited before, so new to me, and a it is a very fine building, both the exterior and interior, so I wasn't disappointed, nor by the ale...

I did drink an ale I haven't had for a while now, from Midlands brewery Purity Brewing Co (website), and their 4.2% Mad Goose Pale Ale, brewed with Pilgrim, Centennial, Chinook and Cascade hops, quintessential hops for an APA style beer! As you would expect, it's pale golden in colour, and look at those hops (!), it has a hint of citrus in the aroma, but much more citrus to the taste, with a nice clean, dry bitter finish, nice one! 👍

Then, literally around the corner and along a bit, another pub I haven't visited for years, still a Young's house, the Buckingham Arms, 62 Petty France SW1H 9EU (website). Originally licenced as the Black Horse in the 18th century, and also rebuilt towards the end of the 19th century and re-named the Buckingham in honour of the Duke of Buckingham in 1901. The pub used to have a second entrance which meant you could walk through the pub from end to end (confirmed by bar steward, so not a false memory), with a narrow bar to your side; the second entrance/exit was removed, presumably along with the interior refurbishment in 2009.

The usual 2 Young's ales were available, the Special and Ordinary, plus 4 guest ales, including 2 from Twickenham Brewery (website) including their very often sold in Young's houses, the 4.4% Naked Ladies, named after statues in York House Gardens in Twickenham. So I drank a pint of this hoppy, pale golden bitter, brewed with Herkules, Celeia and Chinook hops, it has a subtle citrus aroma, a slightly malty taste at the start, and with some citrus flavours coming through as the ale goes down, and a lovely refreshing dry bitter finish, another nice one! 👍

Then we jumped on a District Line train from St James's Park to Hammersmith and visited another Nicholson's pub, The Swan, 46 Hammersmith Broadway W6 0DZ (website). The Swan was re-built by the architect Frederick MIller in 'the Free Jacobean' style as a hotel in 1901 on the site of an old coaching inn, the 'Old Swan', the first and last stop to the west of London. It has an imposing exterior and breath taking interior, and is a Grade II listed building.

As usual for a Nicholson's pub there are half a dozen or so ales on offer, and we went for one from the East Anglian brewery Adnams (website), that was their Ghost Ship (4.5%). This is a pale sharp refreshing ale, brewed with Citra hops, consequently, as you would expect, it has a subtle citrus flavour and a nice refreshing dry bitter finish, and in my opinion Adnams best ale. 👍

I more recently visited (Saturday) The Victoria, 10a Strathearn Place, W2 2NH (website). This is a fine Grade II listed Fuller's pub (Fuller's website) built in the 1830s, named after Queen Victoria as it was opened on the same day as her accession to the throne, and she visited the pub after the opening of the rebuilt nearby Paddington Railway Station in 1854. Slight damage during World War 2, it has a grand exterior and wonderful interior, well worth visiting if nearby.

I didn't take a photograph, so this image is from Fuller's own website, but I did drink, and a few pints of only this, believe it or not, their 3.8% Oliver's Island. Brewed with Goldings, Hallertau Tradition, and Liberty hops, this is a pale golden session bitter, with gentle grapefruit and tropical fruit flavours, and a refreshing dry bitter finish, not bad Fuller's!

And we had something to eat here, sharing their "Hummus & spiced lamb to share with pine nuts, corianders & pomegranate, served with grilled flatbread" and it was pretty tasty, if the 'hummus' a wee bit thin, and they could have provided a few more flatbread pieces. 😉

Cheers folks! 👍