January Pale Bitters

Since the New Year I've had 6 very good pale bitters, 2 newer favourites, 2 older favourites, and 2 completely new (to me) excellent ales! First 'newer favourite' is Cowcatcher (4.8%) from the East London Brewing Company (ELB, website), an "American Pale Ale" (APA) that I continue to call "gorgeous!" I do like it... With a big fruity aroma and citrus fruits and passion fruit in the taste and a dry bitter finish, just as I like my ales... The second 'newer favourite' is another APA, Prohibition (also 4.8%) from Kent Brewery (website), and also a pale golden bitter, with plenty of citrus aroma and taste, another excellent bitter, indeed, both surpass the 'older favourites!"

The two 'older favourites' include Naked Ladies (4.4%) from Twickenham Fine Ales (website), named after statues in York House gardens, Twickenham, another pale bitter with less obvious citrus fruit in the taste provided by Herkules, Celeia and Chinook hops. Indeed, this is more like a straightforward pale bitter than the fruit extravaganzas of the earlier two APAs mentioned. The second is Jeffrey Hudson Bitter (JHB , 3.8%) from Oakham Ales (website), with Challenger and Mount Hood hops offering a light refreshing pale bitter with a more subtle fruit to the taste and a dry finish. OK, these come behind the 'newer favourites' probably because of the strengths, and also because, well, I do love the bigger citrus aromas and flavours!

To the newbies, for me that is... First Eye-Opener (4.5%) from Stonehenge Ales (website), a pale golden bitter with a BIG citrus orange fruit aroma, no hints from the brewers of the hops used, but I'm making an informed guess they're from the USA. Also, citrus in the flavour with a dry bitter finish, I've noted "refreshing and gorgeous" so there you have it, gorgeous!

My second newbie, and last reviewed for today, is Some Might Say (get it? Song title! Oh yes, and 4.4%) from the Manchester Brewing Company (website), subtitled a Session IPA. Plenty of Simcoe hops from the USA used here, consequently plenty of aroma and flavour, with a BIG fruity aroma of peach and exotic fruits and similar in the taste, pale golden colour with a dry bitter finish. Some might say it was pretty gorgeous too, in fact I shall say it, gorgeous, lucky me!

I'll soon be publishing a guest blog from the Isle of Wight, can't wait, cheers!

Visit to West/South West London

So what were we doing drinking in a Wetherspoons pub? Well, historically, as in the last few years, I've considered the Bricklayers to be my pub of choice in Putney, sadly, they've gradually descended into the abyss, it's freezing out of the summer season, I've been there and they've had no beers at all, recently very few ales available, and on our last visit we were served up a very poor pint from the usually reliable Twickenham Ales, and at £4.40 a pint... I've given up! So, to The Rocket, Putney Wharf Tower, Brewhouse Lane, Putney SW15 2JQ (website), it has a great view of the bridge and down the river (Thames), and is next door but one to St Mary's Church (website), who's 15th century tower is visible, and the church where the Putney Debates were held by the Parliamentarian forces during the English Civil War, proper historic!

Also, as I'm a member of CAMRA I get another 50p off a pint of real ale there with a voucher, and during my recent visit, that was off an already low £2.29 a pint, so just £1.79 each for a few very different decent ales, instead of £4.40 a pint plus for poorly conditioned/dead ale, no competition, and there's not much else in Putney for real ale these days either! My brother Dan, really liked the 4.9% Romsey brewery Flack Manor (website) Hedge  Hop, a traditionally copper coloured bitter, slightly sweet biscuit flavour, with hints of fruit and spice the result of the use of Cascade, Pilot and Challenger hops, not bad and Dan kept returning to it...

But I prefered, from the much more local Wandsworth brewer, Sambrook's (website) Powerhouse Porter (also 4.9%). I have to admit I wasn't too impressed with Sambrook's in their early days, but their ales seem to get better every time I try them, and this one is a gorgeous example of a Porter! Brewed using a variety of malts, and producing a smooth deep dark red ale with plenty of body, and a hint of chocolate in the taste, very nice, cheers!

The next day we walked a circuitous 18 mile route to Richmond and back, via Wimbledon Common, Richmond Park, and the Thames footpath (mostly Middlesex side). In Richmond we visited The Victoria Inn, 78 Hill Rise TW10 6UB, our new 'favourite' pub there, with excellent service from the Cornish 'maid' (oops! My history of living in Devon and Cornwall coming out there, sorry, all women down there are called 'maid' and all men are called 'boy', so 'young boy' or 'old boy' etc!). Anyway, here we both drank the Suffolk brewer Adnams (website) Ghost Ship (4.5%), more expensive, oh well, you can't be paying £1.79 a pint everywhere, sadly... This is a pale sharp refreshing ale, with a slight citrus flavour from the Citra hops used (and other unspecified hops from the USA) and a dry bitter finish, their best ale, I believe.

When we got back to Putney we dropped down in strength at The Rocket, but what a great brewery to find an ale from, Oakham of Peterborough (website), and again at £1.79 for CAMRA members, still great value at £2.29 though for others! Jeffrey Hudson Bitter (JHB, 3.8%) is a wonderful pale golden ale, with citrus in the aroma and flavour provided by the Challenger and Mount Hood hops used, quite sharp and refreshing, with a dry bitter finish and, indeed, one of the best session ales brewed!

I usually prefer to drink at smaller local ale houses, but the manager/cellar manager appears to be keeping their ales in very good condition, and, although quite a busy pub, The Rocket has an appropriate number of staff working to keep the drinks flowing and the till ticking, cheers!