Author: wilco

Beer

Worlds largest house made from Beer Mats – No shed?

Post author By wilco
Post date April 14, 2010

Sven Goebel from Germany has fulfilled a dream by winning a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for building the world’s largest house built from beer mats.

Goebel took three months to build the house, painstakingly stacking over 250,000 beer mats against each other to create a house with tables and chairs inside also constructed from beer mats. Yesterday the final part of his record breaking feat was to demolish the house so Guinness officials could see for themselves that no glue or other adhesive was used in the construction of the house.

from the morningstarr

Tags beer mats

Beer

Wetherspoon beer festival – Coconut, Springer & Gentle Jane

Post author By wilco
Post date April 12, 2010

A good selection this week well from last Saturday night an unexpected oasis in lager land the Lloyd’s number one bar the crockerton on greyfriers road Cardiff two of the guest ales for the festival.

The very Moorish val-dieu abbaye blonde 5.5% guest brewed for the festival at everards.

And the exotic Maui coconut Porter 5% brewed not in its native Hawaii but the Banks brewery in West midlands. Have heard of coals 2 Newcastle but sun tan lotion to the black country did not quite work, but maybe that’s more about the pub than the beer.

Today a festival third the surprising but strong Greene king Suffolk Springer not had it in its normal bottled state but a nice strong dark bitter.

2nd a new brew from a trusted friend Hook Norton & their Early Mist a pale best bitter very drinkable at 4.3 but may need 2 revisit to get a better taste.

Finally one of my favourite breweries Sharps & another one brewed just for Tim; ) Gentle Jane a deceptive 4.8% but with Belgium yeast that suits this brew down to the ground a great pint that after the stronger Springer still gives a great taste & one that the Cornish brewery should do again.

Tags Ale, Beer

Beer

J D Wetherspoon April Beer festival- a slow start but promising

Post author By wilco
Post date April 7, 2010

I managed to have a half today and mrsunclewilco joined me and had something else.

Unfortunately we were going for lunch (last of the big spenders) at one of the local ‘spoons in Cardiff – but did not have lunch as we were told there was a 45- 50 minute wait for food this was at 1.30pm… some chap at the bar had been waiting 50 mins already… cmon spoons sort out your main trade out 😉

Anyway onto the important matter of the Beer festival.

There had 5 ales on downstairs (apart from Abbot and something else but was excited), but I only managed to get near these clips

I had a half of Caledonian Old Seadog 5.2% – a great IPA that was quite hoppy but not as much as another Scots IPA I am fond of, the ABV did not make it a session beer, but I could happily quaff a few of these if time allowed!

mrsunclewilco had a half of Clarkes Classic Blonde ABV 3.9%, which is quite hoppy, she said was very nice (she reviews beer better than me)

anyway a good start and hopefully later in the week I may taste more, using their 3rd of a pint glasses, which of course a local brewer has adopted with their Posh Beer Tapas.

Tags Beer, festival, spoons

Misc

Caerphilly castle – A great castle and it’s being cleaned

Post author By wilco
Post date March 28, 2010

AS it was a nice day yesterday me and mrsunclwilco & my son took Sprout dog for a walk up to Caerphilly mountain.

It was a little bit windy and cold up there, but some great views of Caerphilly and you can see Cardiff and the stadium from the top of the mountain as well.

They seem to be cleaning Caerphilly Castle which is great news I bet it looked great when it was built, but I assume the conditions of the builders and the serfs (smurfs) living within the castle area did not think it was great.

Anyway some shots of the great castle, with one of the best moats in Europe

Tags Caerphilly castle

Blog

I think I need a Leg Master after seeing it on gadget show, do they do a Gut master?

Post author By wilco
Post date March 22, 2010

Watching the gadget show and they showed a great device called the Leg Master.

Can’ t get on the Leg Master website but ebay have some.

Or amazon sell a related Leg master type thing…

But can you get one for a Beer belly?

in the states its called the Leg magic!

Tags LegMaster

Blog

Bree Louise , Ale, Spilt Pint & Jameson Whisky and the film Moon

Post author By wilco
Post date March 18, 2010

Yesterday I had a great afternoon/evening in that London with my mate James Cuff.

We were going to see the Jameson Cult Film Club presentation of the wonderful Duncan Jones Film Moon, we met up with our other mate Neil from Birmingham who just happens to be the officially the unofficial blogger about Moon 😉

We decided to meet up a pub that Rob has been going on for a while the Bree Louise in Euston

They had a shed load of ales on (no wonder they are Camra pub of the year).

I was a little bit excited about going and I even split a pint as I was lifting it off the bar, the barman and regulars said dont worry “everyone does it” must be the heart palpitations seeing all the great beers on.

We also met up with a mate of Cuffys mate nickthorpe which was nice only had a few pints then it was off to the main event.

But the whole point of the boys trip was to see Moon at The Royal Institution, what a great film and it was the first time to see it on the big screen!

Thanks to neil we got in via the “Special Queue”

A few members of the technical crew from Moon where there look out for a video of them soon on Neils blog.

The venue was decked out in a moon style and thanks to Jamesons we had some great whisky! and some great “Moon Dust”

The had a great bloke in a Sam suit hanging from the ceiling of the institute.

anyway one of my favorite shot of the night is Neil looking very happy with himself pictured with the actual Sam Spacesuit from the film.

Tags Ale, Jameson, Moon

Blog

Happy St Patrick’s Day & Happy St MOON day

Post author By wilco
Post date March 17, 2010

I am off to London later today with @jamescuff and @unklerupert for the Jameson’s Whisky Cult Cinema club tonight – with a showing of the wonderful film Moon and hopefully a few small (large) Jameson’s for St Paddy’s day and maybe a visit to a few great pubs.

Anyway Happy Saints day to my lot in Longford -Slàinte

And if you are in Cardiff tonight have a pint of Brains Black Stout:)

Tags Guinness, St Patrick's Day

Blog

Three years on Twitter what have I learned? nothing I hear you shout.

Post author By wilco
Post date March 16, 2010

Iam no expert on this twitter thing, but have used it long enough to make so many mistakes – and I still tell people what I have for tea, where I walked the dog and what beer Iam drinking, maybe if I just concentrated on the sheds, I would have more followers.

Anyone this post is on of those Ten things to do on twitter, but only Severn, well you have to do something for SEO.

1) I have made 7937 (and counting ) tweets, even I don’t know how! (ok some are automated from the Flickr Group and when a sheddies adds images to their sheds) but the rest are from shedblog and this blog and my own mixed up sheddie brain.

2) Dont’ pee off the twitters, you will regret it, as some hold a grudge longer than some 😉 , but on the whole most are wonderful! so as long as you are not having at go at their mothers then you should be ok

3) It’s ok to reply to celebrity twitters, but after two tweets and they don’t reply then don’t bother 😉 unless you would stalk them in real life – cough MrsStephenFry – it was me in the shed

4) Think about your hashtags and research it before going ahead with some madcap plan – 9.9 times out of 10 it will never trend

5) Is it worth setting up different accounts for different subjects – you will soon see a shedweek account just for shedweek stuff, but try not to confuse your readers – I know I do.

6) Great tools to use like Friendorfollow, Backtweets

7) Wait for the next big thing. still waiting… 4sq pah ..

Tags twitter

Beer

J D Wetherspoon April 2010 Beer Festival Beer List

Post author By wilco
Post date March 15, 2010

Latest List for their March 2011 festival is here.

The beer list has been published for the latest festival Oct/Nov 2010 Spoons Beer festival.

Spoons have announced the beers they will be having at their latest Beer Festival.

Its begins 7th April 2010 and finishes on the 25th April 2010

1. DALESIDE SPRING FRENZY 3.4% ABV | Daleside Brewery, North Yorkshire. Est. 1992
2. EVERARDS FLOURISH 3.5% ABV | Everards Brewery, Leicestershire. Est. 1849
3. FREMLINS BITTER 3.5% ABV | Shepherd Neame Brewery, Kent. Est. 1698
4. BATEMANS WAYNFLETE HEDGEROWS 3.7% ABV | Batemans Brewery, Lincolnshire. Est. 1874
5. JENNINGS STICKLE PIKE 3.8% ABV | Jennings Brewery, Cumbria. Est. 1828
6. OTTER MILD 3.8% ABV | Otter Brewery, Devon. Est. 1990
7. THREE B’s OATMEAL STOUT 3.8% ABV | Three B’s Brewery, Lancashire. Est. 1999
8. ALLGATES BRIGANTIA 4.0% ABV | Allgates Brewery, Lancashire. Est. 2006
9. MORRELL’S OXFORD BLUE 4.0% ABV | Banks’s Brewery, West Midlands. Est. 1890
10. PHOENIX BLACK SHADOW 4.0% ABV | Phoenix Brewery, Manchester. Est. 1982
11. ROBINSONS YOUNG TOM 4.0% ABV | Robinsons Brewery, Cheshire. Est. 1838
12. BREWDOG TRASHY BLONDE 4.1% ABV | BrewDog Brewery, Aberdeenshire. Est. 2007
13. HYDES OVER A BARREL 4.1% ABV | Hydes Brewery, Manchester. Est. 1863
14. CAIRNGORM CULLODEN 1746 4.2% ABV | Cairngorm Brewery, Highlands. Est. 1997
15. GOOSE ISLAND HONKER’S ALE 4.2% ABV | Goose Island Brewery, Chicago, USA. Est. 1988
16. HOLDEN’S BURTON RUNNER4.2% ABV | Holden’s Brewery, West Midlands. Est. 1915
17. NETHERGATE RED POLL 4.2% ABV | Nethergate Brewery, Essex. Est. 1986
18. THEAKSTON GROUSE BEATER 4.2% ABV | Theakston Brewery, North Yorkshire. Est. 1827
19. WELTONS HAWTHORN 4.2% ABV | Weltons Brewery, West Sussex. Est. 1995
20. BUTCOMBE BLOND 4.3% ABV | Butcombe Brewery, Somerset. Est. 1978
21. HOOK NORTON EARLY MIST 4.3% ABV | Hook Norton Brewery, Oxfordshire. Est. 1850
22. THWAITES SUMMAT SPECIAL 4.3% ABV | Thwaites Brewery, Lancashire. Est. 1807
23. WOODEN HAND CORNISH BUCCANEER 4.3% ABV | Wooden Hand Brewery, Cornwall. Est. 2004
24. ATLAS WAYFARER 4.4% ABV | Atlas Brewery, Argyll. Est. 2002
25. BEARTOWN PEACH MELBEAR 4.4% ABV | Beartown Brewery, Cheshire. Est. 1994
26. BRAINS HONEST ALE 4.5% ABV | Brains Brewery, Cardiff. Est. 1882
27. DAVENPORTS BEER HUNTER 4.5% ABV | Highgate Brewery, West Midlands. Est. 1899
28. ELGOOD’S HAWKWIND 4.5% ABV | Elgood’s Brewery, Cambridgeshire. Est. 1878
29. MAULDONS THOMAS’ TIPPLE 4.5% ABV | Mauldons Brewery, Suffolk. Est. 1982
30. RHYMNEY BITTER 4.5% ABV | Rhymney Brewery, Merthyr Tydfil. Est. 2004
31. SPRINGHEAD SPRING CHICKEN 4.5% ABV | Springhead Brewery, Nottinghamshire. Est. 1990
32. TRIPLE FFF ROCK LOBSTER 4.5% ABV | Triple FFF Brewery, Hampshire. Est. 1997
33. ZULULAND ZULU BLONDE | 4.5% ABV | Zululand Brewery, Eshowe, South Africa. Est. 1997
34. ROOSTERS PATRIOT 4.7% ABV | Rooster’s Brewery, North Yorkshire. Est. 1993
35. WADWORTH FARMERS GLORY 4.7% ABV | Wadworth Brewery, Wiltshire. Est. 1885
36. HEROLD BLACK CHALICE 4.8% ABV | Pivovar Herold Breznice, Czech Republic. Est. 1506
37. MOORHOUSE’S AMBER RAMBLER 4.8% ABV | Moorhouse’s Brewery, Lancashire. Est. 1865
38. OAKHAM ROLLERCOASTER 4.8% ABV | Oakham Brewery, Cambridgeshire. Est. 1993
39. SALTAIRE BULLDOG BROWN ALE 4.8% ABV | Saltaire Brewery, West Yorkshire. Est. 2006
40. SHARP’S GENTLE JANE 4.8% ABV | Sharp’s Brewery, Cornwall. Est. 1994
41. HAWKSHEAD LAKELAND LAGER 5.0% ABV | Hawkshead Brewery, Cumbria. Est. 2002
42. MAUI COCONUT PORTER 5.0% ABV | Maui Brewery, Hawaii. Est. 2005
43. OKELLS ALT 5.0% ABV | Okells Brewery, Isle of Man. Est. 1850
44. TITANIC TOMAHAWK 5.0% ABV | Titanic Brewery, Staffordshire. Est. 1985
45. ST PETER’S OLD STYLE PORTER 5.1% ABV | St Peter’s Brewery, Suffolk. Est. 1996
46. CALEDONIAN OLD SEADOG IPA 5.2% ABV | Caledonian Brewery, Edinburgh. Est. 1869
47. KELHAM ISLAND NIGHT RIDER 5.2% ABV | Kelham Island Brewery, South Yorkshire. Est. 1990
48. GREENE KING SUFFOLK SPRINGER 5.5% ABV | Greene King Brewery, Suffolk. Est. 1799
49. VAL-DIEU ABBAYE BLONDE 5.5% ABV | Val-Dieu Brewery, Belgium. Est. 1997
50. BUDELSE CAPUCIJN 6.0% ABV | Budelse Brouwerij, Netherlands. Est. 1870

FESTIVAL CIDER
51. Old Rascal Traditional Somerset Cider 4.9% ABV | Thatchers Cider Company, Somerset. Est. 1904

Some great ones on there I hope we get a lot of them down Cardiff.. Wadworth Farmers Glory is one I missed when I was in devizes recently and the ST PETER’S OLD STYLE PORTER oh and OKELLS ALT

… any ones you looking forward to drinkers?

more info or on Facebook

This really does promise to be our biggest and best real-ale festival ever.

Four international brewers, of world renown, are flying over to brew four beers right here in the UK – exclusively for you to enjoy during the festival.

Of the 50 ales on offer, 14 are exclusive to the festival and 21 are new beers – either for the festival or first brewed in 2010.

Tags Beer, festival, spoons

Beer

Thing a Week – Drink – got to be brewdog #thingaweek

Post author By wilco
Post date March 13, 2010

Iam a member of the great Thing a week flickr group and try and post as much as I can but this week I could not make my excuses and not post, this weeks subject was Drink 🙂

So I set up my tripod this afternoon in the new Bar area of the house, ok it’s the converted garage but I have manged to use a corner to store my beer.

As brewdog was on top of my beer rack then they were the ones in focus…

This was the shot I finally choose after taking about 30!