Category: Beer

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Beer

Wetherspoon beer festival – Coconut, Springer & Gentle Jane

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.

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

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.

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J D Wetherspoon April 2010 Beer Festival Beer List

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.

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

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!

Brewdog beer bottle cap #drink thingaweek

Some of the other ones that I don’t think made the grade.

Brewdog beers - Drink

Jack Daniels

Brewdog beers

Cheddar Ales

OK Iam still not up to the half the quality of Rob, but he does have a better camera & glass then me 😉

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Beer

500 beers by Zak Avery- could easily been 900 beers

Just bought a copy of Zak Avery’s  book “500 Beers” after recommendations from some beer bloggers/twitters

Its a great size book perfect for the smallest room in the house or even the shed

The layout is interesting, with a great introduction to brewing beer at the start and various tips on buying & serving beer.

The beers are separated out into styles such as IPA, Wheat Beer, English Ale and the like with a witty introduction to each style.

With Zak’s recommend beer pointed out on each page with a picture of the bottle and the other small reviews that cover the rest of the page are no nonsense and straight to the point and you can tell he enjoys his beer.

The photos that separate the reviews are great and most are different from the norm and someone has done a great job picking them and for some reason the one on page 137 was enjoyed by all my beer drinking mates who are going to the Oktoberfest.

The only downside is that  there is not enough Welsh Beers, we have an Otley and some Brains and the odd North Wales brews, but I suppose he had to stop somewhere!

But if you want a good resource to have to hand when you are planning your next beer buying trip then this is a winner.

Whether you want a light lager perfect for summer drinking, a rich stout or a full-bodied ale, there is a beer in this volume for every occasion. Featuring a beer for every day of the year with plenty to spare, follow the friendly, expert guidance provided by the author to develop your tastes and find which type of beer suits you best. This comprehensive collection will inspire every beer drinker to venture beyond their comfort zone and try out some of the finest beers in the world. If you’ve always wanted to know the difference between a lager and an ale, wondered how beer is produced, or needed advice on how to match beer with food, here is the book for your. 500 Beers takes the guesswork out of fixing drinks, with tips on everything from selecting glasses to storing, pouring and tasting. About the author Zak Avery is a beer expert and freelance journalist. Having worked in specialist beer retail for many years, he has carved a niche for himself as one of the best beer writers in the UK. He serves on the committee of the British Guild of Beer Writers, and in 2008 won their highest award: Beer Writer of the Year. He is regularly asked to judge beer competitions, most notably the International beer Challenge, a London-based competition that annually establishes the best 50 beers in the world. Zak lives in Leeds.

You can follow Zak on Twitter or his website.

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Google Street View Launch throughout UK – of course I look for Pubs first

As reported by everyone, Streetview goes live with most roads in the UK..

So here are my favourite Pubs

Otley arms


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The Philharmonic Dining Rooms Liverpool


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The Black Pub Winchester

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But looks Like the google eye has missed St Mary Street In Cardiff where the Goat Major is, you can just about see it here.


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Bush Inn Llantwit Fadre


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The Vulcan Cardiff


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Farmers Arms down the road from my house


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More to follow after doing some work

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Beer

Brains you are surprising us with your marketing for National Cask Ale Week

Brains are upping their marketing this year with this great promotional tool to get people to taste their cask ales, what you mean there are people in Kardiff not tasted a Brains Dark, shame on you.

I can’t see this going down well in all their houses (Vulcan, Cottage & City Arms) but in the posher pubs in their portfolio I think the Beerati may lap it up…

Anyway I want one of these for my shedpub… 🙂

Welsh brewer Brains is going continental. The company, famed for cask ale favourites such as Brains SA and Dark, will be launching ‘Beer Tapas’ ahead of National Cask Ale Week (29th March – 5th April) in a bid to encourage trial.

Featuring three third pint glasses in a branded wooden tray, Beer Tapas will be available throughout and beyond National Cask Ale Week in around 200 pubs, including over 100 Brains managed and tenanted houses.

Richard Davies, Sales and Marketing Director explains: “The beer tapas tray gives customers the opportunity to try three different cask ales but drink the equivalent of one pint. We think it’s a great way of encouraging customers to switch from other categories to try cask ale and also a good way of giving current cask drinkers greater variety of choice.”

The tray has been branded ‘Brains Beer’, and the glasses are etched with ‘Beer Tapas’. Richard Davies adds, “This is about growing the cask ale category, with an emphasis on trial and exploration. Naturally we want to encourage customers to try the full Brains range, but we also want to see them trying brands and styles they wouldn’t normally try.”

More on the Cardiff brewer here.

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My family coat of arms should be an apple plus Cheddar its not all about a big hole and cheese

We visited Cheddar in Somerset, to look at the gorge as today the weather was so nice.

I have not been there for about 18 years, that was with my mate Will (who was brought up in nearby Axbridge) and I could remember Cheddar was great village with some great pubs and too much cider.

We were not a big fan of the village now its gone a bit trashy with the tourism and trinket shops taking over the place.

But the upside was the Beer and Cider.

Firstly the Cider! A great little shop that sold Cider & Cheese, and not your tourist branded stuff, great Farm stuff, and the name of this great Cider was Wilcox Cider, wonder I like scrumpy, I never know my family name got that far east from the Welsh valleys 😉

In the small shop right by the Riverside Inn (which we went into but it was packed so no room to eat, and they had Cheddar ales on as well) you can buy various ciders straight from the barrel into flagons.

Wilcox Cider

I went for the “tipple” – a mix of Sweet & Dry and the Mrs picked up some smoked Cheddar £5 for both, Bargin.

Wilcox Cider

Another gem in the rough was a great beer shop called West Country Ales they say they have over 100 beers & Cider from across the West country.

westcountryales

I spent 15 mins in there while the Mrs looked around the overpriced but posh cheese shop across the road, the selection of bottled ales was wonderfull.. and I managed to settle on some local brews from Cheddar Ales and one from Bath Ales.

Beers from westcountryales - Cheddar Bews

The only downside is which bottle to gift to Rob, as he will no doubt bring me back something from his trip to the Far east of England.

If you are down that way and have room in your boot I would recommend paying them a visit they also give 10% off for Camra members.

Unfortunately I was unable to taste the local beers on tap, as the pub the Mrs decided on for lunch Bath Arms Hotel only had these brews on, but the Courage was not bad.

not the best choice

Anyway go for the cheese and the gorge but stay for the Beer & Cider… it was busy today so I would not like to visit in the heat of summer with the bus loads of tourists!

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Brains Black Welsh Stout – Guinness beware in the Welsh valleys

Today St David’s Day Brains the Cardiff based brewery launched a new beer at their wonderful Crawshay Arms pub, which is in the grounds of the Brewery, the best pub in Cardiff has it does not have a till!

What is different about it from the other Brains keg ales, well It’s a Stout, and they have called it Black.

They see it as a direct competitor to Guinness but at a cheaper price point but with a slightly familiar Brains taste aimed at their regulars.

I used to drink Guinness as my backup beer if there was no Cask Ales on as you could always rely on it, so how would the pretender to the Irish throne compare?.

Well It tasted like the Irish institution on first sip but without the overly reliance on the moustache covering white head, but Black did have more to it, dare I say a great dark roasted malt taste that the Irish one does not seem to deliver any more.

And a better session beer I think at. 4.1% abv and hopefully they wont be brining out an extra cold version soon as that ruined Guinness IMHO

With a launch through selected brains houses this month and you may find it elsewhere within the year.

If you like a bit of the Irish black stuff then give Brains black a go, if you drink Brains excellent Dark on cask also give it a go, it’s got more of the blarney than Dark has, but would make a nice change.

We also had Welsh Black Beef cooked in Brains Black – a great combination served with rice with laverbread & leeks a great end to a good few hours tasting this new brew on our Saints Day.

Brains Black - Welsh Stout st davids day - brains tour

Brains Black Stout

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Anyone tried the Marks & Spencer Real Ale – Case of 20

M & S have got a good selection of British bottled ales.

  • 4 Cornish IPA A pale gold, refreshingly full flavoured, beer with citrus aromas and a light malt finish with a hint of resinous pine.
  • 4 Norfolk Bitter Malty, with a fruity character and a dry finish.
  • 4 Scottish Cairngorm Ale Smooth, malty, full bodied thistle ale.
  • 4 Sussex Golden Ale Delivers a refreshing flavour and a traditional Sussex ‘hoppy nose’.
  • 4 Yorkshire Bitter Smooth, with a subtle hint of citrus fruits.

Shame no Welsh ale in there, but has anyone tried them? are they worth getting in for a party or just for a gentle supping.