Perfect Pictish

Just a quick note to say, yes, the rumours are true. Due to literally some enquiries into the whys and wherefores of Ale-Affinity's untimely demise, I've decided to tentatively prod the dormant site with my foot to see if there's any life left in it.

I've spruced the place up a bit (do you like it?) and gone for a bit more of a grown-up feel, since none of us are getting any younger. However, don't expect an immediate flurry of activity, as I'm jetting off on holiday at the weekend and will be busy packing and organising beforehand.

I will, of course, be making time to hit The Bull later today for the much anticipated Pictish Brewery Showcase. There was a false start back in May, when Phoenix stepped in late on after Pictish were unable to ship what was required. Since then, the Rochdale-based micro have featured with some regularity on the bar and seriously impressed us all. I won't go into detail about the seven available beers, among them four single hoppers, as Steve 'Beer Justice' Williams has already done so more than adequately. I will just say that I'm a big fan of single hop variety ales. It's a great education into which hops give certain flavours and the few that I've been lucky enough to try from Pictish to date have been magnificent. My aim is to eventually get through as many of the 37 listed on their site as possible.

Having ventured up to Derbyshire with Mark Dredge on Tuesday, I'll be continuing to make the most of my time unchained from my office desk and will persist with public transport (both bus and train) in order to make the most of what's on offer. Wish me luck.

Scotland Invades the Criterion

Thursday 22nd – Sunday 25th January saw the Criterion, Leicester hosting a Burns Night beer festival, featuring a solid selection of ales from our tartan brothers across the border.

Having previewed the selection a few days prior to the event, both the ‘Monster and I were keen to get over for this one; the line up included no less than six offerings from that most elusive of breweries, Clockwork, and as a result the beer hound in us could smell the scoops on the breeze…

Clockwork is a brewery which I must confess I had no real knowledge of – hardly surprising given that it operates from a solitary brewpub in Glasgow, where the brewery output is consumed and sold exclusively on the premises. How the Criterion had managed this coup I do not know, but much kudos to them for it.

Unfortunately, due to logistical issues, the Clockwork beers did not arrive until after the festival (they’re currently racked up in the cellar, and I’m awaiting a text from one of my contacts on the staff to advise that they’re tapped and ready), so on the Thursday we busied ourselves with the rest of the selection.

The 15 beers available were drawn from six breweries; renegade masters and Portman defeaters Brewdog were represented by Trashy Blond (4.9%) and Zeitgeist (4.9%), with these complemented by three offerings from Fyfe, Boadicea (4.2%), Perle (4.2%) and Weiss Squad (4.5%), and six from Kelburn, Goldihops (3.8%), Misty Law (4.0%), Red Smiddy (4.1%), Dark Moor (4.5%), Carte Blanche (5.0%) and Ca’ Canny (5.2%)

The selection was rounded off with one brew apiece from Harviestoun (Haggis Hunter, 4.3%) and Houston (Texas, 4.3%) and a somewhat calculated offering of 80 Shilling (4.1%) and Deuchars IPA (3.8%) from the behemoth that is Caledonian.

Of these we sampled all bar the Caledonian duo (just too commercial), the wheat beer (just not our bag) and the Goldihops and Red Smiddy (both already scooped). The condition on all was very good, and the beers themselves were generally good – the only real let down was the Perle, a lacklustre, thin and watery offering brewed using this lager hop variety.

Beers on the day which merit particular note were the Trashy Blond, a cracking amber number with a spicy hopped palate redolent with apple and citrus notes and a deliciously dry and bitter finish, the Zeitgeist with its big sweet malt hit, roasted and chocolate tones and lightly fruited hop edge, and the Haggis Hunter for its tangy, fruity malts and late, bitter hop finish.

All in all, the team at the Critter pulled off a good show, and I look forward to sampling the Clockwork brews when they become available.

If there is one gripe to be made it would have to be in respect of pricing – due to “costly delivery charges from Scotland” the prices on all the ales had been increased by up to 20p, resulting in a pint of 3.8% beer selling for £2.50. Still, given the economic climate I guess this is to be expected really!

For those with an interest, the Clockwork ales will be Amber IPA (3.8%), Red Alt (4.4%), Oregon IPA (5.5) and Strong Ale (6.0%) and two keg beers, Original Lager (4.8%) and Hazy Daze Seriously Ginger (5.0%)

Pan-C

Bull Brewery Showcase №3 - Thornbridge

It's been quiet on here for a while, again. My apologies to our long-suffering loyal readership. My reasonable excuse this time is that I moved into a new flat on New Year's Day and have been desperately trying to get Internet access sorted ever since. You'd have thought I was asking for a satellite link up to the Moon. Three weeks on and I'm still in web limbo. I've also been poorly this week, having escaped the bloggers' Christmas epidemic. Pan-C can site no such mitigation, the lazy swine.

Anyway, there's just time to inform you of Showcase №3 from the Darenth Valley's №1. Not to be outdone by recent events at The Rake, The Bull proudly presents a hearty line-up from the fabulous Thornbridge of Ashford, Derbyshire. From Thursday 5th to Sunday 8th February the following seven ales will be gravity dispensed:

• Wild Swan 3.5% light session bitter


• Lord Marples 4.0% honeyed bitter


• Ashford 4.2% quadruple hopped brown ale


• Kipling 5.2% South Pacific tropical pale ale


• Jaipur 5.9% world beating IPA


• Handel 6.6% Belgian-style dark dubbel


• St Petersburg 7.7% Imperial Russian stout

I got far too familiar with the St Petersburg at the Rake on Saturday, waking up on my sofa at 1am having lost Jnr and somehow finding my own way back to my new abode. I look forward to respectfully tackling it again, as well as the new-to-me Handel and gorgeous Kipling.

As if that wasn't enough of a temptation, there should be up to five additional handpulled ales from Dark Star to choose from, as Garrett does his best to decide which of these micro titans deserves the accolade of his favourite brewery. He'll also host a lively 'Bingo Quiz' on the Thursday launch night, with some worthwhile boozy prizes sure to be on offer. The Bull's website has become something of an historic reference point in recent months, so be sure to check out their Facebook page for up-to-date information on future events and the ever-changing ale selection.

As soon as the various multinationals involved (that's you BT, Post Office and O2) have pulled their collective fingers out and finally hook me up, a near-full service will be resumed. Please leave your expressions of discontent/contempt for our poor showing below.

Dubbel

Dog has its Day

In a quite astonishing U-turn, self-appointed industry watchdog The Portman Group have abandoned their 8-month crusade against BrewDog's witty labelling.

Understandably, managing director and BBC Three star James Watt is pretty pleased with the outcome.

"It is a victory for common sense, the intelligence of the consumer, small independent producers and freedom of speech; it is a victory that BrewDog had to fight tooth and nail for. We refused to roll-over and be bullied into changing our packaging by what is basically a cartel funded by our larger competitors. We were determined and stood our ground to keep our dream and our business alive...

"We feel our victory, and the fact we were determined to stand our ground sends a strong message out about BrewDog to the rest of the sleepy, stuffy and mediocre UK brewing industry. If the result means that the Portman Group does not unjustifiably bully another independent producer then all the effort was worthwhile."

A full retort can be found here on the brewers' own blog.

Merry Christmas guys!

• For the sake of balanced reporting, Portman's press release can be found here though, be warned, it doesn't make for anywhere near as good reading.

Thornbridge Take it Down South

Following hot on the heels of December's hugely successful Meet the Brewer session with the boys from BrewDog, LoveBeer@Borough are pleased to welcome the legends from Thornbridge to the capital on Saturday 17th January.

You can read up on LoveBeer co-owner Melissa Cole's recent brewing experience at Thornbridge Hall here on her excellent blog Taking the beard out of beer! Here's hoping that a cask or two of her 3.8% abv creation Heron finds it's way to The Rake next month for our scrupulation. Another lucky soul to step into the brewer's shoes for the day was one of our favourite beer writers the Reluctant Scooper, who also posted a typically excellent report on his own site. We're very jealous of you both.

Thornbridge, much like BrewDog, are one of the UK's most respected, pioneering and multi-award-winning microbreweries and it's great to see a cask outlet for their wares in London. If you are yet to sample the delights of the likes of Jaipur IPA, Kipling, and St. Petersburg Imperial Russian Stout be sure to get yourself down to borough market. Tickets can be purchased in advance from behind the bar at The Rake or from those friendly guys at Utobeer.

Where My Dogs At

BrewDog fans' ears will prick up with the news that The Rake, "London's smallest specialist beer bar" will be hosting a special cask week dedicated to the UK's finest boundary-busting brewery.

The week will coincide with the Pigs Ear Beer Festival and will run from Monday 1st to Saturday 6th December inclusive. A comprehensive lineup of beers from the Scottish micro can be expected, including the premiere of the fruits of their latest experiment, a 10% Raspberry Imperial Stout.

Lovebeer are also hosting a couple of Meet The Brewer sessions above The Rake on Saturday 29th November to whet the appitite for the week ahead.

I would urge any open-minded beer lover who is unfamiliar with the likes of Punk IPA, Hop Rocker lager and the Paradox series of whisky-infused imperial stouts to pop along during the week. And for those fortunate enough to be familiar with them, there's bound to be something new that will wow your tastebuds and spoil your enjoyment of 'ordinary' beer forever!

Dubbel

• The Rake is located at 14 Winchester Walk, SE1 9AG, on the edge of Borough Market, just around the corner from the Market Porter and is run by the guys behind Utobeer.
  
  
• The Meet The Brewer sessions are ticketed events. Interested parties should contact Lovebeer on 020 7378 9461.
  

Bull Brewery Showcase №2 - Marble

Following on swiftly from the impressive lineup of Kelham Island beers last month, those nice people at The Bull have put together an equally enviable range from everyone's favourite Mancunian brewer, Marble.

After persuading them to hunt down a barrel each of Pint and Ginger (with the added bonus of JP Best) for their Handpicked Beer Festival back in early October, we are very pleased that they have felt compelled to return for more. I have never seen these beers in any pub in this corner of the country and this is testament to the lengths that licencees Garrett and Lynne are prepared to go in order to establish The Bull as the leading alehouse in the area.

The six Marble casks on the rack from Thursday 4th through to Sunday 7th December will be:

• Pint 3.8%
• Ginger 4.3%
• JP Best 4.3%
• Manchester Bitter 4.3%
• Porter 4.5%
• Lagonda 5.0%

The Marble website seems to be pretty unidimensional and with ratebeer currently out of action too it would be a struggle for me to provide much background on the latter three of these beers. However, I was impressed during my visit to the Marble Arch this time last year, adoptive Manc Tandleman has long been a firm supporter and I look forward in particular to trying the rarely seen dark Porter and the Lagonda, which I understand is in the style of a traditional dry IPA.

Dubbel

Bull Brewery Showcase №1 - Kelham Island

This Thursday 30th October marks the start of what should prove a very popular monthly brewery showcase at the Bull in Horton Kirby, Kent.

Each month the pub aims to procure six highly sought-after and rare-to-the-area ales from one of Britain's best and most innovative microbreweries. The brewery's casks will be dispensed by gravity from a stillage and will be in addition to the pub's staple 5 or 6 ever changing ales behind the bar.

This month they're kicking off with the mighty Kelham Island of Sheffield. We're lucky if we get the occasional Pale Rider popping up in Kent and London but this weekend, in addition to regular brews Easy Rider and Pride of Sheffield, there will be no less than four specials:

• Harvest Gold 3.8%


• Conquistador 5.7% - Peruvian dark ale


• Grande Pale 6.6% - billed as Pale Rider on steroids

and what has to be the pick of the draw:

• Brooklyn Smoked Porter 6.5% - first brewed in Sheffield in 2006 by the much celebrated yankee brewmaster Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery.

The showcase runs from Thursday through until Sunday evening and there's even live music on Friday night.

Just try and keep us away!

Dubbel

Bladdered @ the Brunswick

As many of you will doubtless be aware, last week (1st - 4th) saw the Brunswick Inn host its annual beer festival and, due to a change to our original plans, the Beer Monster and I had the pleasure of taking a trip over for the Friday session.

Arriving at around 1pm, we found the pub already packed out with an eclectic mix of families, scoopers, students and lunchtime drinkers; after a quick foray through the main bar area we swiftly established that seating was going to be at something of a premium and ensconced ourselves in the separate lounge area to the right of the front entrance.

We had been expecting to find around 30 beers available as this seems to be pretty much the norm nowadays, however we were in for real treat – fifty ales were on offer, and the selection was quite impressive with beers from (amongst others) Brown Cow, Old Bear, Goose Eye, Tigertops and Burton Old Cottage; for those who are interested there’s a full beer list on Natasha Moorfield’s site.

Needless to say, the pair of us were pretty soon drooling at the prospect of the quaffathon ahead and wasted no time in getting the first couple of halves in, kicking off with Phantom Mild from Tigertops and Oh Bullox from Brunswick’s own selection; the condition of the beers was excellent and pretty much reflected the standard across the board, although we did encounter a couple of slightly hazy brews later in the day.

Given that we were in Derby for the day it seemed something of a crime to restrict ourselves to just one pub and, accordingly, after getting our drinking legs nicely screwed on and putting away sixteen halves between us we decided it was time to take a bit of a mission and hit our other chosen destination, the delightful Flower Pot pub, home of Headless brewery.
I fell in love with the ‘Pot on my first drinking visit to Derby, and once again I found myself bowled over by the fine range of ales that were on – fifteen if memory serves me correctly, with the bulk of these being guests rather than Headless brews. As a first time visitor the Beer Monster found herself suitably impressed by the place; there’s been some criticism from certain corners over the slightly higher beer prices charged by the pub, however the beer selection is invariably excellent, the condition usually very good and the pub has a charming ambience, all of which more than make up for the slight premium in my opinion.

Our all too brief visit allowed us to sample nine ales from seven breweries, including the Flower Pot Special brewed by Burton Bridge alongside offerings from Full Mash, Salamander, Holland, Whim, Black Hole and Headless themselves.

With time ticking on it was back up to the Brunswick to grab a final half each and some food. Fortunately the pub had laid on a barbecue out back and were offering a choice of hotdogs or burgers at reasonable prices, so we opted to chow down with the burger option, topped with baked beans – a new taste sensation on me (I’d never have thought to put the beans on the burger, in the bun, but it works an absolute treat!)

Having finished lining our stomachs it was time for the short stroll back up to the station and the Friday night party train back to Leicester, with the pair of us feeling decidedly well oiled and very satisfied with the outcome of the day.
We’re already looking forward to the next Brunswick bash, which will be taking place around the same time next year – it’s a shame they only do one per annum, but I guess the waiting ultimately makes the reward all the sweeter…

Pan-C

Brunswick Brewery Bang On with Brown

During a foray to Derby Beer Festival on Wednesday (seperate blog entry to follow) I had the opportunity of visiting the Brunswick Inn - a delightful pub and home to the micro brewery of the same name.

One of the things that really stood out for me here was a special beer they had on offer; brewed by themselves, I've not come across it before and doubt that I will ever find it again, but it boasts one of those classic pump clips that you never forget...

I don't think I really need to add anything to this - the clip says it all; once again, it's so nice to see a brewery with a sense of humour who don't mind getting a bit political.

If anybody else has come across similar ridiculing clips we'd love to hear from you - send us any pics etc to the YCC email address...

Pan-C

Kent's Only Brewpub

Deep in the heart of greenest Kent sits the idyllic village of West Peckham - about as far removed from its South London namesake as you could possibly imagine. With a population of around 350, the community is centered around the village green, home to West Peckham Cricket Club, on a tranquil no-through-road. Dotted around the green, you can see the village's history before your very eyes. St Dunstan's Church with its 9th Century tower and, on the opposing side, odd cone-shaped structures, possibly part of an old mill from years past.

But the jewel in the green's crown is the village pub.

An inn has stood on the site of The Swan on the Green since 1526 and whilst various extensions have been added over the years, parts of the building date back to this era. The most notable addition was the creation of the Swan Microbrewery at the rear of the pub in 2000, making it the first and only brewpub in the county. Over ten cask conditioned ales and top pressured beers make up the core range and specials also compliment the portfolio.

On our recent visit five cask ales were on sale: Fuggles Pale; Ginger Swan; Trumpeter Best; Cygnet; and Bewick Swan, alongside the tank conditioned Swan Blonde. Jimbo and I managed to work our way through the handpulled range and we were both delighted with the quality on offer.

The seasonal Ginger (3.6%), far from a smack-in-the-chops, brutish ginger ale, was subtly spiced and easy drinking for a summer evening. The Bewick (5.3%, pronounced Buick), the strongest bitter in the range, has a sweet and creamy chocolate body counterbalanced by a Target and Goldings hop finish and would make a perfect aperitif to a hearty dinner.

However the best of the bunch had to be the Cygnet (4.2%). This deep golden-brown ale is complex with a predominant caramalt palate and the winning addition of juicy Cascade hops. It really was a belter and worth the half hour journey time alone.

Sat outside the front of the building watching the sunset over the green, keenly supping away, you really wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world.

Swan beers are only available at the pub, which is a bit of a shame as I truly believe the Cygnet and Bewick would compliment any festival lineup. They are clearly limited by capacity but, based on the wares sampled, I would be reluctant for the brewing setup to be changed one bit. Plus their exclusivity only serves to make the pub more special. They were advertising 18-pint minipins behind the bar, although sadly only the Fuggles and Trumpeter were available to take away, in our opinion two from the weaker end of those available that evening.

If the Swan has a ‘fault’, it’s that it can be described as “gastrofied” – a sin that I don’t find as irredeemable as some other bloggers. A large proportion of the pub’s interior is dedicated to dining, not a problem on a warm summer’s day with the benches out front but perhaps more restrictive for winter drinking. The food is of a gastronomique nature; a top-notch rib-eye steak with salsa, sautéed potatoes and string beans will set you back around £15. Mains are at least a tenner and starters around £6-7. A glimpse at the classic motors, including a Lamborghini Diablo, in the car park was an indicator of the target demographic. There is, however, a good selection of bar snacks from crisps and a variety of nuts to olives and even beef jerky.

We found the service to be very friendly and professional too. The pub was busy for a Tuesday night and in terms of table space was operating at near capacity. The barmaids were apologetic for our short wait times at the bar and explained that they were two members of staff down. They worked hastily throughout the evening to ensure each party left with a smile of their faces.

We certainly did.

As we pulled away, taking one last glimpse of the picture postcard scenery an unusual thought escaped me: it’s not all that bad living in England after all, is it?

Dubbel

Steamin' Billy - Barkin' up the Wrong Tree?

Further to my recent comments on the Western beer festival, a thread has been running in the Nottingham Drinker over the last couple of months which has caught my attention and raises some interesting points.

As I mentioned in my earlier entry, the Western is a Steamin’ Billy pub, and the 'Billy range are brewed under contract by Tower brewery, having previously been brewed by Grainstore – and therein lies the problem, at least as far as Nottingham CAMRA are concerned.

In an article entitled Taking Liberties? (April/May, page 18) the publication roundly and quite justly condemns the nefarious practices of marketing beers as brewed by defunct breweries(Ruddles, Hardy & Hanson etc) and of rebadging beers, however the piece goes on to attack breweries such as Steamin’ Billy which contract out their brewing…

“We have covered this topic … of breweries that no longer exist yet whose beer still amazingly appears on the pumps … Perhaps more amazingly there are even beers being sold from breweries that have never existed at all such as Steamin’ Billy … you won’t see any of these “breweries” at Nottingham Beer Festival as we believe in promoting breweries that actually exist.”

Personally I’m not sure where I stand on this one; I can understand where the Drinker is coming from, but at the same time I’m also aware that the recipes used for Steamin’ Billy brews are their own – a point raised in the letters section of the following edition (June/July, p.36). Surely this lends them validity as a brewery?

I have heard rumours through the grapevine that there are plans to start brewing on site at the Western, which would certainly satisfy the Nottingham branch, but in the interim what do other people think – should you be able to call yourself a brewery if you don’t actually brew anything yourselves?

Pan-C

The King Beggars Belief

Perusing this months copy of that most worthy of CAMRA branch publications the Nottingham Drinker, I came across this little gem in the letters section...

Sir,

In response to your article ‘Conned Rudolph’ in the April / May issue of Nottingham Drinker. I’d like to give you a bit of background as to why we reduced the ABV of Rocking Rudolph from 5% to 4.5%.We completely agree with you – Rocking Rudolph is a great beer – and we wanted more people to enjoy it during the festive season. Part of our commitment when we acquired Hardys and Hanson’s was to get their superb collection of beers to more drinkers. The proof is, since we’ve lowered the ABV, we’ve managed to distribute Rocking Rudolph to 23% more pubs in 2007 than the previous year.

We continue to brew all of Hardys and Hansons beers, with the exception of H&H Mild, which is still available in keg format. The reason for this is that when we became responsible for the Hardys and Hansons business, only three per cent of H&H Mild was sold in cask (26 pubs in total) so it was economically unviable for us to brew as a cask beer.

Greene King is committed to cask ale quality and the Hardys and Hanson’s quality manager, Roger Walters, has remained with us to ensure we have the best quality processes in place and continue maintain consistency of H&H beers.

Fiona Hope, Marketing director, Greene King Brewing Company

The editor replies:

Your letter certainly confirms that our heading “Conned Rudolph” was right then!

The beer was sold with a pump clip that declared “Hardy’s and Hanson’s - Rocking Rudolph”. Well common sense suggests that if you reduce the strength of a beer from 5% to 4.5% then it is not going to be remotely anything like the original. Add the fact that you have closed down the Hardys and Hansons brewery with this beer being brewed at the Greene King Brewery in Bury St Edmunds so why try to hoodwink the public into believing it was the same beer that was produced in Kimberley in 2006?

How about treating your customers with a bit of respect for a change, instead of trying to mislead them into believing that long closed breweries are still brewing? In our opinion, Hardy’s and Hanson’s Bitter and Olde Trip taste nothing like they did when they were brewed in Kimberley so why not let these once excellent beers pass into history with their proud reputation still intact?

Instead how about selling your beers in an open and honest way as Greene King beers, not Morland, Ruddles, Ridleys, Rayments or Hardy’s & Hanson’s, or are you ashamed of your own name?

Oh and by the way, correct us if we are wrong, but is a quality manager not responsible for the condition in which beer is sold in the pubs? In which case he has nothing to do with brewing or marketing the beers and so your final sentence appears to be irrelevant to the issue!

You have to wonder how on earth GK have managed to become such a powerful force when they're employing people capable of such ineptitude and who clearly have such little understanding of the market they claim to serve...

Pan-C

Dark Star Brewery Tour

When Garrett Phipps - the ever-jovial landlord of the marvellous Bull* pub in Horton Kirby, Kent - mentioned that he was planning a coach trip to Sussex in order to tour the Dark Star Brewing Co., we simply had to be involved. Garrett is the only person I know to be more fanatical about Dark Star beers than we are. Over the last three years he has cemented a solid relationship with the brewery’s bosses and regularly serves their best seller Hophead on gravity, often alongside a variety of other ales from the wide-ranging Dark Star stable.

Dark Star started out in 1994 in the modest surroundings of the cellar of the scooper’s paradise, the Evening Star in Brighton. The lucky locals were given the task of testing out the brewery’s early concoctions. As its reputation grew in Brighton and beyond, Dark Star soon outgrew their humble abode. In 2001 the operation moved fifteen miles north to a purpose built 15-barrel brewery on Moonhill Farm in Ansty, near Haywards Heath, West Sussex. Now under the direction of head brewers Mark Tranter and Rob Jones, cask ales and keg beers are still supplied to the Evening Star and the other pubs in the Dark Star estate (the Duke of Wellington in Shoreham and the Stand Up Inn in Lindfield) as well as to beer festivals and discerning free houses nationwide.

Having set off from the pub shortly after 10am, we had built up quite a thirst during the hour it took the non-air-conditioned trundling minibus to reach its destination. The sweaty atmosphere tested the mettle of those in the group nursing hangovers from the night before. On arrival we were greeted by Paul Reed, very much the businessman behind the operation and very keen to stress that he didn’t know too much about brewing. His first action was to lead our 24-strong party towards an outhouse containing large aluminium brewing vessels and casually invited us to help ourselves to two full polypins, one of Hophead, one of Festival. Both were obviously wonderfully fresh. A man who knows how to make an impression!

Whilst keenly supping we listened intently as Paul gave us a run down of Dark Star’s history and guided us through the various stages of the brewing process. I was particularly interested to learn that they have suffered more than most with last year’s hop shortages, their characteristic punchy finish being achieved by a big helping of late hopping in the ‘copper’. A sizable stash of hops from the UK and abroad (especially US Cascade, the principal ingredient of Hophead) had been secured in 2007 at some considerable cost. I was, however, pleased to hear that they continued to make a profit despite feeling the pinch. I also discovered the extent to which Dark Star and many other microbreweries swap beers, in order to reach new markets and provide variety in their own tied pubs. Rather than transporting empty casks around the country, the breweries will fill each others' empties with their own beer and so the ingenious cycle continues.

With just a 15-barrel plant run by nine staff, they are unsurprisingly producing at full capacity and there are plans in the pipeline to expand again on the current site, which could see production tripled. When questioned, Paul was confident that such growth would not lead to an inevitable slip in quality, although I remain unconvinced. There was, however, a positive indication that the brewers would not entertain such a compromise. Paul told us that he had recently mentioned in passing to his colleagues an article where one of the larger breweries had admitted to leaving used hops in the wort, as they retained some of their flavour beyond the first mash. Although he hadn’t suggested that they should follow suit, he was still given the cold shoulder for some time!

We made sure to stock up on cases of Espresso Stout, Sunburst and a few bottles of the fantastic 10.5% Imperial Stout before bidding Paul and the brewery a fond farewell.

Before heading home, we took time to visit the Stand Up Inn in nearby Lindfield, a small commuter town which happened to be in the throws of a ‘village fate’. A hearty platter of pizza, garlic bread and Greek salad was provided to absorb the six ales and three real ciders on offer. We of course sampled the Dark Star Hophead, Best Bitter and the 6.2% IPA. Also on sale were Ramsgate Storm Warming and another local beer Custom Ales Smooth Mild, brewed on another farm just three miles from Dark Star, it was full-bodied and coffee-roasted and certainly got the thumbs up from everybody. The condition of the beers was very good, as was the company. This really is a pub that you wish you could have on your doorstep.

And so it was in high spirits that we limped back up the motorway to The Bull for a buffet dinner and yet more fine ale, including a first try of New-k-ham Puffin. A thoroughly enjoyable day out – it was great to see where the magic happens.

Dubbel

• *The Bull’s website is currently offline but should be up and running again very soon. Garrett keeps a regularly updated list of the ales currently on sale, as well as a list of those 'coming soon’. Lynne’s locally sourced, home-cooked food is also a huge attraction in itself. The pub scooped the CAMRA Gravesend & South Darent Pub of the Year 2008 award in April.
  
  
• Brewery tours can be arranged in advance through Dark Star. Email info@darkstarbrewing.co.uk or call 01444 412311 for futher details.
  
  
• New-k-ham is a collaboration of Newby Wyke Brewery of Grantham and Oakham Ales of Peterborough. Beers are produced onsite at Newby Wyke.

Wishing on a Dark Star

The fortunate ones amongst us (Jnr, Jimbo and I) are rabidly salivating at the prospect of a tour of the Dark Star Brewery tomorrow. Incredibly, none of us have ever been on a proper brewery tour before and with Dark Star being one of our all-time favourites, a fun-filled boozy day is assured. Following the tour, we will be leaving our mark on the Stand Up Inn in nearby Lindfield.

We will be sure to report back on Sunday, hopefully bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

Dubbel