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.

London Porter Cask Stockists

If, like me, you're very keen to wrap your lips around the "World's Finest Porter" this winter, you may wish to check out the list of 2008 cask stockists found on the Fuller's website.

The list comprises 90 Fuller's houses located across the South of England - but you may need to get in quick. London Porter is officially the seasonal ale for November, soon to be replaced by the blackberry-tinged Jack Frost as December's designated monthly. I've just contacted my local stockist and they are on their last cask of Porter which may or may not last through a busy lunchtime and into this evening. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

If anyone spots London Porter in any other pubs not featured in the list, or any that continue to stock it beyond November, please provide details in a comment below.

Dubbel

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.
  

Croydon’s Main Drag

Like any normal person, I wouldn’t ordinarily travel to Croydon by choice. As far as I’m concerned its stereotyped image of an ugly concrete ghetto with a stabbing waiting for you around every street corner is a fair one. The town centre on a Friday night is a microcosm for everything that is wrong with Britain today – both the environment and the scary youth who populate it.

But I do like a good stand up comedian, and so couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see Jimmy Carr let loose his twisted thoughts on South London.

With tickets for the world-famous Fairfield Halls booked (the seamless architecture from concrete theatre to attached concrete NCP car park is a sight to behold) all that remained was for Jnr and I to seek out a decent boozer in the immediate vicinity in which to sink a few before showtime. After perusing the beer guides and B.I.T.E. it seemed our options were limited to the usual dreary Fullers/Youngs London offerings, two Wetherspoons and a Lloyds No.1. Tremendous.

Then I happened upon the existence of a previously unknown pub, the Green Dragon. Located on the High Street, formally belonging to the Hogshead chain, to the untrained eye this looks like any other town centre drinking barn. Spread across two floors with high ceilings, pool tables (pl.), a dartboard, flashing gambling machines and the obligatory government health warning posters, there are a series of awkwardly-arranged tables, some with booths and dividers. Upstairs is a ‘stage’ area complete with high-octane rig and yet more posters advertising the recurrent ‘Psychobilly Experimental Prog Madness’ events. Whatever floats your boat.

It was early evening when we arrived and the clientele was a mixture of office and retail types of all ages winding down after another tough working week. Almost all were drinking the much maligned mainstream lagers and bottled fruit-based fizz. However, a quick perusal of the bar confirmed that the choice of venue had been a good one. Dark Star Hophead and Festival sat temptingly alongside a beer from Ironbridge. In addition was a Hogs Back branded stillage built into the wall behind the bar, offering HOP and Summer Ale on gravity.

The Summer Ale was, as you can see in the photo, sat at a rather ‘obtuse’ angle and did not have much life left in it, although the HOP was pleasant and well presented. I understand that they’ve been known to sell A Over T in this form (if ever there was a beer to get you in the right frame of mind for some comedy) but, alas, not to be on this occasion.

Unsurprisingly, however, the Dark Star beers were the ones that shone brightest. I go out of my way to have the opportunity to consume the fantastic Hophead on a regular basis and its zesty light bitterness and munificent late cascade hopping didn’t disappoint here. The Festival is an altogether different beast, dark and rich with more than a hint of smooth plain chocolate in the prolonged malt-laden finish.

We were so impressed that we returned after the show for further lubrication before braving the arduous bus journey home. By 11pm the place had switched and was now catering to something of a niche market. A DJ loudly spun rock vinyl records interspersed with occasional hip-hop from a central perch and the punters were noticeably younger and grubbier, with the odd inebriated townie thrown in for good measure. Not your average scene in a pub with such an admirable selection of ‘old man ale’ but nonetheless refreshingly different.

Suffice to say, Jimmy was riotously funny and really involved the crowd, who didn’t seem to take exception at all to his constant jibing at their beloved hometown. And if I find myself thirsty in Croydon again - God forbid - I wouldn’t hesitate to make the Green Dragon my first (and in all likelihood only) port of call.

Dubbel

Decent Exposure

Earlier this week, London’s Metro newspaper reported on a new interactive, independent event called Beer Exposed, which will run from Thursday 25th through to Saturday 27th September at the Business Design Centre in Islington.

The website promises that the event will “bring together beers and brewers from all over the world to create a unique experience designed to expose you and your friends to the incredible diversity of tastes and flavours that beer can offer.”

Seemingly far more structured than GBBF’s mass piss-up in a warehouse, the half-day sessions include various Beer Walks and Talks with industry experts such as Roger Protz and Garrett Oliver. We’re looking forward to Zak Avery’s “Extreme Beer” Walk during the Friday evening session.

A wide array of British ale breweries will be represented, including the likes of Otley, Thornbridge, Harviestoun, BrewDog (who will be launching a new beer) and, of course, Greene King. Craft brewers from around the world, such as Blue Moon, Moosehead, Flying Dog and Asahi are also in attendance. However, the exhibition is not just limited to ale, with various quasi-national lager producers making up the numbers and organisations like CAMRA, Cask Marque and the Drink Aware Trust occupying stalls too.

As far as we’re concerned, London can’t have too many well-publicised beer events and the notion of allowing non-enthusiasts to distinguish intricate craft beers directly alongside more mainstream lagers is a clever one. We wish the organisers every success.

Dubbel

• The sessions run from 5pm to 9pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday and midday to 4pm on Friday and Saturday. Admission is £14 in advance and £17 on the door but a discount of two tickets for £20 can be obtained by quoting METRO when booking online. The Beer Walks and Talks are extra; full details can be found on the website.

Trading Places at GBBF‘08

Tuesday was our first return to the Great British Beer Festival since its maiden year at Earls Court in 2006. We opted to attend the Peterborough bash as an alternative last year, primarily put off GBBF by the unpleasant overcrowding we were made to endure.

We might well have shunned it again this year had we not been able to procure tickets* for the opening trade session. We recall bouncing around trade day ‘06 virtually with the place to ourselves, with the venue filling steadily over the course of Wednesday, culminating in the horror of an impenetrable wall of bodies blocking the bars and 20-minute queues for the gents on the Thursday evening. So, following a tactical Builder’s Breakfast at Benjy’s on Earls Court Road, we were a little alarmed to roll up at 11:55am to find the entry queue snaking around the outside of the building.

Twenty minutes later though, we were inside, glass in hand, seated nice and close to the BSF bar and mapping out our first moves. I shoehorned in a couple of milds from the Bar Nouveaux (including the delicious Brampton Mild, which must have been terribly unlucky not to have made it into a medal position in its category) before surrendering to the lure of the US casks.

We stayed on the American beers for the majority of the afternoon and were lucky enough to have the opportunity to sample all three of the beers subsequently announced as the Top American Cask Beers at the festival. I particularly enjoyed both the overall winner, Lost Abbey Angel’s Share, a sweet, phenolic, oak-aged superweight at a daunting 12.5% and third place Cambridge House IPA, a big and bashy, fruity yet raspingly dry yankee IPA – a comparative session ale at merely 6.5%. The surprise Champion Beer of Britain winner, Triple fff Alton’s Pride was not available for sale at the time the announcement was made but we had already secured a sample of both the second and third place ales before the hype began. Protzy has the full list of winners.

We didn’t get on with the entire line-up from the USA, as Pan-C’s face will tell you here after a sip of a particularly pokey, heftily-hopped bottled brew! Some creamy stilton and chilli-infused cheddar from the Truckle Cheese Co. refreshed the palate nicely and the tasty springbok burgers provided some much needed sustenance later on.

After a few hours in the YCC wilderness, I eventually spotted fellow blogger and mentor maieb at a nearby table surrounded by fellow ratebeerians. As pleasant a chap as you could hope to meet, he kindly tolerated me interrupting his circle of experts at varying degrees of inebriation with my nuggets of probably useless information throughout the day. He introduced me to an equally friendly and chirpy Irish fellow, who turned out to be the Beer Nut. Pan-C and I also barged in on a conversation they were having with Tandleman, the Godfather of the beer blogosphere, who seemed more than happy perched behind the German section of the BSF bar. Low and behold, even Stonch appeared briefly and we exchanged pleasantries to complete the love-in. (I believe it may be Tandleman who holds the photographic evidence)

We have these occasional social interactions to thank for not slipping into total beer oblivion, as I surely would have done had I continued to drink such lethal beers during the time casually spent nattering. With the evening upon us, I eventually turned away from the foreign stuff and found myself seeking out some of the stronger British ales available. The Wickwar Station Porter (6.1%) and the manificent Durham Brewery’s Bede’s Chalice (9%) were well worth navigating the room for and I was still able to try samples of Pan-C and Jnr’s Belgian and German third pint nips.

We eventually headed home at about 10pm after a final raid on the world bottled beer fridge. I have some Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout and Sri Lankan Lion Stout set aside for another day. All in all we had a grand day out at the GBBF. The venue was bustling but not packed and there were only ever short wait times at each of the bars. Best of all I awoke the following day without a deathly hangover!

I wouldn’t have wanted to do battle with the masses on a Thursday or Friday evening again – perhaps the festival is something of a victim of its own success – but we are certainly keen to repeat our trade day exploits next year.

Dubbel

*Many thanks to Garrett & Lynne of The Bull in Horton Kirby, who were sadly unable to make it to Earls Court but kindly passed on their tickets to us. We were proud to represent their award-winning pub on the day. Thanks also to Grant at the Swan & Rushes for securing Pan-C's ticket and to all of the organisers and volunteers who make GBBF possible.

And All That Beer & Jazz

The first ever CAMRA Greenwich Beer & Jazz Festival kicks off at noon on Wednesday in the impressive setting of the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College on the banks of the Thames.

Running through until Sunday evening, a wide array of jazz musicians will perform alongside a pretty decent (if not scooptastic) lineup of ale.

Inspired partly by maeib's recent voluntary antics and partly out of guilt, I will be working the first two days of the fest. This will be my first time on the other side of a festival bar and I felt it was about time I broke my duck. The event replaces the 15-year-old Catford Beer Festival which, due to the spiraling cost of hiring out the Broadway Theatre, has been under increasing threat for some time. Apparently the final nail in the coffin this year was a lack of volunteers - a shameful state of affairs for what is the biggest CAMRA branch in London. So in an attempt to redeem my inactivity of years past and in fond memory of Catford, I shall be throwing myself into the spirit of things.

That's if they let me in. The staff are made up strictly of CAMRA members only and I have had some trouble with the renewal of my membership. Despite paying in May and chasing it up on two further occasions I have yet to receive my new card. I have had to pay the full whack entry fee at two other festivals in that time and now face the possibility of being turned away from offering my services at my local branch's big day. I hope common sense will prevail.

I also hope that this new venture is a success. There is certainly a much slicker feel than with Catford but the entry fee could prove a stumbling block. It's as much as £15 (inc. £2.50 booking fee when purchased online) to get in after 5pm, only £1 less for CAMRA members. 'Bargain' hunters should aim to arrive before 5pm when the entry price is almost halved.

That may well be too much for struggling quaffers to justify - even if they do happen to appreciate jazz music, which many probably don't. I suspect, therefore, that this will be a festival for the ale novice and that's fine by me.

Welcome to flavour country.

Dubbel

Nitrophilia

As a rule, I avoid bad pubs. Sometimes I will even go as far as to miss a social event if I know that I will dislike the venue. A major determining factor for me is whether there will be anything that I will consider drinking.

Social drinking in Britain has become an expensive pastime, exacerbated in the last six months by the rising cost of raw ingredients and by "Shy Teeter" Darling's indefensible ale tax. I resent shelling out over £3 for a substandard pint, regardless of where I am or who I'm with. As such, I stick rigidly to what I consider to be the very best pubs where I'm virtually guaranteed to enjoy myself and get perceived value for money.

This coming Saturday, a chum from my days at Leicester Uni has arranged an old boys' meet-up at Waxy O' Connor's in London's Piccadilly Circus. My heart sank when I read the emailed itinerary. I have only ever walked through the place before and I wasn't tempted to stop. It's looks about as "plastic paddy" as they come and (for those who have successfully avoided it to date) even has a huge synthetic tree in the middle of the pub. From what I can gather, they sell nothing resembling ale or good beer so I'm stuck in that most unpleasant of dilemmas over which nitro keg option to select as the lesser of all evils. If I drink wine or spirits I'll end up on my arse like all the other disillusioned fools who favour these sorts of places.

As I pondered my options another message arrived in my inbox. It would seem that Charles Foster's 10 Reasons to Drink Real Ale has been doing the rounds for some time now and this wasn't the first time I had been sent it. As a whole the article is rather smug and twatty, as you might expect. Although, some of the points do ring true. I particularly like the following comparison:

"Many a drinker has been put off real ale drinking after a visit to a pub which doesn't understand real ale. But to go back to keg beer is like opting for a lifetime of necrophilia because of one nasty experience with a living human being."

At least if I go with the lowest possible expectations I can't be disappointed. For one night only, bring on the corpses...

Dubbel

*Nitrophilia is defined as a love of nitrogen.