March 2013

Mar 30 2013

Allgates’ The Road To Wigan Beer 29/03/2013

Until a couple of weeks ago, I hadn’t visited an Allgates Brewery pub. Come to think of it, I hadn’t had a beer in Wigan at all! That day, I went in two really good pubs, one of which was The Anvil, Allgates’ pub in the centre of Wigan.

Whilst I was there, David Mayhall (the brewery owner) passed me a leaflet called ‘The Road To Wigan Beer’ (pun intended).

EPSON MFP image

The idea being that Allgates would have a beer festival lasting 11 days, spread across their whole estate of 7 pubs, all based around the Wigan area. Having been in precisely NO Allgates pubs previously, this festival gave me all the excuse that I needed. So, roping my good buddies Jaz & Col in, we find ourselves on the 13:04 train from Walkden to Wigan for the first stop….

The Anvil

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(pic – qype.co.uk)

Further to the previous visit, damn this was busy again! This may have had something to do with being Good Friday and the Wigan v St Helens derby match!!! Timing could have been better, but it was a fantastic atmosphere – which was helped by the fact that Wigan were winning.

Three drinking areas. A large area off to the right of the entrance, the main drinking area / lobby – which is in front of the bar and a smaller area to the left of the bar, where we sat. The frontage gives the impression that the inside may be older than it actually is. But it is a modern layout and look and is perfectly comfortable and welcoming, with friendly locals. It has also won a SHEDLOAD of Awards……

20130329_140122(Wall of Fame Pt 1 !)

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(Wall of Fame Pt 2! I couldn’t fit them all in one shot!)

As stated, it was damned busy. However, most were watching the Rugby, so the bar was easily gained. Colin went for the Redwillow Faithless XIX whilst Jaz & I opted for the Arbor Ales Oyster Stout at 4.6% abv. What a lovely beer! Slight hint of coffee in the aroma, but in the mouth? Oh joy! Lovely dark roasted flavour with more than a hint of the briny about it. A glorious pint.

Next round was mine. Jaz & Col opted for pints of Allgates All Black Mild, whilst I chose a beer from Redwillow, the previously mentioned Faithless XIX. One of the brewer’s experimental series of beers, I’m not sure as to what is in this beer to render it one of the Faithless range, but it was a golden beer at 3.6% abv. A nice citrus aroma and a refreshing gently bitter citrus flavour with grapefruit hints. A really nice beer that could be drunk repeatedly. However…places to go and pubs to see!

I like The Anvil…a lot. And that’s after only two visits. A deservedly popular town centre pub, with the feel of a local. Ultra reasonable beer prices as well, the guests being around £2.50 or less. If this is how Allgates have their pubs run………speaking of which……We move on, to…..

The Hare & Hounds

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This was where the £3.80 return train ticket started to pay its way! Timing our departure perfectly from The Anvil, a 5 minute train journey and a 5 minute walk away. Located approximately 400 yards south of Hindley train station on Ladies Lane, this is what I would describe as a traditional type local.

2 main drinking areas here. The bar is to the right on entry complete with a good sized drinking area. To the left, is another area, open to the bar area, but distinctly separate.

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Large TV screen on the wall to the left of the bar. Also, the welcome sight of a dartboard. Another really friendly welcome with chatty locals and staff. 4 or 5 ales to choose from including 2 from Allgates (Mosaic & All Black).

My first beer choice here was all too easy. West Coast Blonde Pale Ale from Stringers. Stringers produce two of my favourite bottled beers with Dry Stout & IPA, however, I had never had their beer on draught. This was soon remedied with this golden beer. A citrus zest aroma followed by a nice hoppy bitter beer with a hint – of all things – orange. A nice pint.

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(Nice touch on a cold day!)

The real fire warmed my back at this point and was most welcome. Next beer for me was Black Port by Blackedge Brewery of Horwich at 4.9% abv. I’d had the Black before, but not the Black Port. A stout made with an addition of port. The beer is as black as sin with a tan head and an alluring boozy aroma (the port?) The flavour was simply ‘right up my street’. A lovely smooth mouthfeel, with roasted malts, chocolaty with a slight blackcurrant tinge, roasted, chocolate winey bliss. I think I like it.

We got carried away with chat (or was it that Col was delaying us in the hope of a Bristol Beer Factory Milk Stout?) and we missed the next train. Hey ho, a pint of Redemption Pale Ale please! A nice bitter pint, some citrus in the mouth (orange peel?) with a nice dry aftertaste.

Where I live, there are NO decent locals. I would do time to have one like this! A really good pub. Much as we could have stayed, The Bristol Milk Stout wasn’t a-coming, so time for that train ticket to pay its way….on to….

The Jolly Nailor

Jolly Nailor

(pic – nwb.co)

This was a fair walk from Atherton train station, a good 15 minutes I’d say. Located on Market Street, this is another pub with 3 drinking areas. The bar area doubles as a large foyer with some tables and lots of space. To the left of the bar is a nice looking room with lots of tables. To the right of the bar is a larger room which seems to double as a performance space. As we entered, there was a rock band tuning up. Good sound, but flipping loud!

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6 beers on handpull, Thwaites Wainwright, Allgates Pride of Atherton and California with 3 further guests. Tryst Brewery Raj IPA, Dark Star Darkness and Mallinsons Tammie Norie. My first was the Mallinsons.

Golden pale beer, citrus aroma. Nice bitter citrus flavours, grapefruit up there again from the use of Newport (American) hops. 3.9% abv and a lovely refreshing pint at this stage of proceedings!

Next (and finally) Darkness from DarkStar. A black IPA at 3.5%. As with all of that style, a confounding – yet stunning – beer. Lovely darkness (as you could’ve guessed!) with a sharp citrus bitterness, yet roasted coffee in the aftertaste. Gorgeous flavours from such a light beer.

As for the pubs, each offered something different. What they all had in common was excellent beer, served well. Friendly staff and customers and all the pubs looked nice,  well maintained and attractively decorated. A very marginal preference for the Hare & Hounds (and I mean marginal!), nice warm fire and well-behaved dogs allowed. Nice touch.

The beer? I am a darks man, so I’ll err that way. Little between the Blackedge Black Port, DarkStar Darkness and Arbor Oyster Stout. Going back over my notes, I won’t separate them! Again, each different, but all exceptional. As were the pales too.

Allgates have 7 pubs. I’ve now been in three (and hope to do two more this week). All good well maintained pub, friendly locals and service with superb prices.

A winning formula!

Next up? Pubs with Jukeboxes I think! On that note…’til next time.

Slainte!

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Mar 27 2013

Captured! – A Visit To Privateer Beers 26/03/2013

A few month ago, I was introduced to the beer made by Privateer Beers by Tom at The Salford Arms (A great place for good beer!). The beer was dark, seductive and damned tasty. That beer was called Dark Revenge. I had been abducted by The Privateer. Subsequently, I had the Roebuck, a paler beer at another excellent drinkerie, Joshua Brooks. Another excellent beer, brewed in the centre of Manchester, no less! I had to learn more.

After a brief, but fun and informative chat in Sand Bar (where Privateer supply the ‘house beer’ Tarantula) last week with the owner, Matt , I find a tweet inviting myself and (arch-nemesis) Jaz to pop along to the brewery! This was almost Vito Corleone territory…..as if I could refuse…….

20130326_185644(Insert own pirate related pun ….here)

Good grief…it was weather for ‘brass monkeys’. This was amplified by both the walk from Piccadilly and the fact that the streets off Fairfield Street are like wind tunnels. Eventually, we crossed the Mancunian Way onto the other side of the aptly named Temperance Street, where young Matt has his brewing playground!

As well as ironically locating a brewery on Temperance Street (in an arch under the railway line at No 80), one of the great things here, is that Matt built the brewery. Once the building was sourced in early 2012, he spent 6 months or so building the kit, testing etc. Brewed by himself and Peter Curran (ex brewer at Moorhouses of Burnley), the beers were released into the wild in about October 2012 and are served in a number of pubs in the area. They have also travelled as far as Kent, Berkshire, Suffolk, London and the North East. Impressive from a standing start less than 6 months ago! I personally have had the beers in 4 bars in the area and they have been uniformly superb. This makes my ‘Drink Local’ philosophy a joy!

All of the engineering, plumbing etc is his handiwork. And mightily impressive it is too! Five main vessels in here, the hot liquor tank and mash tun (where the malted barley is steeped in hot liquor to make the sugary stuff – wort), which then goes to the ‘copper’ (brewing vessel – where the hops impart their distinct aromas and flavours) and two fermenting vessels (where the yeast gets to play and make the beer!)

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(Hot Liquor – water – Tank & Mash Tun)

The copper is 6 1/2 Bbl (beer barrels – 1 = 36 Gallons), which means that each ‘brew’ can be as much as nearly 1900 pints. Breaking this down, this means that they can produce 26 x 9 gallon firkins (the cask that goes to the pubs) for each brew. Each brew is transferred from the copper to the Fermenting Vessels (FVs) where the yeast does its job – sometimes TOO vigorously!

20130326_190057(The Copper and 2 FVs – Those glasses didn’t stay empty for long!)

Once you include the empty casks and those that are filled and ready to move, you soon learn that they make the most out of this small space. The space above the office is used to store hops and empty casks. There is a small room to the right of the cooling unit which is used as the malt store. This place is compact and, for the time being, does the job.

Matt (Jervis, the owner) is a very entertaining and convivial host and gave a chat about the beers, a brief history of the brewery and answered some questions whilst showing off his baby – the  brewery itself. His brewing ‘mission’ is to brew tasty beer at a strength no greater than 5% abv. This is admirable at a time when many brewers seem to equate flavour with high strength and massively hopped beers. On occasions, I like those beers too, but mostly I want a beer that is balanced, that I can taste without falling over every second pint. In my experience, this is what Privateer do. And do well.

The beers are also, currently, all cask conditioned. Huzzah!

The current core range consists of Roebuck (an amber brew, nicely hopped with Centennial hops) at 3.8% abv; Dainty Blonde (a pale, blonde beer) at 4.2% abv and Dark Revenge (a strong Mild) at 4.5%. This is augmented by the house beer made for Sand Bar on Grosvenor Street, a 3.5% Mild called Tarantula, which is delicious.

Now. For the beer……..

Matt had tapped two 9s. One of Dainty Blonde and one of a new brew (which will be added to the core range) called Red Duke, a red beer at 4.8% abv. Being there first, myself and Jaz had the pleasure of having the Dainty Blonde to ourselves! A lovely, smooth blonde beer. Well balanced, nicely hopped with Amarillo hops for a nice slightly citrus aroma with a gentle bitterness.

As we finished our Blonde, a number of other guests arrived including Graham and Lin from Bolton CAMRA Branch and a group of local amateur brewers. The conversations started to flow (as did the beer). Then we were introduced to the Red Duke. Matt acknowledged that this wasn’t the reddest of reds, but it was red enough in comparison with the Dainty Blonde.

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(Blonde meets the Red)

The Red Duke is a red/brown beer which has a maltier base that the Blonde. A slightly more complex beer with flavours of toffee and caramel in there nicely offset with the American (Centennial & Amarillo) hops. Jaz enjoyed it and told me that I would too. He wasn’t wrong either (he knows me FAR too well!)

One of the ambitions that Matt has is ‘Vertical Integration’ (my words). Matt has run a pub or two and there is total sense in the quality control afforded by controlling everything from grain to glass. I hope they get themselves a bar soon as I like his philosophy around drinking  and I’d like to see the results.

Other than Graham and Matt (obviously Jaz!), I hadn’t met any of the other people there before. I personally had some excellent and fun chats with a few of the brewers group who knew their beers (and far more than me about how they are made!!!). Good people, who I’m sure I’ll meet again. I would like to try real home brewing at some point, but I think I’d need to extend my house first! (And hide the kit from my darling Atilla!)

Before I realised it, it was 22:50 and I had to get to my chariot (at latest) by 23:40! So a hasty but heartfelt thanks to Matt, a quick cheerio to everyone else and myself, Jaz and Simon (met tonight for first time!) hot footed to Port Street for a quick sleeping draught. I wanted a Stout, but the thought of having to quickly drink a Thornbridge St Petersburg simply terrified me, so ….

Quantum – Keyworths Early. An excellent and slightly complex beer from Mr Krause! Don’t know what the hops are in this but a nice fruity dryness to the finish. Another brewery without a mis-step for me!

Was nice to put some faces to twitter names last night, including seeing David from Sweden late on in Port Street. Unfortunbaately far too late to have a chat due to rushing for the chariot home!

Once again, an excellent evening. Some good beer lubricating some really good chatting. Isn’t this what beer is all about?

Now, when was that lovely T-Shirt being made in XXL, Matt?

Slainte!

Recent Bottle Tastings

Just 3 to point out from recent sampling.

  • Tandle Hill by Wilson Potter 3.9% abv (Direct from the Brewers – £7 for 3 500 ml bottles)

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A golden coloured, bottle conditioned beer with lively carbonation. A floral hoppy aroma. A dry and refreshingly bitter beer with a lingering grassy fresh dry aftertaste. Looking forward to getting some more soon. Superb local brewer. Would LOVE to see their beer on draught in Manchester.

  • Green Devil IPA by Oakham Brewery 6%abv (£3.50 for 660ml from Brewery Tap P.H. in Peterborough)

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I have some friends in Peterborough. My buddy Rob was popping down to see them, so, it felt like an opportunity to source this beer. As it happens, he got the last two from the pub shelves. They themselves were unsure as to next time they’ll get it in. Oakham aren’t even sure about the next time they’ll bottle it!

Anyway, this golden coloured bottle conditioned beer gave out an abundant tropical citrus smell with pineapple and some pink grapefruit. Lovely! Nice, sharp and bitter with some more tropical stuff in the taste, pineapple and grapefruit again upfront. Really smooth with a lingering dry fruitiness. This was like a souped up Citra with extra warming properties. Some complexity in the aftertaste, grassyness and I thought a touch of something darker like a herby licorice. Some peachy too. Bugger it, maybe my senses are shot! A damn fine beer.

  • Dry Stout by Stringers Brewery 4.5% abv (£2.19 for 500ml from Booths at Media City, Salford)

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I can’t believe I’ve never rated this superb stout before! I always grab a couple of bottles of this when I go to Booths, as well as their equally superb IPA.

A carbon black beer with a tan head. A gorgeous earthy dark roasty aroma. Loads of roasted malt flavours with a touch of smokiness and a dry bitter finish. This is one of my favourite bottled stouts. Unfortunately, I’m still yet to have it on draught. I live in hope. If anybody notices this on draught within 20 miles of Bolton, TWEET ME!!!

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Mar 16 2013

Historic Manchester Pubs – Part 1 – 15/03/2013

The final day of my week off. An old pal of mine – now resident in Perth, Western Oz – was in town. This gave me more than an excuse to sally forth to Manchester. Also an excuse to do some of the older pubs from my youth the “Historic Pubs”, I’ve been threatening for so long!

Passing up the chance to watch The Cheltenham Gold Cup (I backed the winner, seeing as you’re asking!), I acceded to my old pals request to meet in……

The Kings Arms

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(Sure there was daylight when I entered!)

Located on Bloom Street, just off Chapel Street (A6), this particular building dates from the 1870s and is a gorgeous old structure – standing proud whilst almost surrounded by newer residential flat developments – and is opposite the lovely old Salford Corporations Gas Offices. (The pub – apparently – was originally sited opposite!)

I’ve loved this pub since it was an old Higsons House (A Liverpool brewer pub in Salford!). A brief perusal of t’interweb has some images with some Higsons detail.

The Kings has an odd layout with a main room which curves (slightly) around the bar. There is a separate serving hatch to the right as you enter with a nice sized room opposite (last time we came in, this was where the ‘Knitting Club’ were pearling for England!). The main room feels (but isn’t) cavernous. Excellent jukebox (Music being a big feature of this pub) and a number of great 7″ single picture sleeves adorn the walls. Each time I come to the pub, I notice some I hadn’t seen before! (Dad? What’s a 7″ single?)

20130315_153646(The Bar)

Walking into the bar, I spy my old (ex-pat) buddy. “Ah! Bunty!!!” (The names have been changed, to protect the innocent). Before we could chat properly, there was an issue to address….Blackedge Brewery IPA. 6 beers on the bar, but “drink local”! Slightly hazy and golden in colour with gentle citrus on the nose. Spritzy and refreshing with lemon and gentle grapefruit on the tongue. A nice start at 4.2% from this Horwich brewer.

20130315_153658(Main Room)

Joined by Jaz at this point, conversation was flowing (3 years or so to catch up on!) as was the beer. Next up was Bhuoys With The Black Stuff (sic) from Glossop’s own Howard Town Brewery. A dark porter with a creamy head. Nice roasted flavours, really smooth texture, light coffee flavours with a slight bitter twist in the tail. So nice that I had another!

My old mucker had places to go, as did I, so we split up at this point. He headed for them there hills, whilst – keeping with the “historic” theme, myself and Jaz headed towards……..

The Wellington

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Situated on Shambles Square in Manchester city centre (facing Selfridges / Harvey Nichols), this is an old building still umbilically linked to another pub, Sinclairs Oyster Bar. These pubs have been painstakingly physically relocated twice. The latter move necessitated (!!!) by the need to increase the footprint of the new (post IRA bombing) Marks & Spencer development.

Both pubs butt onto a further pub The Olde Mitre and all three sit in the shadow not only of the facing retail behemoths, but also Manchester Cathedral. They all share an open drinking area (plastic glasses only), which tonight was thronged with drinkers.

Both buildings apparently date from the 17th Century, making them some of the oldest buildings in the city. Now my family have a connection to this pub. Whilst researching my family tree, before my Dad passed away a couple of years ago, a family memory passed down about my granddad Chambers having a fishing tackle shop in the old Shambles. A trawl through the internet revealed that the shop was situated above The Old Wellington.

Will Chambers Fishing Tackle (2)(Here it is. Family History!)

(pic – courtesy of Manchester Records Office)

The Wellington has a tudor look frontage and has lots of wood and low beams in the single room bar area. There is an upstairs room, which is very popular, and also has low beams and loads of wood.

20130315_184930(Busy)

4 ales on the bar I think. I opted for a brewery I’ve never had before Andwell from Hampshire and their Spring Magic at 4.4%. A nice pale beer, lemon sherbet aroma with a light lemon citrus flavour. A nice beer. Prices go up a notch here to £3.60 a pint. Nice beer, but at that price……the next logical port of call is attached….

Sinclairs Oyster Bar

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Walked in. No ale. All kegs & bottles. I had a bottle of Oatmeal Stout which I instantly regretted as it was too sweet. Whilst I love this ramshackle old building, I won’t be back in a hurry. 3 distinct drinking areas downstairs. A narrow stairway takes you upstairs. Being told that it was rammed up there, I didn’t venture a peep. From memory though, there is another bar up there and a nice long open room offering a nice view across the square. Again, lots of dark wood. Low ceilings. Main bar area is vertical drinking and incredibly busy.

20130315_190540(side room)

There is a small room just off the rear of the bar which fills very quickly as it has the only low seats downstairs.

Don’t get me wrong. I love this pub. Many a weekend night out started in Sinclairs, even if Old Brewery Bitter was never to my taste. It’s a gorgeous old building which appears to have survived its moves without massive compromises. It’s also really busy. It attracts lots of people and trades on its history. It has its market. This just no longer includes me, I’m afraid.

http://manchesterhistory.net/manchester/tours/tour4/area4page11.html is an interesting site with lots of images of Shambles past and present.

The Hare & Hounds

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Grade II listed, this is another beautiful old boozer. My “stag” do finished up in here where we stared in horror when Salvatore Schillaci ended Irish World Cup hopes in 1990. Moving swiftly on…..


 20130315_193803(lobby and bar)

Large tiled lobby area, lots of wood again. A gorgeous entrance. 3 downstairs room (inc the lobby) served from a central bar. The Multi-roomed pub feels like a diminishing breed. Walls tiled with a dark brown tile, possibly not to everyone’s tastes, but works for me. Another pub that feels like a real local in the heart of the city, it’s great that such things still exist. Really friendly customers.

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(rear room)

Holts Bitter was mothers milk for juveniles of my vintage. (That and Tim Taylors Landlord) It was a lovely (if occasionally variable in quality) and uncompromisingly bitter brew. I’m unsure as to what has happened, but I haven’t had a great pint of Holts Bitter for years – and I’ve drunk it in a few pubs.

Recipe change? Whatever has happened, the beer (to me) wasn’t bad, it is now bland and anonymous. Shame. This bitter used to MEAN Manchester beer to me. Not anymore. There is far better to be drunk nearby. Scenic, friendly? Yes indeed. A classic pub, with underwhelming beer. I needed a palate cleanser…….

Port Street Beer House

A Mini Jaunt in Manchester - 21/09/2012(Recycled pic alert!)

(Not so) Old Faithful. A reliably good pint served by young bar staff who know their trade. Tonight, I was lured with some false intel. That Jarl by Fyne Ales was on the bar. BUM! Never mind, the same brewery’s Hurricane Jack was on. Pale as a supermodel, zingy as a zingy thing. 4.4% abv, fresh grapefruit hoppy aroma, grapefruit and sherbet lemon in the mouth. Startlingly refreshing and simply superb after some of the dross I had just drunk. Restoring my faith in the brewing arts.

Next beer was from Great Heck in East Yorkshire. Blonde at 4.3% abv. Another refreshing pale ale, nice citrus flavours and very drinkable. Two Great Hecks on last night. Jaz had Powermouse by them and that was lush as well. First time I’ve seen their beers in a pub and hopefully not the last. Just time for a couple more historic pubs (gasp!)….

The Crown & Kettle

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Another stunning building dating from the early 19th century, with a wealth of outstanding details and features within. Multi-roomed as well!  Another Grade II listed pub. That this pub was shut for 16 years until 2005 is heinous! It is simply gorgeous…get the picture? Speaking of pictures….

20130315_212822(The bar)

As reported previously, 3 distinct rooms each with their own feel. It seems somehow wrong to comment on the beer served within, but….Red Rat from Rat Brewery at 4.2% abv. Unsurprisingly a red beer, made with Simcoe hops. Lovely and bitter, sharp with aromas you would expect from Simcoe, powerful grapefruit, apricot, grassy as well. A fabulous beer in a fabulous pub, where, shamefully, it was easy to get a seat! Some superb Northern Soul again in here….fancy starting an All-Nighter guys? Exiting through the door below (gratuitous picture link!)…….

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The Castle

Castle

(pic – beerintheevening.com)

Another late 18th century pub. The tiled frontage leads you into the mosaic floor tiled bar area. Simply lovely. Another pub that’s a favourite from my youth, the new owners have done a tremendous job restoring this building and improving it massively. Now (with the opening of the room upstairs) a 4 roomed pub – including the performance area – it is justly busy and has a great jukebox (even if some of the 80s selections last night weren’t to my taste!).

20130315_222809(busy bar area)

This is tied into Robinsons Brewery but always has 2 or 3 has some interesting guests. The choice tonight was Titanic Brewery’s Longitude. I will hopefully try this beer again, because, whilst a nice pint with hop flavour, I could get a touch of sweetness and at this stage of the evening, I needed something more assertive. Nice pint, wrong time.

To sum up. ALL the pubs I went in had something to recommend them. ALL were busy and – therefore – catering to their given audience. There are some stunning historical pubs in Manchester that serve beer that I DO like. As one of my conversations yesterday went…this is all about personal taste and opinions. Mine are not necessarily better than yours. If you disagree, comment. In the words of the Manic Street Preachers album – This Is My Truth, Tell Me Yours!

More historic walks for the future and I will listen to suggestions. On that note……’til next time.

Slainte!

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Mar 14 2013

A Surprise or Two in Wigan! 13/03/2013

Having ventured out into Bolton on Sunday, I was in the midddle of my week off. I had done a few chores and was feeling content with my efforts. I’d even had a couple of (small) winners at my beloved Cheltenham Festival. So, it was with no guilt whatsoever that I stepped on the train to Wigan with my old friend Col.

I have been promising myself some Allgates beers for some time now. You don’t get them all that often in Manchester (I was to find part of the reason for that later on), so, after a chat on Sunday evening with Col, we decided – with us both having the week off work – to pop to Wigan on Wednesday. £3.80 and a 20 odd minute train journey later, we were walking up Wallgate in Wigan.

Now then, I have only been in Wigan town centre once. I hadn’t a clue where any place was. Col pointed to the left. Up a side alley was my first surprise of the day, Allgates Brewery. My but that place is tucked away! The second surprise was how close we were to the first recommendation I’d had from a number of people via Twitter (thanks Roy & Hannah!), this was……

The Raven

The Raven(pic courtesy – wigan.gov.uk)

Walking in, what a lovely pub! Staff were friendly, 8 ales on the bar (all from local micros), what a good start! I ordered myself a pint of Old School Brewery Detention and Col a Burscough Priory Gold. The OSB Detention was a nice fruity bitter with a gentle hedgerow fruit aroma and nice hoppy dryness in the finish. At 4.1% abv, a sensible and nice start. Especially at £1.95 a pint (Wednesday was a special offer on ales, all £1.95 a pint – yet another nice surprise!)

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(Nice selection – Three others inc two darks!)

Had a little look around the pub. Nice big dining room to the rear. Lots of period (ooh, get me!) features, loads of wood, a couple of nooks to sit in (which we did).

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(Dining Room)

Some nice food on offer in here. Feeling peckish, we both had a stew and dumplings at £8 for two. Really tasty, filling and nice tender meat with nary a saddle in sight! Col popped to the bar and furnished me with a pint of Burscough Mere Blonde. 4% abv, golden colour, sherbet lemon like aroma. Gently hoppy with some herbal notes. Nice refreshing beer.

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(Nice period fireplace)

From what I heard later, The Raven has recently re-opened after being closed for some years. It has had a bit of a refurb and from what I can see, they’ve done a grand job.

Well. Here comes Surprise #4!

Whilst in The Raven, I received a tweet from David Mayhall, partner/owner of Allgates Brewery – who was nearby – inviting me in for a look around the brewery! As previously stated, I share ONE trait with Oscar Wilde, being able to resist anything except temptation. In that spirit, Col and I headed off to The Anvil to meet him.

Located in The Old Brewery in Brewery Yard off Wallgate, this is a surprising building, with a VERY small footprint!

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(As Father Ted said to Dougal – “This is small…that’s far away!’)

If you want to read the interesting back story of the brewery, they can tell it better than I can, so visit http://www.allgatesbrewery.com/brewery/about_us/

Anyhow, the brewery is approached through a narrow alleyway directly off Wigan’s Wallgate and is about 2 minutes from the platforms of Wallgate train station.

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(As you can see, a bit narrow!)

As said above, this building isn’t huge, so every available square foot that they are allowed to use IS used, from sub floor level barrel storage to the higher floor level grist case and everywhere in between!

David introduced us to Jonathan (the Head Brewer) and they both explained that this is a Tower brewery with a 5 BBL (beer barrel – 36 Gallons) brew length and can brew several times a day. With 6 fermenting vessels and seven conditioning vessels, they are running at full capacity. Any further expansion of capacity would probably necessitate a move to a new location, which would be a shame, because this is an atmospheric old building!

Using predominantly Maris Otter malted barley for their pale beers and a variety of malts for the darker stuff they chiefly hop with US and (to a lesser extent) New Zealand hops, the New World stuff (as you will know) imparting sharper more tropical aromas and flavours. David explained that they are placing a greater focus on native hops and this year are brewing a series of monthly specials of single hop beers using UK varieties. 

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(Mash Tun)

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(The sugary/malty stuff then goes here. Where Mr Hop gets a look in!)

The nature and age of the Grade 2 building makes the entire brewing process reliant on this being a manual operation almost from start to finish, including hoisting the weekly ton deliveries of malt from ground floor up three floors via trap doors at each level.

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(2 of the 6 FVs)

Allgates brew a number of different beers a week (including some periodic seasonal and specials). Whilst we were there, the ongoing brew was All Black (a mild with NZ hops). In the Fermenting Vessels (FVs) were a variety of brews including Florida (brewed with Lubelski hops – a nice orange/tangerine hint, v refreshing), Pretoria and Double Espresso, with their own sourced Brazilian Coffee (lovely and smooth with a gloriously rich coffee flavour).

We tried a number of other beers at various stages of maturity and I was surprised when none of them were harsh. All were smooth and some had a lot of the hop character you would expect in a completely ‘tap ready’ beer!

20130313_145841(Conditioning Vessels/Tanks)

A quick look into where the ‘formal’ brewery tours end up, complete with bar. During the day this doubles up as the office, Cheryl , another one of the staff, was very friendly. She is the lady who puts the pump clips on their own ‘wall of fame’ (my term!), but she’s hardly Amazonian and can only reach so high! (There were still some to be put up, but she couldn’t reach!)

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(Now THAT’s a Pumpclip Parade! – With apologies to Jeff Pickthall!)

Finally, down to ground level. This is where there is a further FV and some conditioning tanks (they really prefer to condition in the brewery prior to casking and release to the pubs). In the back were returned casks ready for cleaning and- in a separate room, the casks of guest beers that they have ordered for their very own festival!

This festival starts in a couple of weeks and is to be held held across the Allgates estate of 7 pubs. I saw some of the barrels and there are some crackers lined up. I was really surprised to see a cask of Redwillow Faithless XXI in there. I didn’t know that they’d got past XIX! The line up (as you can see) is pretty much a ‘Who’s Who’ of the UK craft brewing scene.

EPSON MFP image

I also now know why I don’t see much Allgates in Manchester. Dave told me that they virtually sell everything they brew through their own 7 pubs! As I said earlier, brewing 6 days a week, they are virtually working full belt. This is – as they emphasise on their website – essentially keeping the product local. This works two ways. Firstly, it keeps the carbon footprint of the whole operation low, less transportation. It also keeps costs down (a point I will example later) which filters down to you, the customer.

Saying that, this is still run as business (unlike some of the 1k + breweries knocking about) and makes money, which is good to see. Some of this may go into a small amount of estate expansion in the future. (Can I have one in Bolton, please?)

Finishing up at the brewery, we got out of Jonathan’s hair and headed off to The Anvil (again, 2 minutes walk) where our gracious host bought us a beer. Allgates All Black for me and a Mosaic for Col. David is a really nice bloke with a hell of a handshake grip (be warned!), I really enjoyed our chat and thanked him for this most unexpected brewery tour and for the patience required in answering mine and Cols questions!

The Anvil

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(pic – qype.co.uk)

Located on Dorning Street just 2 minutes from the brewery. Substantial looking pub close to both bus and rail stations. Interior more recent, with an open plan layout, but 3 distinct areas (+ unvisited beer garden). Clean and modern with lots of notices and pictures on the walls, including their multitude of CAMRA awards (and others!)

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(bar area)

Now then. Whereas The Raven was reasonably quiet, this place was as busy as a chippy! Virtually all the seating was occupied.Luckily, thanks to one of the chatty regulars, a more senior gent named Harry, we got a seat near the telly (and the all important day 2 of the Cheltenham Festival!)

20130313_165404(The CAMRA and Cask Marque Awards – and there were more out of shot!)

There were 6 ales on the bar I think. 1 from Black Jack (nice to see), Hydes Original (popular it seems) 2 from Allgates, Phoenix Arizona and a beer from Abbeydale of Sheffield. I stuck with the Allgates. Initially, I had the All Black that David bought me. A superbly smooth mild at 3.6% abv. Nice tan coloured creamy head on a black body, nice latte aroma from the head leading to a smooth dark roast flavour with but a hint of bitterness from the NZ hop varieties used (hence the ALL Black!). A really nice beer, up there with Bank Top Dark Mild for me!

Next up was the Mosaic. A really pale brew this. Instant tropical citrus aromas from the glass, grapefruit and mango. Lovely and bitter with a nice smooth grapefruit tinge again, much more subtle and smooth than the nose hinted at. A really refreshing pint. Having a great chat with Harry (who was a dab hand with magic tricks!) Col showed him a couple of card tricks. Damned if I could figure out how he did it! Of course, with all this going on, I simply HAD to have another pint of Mosaic, didn’t I? Col had a Black Jack which he enjoyed.

Pricing? This is where keeping the beer local kicks in. The Mosaic  was about £2.30 a pint, the All Black slightly cheaper. Superb value arrived at by keeping your costs down (transportation) and passing the saving on. All that, whilst using premium ingredients!

We tried the John Bull Chophouse, on a couple of recommendations. It was empty. Just the smell of paint and a smiling barman. Just finished a refurb, the ale (2 from Thwaites – inc Wainwrights – and an Elgoods) weren’t quite ready. Pub looks nice though.

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(Maybe next time eh?)

Saying our goodbyes to Harry, we moved on back toward the train station, stopping in the Moon Under Water on the way. I had a 3Bs Honey Bee whilst Col had a Coach House Blueberry. The rest of the selecction was uninspiring, with no darks. The 3Bs was a nice (slightly sweet – from the honey) beer which was probably the best shout. With hindsight, should have stayed in The Anvil for another!

Whilst we only went in 3 pubs in Wigan, the day was full of surprises and highly enjoyable. A town to which I will return. My next mission? To visit all 7 Allgates pubs!

On that note….’til next time…

Slainte!

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Mar 11 2013

A quiet (!) night in Bolton – 10/03/2013

Having a weeks holiday booked has its advantages. One of which, is the chance to do something unusual. That is, to pop out for a pint in the town I now call home, Bolton, Lancashire.

The Lancashire bit is important. Bolton, historically being a mill town, has always felt like part of Lancashire. It is, despite what those bureaucrats did with their Greater Manchester construct, a Lancashire town.

That’s the good bit over. Bolton can also be a dodgy place to socialise of an evening. I know of some horror stories which have kept me out of Bolton for over a year. But hey, give every dog a chance!

Tonight, my buddy Colin and I decided to just do a couple of pubs and try a place we’ve not been in for over 20 years, The Dog & Partridge – about which I had been heaaring good things on the beer front.

Keeping it simple, we started off in Bolton’s lone Wetherspoons – The Spinning Jenny.

A typical Wetherspoon, but with a couple of separate spaces/(almost) rooms. My darling Atilla is none too fond of this place, thinking it a bit shabby and tired. I see what she says, but beer quality can overcome a lot for me. I can count on the fingers of one hand the ‘Spoons in which I’ve never had a bad pint. This is one of them.

Approaching the bar, I spotted two dark beers, including a Beartown, but my eyes were drawn to the other side of the bar, where lurked the mighty NZPA from Hawkshead Brewery. Not the smartest of moves at 6% abv, but it just had to be done. Especially with my CAMRA discount vouchers bringing the price down to £1.79! Outrageous!!!

Potent and massively citrus in aroma (owing to those 4 New Zealand Hops). Flavours of apricot and grapefruit coat the tongue and party in the mouth. A truly superb beer. Another belter from Hawkshead.

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(A Fireplace? In a ‘Spoons?)

The chance for another presented itself, so I hit the Beartown Black Bear at 5%abv. A strong mild (no kidding!). Some fruit on the nose with nice dark roasted flavours in the mouth. Quite thin in texture for a 5%, but nice roast tapering off into a touch of sweet/sour. Probably a bad idea straight after the NZPA!!! Will look to try this again elsewhere.

Moving on now. I had been in contact with Graham from the local CAMRA branch and arranged to have a pint in the Dog & Partridge – a pub we used to frequent as a Thwaites pub over 20 years ago.

Dog & Partridge

Image

(pic – Google)

Located on Bank Street, just down the slope from the famous Prestons of Bolton. Never the most glamourous of locations, but (a plus for me) a defined multi-roomed pub. A large space off to the right – used tonight for live acoustic music. A small snug type room with a larger room at the back, which is where we sat.

Looking across the bar, my eyes lighted on Hop from Blackedge Brewery of Horwich.

A 3.8 %abv pale brew. Some citrus on the nose. Didn’t get (what I would call) much citrus in the mouth, but what I did get was a wonderful dry hoppyness, really clean and refreshing. I had this a couple of months back in the New Oxford and didn’t quite get it. I now know different. Superb session beer.

Then had a Moorhouses Black Cat. OK, but not at its best. When it is, it’s a superb beer. Possibly coming toward the barrel end methinks. Some roasted character in there, but a slight sourness. As I said, not bad, just not perfect either.

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(The REAL ‘King’ of Rock n’ Roll!)

Quite enjoyed the folky/rock strains coming through from the other room. This particular Dog is looking a bit shaggy now, but some interesting ‘Muriels’ (I love a good Hilda Ogden malapropism!) reflecting the pubs musical slant. That said, I’ll be back. 2 or 3 good beer venues close by.

Nice friendly barman as well. Asked for tasters, instantly provided. Nice.

Other beers on included Thwaites Wainwights and Bank Top Flat Cap. Good selection for a small venue.

Moving on, Colin fancied nipping into Barristers for a pint. Who am I to deny him!

Barristers

Attached to the much larger Swan Hotel at the end of Bradshawgate, this has been a bit of a real ale haven for a number years now. It’s previous name of ‘The Malt & Hops Bar’ giving the game away.

Barristers

(pic – courtesy of beerintheevening.com)

A one room bar, with an internal courtyard which leads to the facilities (contained within the aforementioned Swan). The bar has a bit of a Victorian look to it with a lot of wood in evidence. The room curves around the bar with more than adequate seating available, including a couple of nooks with some comfy chairs.

Looking for something dark, my eyes hit upon Double Stout by Hook Norton. At 4.8% abv, I’ve had this in bottle and thought it OK. Time for draught. Mmmmmm! Black, creamy head, some coffee notes on the nose. Lovely dark malty flavours, reminiscent of overdone buttery toast. Gorgeous and vying for ‘pint of the night’ with the Hawkshead!

£6.70 for three pints was none too shabby either!

At this point we bade farewell to Graham who had a bus to catch. Only 5 minutes later did I realise why, 11:10! Good grief, where did the hours go? An excellent and interesting beery related chat, was nice to meet him. Who knows, I might start to pop out to some Branch Meetings soon!

At this point (and against all my better judgement!) Colin dragged me (kicking and screaming) back into The Spinning Mule. Another NZPA? Who am I to say no!

A pleasant evening – even when accosted by an over refreshed guy in the Spoons earlier!

On that note….

Slainte!

A Few Bottle Tastings

Just a couple of nice ones so far this month.

1. Rudgate Chocolate Stout 5% abv – Booths – £1.99

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A surprise purchase from Booths at Media City this one! Hadn’t seen Rudgate there before. Deep ruby to black beer. A Malteser and caramac aroma. Dry chocolate in the mouthy, dark but not overly bitter. Nicely flavoured with chocolate not dominating the drink, a bit more subtle than some. Nice dry cocoa flavour lingered for a short while. A really nice choc stout.

2 Saltaire Triple Chocoholic – 4.8% abv – Booths – £1.99

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Yes, I have a sweet tooth! Black beer with noticeable chocolate syrup (ice cream topping) aroma. Smooth in the mouth with sweet chocolate flavour up front, lovely dark chocolatey malty base. Made with 3 sources of chocolate flavour, hence the Triple. Made to out chocolate the Youngs Dbl Choc Stout, which it does, in spades! Still one of my favourite beers, but the Rudgate pushes it close.

3. Two Roses Brewery – Black Beauty Stout – 5% abv – A gift form Jaz via Ashton Farmers Market.

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Black beer with a creamy head. Aroma had some lactic type Milk Stoutiness with an added whiff of licorice. This Vegan friendly beer was lovely and dark with a nice roast dark malt, a hint of coffee and a slight dry smokiness in the finish. A lovely beer and my first from this brewery. I’ll make up for that next time I pop into Yorkshire Ales!

4. Wilson Potter – Gingery Does It – 3.5% abv – Direct from the brewers.

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A very pale golden beer. Pale head. Slight citrus aroma with hint of spicing to come. A nicely gentle hoppiness with ginger nibbling on your tongue. A really refreshing nicely warming beer in the mouth. Really refreshing. Gingery in the way of Marble Ginger – but more refreshing. Must buy some more.

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Mar 8 2013

London Calling – Craft Beer Bars In The Big City 07/03/2013

Not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth (or the ready meal aisle), an invite to a swanky function in “The City”, presented this thirsty Northern Boy with an opportunity simply too good to pass up. Some new bars in virgin territory! Plonking the BM bags in t’hotel room, my buddy and I find ourselves walking along Tachbrook Street in Pimlico towards….

Cask Bar SW1

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Located at the corner of Charlwood and Tachbrook Streets, this is a bar I’ve wanted to visit ever since I drank at its sister bar in Brighton nearly 2 years ago. A large open plan room, with plenty of seating. fairly modern looking bar with some interesting artwork on the walls

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(Modern bar)

Being utterly famished, we ordered a couple of their special “heat” burgers (excellent!) and perused the bar. A goodly selection indeed including 2 each from DarkStar, Thornbridge and Buxton, there were at least 8 ales on plus 10 or so on craft keg. 2 DarkStar Sussex Extra Stouts at 4.5% were ordered whilst we awaited the food. Lovely and creamy, dark and handsome beer with a slight coffee tinge to it, an excellent start.

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(Interesting Artwork)

The burgers arrived, nice and spicy and needed something to deal with the spice, Buxton Dark Nights did the trick! A US Style Porter at 4.6%abv, dark brown some roasted flavour, but really well hopped. Wowsers! This, to me, is how a porter really should be, roasted malt and bitter.

My buddy was taking time to accustom himself to the Buxton, I had however demolished mine and looked for a wee half of something. Thornbridge St Petersburg Imperial Stout? Don’t mind if I do! Lovely dark coffee aroma from that tan coloured head, coffee, licorice flavours and SO much more. If you’ve never had it, it’s a beer to try before you die. Add it to your lists! (BTW, it was getting V Busy by 6 O’clock!)

Moving on, we met some associates from The Emerald Isle and had a break with a couple of Guinness. However, my craft beer muse was calling, so I grabbed a cab ‘cos my poor feet were aching in new shoes, and stopped at…..

The Holborn Whippet

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Located at the Kingsway end of the lovely Sicilian Avenue, 2 distinct rooms either side of a central bar. No handpumps here, but air dispense (like the Euston Tap, I think). Very friendly and helpful staff in here! More Buxton was had here, on this occasion Rednik Stout at 4.1% abv. Nutty, smooth and bloody gorgeous! Buxton can’t do wrong in my eyes.

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(The Whippet Cask Selection – ‘beer from the brick’ indeed!)

Introducing my companion to new beers, we next had a Kirkstall Black Band Porter at 5.5%. First time I had this was at the Leeds International fest last September. Again, lovely and smooth almost more of a stout were it not for the bitter edge, nice roasted coffee flavour. Another winner.

My pal was slacking by this time, so I sought another sneaky half. I spied a Kernel Pale Ale. But damn! Just emptied! Never mind, the really friendly barman swiftly changes for another by Kernel. 5.6%, pale and bloody seriously hoppy with a whole citrus grove leaping from the (1/2) glass! Tremendously sharp and refreshing (in a slightly boozy way!)

Jumping the tube now, one change and we were heading south of the river toward London Bridge and the world famous Borough Market. Located around the back of the market is Winchester Walk. There, in the shadow of the historic Southwark Cathedral lurks…….

The Rake

Such a tiny wee bar, but with an inordinate amount of character! Immediately welcomed by friendly bar staff, including a Northerner from Burnley! 3 ales on handpump with a number of kegged offerings. Focussing on the handpumps, we went for Ilkley Stout Mary. Another brewery that can do no wrong for me. Lovely, smooth, creamy. Some cappuccino with a light smoky hint. Yum!

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Fyne Ales are a brewery I’ve longed to drink on cask. Two here! This is probably what finished me off! I forsook the charms of Avalanche to dally with a pint of Superior IPA.

A pint of stupidity at 7.1% abv, this was one fabulously hoppy strong beer! Full on citrus flavours with grapefruit right up there. A fyne (groan!) end to the evening!

We got chatting to a couple from them there States, seemed to be the bar owners. Great chatting to them. Check the white boarded wall out when you go. Brewers from far and wide signing. A quirky touch!

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(A small section of ‘The Wall’)

Another great bar, one hell of a find and one to which I shall return next time I’m down. Takes some finding, but it’s well worth it!

With the exception of the strong Fyne and St Petersburg, prices were pretty much what you would pay in some Manchester bars, £3.60 a pint or thereabouts.

Great bars, great beer. I love this mallarkey!

On that note….’til next time.

Slainte!

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Mar 1 2013

A Few More Bottles – 01/03/2013

Not much exercise this month. Have relied on the ‘cellar’ to keep me entertained. Here’s some sozzled thoughts!

1. Brooklyn Brewery, Sorachi Ace – 7.6% abv – 750ml – £11.50 – The Beer Shop, Heaton Moor

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This holds the distinction of being the single most expensive bottle of beer I’ve ever bought. I blame Jaz totally for this one! On our last visit to The Beer Shop, he pulled this one off the shelf AFTER I had made my purchases. Between raw jealousy and with the persuasive salesmanship of the owner, I succumbed and brought out the Visa card!

The beer is a saison and comes (as you can see (!) in a champagne style bottle, cork stoppered, therefore giving that primal cork popping pleasure. Being 750ml and given my lack of a 1 litre glass, I had to decant this bottle conditioned beer.

The beer poured a slightly hazy pale golden colour with some citrus peel and candied fruit on the nose, also maybe a hint of coriander? A flavour reminiscent of something like Duvel (probably due to the Bel;gian yeast used) slightly herby and grassy fresh. There was no dominant flavour overall, just a well balanced refreshing beer with a dry grassy finish. Also, a slightly surprising warmth afterwards. Expensively refreshing. I would buy it again, but NOT in a bar, given some of the £20+ prices I’ve seen!

2. Williams Bros, Caesar Augustus – 4.1% abv – 500ml – 3 for £5 Sainsbury

(Unforgiveably, image nicked from Brewery website!)

Described by the brewer as a Lager/IPA Hybrid, this has been a valued favourite for some time. A REALLY pale beer with a white head, as you would expect from a lager. What you wouldn’t expect is the incredibly sharp floral/hoppy aroma, some resinous, citrus fuity aroma to savour. The flavour seemed to err more to the hoppy IPA style, but retained a slight malty sweetness to it.

A gloriously bitter finish to this beer with full use made of the various new world hops.

An excellent beer in its own right, but at 3 for £5? Ludicrously good value.

3. Redwillow Brewery, Smokeless – 5.7% abv – Port Street Beer House – £3 (Special Offer 6 bottles)

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Isn’t there always a story? This beer starts one night in Port Street. Drink had been taken when I spied a poster with a beery offer of 6 beers from a selection for £18. Magic Rock, Redwillow and Summer Wine were the breweries on offer. What’s a thirsty boy to do? Unfortunately, I was in no position to carry them back to Bolton so I left them at Jaz’s house. For about a month.

When I finally retrieved them from that most perilous of locations, I tucked into this beastie with haste.

A smoked porter, this poured the usually expected dark ruby to near black, a minimal cream coloured head, quickly gone. Aroma of bitter dark chocolate added to by a light smoke. In the mouth, this was creamy textured with a dark malteserish flavour, a nice smokiness coming through at the end of the mouthful. Another excellent beer from this Macclesfield brewer.

Now, the only time I had had this on draught, I was advised by my buddy that it was not quite at peak. This beer therefore, is something of a rarity in that it was excellent. I need to reappraise this beer on draught. And soon.

4. Summer Wine Brewery, Rouge – 5.7% abv – Port Street Beer House – £3 (Special Offer 6 bottles)

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(I LOVE my IndyManBeerCon glass!)

Another one from the Port Street Bargain Hunt! I’ve had quite a few of their beers, but this was a first time with this red ale.

This poured a red brown with a pale head, which stayed the length of the drink. The aroma was spicy hop with a sour edge. In the mouth? WOW this is tongue curlingly dry dry dry (a good thing, for me!) My, but this is hopped! There was  a hint of grassy green hop freshness. A beer full of flavour and wonderful for it!

Did I mention this was dry?

5. (Appropriately!) Five Towns Brewery, Peculiar w/Rhubarb and Ginger – 6% abv – Yorkshire Ales – £2.85

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(Lively little devil!)

This was one of my haul from my visit to Yorkshire Ales in Snaith. Lively on pouring, a golden colour with an abundant head. Aroma of stewed rhubarb with a spicy note. Once in the mouth, there was the ginger alright! Nice and spicy, without overwhelming the palate (a bit gingery like Marble Ginger, for those who know). Strangely, I thought I detected a bit of banana split sweet in the mouth along with a slight sourness from the rhubarb. Finished off with my mouth warmed by more of that there ginger.

A really nice beer, my first from this brewery. I’ll focus on them a bit more next time I pop in and see Adrian & Vicky!

And to finish….

6. Mallinsons Brewery, Citra – 3.9% abv – Yorkshire Ales – £2.50

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Another one from my Snaith haul. My first Mallinsons in bottle and one of their ‘Single Hop’ range.

On popping the crown cap, BOOM! Grapefruit and mango aroma, before I’d even poured it! Poured very pale, like Liquid Gold (anyone for Dance Yourself Dizzy? No, thought so!). Full of lovely bright hoppy flavours and surprisingly more subtle with the grapefruit in the mouth. Incredibly flavoursome and moreish.

Just one downside. I only bought the one. DOH!

Beers of the Month (Ooh, a New Feature!)

Draught

A close run thing this. But (and there’s always a BUT!), The best beer was one I had twice. Firstly at The Molly House (mislabelled, damn them!) and later at the mighty Joshua Brooks. Redwillow Faithless XVII, the Beetroot Stout was just so earthy, slightly sweet and just bloody GORGEOUS. Officially now my favourite brewer.

An honourable mention though for the always reliable Paramount (Elland 1872) Porter and Ilkley Siberia. Both unmissable when on.

Bottle

Again, close. But edging it is the Ego by North Riding Brewpub. Allsorts going on in this one (including Licorice!). See the Yorkshire Ales posting for the review.

Running it close was the bottled version of Elland 1872 Porter. See the Yorkshire Ales posting for the review (again!)

Well, I’ve bored you enough for one night. Also, I’ve got to get myself ready for a visit to Wilson Potter tomorrow to sample some of their lovely ales. And I hope to tell you ALL about it (if I don’t lose the Nexus!)

Slainte!

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