It’s Good to be Home
I’m back in Adelaide so dropped into the Wheaty this afternoon to say hi. It was good timing too. The Rogue Brutal IPA is currently pouring from the hand pump. It’s not quite “Real Ale” but it is tasting very good. It was nice to come back to the newly commissioned hand pump after having tons of real ale whilst in the UK. I don’t know if I am going to get used to asking for a pint and only getting a 425ml glass of beer though. I think I am going to make this a campaign. If pubs want to keep the 425ml glass that’s fine but lets not call it a pint.
Anyway it was really good to be back in my home pub. I went to plenty of great places in the UK but the Wheaty really is a pretty special pub. If it’s been a while since you have been in get down there and have a beer. There is some really interesting stuff coming on tap over the next couple of weeks too. Get There!
Are you a real Beer Geek?
This is hilarious for the beer geeks. I hate to admit it but can see a little of myself in this character.
Drinking Real Ale in the UK
I’m now just over a week into my trip to the UK. Unfortunately the majority of my time has been spent on my day job. I have managed to find some time to try some real ales though. With the day job stuff out of the way I am on my from Oxford to London by bus. It’s a pretty good set up with decent free wifi on the bus. If they only had a couple of taps so we could sample along the way.
I have been working and staying around the Cheltenham Glouscter area and have been trying to try beers from the local breweries while I have the chance. I did make a day trip on a day off to Stone Henge, Bath and Cardiff so got to try some of their local drops too. However, I did manage to find the holy grail of Timothy Taylor’s Landlord on cask at a pub not five minute walk from my hotel. I got as much of it as I could. I can tell you from my experience it is every bit as good as you imagine it to be. If you ever get the chance to try it from the cask you simply have to do it.
Now I have London and all it has to offer to look forward to. I’m particularly keen on a visit to the pub, The Greenwich Union, owned and run by the Meantime brewery. I have been a big fan of some of their beers and can’t wait to try them from the source. Will also be good to taste the difference and see how well it travels compared to what we get at home. Will add some more posts soon and have some article coming for Brews News too so make sure you keep an eye out over there.
On The Road in the UK
Photo Andrew Macdonald
After taking me all around Australia over the last twelve months my day job now has me off to the UK. Unfortunately I am going to have to work while I am there but I am certainly going to find the time for a pint or two and be able to taunt you all when I have a Landlord fresh from the cask. I can’t wait to try the real cask ales sitting in a real English pub.
I will be spending a total of two weeks over there with a week and a half in Cheltenham and a couple of days in London. If you know of any great must see pubs or breweries in those areas please let me know. I have been hitting up the CAMRA web site but a personal recommendation is always great. I am going to be in London for the Tottenham V Arsenal match at Whitehart Lane so if anyone knows how to scam tickets that advice would be greatly appreciated.
Watch my twitter for the latest on what I am up to over there.
Check Out the Crown and Sceptre
It appears we have a new beer venue in town. Well it’s not a new venue. The Crown and Sceptre has been around for ages serving cocktails, high end spirits and wine. However, they have just taken the leap into serving great beer. Check out this recent tweet and have a look at their new beer menu. It has me ready to run down there for a beer or two. I plan on doing just that in the next couple of days. Has been a while since I was there so will be able to give a better update on what it’s like then.
Focusing on the beer. They have beers from Murray’s, Bridge Road Brewers and 8Wired. This is some of the best beers being produced in Australia and New Zealand right now. Though it does pain me to admit it the New Zealanders are doing a fantastic job. If you wanted to start with trying one beer from each brewery to start with, but lets face it you should try them all I will give you a quick run down of my picks. From 8Wired my pick is the Hop Wired IPA. This beer has entered my all time favourite list and is truly stunning. Nice dry finish great smack of hops and a good strong bitterness without being harsh. It’s just sensational. From Bridge Road Brewers my pick is the Bling IPA, though I haven’t tried the Chestnut pilsner yet which sounds very interesting. The Bling is a great IPA with a huge whack of hoppy goodness backed up by a strong malt backbone so there is something for everybody. From Murray’s I can’t go past The Icon 2IPA. Seeing a theme here? The dark night porter is also an amazing beer but you just can’t go past the Icon. One of Australia’s great beers and one of the first double IPA’s made here. In the immortal words of Ford Prefect “Your mouth will love you for the rest of your life”.
Check out all of these guys on Twitter too @thesceptre, @8wiredbrewing, @NakedNed and @murraysbrewing. So get down to The Sceptre and support a venue that is supporting good beer. With their great all round drinks menus there has to be something for everyone here. Will give a fuller report once I have visited in the next couple of days. Get There!
Drink a Local at The Wheaty / Wheatsheaf Hotel
Just after I posted about supporting your local brewery here is another chance to do just that. Tomorrow, Wednesday the 6th of April, is the first Wednesday of the month and that means just one thing. It’s time for two new local to go on tap at The Wheaty. Every month the Wheatsheaf Hotel puts two new beers on tap from one of the local micro breweries. The new beers go onto tap on the first Wednesday night and the brewers turn up to have a few beer and often shout a few beers for the local punters. This month we have offerings from Lobethal Bierhaus and Barossa Brewing Co.
From Barossa Brewing we have the Victorville Pale ale. A really tasty refreshing American style pale ale. It’s on the lighter side bith hop wise and alcohol wise. It does make for a refreshing and sessionable beer though. From Lobethal Bierhaus we have the Red Truck Porter. They describe it as ” A Dark red-brown ale characterized by roasted malt flavour, balances with subtle hop aroma and bitterness. This ale is based on a style originally developed in the 18th Century London, acquiring its name from the city porters who had taken a fancy to it.” I just think it’s a really good porter.
Stop thinking about what you are doing this Wednesday night and just go to The Wheaty for some really great local beer. Get There!