The Beer You Are Drinking Right Now

[GrandOiseau]

Aldi beer festival starts today.

May be of interest to some.

[redsturgeon]

Banana bread beer, perhaps that sounds like a strange idea...well I have news for you...it is an absolutely ridiculous idea, one that should never have seen the light of day.

Someone bought me a bottle of this for doing them a small favour.

https://www.ratebeer.com/beer/wells-ban ... tle/13066/

It is disgusting, I could not finish the bottle, and I speak as someone who likes bananas!

If you see this anywhere and think you might like to try it...don't...I have saved you the bother. I took one for the team!

John

[JMN2]

Never got to my Old Amsterdam cheese board but I have one Proper Job left so wahey!!!

[JMN2]

Banana bread beer, perhaps that sounds like a strange idea...well I have news for you...it is an absolutely ridiculous idea, one that should never have seen the light of day.

Someone bought me a bottle of this for doing them a small favour.

https://www.ratebeer.com/beer/wells-ban ... tle/13066/

It is disgusting, I could not finish the bottle, and I speak as someone who likes bananas!

If you see this anywhere and think you might like to try it...don't...I have saved you the bother. I took one for the team!

John

I had that beer a few times in the late 90's early 00's, it wasn't horrid, but I was very keen on the banana breads around that time...then they suddenly disappeared and all you got was some malted fruit bread --- but I liked the banana one!

[DiamondEcho]

Banana bread/loaf is simple to make, as long as you follow a key step (IME) of using very ripe bananas. I've taken it a base recipe and made variations incorporating other fruit like mango. Which brings us back full-circle to the Philippino fruit beer Mongozo, whose mango brew is quite possibly the most disgusting beer I've ever had the misfortune to buy! (It seems they do a banana one too - 'No no no no!' )
http://www.mongozo.com/en

[JMN2]

Last week I skipped my mid-week cask ale, can't decide about today. I have the urge to start the work on insulating water pipes in the garage, that is the problem of drinking less beer or none at all from Saturday onwards - more energy, DIY ideas, firing on all cylinders, sleeping 9-10 hours and waking up refreshed...in other words, disgusting!

[JMN2]

Pilsner Urquell. Malty, slightly buttery, hoppy (for a pilsner). An old faithful friend, never lets me down, never disappoints.

[JMN2]

Some of these craft beer names are just silly, for instance, Jesus is Coming - Look Busy.

[UncleIan]

Had a pint of Hogsback Green TEA. Apparently it means it's made with fresh hops, i.e. harvested and used in the brewing process on the same day. It tasted pretty much like normal TEA to my tastebuds. That's ok though, as normal TEA is pretty good. Beery.

Pub was a bit disappointing though, they've replaced the pump sign things with mini chalk boards on the pumps, with the name and strength on them. I'm sure the marketing departments of the various breweries are delighted. Slightly more concerning is that it used to have a decent range of 5 or 6 ales, and last night it was Green TEA, Courage Best (I didn't even realise Courage was still a thing) and Old Peculiar. Probably 1st world problems, no choice of six when I could only have one anyway.

[Hallucigenia]

Courage ended up with Charles Wells, and so has just been sold to Marstons.

Theakstons are part-owned by Heineken.

Might be one of the Punch pubs that have just been sold?

Green hop beers are great, but they do need to be fresh, and you do need brewers with a bit of experience with them. I've had a lot of quite disappointing ones from well-known breweries, and been delighted by smaller breweries, particularly in Kent.

[JMN2]

Pump clips, those are getting very imaginative also, used to be on the hand pulls, now they are mostly on the ceiling. And very fancy are they too. Or you get the chalk board, very trendy and if the beer casks are moving fast then a blackboard chalky system is quite convenient, in some of these micropubs the beers are constantly coming and going so the cost all adds up down the chain get the pumps clips done when beers are mostly one-off brews---but the pub wants to have pump clips up the ceiling. A small brewery getting pump clips done for each one-off brew is just money down the drain. So a starting brewery would laminate some weird rubbish, lol! And some people would prefer those crazy laminated pump clips. "Ooh, I liked the flimsy laminated floppy ones that looked home-made, loved the beer too, what's this new crap???"

[UncleIan]

Courage ended up with Charles Wells, and so has just been sold to Marstons.

Theakstons are part-owned by Heineken.

Might be one of the Punch pubs that have just been sold?

Green hop beers are great, but they do need to be fresh, and you do need brewers with a bit of experience with them. I've had a lot of quite disappointing ones from well-known breweries, and been delighted by smaller breweries, particularly in Kent.

Aaah, see I knew Theakstons was in a major now, it's Black Sheep that's real old fashioned Theakstons now isn't it?

It used to be a freehouse, and run by a great avuncular chap who was always pleased to see us, though it used to be our local. The new manager chap looks a bit hunted and with the weight of the world on his shoulders, looks at you wondering if you're the next problem. Barmaid was very friendly though.

The Hogs Back had a hop picking festivity day at the brewery a week or so back, so I suspect green beer was a leftover from that. They seem to know what they're doing.

On Saturday I went to a local food festival where they shut the street and put a load of stalls up, I was thirsty, but didn't feel like a pint (no, I don't know what was wrong with me), a quick half would have done. Found myself at the Hog's Back stall, oh dear, there's a pattern here isn't there? Anyway, they had something called London's Outback Pale Ale. In a can. With a nice matt print on the outside. Reader, I nearly grew a hipster beard on the spot. Possibly trying too hard, but I bought one anyway, and it was just the job. It was beery, not particularly strong or deep flavours, but nevertheless not bad by any stretch. I don't know if having it out of a can stops you getting a lot of aroma and thus taste, but anyway, I drank it, wouldn't turn it down in the future, but wouldn't seek it out either.

[JMN2]

...
On Saturday I went to a local food festival where they shut the street and put a load of stalls up, I was thirsty, but didn't feel like a pint (no, I don't know what was wrong with me), a quick half would have done. Found myself at the Hog's Back stall, oh dear, there's a pattern here isn't there? Anyway, they had something called London's Outback Pale Ale. In a can. With a nice matt print on the outside. Reader, I nearly grew a hipster beard on the spot. Possibly trying too hard, but I bought one anyway, and it was just the job. It was beery, not particularly strong or deep flavours, but nevertheless not bad by any stretch. I don't know if having it out of a can stops you getting a lot of aroma and thus taste, but anyway, I drank it, wouldn't turn it down in the future, but wouldn't seek it out either.

Two years ago Hogs Back had a stall in Guildford high street, good selection of beers, also the barley wine A over T (Ar*e over T*t), bought a few and also the handy 6-pack beer bag. I think in the past they used to put up a stall in Epsom too. Solid beers and the Gardener's Tipple can be found in Lidl down south, at least in Sevenoaks and Dorking.

[UncleIan]

and the Gardener's Tipple can be found in Lidl down south, at least in Sevenoaks and Dorking.

and is blummin lovely stuff!

[Hallucigenia]

I knew Theakstons was in a major now, it's Black Sheep that's real old fashioned Theakstons now isn't it?

It used to be a freehouse, and run by a great avuncular chap who was always pleased to see us, though it used to be our local. The new manager chap looks a bit hunted and with the weight of the world on his shoulders, looks at you wondering if you're the next problem. Barmaid was very friendly though.

The Hogs Back had a hop picking festivity day at the brewery a week or so back, so I suspect green beer was a leftover from that. They seem to know what they're doing.

On Saturday I went to a local food festival where they shut the street and put a load of stalls up, I was thirsty, but didn't feel like a pint (no, I don't know what was wrong with me), a quick half would have done. Found myself at the Hog's Back stall, oh dear, there's a pattern here isn't there? Anyway, they had something called London's Outback Pale Ale. In a can. With a nice matt print on the outside. Reader, I nearly grew a hipster beard on the spot. Possibly trying too hard, but I bought one anyway, and it was just the job. It was beery, not particularly strong or deep flavours, but nevertheless not bad by any stretch. I don't know if having it out of a can stops you getting a lot of aroma and thus taste, but anyway, I drank it, wouldn't turn it down in the future, but wouldn't seek it out either.

Theakstons is more complicated than that, in an interesting way. It was the original deal to sell control to S&N that prompted the creation of Black Sheep, but around the time that S&N bought Bulmers, they helped fund the acquisition by selling a controlling stake in Theakston back to the family, whilst retaining a minority stake and continuing to distribute it. Heineken then bought S&N - Caledonian is now their main inhouse ale brewery, which is being used as the base for all their "craft" extensions, but they've got a good incentive to push Theakston as well.

Talking of Big Beer with minority stakes I came across this recently on AB's thinking about takeovers : https://www.beervanablog.com/beervana/2 ... f-buy-outs

Obviously with a manager there the beer decisions are being taken higher up - would be interesting to know who owns the place, whether this is a rather misguided takeover or whether it was eg a pubco lease and the pubco has now taken on direct management. Usually the "hunted manager" types are willing recipients of a bit of guidance on beer choice, to the extent that they are constrained by their supply deals. But for instance if they've got Courage then he should be able to get Young's Ordinary, which is on a bit of a roll at the moment. And there may be scope for a guest beer, but if he's only got enough trade to support two cask lines then he may be reluctant.

Thing with drinking straight out of cans is that they a)tend to be served too cold and b) there's metal between your nose and the beer, it's like holding your nose when drinking which is a good way to kill the taste. Skimming reviews of the LOPA it's seems to get reasonable reviews, for a fairly ordinary pale with a Fuggles/US mix of hops.

[UncleIan]

Obviously with a manager there the beer decisions are being taken higher up - would be interesting to know who owns the place, whether this is a rather misguided takeover or whether it was eg a pubco lease and the pubco has now taken on direct management. Usually the "hunted manager" types are willing recipients of a bit of guidance on beer choice, to the extent that they are constrained by their supply deals. But for instance if they've got Courage then he should be able to get Young's Ordinary, which is on a bit of a roll at the moment. And there may be scope for a guest beer, but if he's only got enough trade to support two cask lines then he may be reluctant.

It used to be a freehouse, I've seen nothing to suggest it's not still a freehouse, and no evidence of pubco involvement. I think I've been going there on and off for 25 years or so, used to be in there lots, but sometimes I'll be in every week for a few weeks, then won't go in there for months.

I don't know if pubs show up in zoopla searches or whether that's only for residential properties, I can't find any records of sales but I might be looking in the wrong place. I would guess either the old landlord has retired and turned into, um, a landlord, and the new guy is trying to find x money in rent as the former landlords pension, or the new guy has bought the place and has a massive debt he's now trying to service. I suspect with property prices around here it's a familial involvement and the former arrangement.

Food's supposed to be good. I hope he keeps his head above water.

[Imbiber]

Naylor's Brewery, Spectrum 4.5%.

New to me, found in my favourite Canterbury backstreet boozer. Superb, similar in taste to Green Devil.

[Hallucigenia]

Hitachino Nest [translates as: Owl's Nest, x-ref the owl on the lable] do make some superb beers.

I don't think it's even a "smoke" gene - it's a very specific "acrid chemical" gene. Since flavour and smell are so bound up, I guess it's more akin to the "asparagus pee" genes - which will make no sense to 60% of you but Google it...

This is a nice article about "supertaste" and the pain it caused the daughter of a wine expert because she just didn't like things like Haut Brion. I may be quite sensitive to some flavours but I'm nothing like her.

Just picked up a Hitachino Nest, will be interested to try it.

[DiamondEcho]

[Quoting]I don't think it's even a "smoke" gene - it's a very specific "acrid chemical" gene. Since flavour and smell are so bound up, I guess it's more akin to the "asparagus pee" genes

Oh too right re: asparagus. I adore eating it occasionally so much that I can over-look the 'after-small' issue I experience.

Just picked up a Hitachino Nest, will be interested to try it.

Good stuff, I hope you enjoy it! Out of interest where did you buy it? Still seems very surprising to me that it's retailed in the UK, but then I'm been ex-UK for around a decade now. I noticed they had it in Wholefoods @ Kensington High Street when we last visited earlier this year, but that's not quite a mass-market shop In fact anyone in that area might enjoy popping in just to have a look, their beer aisle is a thing of wonder to behold!

[Hallucigenia]

Just picked up a Hitachino Nest, will be interested to try it.

Good stuff, I hope you enjoy it! Out of interest where did you buy it? Still seems very surprising to me that it's retailed in the UK, but then I'm been ex-UK for around a decade now. I noticed they had it in Wholefoods @ Kensington High Street when we last visited earlier this year, but that's not quite a mass-market shop In fact anyone in that area might enjoy popping in just to have a look, their beer aisle is a thing of wonder to behold!

Booths - which is on the fringes of mass-market but only in the NW. But they have easily the best beer selection of the supermarkets, by a mile.