Golden Pints - or metric equivalent - 2023

As 2023 rapidly approaches its conclusion, and after a reflective look back from a beer and visiting different places perspective, there’s one final task to undertake, before drawing the curtain on the year. Before going any further, I want to reiterate that I’ve never really ran with the “Golden Pints” idea. I was even thinking the concept was in its death throes, until a look through my Blog List showed there were quite a few bloggers still putting out their favourites from a varying list of beer, pub, brewery, and all things related highlights.

What I’ve tended to do in previous years, was take a look back over each previous year, and write a review, under the banner of “The Year in Beer.” So, this time around, having written a fairly lengthy review of 2023, I reflected that I hadn’t properly set out my thoughts on the best beers, best pubs, best places to enjoy a beer etc, over the course of the past year, and this was where the idea of resurrecting the “Golden Pints” concept re-entered my thinking. I still feel the title “Golden Pints” is pretty naff, although perhaps the word “Pint” will now take on a new significance, at least amongst the dwindling band of Brexit supporters, given the news that wine can now be sold in pint bottles!

This aside, I want to place on record that I found great difficulty in writing this piece. This may have been because I was over-thinking what to include and what to leave out, given copious guidance notes, plus a year’s worth of blog entries. Veteran bloggers, Boak & Bailey, thought otherwise, opening their Golden Pints review with the statement, “These end-of-year roundups are more fun to write than to read, aren’t they?” The pair still felt the need to do it, in order to put a “neat bow on the year,” whilst following the guiding principle, that nobody really cares about all this, “so don’t overthink it.” Their final line that this type of article is more about feeling, than about facts, helped guide me, when I was struggling to put my own review together.

Best beer on home turf

Harvey’s Sussex Best. Unlike previous years, where no single, individual beer stood out, my answer has to be Harvey’s Sussex Best. A magnificent beer, that is truly worthy of the title, “best bitter,” and what’s more it’s a blend of juicy, sweet malt sugars, set against an earthy, peppery background imparted by traditional hops varieties such as Fuggles and Goldings.

So no, over-powering citrus, or pineapple flavours, hiding behind a murky haze, here. Instead, just a good, old-fashioned glass of traditional English bitter, representing all that is best in local brewing.

Best beer abroad  

Päffgen Kölsch. A tricky one really, as despite spending nearly a month away from the UK, I didn’t visit that many pubs or bars, and certainly not in the Mediterranean. Five days on a business visit to Cologne was perhaps a little different, and it certainly allowed me to drink plenty of Kölsch - the city’s local beer style. Whilst Kölsch is pleasant enough, it doesn’t really reach out and grab you by the throat, although I shall make one notable exception.

Päffgen Kölsch, dispensed from a wooden cask behind the bar counter, and retailing at €2 a glass, was the sole beer on sale at the legendary Gaststätte Lommerzheim. The latter is a classic, old-style Cologne pub on the other side of the River Rhine, and Päffgen are one of the few independent Kölsch brewers remaining in Cologne. In my view, and also that of many others, Päffgen Kölsch are up there with the very best.

Best Locations to Enjoy a Beer (UK) 

Boar’s Head Inn at Eridge. The Boar’s Head is, an unspoiled 17th Century inn, just off the main A26 road, a mile or so to the north of Crowborough. It is a low beamed pub with a cosy interior, featuring two inglenook fireplaces. Visited back in November, after a gap of 30 years or more, but still as good as ever. A really atmospheric pub, serving an excellent pint of Harvey’s, in a rural setting, but one that is easily accessible by bus.

Barton’s Arms, Birmingham. Dating from 1901 the Barton’s is a Grade 2* listed heritage building and represents Victorian splendour on a grandiose scale. It is one of the most spectacular survivors from the late Victorian era in the country, with an imposing stone and red brick with exterior, complete with its own clock tower, and an interior boasting numerous original features. These include rich mahogany woodworking’s, stained and engraved windows and mirrors, snob-screens, a sweeping wrought-iron staircase and wall-to-wall tiles, ranging from shiny-glazed decorative patterns to huge painted scenes.

Best Locations to Enjoy a Beer Abroad

Dash Coffee Bar, overlooking the waterfront in Argostoli, capital of Kefalonia. The cool shady interior, of this attractive, contemporary bar, formed a welcome refuge from the fierce heat of the midday sun. And seated at the bar, enjoying a cool and refreshing half litre of Mythos beer, whilst watching the world go by outside saw me in proper, wind-down holiday mode, and was the perfect way to round off my time ashore in this gorgeous, Greek island.

Gaststätte Lommerzheim, Cologne. Not just for the excellent Päffgen Kölsch, but also for the atmosphere inside this true, Cologne, beer house, known locally as “Lommi’s”. The pub is a survivor from the days before WWII, and there is a real buzz about the place. Time your visit carefully, as it is often difficult to get a seat, such is its popularity with the locals.

 

Best new pub find

 Bull, Birmingham. A classic, back street local in the centre of Birmingham, which is one of the oldest pubs in the city. A snug, cosy and comfortable, back street boozer, with a real homely feel, with two distinct drinking areas surround a U-shaped bar with smaller, and quieter back room.  A collection of 300 jugs adorns the ceiling, along with a number of old pictures and memorabilia. Just the place to spend time on a wet April, afternoon in Britain’s second city.

Best brewery

Braybrooke Beer Company. A tricky one again, although I’m going out on a limb by recommending Braybrooke, a company specialising in the production of really good, proper lager. Brewed using state-of-the-art equipment, and the very best ingredients, the resulting beers are a selection of unfiltered, unpasteurised, and naturally carbonated beers that have complexity whilst retaining the refreshing drinkability every great lager should have. (Braybrook’s words, although I whole-heartedly agree with them).

Back in the summer, I signed up with the Braybrooke Beer Club, a subscription beer delivery service, where, each month, I receive a selection of Braybrooke beers.

Best Beer City  

Manchester. It was a close tie for Best Beer City, between Manchester and Birmingham, both of which I revisited in 2023. In Manchester’s case, it was 30 years since I’d last set foot in the city – an interval that is far too long. Although many of the breweries, I knew from the four years I spent in adjoining Salford, during the late 1970’s, have vanished (Boddingtons, Burtonwood, Greenall’s, Tetley’s, Threlfalls, and Wilsons), others have taken their place,

My visit, at the end of June, only scratched the surface, but was still sufficient to remind me of the vibrant and thriving beer and pub scene. As Arnie said, “I’ll be back.”

Beer festivals

London Craft Beer Festival. Held in Wapping, at the historic Tobacco Dock, the festival proved an interesting experience, although had I needed to pay for my admission ticket, it’s doubtful I would have gone. There were some interesting breweries exhibiting, and some equally interesting beers, but the event followed the American pattern of “sips” rather than a decent amount of beer. I also, might have escaped contracting my third dose of COVID, had I stayed at home, especially as the festival was hot, crowded, and cramped, in equal measures.

Best days out

Macclesfield, Manchester, Birmingham – for nostalgic reasons, plus Chichester. I included the latter because I’d never visited before, despite it being fairly close to home, and relatively easy to get to.

Best beer book 

Cask – The Real Story of Britain’s Unique Beer Culture, by Des De Moor. Claimed to be the definitive book on the subject of Cask Beer, Des’s latest book certainly looks like a real labour of love. I’ve met Des on a couple of occasions, and know from his London Pub Guides, that this current book will prove informative on a subject close to the hearts of many of us. It received mixed reviews from two other bloggers who I know – Tandleman and Ed Wray (no more name dropping, I promise), so I look forward to getting stuck into it.

I say that, because despite the best intentions, I haven’t read the book yet! The plan was to make a start on it whilst on our recent cruise, but being a relatively slow reader, I have only just finished the other weighty tome I was ploughing my way through. That particular book is Tom Jones, by Henry Fielding, and with over 800 pages of close typeface, it took longer to finish than I anticipated. Expect a review of “Cask” in a few months’ time, then.

 

Bucket list – places visited for the first time.

Greece plus the Greek islands.  A short visit to the Greek capital, Athens, allowed sufficient time to scale the Acropolis, overlooking the city, view the Parthenon, the only downside being the thousands of visitors, all with the same intention. It was still worth the steep ascent, even though I managed to lose the tour-guide - clue, carry a more distinctive flag, next time!

Visits were also made to Crete, and its laid-back capital, Heraklion, Santorini, the lovely Ionian island of Kefalonia, mentioned above, and finally Sardinia, an island which, according to Ancestry, Mrs PBT’s has a 1% DNA match with.

This concludes my look back at 2022, a mixed year, for want of a more appropriate description, and whilst a part of me is itching to get my hiking boots on, and head out, back into the great outdoors, a glance at the appalling weather, outside my window, persuades me otherwise.