It’s that time of the year again, when bloggers take a look-back at the past 12 months, with particular reference to all things beery,
and in my case with a little travel and personal stuff thrown in for good
measure. In previous years, I’ve written reviews, either under the banner of “The
Year in Beer,” or that of “Golden Pints”. For several years
I’ve considered the latter as rather naff and even sparked off a brief
discussion on Ed Wray’s site, about the origin of the term. (For the record,
does anyone know who Andy Mogg is?)
The Year in Beer it is then, and we kick off with:
Best beer on home turf
A difficult one, as it would be far too easy to say
Harvey’s
Best Bitter – an excellent beer by any stretch of the imagination, and one that
is a must stock brand in the vast majority of local pubs. So, primarily because
it’s so widely available, I’m opting for something different, and nowhere near
as easy to come by.
Instead, I’m going to say Sarah Hughes Dark Ruby Mild, which
was a guest beer at the Nelson Arms in Tonbridge, and one which brought back
fond memories of a visit I’d made the previous year, to the beer’s home - Sedgley’s Beacon Hotel.
The latter establishment is where
Dark Ruby Mild is brewed, and back in
2023, I made a flying visit to the pub
with
Stafford Paul and
Retired Martin. I’m not sure how the beer managed to
make an appearance at the
Nelson, but regardless of the means, it was well
received by the me and the pub’s regulars.
Best
beers abroad 
An easy one
here. A perfectly poured pint of Murphy’s Irish Stout, enjoyed in the packed, and
characterful surroundings of the Mauretania Bar. This traditional Irish bar is
located close to the waterfront at Cobh, the port for nearby Cork, and this deep-water
anchorage was where our cruise ship berthed on what was the final port on last
year’s Round Britain Cruise.
Even
Mrs
PBT’s enjoyed this lively bar, despite having to scale the steep and narrow
staircase, leading to the
Ladies. As for the beer,
Murphy's knocked the heavily-hyped
and over-promoted
Guinness into the proverbial cocked hat.
Speersort Hofbräu – despite being housed in a rather
anonymous looking building, in central
Hamburg, this typical
Bavarian beer
hall would not have looked out of place in central
Munich. Matthew and I enjoyed half litres each of both
Hofbräu
Original plus the strong, seasonal
Maibock. It was certainly a most
welcome find on a cold and rain-swept
Sunday in
Hamburg, a day when the majority
of shops and bars in central Hamburg were closed for religious reasons.
Best Locations to Enjoy a Beer
(UK)
There are several contenders here, but the
Starbank Inn, at
Newhaven, overlooking the
Firth of Forth, a few miles to the west of
Edinburgh,
tops the list. The pub had that immediate
“wow” factor, that
screamed out this place is going to be a good, a feeling that was enhanced by
the friendly greeting I received from the landlady. A pint of
Lost in Mosaic,
from
Loch Lomond Brewery, plus a chicken and bacon ciabatta, from the
“lite
bites” selection, made the perfect lunchtime stop on the aforementioned
Round Britain cruise.
The
Bridge Tavern, a
classic waterside
pub, situated at
Portsmouth’s Camber Dock, on the opposite
quayside to the
Isle of Wight car ferry terminal. The nautical theme of
this characterful
Fuller's house extended into the pub’s interior, with
an impressive bar counter, set towards rear of the building and a number of
alcoves leading off either side. With
Stafford Paul and
Dave Southworth for
company, the three of us sat, putting the world to rights, close to the window,
from where we had an excellent view of the nautical scene outside.
Best Locations to Enjoy a Beer
Abroad
Funchal,
Madeira. With
lunchtime visits on two consecutive days, and two quite different
restaurants/bars in which to enjoy a local beer, with a meal, the Madeiran
capital ticked al the right boxes. But then, how could this bustling and
charming town, with its vistas out towards the Atlantic, fail to charm visitors
like us. Local brew Coral provided the beers on both occasions – Coral White
(lager) and Coral Stout being the perfect accompaniment for two completely different
but well satisfying al fresco lunches.
Best pub finds
There are two, contrasting entries here. First, the
strangely named
Sonder, a modern shop conversion in
Broadstairs. The
name apparently comes from a word meaning
"the acknowledging of
others and having feelings of empathy for them". I’m not a massive
fan of modern pubs, especially those repurposed from something else, but
everything clicked with this spacious and welcoming corner pub.
Fitted out in
the style of the arts and crafts movement, with a wood panelled ceiling and friendly staff,
Sonder had
a bright, and airy seaside feel about it. In my view, it was the best pub of a
day spent with a couple
CAMRA pals, whilst on a pub crawl around the lovely old seaside
town of
Broadstairs.
Bridge Inn, Topsham. A legendary pub that I had
been wanting to visit, ever since reading about it in,
“A
Pub For All Seasons”, by
veteran beer writer
Adrian
Tierney-Jones. Topsham, which occupies a coastal location near Exeter, was a long way to travel for a pint, but
I picked the perfect day weather-wise. Despite having to abandon my homeward
bound train at Taunton (due to engine failure), I still made it back to
Tonbridge before midnight. This historic and cosy 16th century inn overlooks
the nearby River Clyst and has been run by five generations of the same family
since 1897.
There are several different rooms in which to sit and enjoy the gravity
dispensed beers, plus the more solid fayre of homemade pasties, soup and crusty
bread. Topsham itself also has a good selection of pubs, even if the town is all “pashminas and posh pooches” in places.
Best
Beer City
This would
be
Portsmouth & Southsea, although it’s difficult to know where the
boundary between the two towns lies. Back in
February, I spent a day with
Stafford Paul and
Dave Southworth, wandering around a selection of the local pubs.
I’ve already mentioned the
Fuller’s owned,
Bridge Tavern, and whilst we missed
out on the famous
Sally Port Inn, due to its late opening, the nearby
Pembroke
came up trumps with some excellent
Draught Bass and cheese cobs, for those still hungry!
Beer festivals
I’d been planning to attend the
Great British Beer Festival at
Birmingham’s NEC but left planning my trip until the last minute. Consequently,
I missed out on any cut-price rail tickets. As things turned out, I’m glad that I
didn’t, as the event wasn’t a success and ended up losing
CAMRA a staggering
amount of money. Sadly, there almost certainly won’t be another
UK event of
this magnitude, for a very long time, if ever!
Instead, I attended the laid-back
beer festival held
in the expansive pub garden, of the
Halfway House at
Brenchley. Now
in its
22nd year, and offering an impressive lineup of
60,
gravity served beers, racked up in the outside barn, plus an additional
10
in the pub.
Cask drinkers are certainly spoiled for choice at this event, which
for many, including myself, provides an ideal conclusion to summer.
Best days out
A
“curated pub crawl” of the
Hampshire towns of
Alton & Farnham, involving a
dozen or so participants, including
Citra Mick, Nick C, plus
Retired
Martin. The majority of the group were local
CAMRA members, most of whom
were described to me as members of
"CAMRA Discourse". They seemed a decent enough crowd, and our
full-on itinerary allowed us to visit a good selection of pubs, within the two
towns.
A saunter around Chichester,
with Stafford Paul +
Dave & Joan Southworth. An enjoyable day spent exploring a selection of
Chichester’s finest pubs, including a number that I’d visited the previous year,
with son Matthew.Best beer book 
A pub book, rather than a beer book, but none the worse for
that.
A Pub for All Seasons, is
a yearlong journey in search of the perfect British
local. Researched and written by Adrian Tierney Jones, this highly
personal reflection on a selection of some of his favourite pubs, is the sort
of book you can dip in and out of, without losing the thread.
Adrian states that during a lifetime of dedicated pub going,
he’s come to believe there is a pub for every season, and it is this seasonal
effect that is the main theme of the book. There’s a
reasonable percentage of pubs in this book that I have visited, just as
there are quite a few others that I would like to set foot in, given half the
chance. One of these pubs is the Bridge Inn at Topsham, mentioned above,
and I have Adrian to thank for first inspiring me to visit it.
Much missed Pub Man &
Blogger
Dedicated pub-man, and fellow blogger,
Peter Edwardson, sadly and quite unexpectedly, passed away in early
December. Writing under the name of Pub Curmudgeon,
both on his own well-informed blog, and also as a long-standing
contributor to various CAMRA magazines and newsletters, Peter could be
particularly scathing of the big brewers and Pubco’s. He was also equally
critical of those “left of centre” politicians who he regarded as responsible
for the “nanny state,” the smoking ban and any other legislation brought in to
control the population and stop them from having “fun.”I had the pleasure of meeting Peter
a few times, including the fleeting visit he made to Tunbridge Wells, 10
or so years ago, but more recently on the various pub crawls I joined him on.
These events included visits to Burton, Shifnal, Stockport and Macclesfield.
He came across as a rather private individual, who was often. very matter of
fact, but under the right circumstances -invariably in a decent pub, with equally
decent beer, he would be good company. The last time I saw him was just
prior to Christmas 2023, on a pub crawl of Macclesfield which, I believe,
he had a hand in organising. Like on the other occasions, he was excellent company,
which makes it all the more sadder that we won’t be seeing him again.
Photo of Peter Edwardson - courtesy of Retired Martin
