Out of the doldrums

After what seems like several weeks in the doldrums, enlivened only by a gorgeous day in early October, spent walking the final stretch of the North Downs Way, I’ve finally got a few topics to write about, that are worthy of the blog. I made that initial comment because waiting in for various tradesmen to turn up – the latest being a BT engineer, I was beginning to conclude that this was NOT how I intended to be spending my two additional days off from work. I suppose though that we all suffer the un-punctual trades person, and that feeling that it’s not worth starting something else, because as soon as you do, that engineer/technician/ tree-surgeon (delete as appropriate), that you’ve been waiting all morning for, will almost certainly be ringing your doorbell.

That was the exact same scenario last Thursday, but although the BT engineer tuned up within the last half hour of his allocated, 8am-1pm time-slot, he finished fairly quickly, despite having to run a new fibre-optical cable from the nearest telegraph pole, across to Bailey Towers. I’m not sure that the download speeds are any quicker (they probably are), but for a small increase in our monthly charge, we now have super hi-speed broadband, available via wi-fi, in every room of the house.

His rapid completion of the task meant the afternoon was available, which compensated somewhat for a frustrating morning. I gave Mrs PBT’s a quick call, to see whether she wanted collecting from work (she didn’t), which was then my cue to head down into Tonbridge – ostensibly to pick up a pre-ordered prescription from the local pharmacy, but really because I fancied a pint! A walk in the pleasant, mid-autumn sunshine, would also provide a tonic, to lift the gloom of the past 10 days.

Fuggles Beer Café was my destination, and after a brief visit to my building society (use it, or lose it), to withdraw some cash, and a rather longer visit to the somewhat chaotic pharmacy, I strolled into Fuggles shortly after 4pm. A Green Hop ale was my quest, and I found it in the form of Green Hop Pale Ale from Gun Brewery. Pitching itself as a small batch beer, this 5.1% beer proved a well-balanced example of a GHA, with a subtle under-current of resinous hops, set against a pleasing blend of juicy malt and bitterness.

I only had the one, despite being solely tempted by the Smokescreen, a 5.5% smoked porter from Arbor Brewing; the reason being I’d agreed to pick Matthew up, after work, a task that obviously meant driving. I’m too good to that boy, but me collecting him did mean us having our dinner at a more civilised hour, than if we’d waited for him to make his own way home.

The following day, the pair of us found ourselves in Maidstone, this time on a bit of a reconnaissance mission. Matthew has been asked to cover at the Maidstone branch of the hardware store he works at, and wanted to check out the parking facilities, as well as acquainting himself with the town’s notorious one-way system. I offered to sit in the passenger seat whilst he drove us there and back, more for reassurance than anything else – I told you I was too good to him!

After parking at the town’s main shopping centre, now known as the Mall, following spells as the Stoneborough and then the Chequers Centre, we called in at the Maidstone branch of his store, for a quick chat with the assistant manager. The latter also directed us to the small parking area behind the shop, where there are a handful of reserved places, available on a first-come-first-served basis. All seemed OK, and Matthew too familiarised himself with the lane switching at the heart of Maidstone’s notorious gyratory system.

We took a quick look at some of the Mall’s stores, before heading off a shop close to the town’s other, but much smaller sopping development – Fremlin Walk. Located on the site of the old Fremlin’s Brewery, there isn’t really much to see here, apart from the ornate arched gateway to the former plant, which is the only part left standing from what was once the largest brewery in Kent. Whitbread were the villains here, as they were in so many other parts of the country, but a real shame, as Fremlin’s Elephant Ales were well-liked, and enjoyed a strong local following amongst Kent drinkers.

Walking back to the car, I suggested calling in for a pint, as there was a pub, close by that I particularly wanted to visit. I was actually inspired to visit Ye Olde Thirsty Pig, after reading a recent post from BRAPA, aka Simon Everitt, with the acronym standing for the British Real Ale Pub Adventure. For those not in the know Simon is following in the footsteps of legendary pub-tickers Retired Martin and Pubmeister, both of whom have “completed” the Good Beer Guide by visiting every single pub in the book, but being somewhat younger than the two “completists,” Simon still has a fair way to go.

To save any doubt, the banner headline on Simon’s blog proudly proclaims, “Visiting every pub in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide before I die!” but the burning question is will the GBG be around that long? Possibly, seeing as the soon to be published 2023 edition is the 50^th in a long line, stretching back to 1974. Simon also has time on his side, as he is somewhat younger than his two compatriots, but regardless of age and changing fashions, Simon’s observations on pub life, his description of the characters he encounters in the pubs he visits, and the trials and tribulations he goes through to reach many of them (he doesn’t have a car), make fascinating and often, highly amusing reading. Check out Simon’s blog, here.

BRAPA ended up at Ye Olde Thirsty Pig, during a recent “ticking” expedition to Kent, and as alluded to above, his description of the pub, together with some of the photos, prompted me to take a further look. The strange thing is I lived in Maidstone during the first half of the 1980’s, but during those five years, never knowingly visited Ye Olde Thirsty Pig. This may have been due to the place operating as the Minstrel Wine Bar, 40 years ago, although looking back through some old local pub guides (to check on its original name), I read that cask ale was stocked.

The “Pig” dates from around 1430 and is reputed to be the third oldest building in Maidstone. It certainly has plenty of timber beams, sloping floors and various nooks and crannies to prove it. There are a couple of low-ceilinged rooms downstairs, whilst upstairs, which is where the toilets are located the ceilings are low, but upstairs they are high and vaulted. The entrance from Knightrider Street leads directly into the small bar, and as described in Simon’s blog, it appears the centre of pub life.

BRAPA was right about the bar being lined with a collection of rather boisterous folk sat uncomfortably close together on adjacent stools, but Matthew and I still managed to get a look at the pumps. I opted for a pint of Black Prince from Wantsum Brewery, a 3.9% dark mild, whilst Matthew went for a half of Paulaner – he was driving, after all. Being quiet and retiring folk, we escaped to the equally small room at the rear, a move that enabled us to get away from the rather loud, know-all, sat at the bar. He’d already asked if I was one of those “CAMRA types,” because of the interest I’d shown in the beer line-up, but not wishing to engage him further I side-stepped the question.

I’m like my late father, in as much as not suffering fools gladly, especially those who like the sound of their own voice rather too much. Our “expert” at the bar, was already promoting Johnson for PM, less than 24 hours after the last Tory incumbent had tendered her resignation. Apparently, he “got Brexit done,” a statement which I’m not going to pursue further here, but as a prime example of the typical pub bore, this individual took some beating.

Fortunately, the layout of the Thirsty Pig is such that it is easy to escape from such people, and with a further two rooms on the first floor, it is easy to get away. You just have to take care on the steep staircases, especially when carrying your drinks up there. The barmaid was quite chatty, as we discovered, when returning our glasses, and gave the impression she enjoyed working there. She said that the pub was popular with younger people, although she wasn’t quite so keen being there, late at night. When asked why, she claimed the building is haunted!

This aside, I’m pleased to have finally made my acquaintance with Ye Olde Thirsty Pig, even if it has taken me 40 years to do so! The next article relates to the following day, when I took a trip up to London, but that will have to wait until next time.

Don't bank on it!

Amidst all the talk of pubs closing and businesses failing, there’s one institution on the High Street that many commentators seem to have missed. The institution I’m talking about, is one which is so fundamental to the conduct of business and commerce, that it’s disappearance ought to be raising far more alarm bells than it actually has – or perhaps not?

In case you hadn’t already guessed, the institution I am talking about is the High Street bank, once seen as the corner stone of most town centres, and regarded as unshakable, pillars of stability in a world that often seems to have gone completely mad. Times change though, and as we all know nothing stands still, no matter how much we would like them to

 As with pubs, banks are closing in their droves, and the reasons for this are purely monetary, as you might have guessed, and whilst to a certain extent. other financial institutions are also shutting up shop, the extent of this is far less than what we are currently witnessing from the major players in the game. These players are the big five banks that we’ve all grown up with and whose absence will certainly be noticed, and their presence sorely missed. They are of course, Barclays, HSBC (formerly the Midland,), Lloyds and National Westminster – Nat West, for short.

In Tonbridge, we have already seen the closure of Barclays and Lloyds are due to shut up shop at the end of this month. Then, last week, the announcement came that Nat West too will be closing in the run-up to Christmas. So, the National Westminster Bank, with its imposing street corner position, ornate stonework, and sleek marble pillars, a real symbol of longevity, stability, and permanence, and an institution that has served the town of Tonbridge and its inhabitants for decades, will soon be just another empty building.

When Eileen and I had our off-license business, it was that same branch of the Nat West that looked after all our banking needs and was the place where I made a beeline to on Monday and Friday mornings, to pay in the weekly and weekend takings. Because of this twice-weekly ritual, I got to know the counter staff, as we inevitably exchanged a few pleasantries.  It is this loss of a facility, that provides an essential service for local businesses, that will have the most detrimental effect on the commercial life of the town, coming as it does, on the heels of the loss of Barclays and the imminent closure of Lloyds.

A month or so ago, Mrs PBT’s enjoyed a meal and an evening out with some old friends. Their chosen destination was a fine old pub, in a rural location, and whilst settling up the bill at the bar afterwards, the landlady was bemoaning the loss of banking facilities in Tonbridge. She was telling the group that she now had to drive into Sevenoaks, a town renowned for its congestion and poor car parking facilities, in order to bank the weekly takings and procure sufficient change, rather than making the shorter and much more convenient journey into Tonbridge.

I’m not going to name the pub, although it is a well-known and well-regarded establishment which, like many local businesses is struggling to keep its head above water. The last thing that business owners in Tonbridge want is the extra hassle of being unable to pay in the takings locally, but their concerns are falling on increasingly deaf ears. Like its competitors, Nat West has blamed the closure of its Tonbridge branch, on a falloff in customer numbers compared to pre-pandemic levels, but many see this as just another excuse for what is clearly a cost-cutting exercise.

In common with other institutions, banks seem more concerned about their shareholders, than their customers, and whilst they would argue they are merely responding to customer demand by offering options for home banking, they have in effect, sowed the seeds of their own demise. Cynics would point out that the closure of walk-in High Street facilities, is a deliberate ploy to discourage the use of cash – an aim shared by both the banking system and the government, and whilst this judgement might well be correct, both institutions underestimate the important role that cash still plays in today’s world of business and commerce.

I’m sure this trend is going to run, and run for some time, but it isn’t one we can afford to ignore, especially when one considers the negative effect it is having on cherished institutions like the local town and village pub. It is also madness, for a town the size of Tonbridge to be left with just one bank, and even that could change, as who's to say HSBC won't shut up shop as well.

Zooming in under the radar

Food & Drink Festivals are very much in vogue at the moment. Tonbridge’s event took place at the beginning of September, to be followed, three weeks later, by a similar event in Tunbridge Wells. In between, the Canterbury Food & Drink Festival was held, and had it not been for the combination of poor weather and disruption on the railways, this for me would have been the go-to event.

I’ve been to quite a few, the last one being in 2019, as one of the main attraction of Canterbury’s festival, is the launch of the Kent Green Hop Festival. I’ve written so much about Green Hop Ales (GHA's) in the past on this blog, that I’m not going to repeat myself here, but whilst the festival prides itself on having as many Kentish Green Hop beers available, as possible, there are several schools of thought whose opinion is this event is too soon to be serving these beers.

These opinions have more than a gain of truth, seeing as the hop harvest will only have taken place around three weeks previously. According to the pundits, this leaves insufficient time for the flavours and aromas of the freshly picked hops to develop properly and come to the fore. Instead, the event with largest selection of GHA’ s, and one of the best places to drink them at, is the Spa Valley Railway Beer Festival which took place last weekend, but if you want somewhere to enjoy a few of these GHA’s, then the Spa Valley bash is the one to aim for, although you will have to wait until next year now.

On Thursday evening, I caught up with friends from West Kent CAMRA, for the tasting of the Green Hop beer brewed by a local member. As mentioned in my previous post, keen home-brewer Keith produced the beer from hops grown in fellow member, Simon’s garden. The end result was a very quaffable pale ale, with a pleasant hop aroma and taste, from the hops, that were picked less than 24 hours prior to brewing. The actual hop variety is unknown, as Simon acquired the plants from a garden centre, several years ago.

As well as enjoying this unique beer, which was shared with the full permission of the pub’s landlord, my CAMRA friends reported that the SVR Beer Festival was still a hugely successful event, in spite of the organisers having to scale back the beer order, because of the national rail strike that affected train services on the Saturday. I didn’t discover which Green Hop Ale came top in the judging, and I also failed in my quest to sample some GHA’s for myself, as there was only one on tap at the Nelson that evening, and the 6.0% Green Giant IPA, from Kent Brewery didn’t really take my fancy.

What I did enjoy though, on top of the home-brewed GHA, were three of the other beers on sale that evening. Starting off with the excellent Collusion, a 5.2% IPA from Surrey Hills Brewery, I then moved on to a rarely seen seasonal ale from Harvey’s, in the form of the 5.5% Star of Eastbourne. Like Collusion, Star of Eastbourne is another well-hopped IPA. Star of the evening, if you’ll excuse the “stellar” pun, was Larkin’s Porter, one of the best porters around, and a personal favourite.

I must confess to my surprise at seeing this rich, dark 5.2% ale on sale so early in the season, as the brewery’s normal practice was to hold back the release of this beer until Bonfire Night. Now, according to some of those present that evening, Larkin’s are making the beer much more widely available, and there was even talk of it being on sale all year round. Personally, I can’t see much of this beer being sold during the summer months, as whilst it is undoubtedly good, it really is a brew that is far more suited to late autumn and winter drinking. Perhaps there has been a change at Larkin’s, seeing as founder and owner Bob Dockerty is now in his 80’s.

Returning to the start of this article, and the Tonbridge Food & Drink Festival, whilst there, back at the start of September, I sampled a few beers, and bought a couple of bottles from a stall operated by The Godstone Brewers. Founded by old university friends, Anne Jackson & Steve Taylor, The Godstone Brewers operate from a barn at Flower Farm, near Godstone. The pair were keen brewers during their student days, and after bumping into each other again in 2014, discovered they both still had a passion for brewing. They decided to ditch their respective careers and set up a brewery together.

Since starting out they have developed scores of different beer recipes, attended hundreds of beer festivals, and braved the rain and cold in countless farmers markets, so it was nice to make their acquaintance at the Tonbridge Food & Drink Festival.  I enjoyed the two beers I bought that day - Forever 4.3%, a zesty, hoppy, citrus pale ale and Bitter Entropy 5.3%, a full bodied, and rather malty, fashion in the likeness of an ESB. Despite this I have never come across the couple’s beers on journeys through the Kent-Surrey border country, and neither have I seen any of the brightly decorated bottles on sale in local shops. It's surprising in this day and age to find breweries, such as Godstone, operating virtually under the radar, so I may need to visit the brewery Taproom, attached to the brewery at Flower Farm, particularly if I wish to sample one or two of the company’s cask beers. 

The Taproom is only open on Friday evenings 5-8pm, for what is described as a social pint or two including take-aways. It does prove though, that there’s a number of brewers out there keeping a rather low profile, either through choice, or due to straightened financial circumstances, but whatever the reason, you have to admire their dedication. Together, the pair form another example of the multi-faceted world of brewing in the UK today, and this is what makes the life of a beer enthusiast, so interesting.