Good Beer Guide 2012 Selection Meeting

Today our local CAMRA Branch held its selection meeting for the 2012 Good Beer Guide. We had deliberately chosen a pub a little off the beaten track, but one which was still readily accessible by public transport. That was the theory; unfortunately we had reckoned without Network Rail's plans for extensive engineering work this weekend, that would have turned a straight forward half hour rail journey, into an hour and a half bus and train marathon. Fortunately a group of us were able to travel over by car, whilst a few members who lived a bit closer were able to brave the rail-replacement bus service, so in the end we had a reasonable turnout of members.

The pub that was hosting our meeting was the Two Brewers in the picturesque village of Shoreham, to the north of Sevenoaks in the Darenth Valley. There are four pubs in the village, and in the past I always regarded the Two Brewers as the poor relation. How things have changed! When we entered the pub we were pleasantly surprised to see the alterations made by the couple who took over the pub some 15 months or so ago. The red-velvet, padded bench seats were gone, along with the jaded carpet and oppressive decor. Instead we were presented with a pub with a bright, modern contemporary feel, with a warm welcome from the landlord and his staff. In short we were really made to feel at home!

There were three cask beers on offer, Black Sheep Best, St Austell Tribute and Reverend James from Brains. Not stunning beers so far as some beer bloggers are concerned, but still a pretty reasonable selection in my book. Most of us went for the lunch option, prior to the meeting, and my chicken, bacon and leek pie was first class.

The meeting itself didn't kick off until 2pm and got off to a bit of a slow start. As is usually the case though, once the obvious candidates had been chosen there was quite a bit of wrangling over which other pubs should also be included. Eventually, we managed to whittle down the 40 pubs shortlisted to our allotted 22, and some two and a half hours later the meeting drew to a close.

For me though the best part of the day, apart from some good beer and food in the company of friends, was to find that the Two Brewers had been transformed into such a thriving, successful and vibrant pub!

Woodforde's Beer Review Week Pt. 2

The weather's turned cold again, so what better beer to go for on a frosty January night than a dark Winter Ale. Keeping with my Woodforde's review theme I've selected Norfolk Nog, a former champion beer of Britain. According to the back label the beer is "a smooth, reddish-black, rich and rounded Old Ale with a velvety texture." The label then goes on to say "The beer oozes dark and sweet roast malt flavours including hints of chocolate, treacle and liquorice."

That's enough of what the label says, so what do I think about the beer? Well, there was virtually no head when it was poured, but the beer itself seems reasonably lively. I wouldn't disagree with the brewer's description which probably sums the beer up as well, if not better, than I can. It's certainly been the best of the three beers I've sampled so far but, as with the Wherry, I imagine that this beer would be even better on draught. This aside, bottled Norfolk Nog is still a very good beer and, as I said earlier, is just right for a cold, late January night.

Next up is Admiral's Reserve, a 5.0% dark-amber coloured beer. Like the Nog, it poured with very little head, and taste-wise is rather sweet and malt-accented. Although I managed to pour a clear glass, the beer seems to have a slight yeastiness lurking in the background. I'm afraid this beer is rather too sweet for a Kentish lad like myself, and a touch more hops would certainly have not gone amiss! That aside, if you are someone who enjoys a malt-accented beer, then you would certainly appreciate this one.

So, as with the previous two beers, the first one gets the thumbs up, whilst the second gets the thumbs down from me. This now leaves me with just two Woodforde's beers to sample; Nelson's Revenge and the mighty Headcracker. At 7.0% though, I'll be taking it easy with the latter!

Elephant's Head Hook Green

On Sunday I took my promised walk out to complete the last of my surveys for the 2012 Good Beer Guide. It always amazes me that surveying has to be done so early in the year, but when you take into account the fact that the Guide is launched in October, in time for the Christmas book trade, then it begins to make sense.

The pub I visited was the Elephant's Head, situated in the tiny hamlet of Hook Green, close to Lamberhurst on the Kent-Sussex border. The pub is virtually impossible to reach using public transport, so the only alternative was to walk there, at least part of the way!

I set off from Tonbridge, in the company of two friends, catching the train as far as Wadhurst. From here we followed the myriad of minor roads and back lanes, through the rolling High Weald landscape of grassy fields and small tracts of woodland. Along the way we passed through the small, isolated settlement of Woods Green, eventually reaching our destination after an hour and a half's walking.

The pub was packed when we arrived, and we were lucky to get a seat, but after our walk we were glad of the chance to take the weight off our feet and enjoy a well-earned pint or two. The Elephant's Head is a Harveys tied pub which dates back to the late 15th Century, although the building has only been a pub since 1768! As befits an old building there are walls of bare sandstone and brick, a wealth of oak beams and a large open fireplace. There is a central serving area, with a modern conservatory to the rear, but we sat in a small alcoved area adjacent to the main entrance.

Harveys Best, Armada and Old Ale were the beers on offer; the Old being particularly good. Unfortunately the same could not be said of the Armada, and one friend ended up having to return his pint. It was promptly replaced with Best Bitter and so, this grip aside, we couldn't really fault the pub. Sunday lunchtime is obviously the busiest time, with the carvery proving extremely popular.

Looking around though we noticed that most of the diners were either drinking wine or soft drinks. The latter is perhaps understandable, given the fact that most of them had arrived at the pub by four-wheeled transport, but where were the beer drinkers? As I mentioned earlier, there were three cask beers on offer, and whilst two of them were fine, one definitely wasn't. When it came to asking the questions for the survey, the staff told us that they sometimes close early on Monday and Tuesday evenings, especially when there are few customers. All this points to a heavy reliance on the food rather than the drink trade, but if that is the price for the survival of rural gems, such as the Elephant's Head, then perhaps that is no bad thing!

Woodforde's Review Week Pt. One

Well it's time for my first review of some of the Woodforde's beers I've been sent to sample. First up is Sundew, a pale, golden ale, with an abv of 4.1%. It has a pleasant citrus aroma, with an equally pleasant hoppy-citrussy taste. It has a good hoppy finish, which balances the juicy maltiness from the Maris Otter barley used to brew the beer. According to the back label, the beer is named after the Sundew flower that grows locally in the Fens of East Anglia. This would be a good beer to enjoy chilled, on a hot summer's day. Like all the beers I've been sent, Sundew is bottle-conditioned. The yeast sediment was perhaps slightly loose, but I still managed to pour a clear glass of beer.

The second beer is Wherry; an old favourite in cask form. The beer poured with much more of a head than the Sundew, and is quite lively from the bottle-conditioning. It has a slight yeasty nose, perhaps because I didn't quite manage to pour a perfectly clear glass, although the yeastiness is overlaid by a zesty aroma from the hops. The beer itself tastes somewhat grainy, but this is balanced by a citrus-like hopiness. The beer is pale amber in colour, but whilst pleasant enough, has no features that really stand out.

I feel this is because beers of this strength (3.8%), don't really lend themselves to bottle-conditioning. This is not just a criticism of Woodforde's, but something I believe applies to all bottle-conditioned beers. I remain a fan of cask Wherry, but regrettably would not go out of my way to buy the bottled version.

So for the first two beers sampled, one gets the thumbs up, whilst the other perhaps the thumbs down. I look forward to moving up the gravity scale and tackling some of the stronger beers, later in the week.

Update on Lidl's

Following my recent post about our local branch of Lidl's being prosecuted for selling alcohol to underage drinkers, the case has now been dealt with by local licensing officials. The store has been allowed to keep its Liquor Licence, but on the strict understanding that they operate a "Challenge 25" policy.

The group claim that they already have a "Challenge 21" policy in place, but have been told they must apply the stricter guidelines. Tonbridge will now be the first Lidl's branch to operate "Challenge 25", but the German-owned chain has indicated that they now intend to roll this policy out across all their UK stores. The procedure is already in operation, as my 19 year old son found last night. He was asked to produce ID, which of course he was able to do, whilst paying for his beer at the checkout.

Woodforde's Norfolk Ales

Today, after two and a bit years of writing this blog, I received my first beers to review, courtesy of Woodforde's. Actually, I think it's their PR Agency I've got to thank, as they're the people who, after reading my blog, contacted me and asked if I'd like to review some of Woodforde's beers.

I must admit I'd almost forgotten about the matter, as it was a couple of months ago when the agency first contacted me, and when the beers didn't turn up in the run up to Christmas, as expected, I thought maybe they'd changed their mind. It was therefore a very pleasant surprise when a case turned up today at my place of work.

There's a total of six different beers to sample and write about, ranging from Wherry at 3.8%, through to Headcracker at 7.0%. In between there's such delights as Sundew, Norfolk Nog and Admiral's Reserve. I don't intend to crack the bottles open straight away, and when I do it will probably be a bottle or two a night. Look out though for my thoughts and observations, regarding these beers over the next few weeks.

It goes without saying, of course, that my reviews will be as objective as possible, and I will not let the fact that the beers arrived foc. influence me in any way.

All Quiet on the Beer Front

A bit of a quiet time on the beer front at the moment, with not a lot happening. Mind you, January's always a dull month, and often a lean one as well, after the excesses of Christmas. We've got our Good Beer Guide Selection meeting at the end of the month, which promises to be a lively event. I've still got one more potential candidate to inspect; a real gem of a country pub. I don't want to drive there, for obvious reasons, so a friend and I are planning a walk out to it next weekend.

I've still got the beer I brought back with me from Bamberg to drink, plus a bit left over from my Christmas stache, so am unlikely to go thirsty at home! So until I've got anything more exciting to report or comment on, it's bye for now.