Beer-related travel, at home and abroad, exploring and indulging my passion for beer.
Sunday 29 December 2019
Keeping it local in Sussex
I hinted in my last post that I was going down with a spot of “man flu.” As things turned out, it wasn’t that bad. I did have a rather restless night where I felt like I was burning up, but that passed and I awoke this morning feeling surprisingly refreshed.
Mrs PBT’s was feeling a little under the weather as well. I don’t know if there’s such as thing as “woman flu,” and I’m not brave enough to ask, but she felt sufficiently rough enough to postpone our planned trip to Maidstone. Instead, she asked could we perhaps go somewhere a little quieter instead?
This was fine by me, as I detest major shopping centres and the large crowds they attract, especially at this time of year, so after we bounced a few alternative suggestions back and forth, we settled on the small market town of Wadhurst, which is just over the border from us, in East Sussex.
There was a reason for my good lady wife’s suggestion, (there normally is), and that was Wadhurst contains a branch of Jempson’s - everyone’s favourite independent grocery store and, amongst other goodies, they sell “sausage rolls to die for.” So shortly before midday we jumped into the car and set off on our cross-border trip.
We drove down the A21, pleased that the bulk of the traffic was heading in the opposite direction to ourselves, before turning off at the start of the Lamberhurst by-pass. This was a bit of nostalgia for me, as for a three year period during the mid 1980’s, I worked in Lamberhurst for a company called Crown Chemicals.
Even three decades ago, Crown were that rarest of beasts, in being an independently-owned pharmaceutical company specialising in veterinary products. They were under-capitalised and lacked the ability to compete with the big international players, but they’d managed to strike a canny deal with a major US animal health company. The deal licensed them to sell a hormonal implant product, designed to "assist beef cattle gain weight and improve their feed efficiency."
The product was called Ralgro, and a quick Google search confirms it is still widely used in the good old US of A. For several years Crown grew rich on the back of this rather questionable product, but instead of investing the profits incurred from its sale, into new products and new ventures, the company sat on its hands not thinking that one day Ralgro might not be around.
That day came when the European Union slapped a ban on hormone-injected beef. Now even though this was likely to have a negative affect on my job, I thought the EU was quite right in taking action. Ask yourself, would you really want to be eating beef pumped full of a compound designed to stimulate the pituitary gland; because if it works on beef cattle, what effect might it have on us humans?
Mind you, once the joker in charge of the UK government has concluded his "amazing free trade deal" with the even bigger joker on the other side of the Atlantic, you almost certainly will get the chance; even though you probably won’t be aware of it!
I digress, seeing that the writing was on the wall, Crown picked up a major grant from the Irish government, and re-located to Galway, on the west coast of Ireland. Their site in the centre of Lamberhurst was re-developed and turned into housing. We noticed the houses, which are not so new now, as we drove through the village, which is now virtually free from traffic since the opening of the by-pass in 2005.
I also noticed that the village butcher, the sweet shop and the local bank have all long closed, along with the Horse & Groom pub, halfway up Town Hill. The pub closed in 2002, and is now an Airbnb property, but the disappearance of Lamberhurst’s largest employer must have had an adverse effect on other businesses in the village. We’re getting bogged down again, but sometimes it’s necessary to wallow in a spot of nostalgia.
Although I have driven through Wadhurst quite recently, it must be 30 years or so since I last stopped off there. Mrs PBT’s had discovered the branch of Jempson’s, whilst out for a drive with our son Matthew. I’ll be expanding more on this local company in a while, but for now their Wadhurst outlet is more a convenience store, rather than a full-blown superstore. With free parking behind the store, and a good selection of locally sourced produce on sale, (including Old Dairy beers), and friendly old-fashioned service, it seemed genuinely popular with the town’s folk.
Village shops (I hesitate at describing Wadhurst as a town), are like village pubs in so much they are the place where all the local gossip is aired. Whilst attempting to squeeze past a group who’d stopped for a natter, we couldn't help overhearing the bad news that was being aired.
I had originally planned to share it, particularly as there was a real sense of "gallows humour" involved, but in the cold light of day, I thought this might have been rather insensitive. The story was not for our ears, and whilst the chance of those affected reading this blog, must be pretty slim, it would still be inappropriate for me to share. (If you seem me in real life, and ask me nicely, then I might be tempted to tell you, but until such a time, my lips are sealed!)
We bought the sausage rolls and a few other things beside. On the way back I suggested stopping off at the Elephant’s Head, at the nearby hamlet of Hook Green, but Mrs PBT’s wanted to get back for lunch. A pity thought I, as there was the chance that Harvey’s Old Ale might be on sale. She did suggest going out on another occasion with the express intention of a pub lunch, so all is not yet lost.
So what about Jempson’s, the Sussex-based company, offering locally sourced products and services? The company was founded in 1935, as a bakery business in the village of Peasmarsh, just outside Rye. Today the business had grown to become one of the largest family owned food supermarkets in the UK, consisting of two supermarkets, two convenience stores, six cafe’s, a pharmacy plus a petrol station.
Jempson’s pride themselves in offering shoppers the highest standards of customer service as well as some of the finest foods from around the world. According to the company website, their intention is to become the most prestigious food retailer in the UK in terms of innovation, design and fresh food excellence.
We have often called in at their Peasmarsh Superstore, on the way back from visits to Rye, and have been impressed by what is on offer there. The store was opened in January 2002 on the same site as that chosen by the firm’s founder, George Thomas Jempson 80 years ago. Today, brothers Andrew and Stephen Jempson run the business, having taken over from their father Harold in the early 90’s.
I am a great believer in supporting local enterprises, particularly when they offer high quality, combined with good value, and this is just one more reason why I would rather support local pubs, rather than rattle around in one of Tim’s soulless beer barns.
If you find yourself in this part of the country, you could do a lot worse than call in at a Jempson’s store. As well as those already mentioned, at Peasmarsh and Wadhurst, you will find others in Battle, Northiam and Rye.
Meanwhile, the hunt for Harvey’s Old continues!
Friday 27 December 2019
Washed away
I don’t think I’ve ever known such a wet spell of weather.
It doesn’t seem to have stopped raining for the past three months, and whilst
excess precipitation doesn’t put such a dampener on things as it would during
the summer months, it is still unwelcome, even at this time of year.
With eight days off from work, I had planned to get some
more walking under my belt, but given the amount of rain we’ve had during
recent weeks, the footpaths and fields are likely to be waterlogged or even
impassable.
This is a shame, as it would have been good to have knocked
off another section or two of the North Downs Way.
I haven’t done any serious walking since completing the Canterbury Loop section
back in September, and because of the inclement weather, my plans to strike out
westward along the main branch of the trail, have suffered quite a setback.
I’m not a fair-weather walker, but whilst I don’t mind
walking through the odd shower, incessant rain is another matter. Getting
soaked to the skin is not my idea of fun; been there, done that, got the
T-shirt, so with this in mind I will just
have to be patient and wait for the arrival of spring – assuming we get a dry
one, that is.
I had another reason for looking forward to a walk, and
that was to get me out of the house. With Boxing Day a complete washout, I was coped up indoors for the best part of three days, so despite the
beginnings of a cold, I took a drive down into Tonbridge with Mrs PBT's to pick up some bread and milk, plus withdraw some cash.
Bad weather isn’t all bad though, as it affords time to do
things indoors that you might have been putting off, not the most enjoyable way
to spend time, I’ll grant, but you can devote resources to more fruitful and
certainly more satisfying activities, such as planning your next day out, or
even that longed for overhead’s trip.
A small selection from my Blog List |
I've not done anything drastic, such as changed the appearance or background of the site, but I have given my Blog List a long-overdue revamp. This has meant quite a lot of out with the old and in with the new, particularity as there were quite a few sites that I follow that have become either moribund or have given up the ghost completely.
There are probably all sorts of reasons for this - people move on, get bored, lose interest, find something more exciting. Sometimes they sadly pass on completely, and this was the case with Richard Coldwell, whose excellent Beer Leeds website, I only started following a year ago.
So at present, six blogs have been culled from my list, including a few from the odd well-known writer. I shan't list any names, just in case there are perfectly valid reasons for them having given up blogging, but I'm pleased to report there are nine new blogs which are now gracing these pages.
That's kind of what you do at the end of a year, and with the creeping onset of "man flu," that's all I feel like doing at the moment!
Thursday 26 December 2019
25th December 2019
In case it escaped anyone’s notice, yesterday – Wednesday 25th
December was Christmas Day; the “big day,” if you believe all the hype, and all
the carefully targeting advertisements designed to part you from your money in the run up to the day itself.
The ads seem to start earlier each year, and certainly once we’re into October, they’re pretty much
non-stop – as are all the cheesy hits being blasted out in shops and shopping
centres all over the country. By the time the main event arrives, you’re sick
and tired of the whole charade and feeling that it’s definitely not “The most
wonderful time of the year,” despite what Andy Williams might tell you.
For many people Christmas is not a time to out-spend,
out-consume and out-eat your fellow human beings. Instead it is a time for
quiet reflection, to count one’s blessings and to spend time with friends and
loved ones, if you are fortunate to have them. I’ll be putting some of my
reflections out on my blog, before the year is out, but I want to say I enjoyed
a quiet Christmas, at home, with my immediate family.
Being slightly older now, I can well appreciate why my
father always preferred staying at home on Christmas day, rather than having to
drive somewhere or have children and later grandchildren running amok. Mum had
other ideas, of course, and expectations of
Christmas that were impossibly high, meaning disappointment was often
inevitable.
I’ve never wanted to fall into that trap, and whilst during
the early days of my marriage to Mrs PBT’s, I did have to endure driving off to
spend time with parents, siblings or other family members, I’m pleased to say
those days are passed. The worst part of those visits was, as the sole driver,
not being able to enjoy a few beers. I’m not talking of getting tanked up, but
I do like a beer or two with my Christmas dinner, without compromising my driving
abilities, or breaking the law.
After having endured (sounds awful but it’s meant in the nicest
possible way), the stresses arising from spending time in other people’s homes,
with people you might not normally choose to spend time with, I can tell you there’s
nothing better than being able to close the door on the rest of the world,
(even if it’s only for one day), and just relax, chill out and just do your own
thing in the comfort of your own home.
So how did I spend my December 25th ? Did I over indulge
on the food or the booze and, seeing as this is a blog about beer, what interesting
beers did I enjoy?
I was actually quite moderate with my drink consumption on Christmas Day, and the same applies to the food. I woke up just after 8.30am, and went downstairs just before 9am. Mrs PBT’s had already surfaced in order to get the all important turkey in the oven, but there was no sign of son Matthew stirring from his slumbers. I made myself a cup of tea, and joined Eileen in a spot of breakfast grazing – finishing up some of the “finger food” left over from Christmas Eve’s soiree.
Presents were opened two and a half hours later, once the
preparations for the dinner were progressed as far as they might, and young
Matthew had graced us with his presence. We don’t tend to go overboard at
Christmas, so there was nothing too extravagant for any of us; although there
were the odd few indulgences.
Shortly after midday
both Matt and I started on the drink. I wanted something light to begin with,
so the bottle of Curious Brew Lager that was lurking at the back of the fridge
seemed just the ticket. The “curious” part of the name comes from the use of Champagne
yeast, used to conduct a secondary fermentation. This imparts a Champagne
- like quality to the beer, making it a surprisingly refreshing drink. Curious
indeed!
I waited for Christmas dinner before cracking open my second
beer, which was a bottle of Fuller’s 1845. For the past decade or so, this
excellent, strong, bottle-conditioned ale has been my usual accompaniment for a turkey
dinner. The rich malt combined with the earthy hop character cuts in well
against the flavours and texture of the turkey and associated vegetables.
The dinner was excellent, but then Mrs PBT’s always serves
up a good spread, and she certainly did us proud yesterday. Without wishing to bore with
too much in the way of domestic details, we went for a turkey from Tesco this year, rather
than from our usual choice of a Waitrose bird. It was tender, succulent plus nice and flavoursome, proving that turkey doesn't have be dry, bland and tasteless.
I finished the 1845 before I finished my meal, so I moved
onto the Larkin’s Porter from the mini-cask that I’d stored out in the
summerhouse. It had cleared nicely since the haziness of the previous evening,
and was rich, dark and satisfying. Having only managed to track down one outlet
selling one of my favourite winter beers so far this year, it’s good to have
some on tap to be enjoyed in the comfort of my own home.
No more beers for a while, as a break from both food and
alcohol seemed a good idea. So did a couple of glasses of water, as both can
leave one dehydrated. Later on I cracked open a can of Pilsner Urquell. As I've undoubtedly mentioned before, this world classic, original pilsner, is my go-to beer for drinking at home. It has a tremendous depth of flavour for a 4.4% beer, with just the right amount of bitterness from the Saaz hops balanced against a deep malty background. Without getting too technical, this has something to do with the triple-decoction mash that the beer undergoes in the initial stages of production.
I finished the evening with a can of Life & Death, the excellent 6.5% abv IPA from Vocation Brewery. Pale in colour, and packed full of juicy malt flavours, off-set by aromas and flavours of tropical fruits, the beer proved the perfect accompaniment to the obligatory turkey sandwich.
I finished the evening with a can of Life & Death, the excellent 6.5% abv IPA from Vocation Brewery. Pale in colour, and packed full of juicy malt flavours, off-set by aromas and flavours of tropical fruits, the beer proved the perfect accompaniment to the obligatory turkey sandwich.
That then, was my lot, and all things considered an enjoyable Christmas Day, without too much in the way of excess, and nothing in the way of stress. I even watched the odd spot of TV, just to be sociable, but when all’s said and done, it
does seem like a terrific fuss for what, after all, is just another day.
I trust everyone had an equally enjoyable December 25th, and I extend my best wishes and compliments of the season to one and all.
Tuesday 24 December 2019
Christmas at home with Larkin's Porter
With Christmas just a day away, the vexed question of what
beers to get in to enjoy over the Christmas period, once again raises its head.
Or does it, as for the last few years I’ve largely given up on stocking up with
certain favourites and instead have just gone with the flow.
That doesn’t mean I have a dry, beer less Christmas – that
would be a disaster, but what I have tended to do is buy whatever is on offer
at my local supermarkets; primarily Tesco, Waitrose and Asda, as Sainsbury’s
seem to have given up on discounting or special offers. That way I can build up
a reasonable stock of something drinkable and enjoyable, without breaking the
bank.
I ensure that my festive season stock always includes
personal favourites, such as Pilsner Urquell, Fuller’s Porter, 1845 and St
Austell Proper Job. This Christmas I have built up quite a stock of cans from
Vocation Brewery – Pride & Joy plus Life & Death. Last month I wrote
about the promotion Tesco have been running on these beers
I have my father to thank for the long-standing tradition of
Christmas beers within the Bailey household as, even though he was never much
of a drinker, and certainly not a beer drinker, my dad was not averse to
getting a few beers in for us to enjoy over the festive season.
I remember badgering him to get in some tins of Sainsbury’s
Bitter; after I discovered it was brewed by Ruddles. A year or so later, I
persuaded him to go for the real thing, in the form of Ruddles
County – then available in those squat-shaped,
stumpy bottles, with the ring-pull caps.
The Ruddles fascination was probably during my university
years, whilst I was home with my parents, for the Christmas break. Those home
visits were interspersed with sessions down at the Honest Miller - the local
pub in the village, where copious pints of locally-brewed Fremlin's Bitter were enjoyed.
A few years later, after graduating, and after buying my
first house, a two-up and two-down terraced cottage in Maidstone,
I took what was the next step in home drinking, which was treating myself to a
polypin of real ale, from a local brewery.
I’d become involved with the local CAMRA branch and ended up
copying what one or two of the more senior members were doing. That was forty
years ago, when I was approaching my mid-twenties, and some of those “senior”
members were probably younger than I am now, but perception is everything when
you’re young, and anyone over 40 was positively ancient in my book!
My polypins were mainly sourced from Harvey’s, although over
the next few years I tried beer from several other breweries, including the
Royal Tunbridge Wells Brewery, whose equipment, and premises, were later
acquired by Larkin’s.
The advantage of polypins is the beer is contained in a
flexible container, inside the sturdy cardboard outer box, and the liner
slowly collapses as the beer is drawn off. Because the beer does not come into
contact with oxygen in the air, the beer will last upwards of two weeks, but
inevitably it will start losing condition.
I eventually gave up on polypins and moved on to bottles
as, in my experience, they're a much better bet. Not only do they remain fresh
until they are opened, but they can provide a lot more variety. And with so
much good food and interesting flavours available over the Christmas period,
variety is what's required.
My days of buying draught beer in bulk seemed over until
last week. I’d popped into the "Causeway Stores," close to my work, to buy a few
more stamps from the Post Office, and to post a card to my sister in America. Stacked in a corner, close to the counter,
were several 5 litre mini-casks.
Now many micro, and not so micro breweries offer beer in
these containers, not just at Christmas, but all year round. These ones were
from Larkin’s who brew a few miles away in Chiddingstone village. I
wasn’t aware that their beers were available in these containers, so I had a
quick look at what was on offer, and found most were filled with Larkin’s
Traditional, which is the brewery’s weakest, but most popular beer.
I noticed one contained the brewery's much more satisfying Best
Bitter, but there weren’t any Porters lurking amongst the stack. After buying my
stamps, I enquired as to whether Porter might be available, and discovered that
whilst the shop had none in stock, they could get the brewery to drop one down
for me. I duly placed my order and collected my mini-cask after work yesterday.
At £22, it was a real bargain and works
out at just £2.75 a pint, assuming the cask contains 8 pints.
I set it up in the summerhouse yesterday evening, and have
just tapped and poured myself a pint.
The beer is still a little hazy, but that doesn’t’ matter in a dark beer. It
was well-conditioned – as Larkin’s beers normally are, but I will probably
leave it another day or so, before drawing off any more.
My only previous experience of beer in mini-casks, was one I
brought back from a pre-Christmas trip to Bamberg,
twelve eleven years ago.
It was a cask of Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier, the city’s legendary “Smoke
beer,” and very nice it was too; certainly for the first two or three days.
The beer then slowly began to go downhill as the level of
liquid in the container gradually went down. As might be expected, the amount
of condition in the beer (the level of dissolved CO2), was the first
thing to decline, followed slowly by a deterioration in the taste of the beer.
Lesson learned, so I will do my best to consume the contents
as quickly as possible. With a beer as good as Larkin’s Porter, that shouldn’t
be difficult, and as I was moaning just the other week about not having come
across this beer locally this year, I’ve now got ample opportunity to get stuck
in and start enjoying it.
Sunday 22 December 2019
Don't just drive on by
Have you ever driven past a pub and wanted to stop there but
didn’t, because the timing wasn’t right, you were on your way somewhere else,
or stopping there would have interfered with your itinerary? What if you’d
driven past that pub on a more or less weekly basis? Wouldn’t it start gnawing at your brain,
after a while, and wouldn’t you just feel compelled to make time and pull over,
in order to check the place out?
The pub might turn out to be an absolute duffer or, a real
gem. Most likely it would be something in between. At least once you’ve checked
it out you would know whether you were right in just driving by, or perhaps
you’d missed an absolute corker of a place.
There’s a pub on the A25, at a place called Bessels Green; a
settlement on the north-western edge of Sevenoaks, which has largely been
absorbed by the town. It would be rather generous to describe Bessels Green as
a village, but it does have a couple of 18th Century
churches/meeting houses, an attractive village green, plus a rather nice looking
pub.
The King's Head overlooks the green, and faces across to a
row of brightly coloured, painted cottages on the opposite side. This
combination of village green, cottages, posh house plus pub, forms a
picturesque backdrop to traffic passing through on the busy A25. Before the M25
was constructed, the A25 was a major east-west artery for traffic wishing to
avoid London, whilst travelling
across southern England.
I remember having to use that route myself, when I lived in Maidstone,
whilst on secondment to a company based in Hounslow. The noise, congestion and
the pollution, especially from the lorries that used the route, must have been
horrendous, so I imagine inhabitants of the towns and villages along the way
must have breathed a huge sigh of relief when the southern section of the M25
finally opened.
The King’s Head is just the type of pub I was referring to
earlier, and since Mrs PBT’s and I switched our weekly supermarket shop from
ASDA to Tesco, we have driven past it most weeks. I’ve commented before that we
ought to stop off there, if only for a coffee, but somehow the time’s never
been quite right.
All that changed at the weekend, when son Matthew and I
called in; not just once though, but twice! Allow me to explain, it’s become
something of a tradition for Matthew to treat his old mum and dad to a few
Christmas goodies. By this I mean a contribution to the Christmas feast over-indulgence.
So father and son head off to the large Tesco store at Riverhead – just the
other side of Sevenoaks, and stock up on items such as a cheese selection,
Christmas pudding (I never feel like eating it on Christmas day), brandy
sauce/butter, various types of stuffing and the eponymous “pigs in blankets, ”
where did that piece of marketing originate?
We’d planned to go last Tuesday, but for some reason decided
to postpone our trip until the Friday. Mrs PBT’s was going out that evening,
for a meal with members of her ante-natal group, so Matthew and I decided we
could pick up the Christmas goodies, and then stop off for something to eat on
the way home. He was working late that evening, so I picked him up just after 7pm, and we drove over to Tesco at Riverhead to
purchase what he deemed necessary for our festive feast. I also took the
opportunity of picking up a few last minute Christmas gifts.
The next question was, where should we eat? Matthew’s idea
had been to drive back along the A21 towards High Brooms, where we could grab
something cheap and cheerful at the Robin Hood – the local Hungry Horse outlet.
I wasn’t so keen on this, for a number
of reasons and it was whilst walking up and down the aisles in Tesco that I hit
on the idea of stopping off just up the road in Bessel’s Green, and calling in
at the King’s Head.
I knew the food offering would be good as the pub is owned
and run by the same small chain as the Little Brown Jug in Chiddingstone
Causeway; the village where I work. Whiting & Hammond own eight pubs spread
across West Kent and East Sussex,
all run with a degree of autonomy, whilst benefiting from corporate purchasing
power. You can read more about the company here, but if I tell you that Brian
Whiting was formerly a director at the larger, and better known pub company -
Brunning & Price, you will know the type of pub we were talking about.
We headed south and then due west out of Sevenoaks, before turning
of the A25 and pulling up outside the King’s Head. We were struck by the warm
ambience as we entered, with a log fire blazing away to our right, and the bar
straight in front of us. I don’t know the history of the pub, but I do know
that it underwent a major refurbishment in the Spring of 2014.
My first question to the barman was were they still serving
food? Fortunately they were, so the next decision was what drinks to go for.
With a choice of Taylor’s Landlord, St Austell Proper Job and Tonbridge
Countryman, I went for the Proper Job; just a half mind you. It was getting
close to Christmas, I was driving and there would be plenty of idiots on the
road.
The barman said to choose a table and he’d bring our drinks
over and take our food order. Before sitting down we had a brief look around
this multi-roomed, slightly upmarket local. There are a variety of candle-lit
tables of different sizes and styles, partitioned by a couple of exposed brick
fireplaces. The small and cosy bar area seemed well patronised that Friday,
with a group of drinkers standing and chatting at the bar.
The time was getting on towards 9pm, and by then any hunger pangs I might have had, had
vanished. I opted for the “Ultimate homemade fishcake,” which consisted of
smoked salmon and haddock, combined with potato and topped with a poached egg.
It was served on a substantial bed of spinach. Matthew went for a more
traditional offering in the shape of the homemade “Gourmet burger,” served with
skinny fries. Both were just what we required at that moment in time.
The barman told us the pub had been rammed that afternoon,
catering for various groups of diners, all getting stuck into their turkey
dinners. Like its sister pub, the Brown Jug, the King’s Head must cater for
local companies and their staff Christmas dinner.
It was pleasantly relaxed on Friday evening though, and like
with the Jug, it was good to see local people who’d obviously walked to the
pub, accompanied by their dogs. Matthew and I found ourselves back at the
King’s Head on Sunday morning.
We’d originally intended to drive over to
Chiddingstone Causeway for a leisurely breakfast; either at the village hall,
or at the Little Brown Jug, but after experiencing flooded roads on my drive
into work on Friday, and further torrential rain on Saturday, we decided to try
somewhere else.
We knew that the LBJ offers a good breakfast, so we surmised
that the King’s Head would do the same. It did, but only offered fried eggs,
rather than the fried or scrambled option available at the Jug. I could also
have done with an additional round of toast. Apart from that the full English
was fine, especially as we were provided with a nice large pot filled with plenty
of tea.
So after driving past all those years, and wanting to stop
off for further investigation, I found myself making two visits in the space of
just three days. The barman even remembered us from Friday night! The main thing
about the King’s Head though is that despite the obvious food trade, the pub
still caters for the casual drinker; both local as well as from further afield.
We are sailing
It’s nearly two months since the short “taster cruise” that
Mrs PBT’s and I undertook, and looking back I realise I didn’t actually write
much about life on board ship or,
indeed, the ship itself. So as the pair of us are looking to undertake a longer
voyage in 2020, I thought I’d put together a short piece about our all too
short time afloat on the Cunard Queen Elizabeth.
As mentioned in a previous post, we voyaged with Eileen’s
sister and her husband, after travelling down to Southampton
with them. We stayed overnight at the Premier Inn Southampton West, but have to
say it wasn’t the best Premier Inn by a long shot.
I don’t wish to sound like a disgruntled reviewer, posting
on Trip Advisor, but the environmental control in the room didn’t work –
we had to contact reception, who provided us with a couple of plug-in electric
heaters. This wasn’t a huge deal, in itself, but when I returned from reception Mrs PBT’s informed me there was no plug for the bathroom sink, and the bathroom itself wasn't as clean as it might have been.
I’ll be kind about the place, as the staff did their best,
but the hotel had a very tired look about it, and was definitely in need of
some tlc. A Hungry Horse outlet, called the Vine Inn was attached to the hotel
but, arriving as we did, on 31st October, the restaurant was packed
out with hordes of hyped up and over-excited kids, crawling and jumping all over the bench
seating, and generally running amok in their best Halloween costumes.
The following morning, my brother-in-law drove us over to a
nearby Morrison’s where we obtained a reasonably-priced breakfast, before
heading off to the pre-booked parking-compound, where we would be leaving the
car for the duration of the voyage.
The in-laws had chosen Penguin Cruise Parking, who are on the
opposite bank of the River Test from the Cruise Terminal. We could see the superstructure
of the vessel, that was to be our home for the next two days, towering above
the cranes and other port-related structures, which lined the western side of
the river. After parking the car and handing over the keys, we were chauffeured
over to our departure point, by min-bus.
Once deported at the Cruise Terminal, check-in was a far
easier, and less rushed process than when flying. Several weeks before
departure, we’d been sent pre-printed, bar-coated labels, which we’d attached
to the handles of our suitcases. We were able to just hand over our cases at
check-in, knowing that the next time we saw them they’d be waiting for us
outside our cabin.
We then had the border-control section, which was the only time we were required to show our passports. After this we were each issued with a credit-card sized, pass-cum-identity card. The card acts as you room key, allows you to go ashore – and return to the boat. It also enables you to make purchases onboard ship, as whilst all meals and snacks are free, alcoholic drinks and certain luxury purchases are not.
We then had the border-control section, which was the only time we were required to show our passports. After this we were each issued with a credit-card sized, pass-cum-identity card. The card acts as you room key, allows you to go ashore – and return to the boat. It also enables you to make purchases onboard ship, as whilst all meals and snacks are free, alcoholic drinks and certain luxury purchases are not.
So if you fancy a bottle of wine with your meal, or a couple of beers afterward, you need to flash your card. Another point to note, US Dollars are the de-facto currency on board ship, and everything is priced accordingly. Whilst this might seem strange for a prestige British cruise line, given the trans-Atlantic or Caribbean itinerary of many Cunard cruises, it is perhaps no surprise. The other drawback of pandering to the US market, was that most of the plug sockets in our room were two-pin, American ones. We will take adapters next time!
The other benefit to the electronic key cards was there was
no need to show a passport when leaving the ship; either in the cruise
destination port of Zeebrugge
or upon return to the UK., as the card contained all relevant passport details.
Once aboard for the first time, Mrs PBT’s and I were like a
couple of excited kids. After we’d located our cabin, and dumped the hand
luggage we were carrying, we set off to explore the ship, from, top to bottom
and bow to stern. With a 4.30pm
departure, we went up on one of the outer deck, to watch as the boat pushed
away from the quayside, turned herself around and began slowly sailing down
Southampton Water towards the Solent.
Alongside the in-laws, we attended the compulsory life-boat
drill at our designated muster station. After that, it was time to dress for
dinner and enjoy some fine dining. We’d been assigned the early sitting in the
restaurant, but with hindsight, the second sitting would have been more
appropriate.
Apart from splashing out on a bottle of red wine at dinner
(they re-corked and saved what was left for the following evening), plus a pint
of keg London Pride which my dear wife bought for me, I didn’t drink that much
onboard. With tea, coffee and water freely available, there was plenty to keep
me hydrated.
And now some general facts and figures about the Queen
Elizabeth, for all you ship anoraks out there; surely some must exist? The
liner is a Vista class cruise ship operated by the Cunard
Line. The vessel was built by the Italian company Fincantieri Marghera, who
are Europe’s largest shipbuilders, at their yard in Trieste.
Vista Class ships are designed so that eighty-five percent
of the staterooms have ocean views and sixty-seven percent have verandas; the
extensive use of glass in the superstructure is also reflected in the class
name. At 92,000 GT, the Queen Elizabeth is slightly larger than her sister
ship, Queen Victoria, and is able
to carry up to 2,092 passengers.
Although having an almost identical interior arrangement to Queen
Victoria, the décor, with its many art deco touches is very
different, and evokes the era of the 1930s, in which Cunard's first Queen
Elizabeth was launched. The name of the new ship was announced on 10th October 2007, and the ship set sail
on her maiden voyage on 11th October
2010.
being. It was a pleasure to have sailed on the Queen Elizabeth at the beginning of last month, and I look forward to undertaking a longer voyage, possibly as early as next spring.
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