Bryan Betts - Beer Viking 1962 - 2024

They say that only the good die young, and this was definitely the case with the recent sad passing of Bryan Betts aka Beer Viking. Bryan left this world, unexpectedly, and far too soon, following a brief, but particularly virulent illness on 2^nd February. He was just a few months short of his 62^nd birthday. He leaves behind a loving wife, two children, various other family members, colleagues plus his many friends from both the world of brewing, as well as Viking re-enactment.

I first met Bryan back in 2014, whilst attending my first European Beer Writers Conference, which took place in Dublin. Bryan was staying at the same centrally-located accommodation as me, an establishment called the Gate Hotel, just off O'Connell Street right in the heart of Dublin. The Gate was ideally situated for the conference and, as well as being reasonably priced, served up an excellent full-Irish breakfast each morning. It was whilst getting stuck into one of these amazing breakfasts, on my first morning in Ireland, that Bryan and I first met.

It didn’t take long for the two of us to gel, which wasn’t surprising, as Bryan had a real ability to engage with people, and to share his passions about beer and brewing. His inquisitive nature was apparent from the start and, given his journalistic background, he was a prolific note-taker, stopping often to write things down. You can see Bryan’s note-taking in action, in the photo above, taken at the Dublin Conference. 

 Over the years, I quite often bumped into Bryan at other beer-related events, primarily the summer and Christmas parties organised by the British Guild of Beer Writers, of which we were both members. Unlike me, Bryan played an active role in the Guild’s activities, and formed an integral part of the membership committee. His dedication to the post was evident in his in the way he welcomed new members, and helped foster connections, in order to ensure the Guild thrived as a vibrant community of brewers and beer enthusiasts.

I always looked out for Bryan at Guild events, welcoming his presence, and appreciating him introducing me to other members. Due to clashes with holidays or other events, I missed out on a couple of Christmas dinners, as well as last year’s summer party. Because of this, the last time I saw Bryan was in August 2022, when I received an invite from UK Brewery Tours, to have a look at hops growing in the fields, with Hukins Hops at their farm near Bethersden. 

Bryan was on the tour, accompanied by his daughter, who particularly enjoyed the part where we were all given a glass jar, and told to pick sufficient hops to fill it. We could then take the hop-filled jar home with us, as a souvenir of our visit. I have fond memories of that day, enjoying the sights and aromas of the extensive hop gardens, whilst soaking up the warm, late August sunshine, in the beautiful Kent countryside.

It was therefore a great shock to learn of Bryan’s passing when, almost by accident, I clicked on an email from the British Guild of Beer Writers. I don’t always open communications from the Guild, as they are rather frequent at times, but fortunately I did with this one, learning the sad news last Monday, and discovering that the funeral would take place at the end of that week.

The memorial funeral service in Bryan’s honour, took place at Mortlake Crematorium on 16^th February. It was a typically dull and overcast mid-February afternoon, but the chapel was packed full, packed with family, relatives, colleagues, and Bryan’s many friends. Music from AC/DC, Pink Floyd, Hawkwind, Guns & Roses, plus Led Zeppelin formed the background to the event. There were touching tributes from Bryan’s widow, Helma, his sister Jaqui, and one from Peter, an old friend from childhood who had grown up with Bryan, attended the same school and shared many of his interests. Bryan’s children also brought Toast, the family dog along to the service.

There was a wake afterwards at the Griffin, a charming, back-street Fuller’s pub, close to the site of the former Brentford FC football ground. As with the service, the event was packed, and people were able to exchange cherished moments and favourite memories of Bryan. His warm personality, quick wit, and genuine interest in others created a welcoming atmosphere, and helped put people at ease.

Like me, Bryan hosted his own beer blog, called BeerViking. The Viking part referred to his other hobby of Viking re-enactment, and it was at such an event, in northern Germany, that he first met his wife to be, Helma. Helma recounted the story during the funeral service, as part of a tribute to her late husband.  Bryan was obviously a loving family man, as well as a thoughtful friend. I feel privileged to have known him, even though our shared experiences were, at times, rather brief. I extend my deepest sympathies to Helma, plus their children Elfie and Roric.

Old Family Brewers of Britain. Part Twelve - Truman's of East London

Without looking back through the archives, I’m not quite sure which number we’ve reached in the occasional series that takes a look back at the Old Family Brewers of Britain, but I’m guessing the forthcoming article is No. 12. As with Fremlin’s of Maidstone, East London brewers, Truman’s may well have started as a family enterprise, but just over 200 years from the founding of the latter company, it had grown to become the largest brewery in the world.

Truman's Brewery had its roots in the east-end of London and could trace its history back to the 17^th Century. Established in 1666, as the Black Eagle Brewery, on a plot of land next to Brick Lane in Spitalfields the company grew steadily under the management of Benjamin Truman. During the 18^th Century the company enjoyed a period of rapid expansion, driven by an almost insatiable demand for the beer known as porter, and become one of the largest brewers in London.

I am old enough to remember Truman’s Brewery, and first became aware of the company and its beers, during a school trip to London, for a visit to the Geological Museum in South Kensington. This would have been sometime around 1972-73. Like many sixth formers, we thought we were terribly grown up, so the idea of sneaking off for a pint or two seemed a good idea. Somewhere close to the museum, we found a pub and it belonged to Truman’s. This was not a brewery I was familiar with at the time because whilst the company owned many pubs in the capital, and also quite a few in north Kent, there were no Truman’s pubs in the east of the county where I grew up and went to school.

Although I can’t remember its name, I can still picture the pub because it was cosy and comfortable. It was around this time that Truman’s re-branded themselves, dropping the historic “Hanbury & Buxton” part of their title and becoming plain Truman’s. They also dropped the historic Eagle logo, based on the Black Eagle Brewery. Instead, the company made great play of their year of foundation, and 1666 appeared everywhere. Multi-coloured stripes appeared right round the outside of many pubs, along with a new stylised logo which was meant to represent a sheaf of barley.

For an impressionable teenager in love with modernity, this was cool and obviously the way forward, so I was highly impressed with what I found in this South Kensington pub. I liked the fact that it was carpeted throughout, and the fact the carpet was embellished with the new-look Truman’s logo. I also liked the fact that the pub was low-lit, in a fashionable and modern sort of way.  (I was only 17 at the time!).

 I mentioned earlier that Truman beers were not available in East Kent, but not long after that school trip, the company arrived in Ashford with a bang. The town was unfortunate to have been designated a London “over-spill” town, and several new housing estates sprang up on the outskirts of what had once been a very pleasant Kentish market town. The largest of these estates was called Stanhope, and despite the best intentions of the town planners, it turned out to be a rather unpleasant concrete jungle. Back in the 70’s, it was considered essential for estates like these to have their own local pub; and this is where Truman’s stepped in. A brand-new pub called the Ben Truman was constructed, right in the centre of the estate; the idea being it would act like a hub and draw the community together, In reality, it wasn’t exactly a place for the faint-hearted. The Ben Truman has subsequently been demolished and the estate largely re-built and re-modelled.

Returning to the Truman’s story, the company continued to grow into the 19^th Century, as manifested by the expansion of the brewery and the enlargement of the company’s pub estate, helped by the purchase in 1873, of Philips Brewery in Burton. For a while, Truman’s became the largest brewery in the world, but as the 20^th Century progressed, Truman's had to come to terms with the deprivations of two world wars, competition from cheap imports and the consolidation, through mergers and takeovers, of some of the biggest names in British brewing.  

The 1960's, in particular, proved to be very turbulent years for the British brewing industry, but sensing the mood, Truman’s restructured the entire business, closed their Burton brewery, rationalised their pub estate and invested heavily in improving the Brick Lane site. These measures had the desired effect as profits grew by a third in the last four years of the decade, and Truman's emerged as the last major independent brewery left in the capital. This happy situation failed to continue into the next decade, because in 1971 Truman's became the centre of a bidding war between hotels group Grand Metropolitan and Watney Mann. Grand Metropolitan eventually won and then immediately turned its attention to Watney Mann. After taking over Watney Mann, Grand Metropolitan merged the company with Truman's, and from then on, the company’s fortunes declined rapidly.

Grand Metropolitan made many changes to the company, including amending the name to Truman, creating a new brand, switching their draught beer from cask to keg, and reformulating the beer recipes. These decisions proved detrimental to the company, and when the pendulum swung back the other way, in favour of cask (Real Ale), with breweries falling over themselves to either promote existing cask brands or bring back long dead ones, Truman’s found themselves left behind.

Realising their mistakes, cask was gradually re-introduced, initially with Truman Tap Bitter, dispensed by the controversial “County Air Pump”; a device which came very close to splitting CAMRA. A few years later, Truman’s re-entered the cask ale market properly, with a range of well-regarded cask beers, which included a biter, best bitter, a strong ale and even a mild. To complete the picture, the Truman’s Eagle also made a comeback. Unfortunately, it was too little and too late, and despite the quality of the new cask beers, the damage has already been done. Sadly, the closure of the brewery was announced in 1989.

In 2010, two beer enthusiasts James Morgan, and Michael-George Hemus, purchased the Truman’s name from Scottish & Newcastle – the owners of the brand at the time. They then began the lengthy and difficult undertaking of re-establishing this highly respected London brewery. Unfortunately, despite some early successes the process ran into difficulties, caused partly by the COVID pandemic and subsequent lock-down. As far as I can make out, the undertaking is still unfolding, but whatever the case, it remains outside the scope of this article, particularly as we are looking at the original Truman Brewery, rather than its modern-day successors. For the curious, this excellent article by Des de Moor, contains all the gory details.

Hunting down the Huntsman at Eridge

Anyone who has been following this blog recently might be forgiven for thinking I’m becoming somewhat obsessed with the pubs that lie along the A26 road south of Tunbridge Wells. So we have the Boar’s Head Inn, just to the north of Crowborough and  the Cooper’s Arms slightly to the east. Then there's  the Nevill Arms at Eridge Green, where I ended up after my walk last Saturday.  Then, for my first Pub Friday in February, I once again headed south to Eridge once more.  However, unlike last weekend’s walk which ended up at Eridge Green, this time I headed further south along the A26, to Eridge station – an isolated settlement consisting of a handful of houses, the railway station, plus the Huntsman pub.

I've been waiting six months now to cross the Huntsman off my list of pubs to visit, following my aborted visit back in July. That was scuppered, by a power outage forcing the pub to close for a few days. So, after taking the No. 29 bus to Eridge station from Tunbridge Wells, my heart started to sink when, I noticed several contractors vehicles, plus workmen in hi-vis jackets and hard hats milling around outside the station. One of the trucks had an extendable cage on the rear, allowing the occupant to work on the cables overhead. Was the curse of no electricity about to strike again? Fortunately, as I drew closer, the signs on the side of the vans indicated they were from BT Open Reach, rather than UK Power Networks.

Breathing a sigh of relief, I hurried along to the Huntsman and entered the pub for the first time since way before the pandemic, and for what was probably only my fourth visit ever. When I first moved Tonbridge late in 1984, the Huntsman at Eridge was one of just two pubs locally, that belonged to the late and much lamented Horsham brewers, King & Barnes. This small independent brewery was renowned for its range of distinctive and hoppy beers, but sadly ceased production in 2000. The Huntsman’s location, next door to Eridge station, meant it was easy to reach by public transport, but that was about to change.

The railway between Tunbridge Wells and Eridge, had been under the threat of closure for some time, and in 1985, British Rail enacted legislation that closed the line. At the time I was quite active within the local CAMRA group which, in those days, was known as the Tonbridge & Tunbridge Wells branch. Along with a handful of other people, I was instrumental in getting the branch get back off its feet, after a lengthy spell in the doldrums. Right from the start, we decided that visiting as many local pubs as possible, would go a long way towards achieving this aim, and that wherever possible we would use public transport.

One individual involved in this exercise, worked British Rail, and was well aware of the impending closure of the line to Eridge. So, just a few weeks before rail services ceased, a small group of us boarded the train at Tonbridge and travelled right through to Eridge. The line wasn't electrified so the train we travelled on was one of the notorious diesel "thumpers". After reaching Tunbridge Wells Central (now the only mainline station in the town), the line branched off to the south and after passing through a tunnel, emerged at Tunbridge Wells West.

This was a much larger and more grandiose station, having been originally constructed by the London Brighton & South Coast Railway, which operated direct train services to London as well as to Brighton and the Sussex coast. Following years of cutbacks and line closures, the West station found itself increasingly isolated from other parts of the network. It stood next to a large, former marshalling yard, and this made it a prime target for redevelopment, especially for a cash strapped British Rail. This was the main reason for the closure of the line and the sale of the site to supermarket giant, Sainsbury’s.

Back in 1985, the line continued from Tunbridge Wells West, to Eridge, passing through Groombridge Junction. The latter was once an important stop on the line, and was the point where services diverged, either north to London, or south towards Brighton.  We left the train and visited the Huntsman, where we enjoyed some truly excellent King & Barnes beers, but regrettably, that was the only time I travelled on the Tonbridge to Eridge line, at least as part of the main rail network. Fast forward 25 years, and trains are once again running from Tunbridge Wells West to Eridge, thanks to a hard-working group of volunteers whose vision allowed the line to reopen as a restored Heritage Railway known as the Spa Valley Railway (SVR).

The next time I visited the Huntsman was with a group of fellow CAMRA members, and the SVR was our means of conveyance. By that time King & Barnes were no more, having been taken over in 2000 by Dorset brewer, Hall & Woodhouse (Badger Ales). The Horsham brewery was closed, and Badger beers were supplied to the former K&B estate. I remember sitting outside on that gorgeous, baking hot summer's day when we enjoyed some excellent Badger beers along with a meal. It seemed hard to believe that a quarter of a century had passed between that and my first visit, but life has a habit of creeping up on you and catching you unaware.

Since then, my visits to the Huntsman have been very intermittent, despite the pub being relatively easy to visit by bus, so on Friday I finally bit the bullet and boarded the 12.19 No. 29 bus from Tunbridge Wells, towards Crowborough and Uckfield. I alighted at the stop for Eridge station, and after crossing the busy A26 with great care, made my way to this small and remote country pub, which owes it existence to the coming of the railway.  This was where I passed the BT contractors hard at work.

Relieved at finding the Huntsman open, I stepped inside, and it was only then that I remembered quite how small the pub is. The seating areas inside, form an “L” shape, with a narrow section immediately in front of the bar, and a larger, and more commodious dining area, extending to the rear of the building, and to the right of the bar counter. This section of the pub was full, almost exclusively with diners, despite the time not having reached one o’clock, but fortunately I spotted a small, unoccupied table, with space for just two persons, at the far left of the bar.

Before sitting down I ordered a beer, the choice being Long Man Best Bitter or Larkin’s Pale. With both beers of a similar strength, I went for the Larkin’s to begin with, and very good it was too. I scored it a 4.0 on Untappd, but with hindsight it was worthy of a higher score. The Long Man was also good, but here I think the 3.75 I awarded it, was the correct score. Not long after I arrived, a group of four dinners arrived, and their presence meant the entire pub was fully occupied. I remarked on the number of people present to the girl behind the bar, and she said they hadn’t expected to be quite so busy. She, and her male colleague coped admirably though, serving the drinks as well as bringing the food out to the hungry diners.

It was good to see a pub so full, especially one so remote.  I suspect that most of the customers would have driven there, despite there being an hourly train service in both directions, from Edenbridge and Uckfield, as well as a half-hourly bus service from Tunbridge Wells or Uckfield. What I wasn’t quite so impressed with was the lack of snacks – filled rolls, and the like, a Scotch egg, or slice of pork pie. This insistence on full meals only, at lunchtimes, has become increasingly common in this part of the country, and in my view, pubs are missing out here. Not all customers want a substantial meal during the middle of the day, and falling into this category, I feel our needs are not being catered for adequately if you’ll excuse the pun.

This gripe aside, I enjoyed renewing my acquaintance with the Huntsman, and I won’t leave it so long next time. There is a large garden and outdoor drinking area, to the left of, and beside the pub, set at the same level as the nearby train tracks. A summer visit then sounds like a good idea, especially if one picks a day when the SVR are running trains down to Eridge. A heritage pub, plus a heritage railway, sound like the ideal combination!

 

Frant & Eridge - two Sussex villages and their pubs, share a common heritage

After escaping from the field and its flock of sinister-looking sheep, that seemed intent on preventing me from finishing last Saturday’s walk, I reached the busy, A26 main road and continued north for a couple of hundred yards. This brought me to the Nevill Crest & Gun, an attractive pub with over 500 years of history.  Set back from the road, and close to the entrance of Eridge Park Estate, the Nevill was the place where I could rest for a while, take the weight off my feet, and relax, over a pint or two of beer.

The intriguing name of the pub relates to its connection with the nearby Eridge Park Estate, home to the Nevill family since 1448. The “Nevill Crest” refers quite literally to the crest of the Nevill family, and it is their coat of arms that adorns the pub and many other buildings in the surrounding area. The “Gun” part of the name arose from a forge on the estate which produced cannons and cannon balls. At one time an ancient cannon, made of strips of metal held together with hoops, was fired on fair days or other days of celebration, and it is this Gun that is referred to in the pub name.  

Eridge Park has been the home of the Nevill family since they inherited the house and estate in 1448. The Nevills were also granted the title of Earls of Abergavenny, and this is reflected by the name of the pub in the nearby village of Frant. I started my walk, last Saturday from the Abergavenny Arms, so it is worth taking a look at this hostelry first, before moving on to the Nevill Crest & Gun. The Abergavenny is an attractive, former coaching inn, which occupies a prominent position overlooking the main A267 Tunbridge Wells- Eastbourne road. The part tile-hung building dates back to the 15^th Century, and the age of the building is immediately apparent when you step inside. There are two large, heavily beamed rooms, one of which acts as a restaurant-cum-function room. Both areas are served from a large and well-appointed bar, and as I discovered last weekend, this is the beating hear of the pub.

I entered via the side door, as this was the closest entrance to the bus stop, passing the restaurant on my way to the bar. There were a number of barflies sat at the counter, although there was still room for me to be served. Harvey’s Best was the sole cask beer on sale, but it was in excellent form. The elderly male clique at the bar appeared totally unaware of my presence, although the barmaid was friendly, as was the lone female, perched on a stool, away from the old duffers, but as she seemed engrossed in a book, our conversation was largely to the antics of the pub dog, who was alternating between the log fire, and the possibility of treats at the bar.

If anything, the place embodied middle England on a Saturday lunchtime, where the male customers come to get away from their significant others. As for the girl, I got the impression she was waiting for someone, and was reading a book so as not to feel out of place. The Abergavenny is primarily a diners’ pub, although as witnessed, it does cater for drinkers in the area around the bar.

The villages of Frant and Eridge, both lie beyond the southern fringes of Tunbridge Wells, with the former situated on the A276 road which runs towards Eastbourne, and the latter lying on the A26, which leads down to Lewes, the county town of East Sussex. The villages, and their pubs, are connected by a short section of the Tunbridge Wells Circular Walk, and this was the rather muddy hike reported on in the post before last.

Returning to the Nevill Crest & Gun, this 500-year-old listed building was once part of the aforementioned Eridge Park Estate. Today the pub is part of the Brunning & Price chain and NOT, as stated incorrectly in my post of September 2020, a Whiting & Hammond establishment. For the record, the latter are a small, local chain of pubs, operated along similar lines to B&P, although it is quite easy to confuse the two. The Little Brown Jug, just a short distance away from my workplace in Chiddingstone Causeway, is a Whiting & Hammond pub, as is the Chaser Inn, at Shipbourne, to the north of Tonbridge.

The Nevill Crest and Gun has an interior on two slightly different levels. There are plenty of old beams, as might be expected in a building of this age, whilst at the rear of the pub, a lighter garden room, overlooking the lawns, is popular in summer. In early February, the open log fires were of much more interest to me than the garden, and they helped add to the atmosphere of this lovely old pub.

One feature I was glad about was the flooring of bare brick and exposed wooden boards, especially in view of my muddy walking boots. I took the precaution of placing those disposable over shoes (the type you see in clean room areas) on my footwear, but I still felt a little self-conscious sliding around with these bright-blue coverings over my hiking boots but wearing them was a darn sight easier than having to completely remove my tightly laced boots.

As in other B&P pubs, a comprehensive food menu is available along with a selection of cask beers, some of them local. I started off with a pint of Harvey’s Best last Saturday, and it was stunningly good. I scored it at 4.5 on Untappd. Also available was Volks ESB from 360° Brewery, a Coffee Stout collaboration beer between Vocation and Adnam’s, plus the “House” B&P Best Biter, brewed by St Austell. I risked a half of the Coffee Stout and was glad it wasn’t a pint. There was nothing wrong with the beer, it just wasn’t to my taste.

There was a nice Saturday afternoon atmosphere in the Nevill, during the duration of my visit. A couple sitting at the bar, commented on my choice of Coffee Stout, having tried it for themselves, but with the Harvey’s as good as it was, anything else would have paled into insignificance. The pub seemed dog friendly too, as might be expected in a country pub.

So, two Brunning & Price pubs in less than a week, (remember my meal at the Hare with our Japanese visitors?)  With its rustic feel and attractive rural setting, I found the Nevill far more to my taste, than the Hare. The latter was pleasant enough, even though it reminded me of a posh Edwardian family home, with its impressive mahogany staircase, and collection of comfortably furnished rooms leading off from the central vestibule. The numerous paintings completed the scene if you’ll pardon the pun.   

So, all in all some interesting, and quite contrasting pubs, all contained within a relatively tight geographical area. What will my next pub visit turn up?

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