Twice in the last couple of weeks, and in two different towns, I've been reminded of a beer of my early forays into beer festivals (well, one really - the Bristol Beer Festival).
The Crown in Eastbourne had a nice little beer festival the weekend of the local airshow and whilst we didn't have much time to spend there, it was great to see a length of stillage and some casks in jackets set up in the back room.
I didn't have to look any further than Kelham Island - Pale Rider. Actually, I was really excited to see it.
It's a great beer, and it has been around for quite a while. It's been around, I think, since well before pale real ales were ubiquitous. And I almost forgot that. It's not 'hopped to fuck and back'; it's 5.2% it's pretty strong, but is well balanced. In short, it's a great beer.
It was great to be reminded of it and drinking it made me smile.
So it was quite a shock, last weekend, to see it on the pumps in the Bricklayers in Hitchin. I did something I rarely do, these days, instead of trying something different for the sake of it - I picked the Pale Rider. I was pleased I did.
Sometimes, it's hard to remember that golden beers are not just the new big thing - they've been around a while. It's just that some of the new boys are a little bit less considered and subtle in their approach.
Don't get me wrong, I love Oakham beers, and Arbor beers...and many of the others of their ilk. I also like it when the hops are not turned up to 11.
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