So I sit here, typing back from a week on the utterly fabulous Brownsea Island.
It can be found in Poole harbour and is an island roughly 1.5 miles x 0.75 miles (so not awfully big).
It's owned and run by the National Trust who have a couple of holiday cottages you can rent and there's also the "Castle" run by John Lewis as a holiday destination for its workers.
Nevertheless, there's no pub there and the ferry service to the mainland (either Poole or Sandbanks) can feel a little quirky on the timetable front.
Wait...you know this already, don't you...we went there last year and I rhapsodized at the time.
OK, so look, we don't usually do ths...but we went back there for another holiday.
We were a bit better prepared this time as last year we had expected to go off the island almost everyday whilst NT visitors were there but in the end, didn't want to. So, when packing supplies this time we took into account that this might be the case again.
Still, there's only so much wine even we can drink so the difficult "what beer" decision needed to be made.
Ultimately our grocery deliverer of choice made the decision for us: a goodly number of bottles of Brew Dog Punk IPA, Oakham Scarlet McCaw and Citra.
I've said many, many times that our beer dispense of choice is cask ale...but as this wasn't an option, we went with bottle with a glad enough heart (had we made it to Moor in Bristol we might have bought a few cans...just to see).
I can tell you now that these are most excellent beers to sit outside a quayside cottage in the sun with. So good in fact, that we started to run low by mid-week. Since we needed to make a trip to Poole anyway we thought we'd probably manage to pick up another couple of bottles there.
Meanwhile we availed ourselves of the Brewhouse and Kitchen (there's another in the chain based in Bristol) and although the place was nice, and the food was fine, the beer was in good nick but not really to either of our tastes (we tried four of their beers and none of them really cut it for us) so we set out in search of the Drift Bar that we had loved so much when we went last time.
We arrived there and it was closed (despite it being in their usual opening times) with no explanation. Actually, a little like the sister bar in Weymouth. This was such a shame and I find myself miffed and much less likely even to try and go there again.
Heigh Ho...so we went back to the Brewhouse (not the place we had lunch) which is a Milk Street Brewery pub which, curiously, was selling none of their own beers! After a pint (each) of something a bit lack lustre we decided we had just time to share a pint of an IPA. Now, to my shame I can't remember the brewery but it was a brilliant pint and pretty much saved the day.
So with just enough time to pop into a supermarket I find they are selling cans of Punk IPA - much easier to carry than bottles and afford us the chance (at last) to try this trendiest of trendy supply/dispense methods (we've been sceptical...can you tell?).
Before long we were back at the cottage, can in hand. And do you know what? The beer was much the same as in the bottle but cans are less hassle to handle, lighter, more recyclable and (so brewers tell us) much better for the beer since light is completely excluded. The tinny taste I expecting was wholly absent and the only real disadvantage we could find was that if you drink it from the can (which kinda feels right on the quayside) you have to be vigilant for wasps since you can't see if one pops in there.
So - consider me converted. Not to drinking pressurised beer on a regular basis, you understand, but when there is no hope of getting a good cask pint. Obviously.
