Back to Sussex

 It had to happen...we needed to get back to Eastbourne for work and builders and...well, you know because we mostly live here.

We decided on the route that avoided London but have Brighton options. Travelling on Mondays always seems a little bit strange.

A last minute leap onto a train (sorry everyone, yes, that was me dithering) at Gatwick saw us in Brighton quite early.

Frankly, whilst there are lots of lovely places in Brighton and we really must reprise a few, the interregnum between train and home will always be the Evening Star.

It went through a bit of a "phase" when Dark Star were bought out by Fullers and then Asahi and the DS beer turned shit but the last few times we've visited it has regained its status as the pub that has...well, everything.

It's like an old git's local (in that when we arrive there are loads of old gits in...and we just added to them) but with beer to die for.

6 cask beers from a variety of breweries (think Thornbridge, Downlands, Vibrant forest...) plus 12 or so keg taps covering all known (and some unknown) styles.

A bunch of loudish old gits arrived (causing me to roll my eyes) and they amused us with their confused perusal of one of the cask beers which was genuinely (and supposed to be) murky. There was quite a lot of "I'm not sure I like the look of this" and "I like my beer to be clear" but eventually, the beer was declared "alright".

The service has never been effusive but is unfailingly polite.  Trying to engage the bar staff usually gets a bit of a non-plussed look.

Now they have a kitchen serving Sri Lankan Street food.

So we stayed and drank and then checked out the train times, realising there's still only one train from Brighton to Eastbourne an hour (WTF?) and then stayed for more and some food.

Our timings could have been better so we had to leave a bit of beer and shift some to get to the train but it didn't dent the pleasantness of the afternoon/evening.

Yesterday I was working quite late (for me) so came straight home and decided maybe a rest from beer would be a good thing - so I had some apple juice that looked uncannily like an NEIPA. 

The Evening Star is probably in equal position for favourite pub along with the Barley Mow - it's just that getting home from the Barley Mow will never involve a dash for the train...

Old Friends

 It was the last chance we'd have to go to Moor.  

It was amazingly busy - then we'd learned that there'd been a brewery tour and that accounted for the extra folk.  Clearly, a considerable number of them were not seasoned beer drinkers but I love the way the bar staff served.

They even helped to curate the order in which they drank their beers:  "you're going to try the stout and the imperial stout? - have the stout first and save the imperial for your last drink".  This is the sort of bar-keeping that can really make a difference to how you perceive your time at a bar.  It was an excellent lesson in how to serve people who need some help choosing.

This is in stark contrast to some of the experiences you hear about in bars and taprooms from social media. Tales of smug thirty-something blokes mocking customers for not knowing their NEIPA from their Pilsner are not uncommon and I can't for the life of me understand why, if your job is to sell something to a customer, you wouldn't want them to feel as happy as possible about their purchase and the experience around it.

Anyhow - apart from the top notch staff, we also love the fact that Moor's beer has recognisable, and distinct styles.

So many modern craft breweries seem to riff on a basic recipe meaning there's a lot of very samey beer available in their taproom.  It's great and everything, and the beer is typically VERY good, but sometimes you might want to vary the style of what's on offer.

Yesterday there were the following:

3 Lagers:  One straight, one smoked, one Italian Pils

Then there was:

Cask light-colour bitter (4%)

1 low alcohol table beer (2.5%)

1 golden ale (4%)

1 light IPA (4.7%)

1 collaboration mid  light beer (5%)

1 "mountain" IPA (6%)

1 standard stout (5%)

1 porter (7.3%)

1 imperial stout (11%?)

1 barrel-aged sour stout (11%?)

1 cherry sour gueze 

1 cider

Not only does this mean you're pretty much guaranteed to find a beer style that you'll enjoy, your stay can lead you through a whole range of styles and strengths.  This is what makes Moor pretty much the ultimate taproom experience.

Just occasionally, I wish they had a wood-fired pizza oven with a short list of available pizzas.  Nothing fancy...ham & mushroom, red pepper and courgette, Chorizo and...well, anything really.

If they had that, I really think we might be tempted never to go anywhere else...

 

 

 

 

Further exploration

 Since our last trip to Bristol was dogged by the damnable c-plague and recovery took a little while, we hadn't really ventured very far for beer for a while.

So, Thursday had me planning a trip on the newly restored full ferry timetable.  It was lovely to be on the water.  We landed at the Cottage (no, we didn't go there) and planned to walk to the BBF taproom.  The city is really trying to encourage use of public transport and active transport like cycling but, it seems, it's forgotten the wayfinding elements for pedestrians.  So we got a tiny bit - well, not lost but not quite going the way we wanted to.

Anyhow, we arrive and settled into the taproom.  We've observed before that this is the taproom most like a pub. We had a lovely chat to the ex-bar manager of the Barley Mow who was enjoying his new role on the sales side of the business.  The place was full by the time we left and it's nice to see such a lovely venue thriving.

We decided we'd try the Old Bookshop as this has been a Christmas Day favourite.  I knew it had changed hands and the beer list is now vastly different.

There are no beer names on the pumps which means buying the first round is difficult and makes you look like a ditherer (neither of us like that, especially in the busy place) and whilst the choice of beer was interesting - it wasn't quite what we wanted.  However, with a beer in hand and a chance to read the full (VERY full) beer list we decided it might be worth another visit another day for something really different.  We also took the opportunity to try their small plates of indian food (or, chickpeas 27 ways) which had promise.

We also mused over revisiting The Strawberry Thief in town and in doing a short crawl between the Grain Barge, Bag of Cats, Three Tuns and the Lime Kiln.

A fairly painful bus journey back had us bickering about the various merits of buses. But it was a small thing.

Friday had already been planned because we needed to run some errands in town.  So after the chores we strolled up to "Basement Beer" who have been in place for a year or so.  It's a one-man band and we had a good chat to him.  Beer was tasty and we picked up a few cans, to boot.

After that a stroll around the corner to New Bristol Brewery.  There were a few people outside but it was pleasantly quiet inside.  NBB has a very homespun feel to it and I find that particularly lovely.  We had a little chat with Noel following a minor incident with leaking coolant.  He outlined his plans for the space now that he has acquired some extra storage space nearby.  I was struck by the fact that part of his decision not to pick the whole brewery up and move it to another site was largely motivated by his loyalty to his existing landlord.  I hope the local residents see it as an asset to the their neighbourhood.  I like the fact the space is an old industrial space but he's making it a place for people to want to visit.  Really looking forward to seeing his plans for the new-style taproom coming to fruition.

Our last beer of the day was a 7.4% IPA - delicious but far, far too drinkable!

We strolled home on a fuzzy high.

The beer culture in Bristol doesn't seem to have any indication of slowing.  I love it.

Recovery Phase

 Tuesday promised rain on-and-off and most of the day there was some desultory drizzle that wouldn't wet anything.

However, by mid afternoon there had been a couple of decent showers and "acuweather" was insistent that by 4pm or so there would be a deluge.

Eventually it homed in on 4.15pm as being the time of biblical precipitation.

So, we grabbed a few things to do a bit of work and a potential game.  Picked up waterproof coats and played brinksmanship on a trip to the Barley Mow.

When we were 4 mins away we reckoned that the chances were either we'd get drenched on the remainder of the walk, or it wouldn't rain at all.

We grabbed a couple of pints and took a seat.  No sooner had we settled when the heavens opened and continued doing so for about 40 minutes.

Lots of soaked customers arrived. We were smug.

It was still a bit drippy as we strolled back home but the air was a bit cooler and cleaner.

Yesterday, I wanted to make a trip to Wiper & True's new taproom but I didn't want to go the direct route.  So I made a plan to take in a bit of greenery via the cycle track and walk a way we hadn't before.

I didn't tell the Boy where we were going and, despite getting a tiny bit lost myself, managed to complete disorient him by the time we arrived at the industrial estate where the taproom is.  It was only when he say "Wiper & True" in giant letters on the rear of the building that he realised what was going on. Result.

There was an initial worry when the first thing we saw as we walked in was a bunch of middle-aged blokes seemingly forming a queue at the bar.  We needn't have worried - it was just middle-aged blokes doing the taproom equivalent of sitting at the bar (sigh).

The place is enormous with well over 100 seats inside and out (not sure I'd want to be there with 199 other people but...) with some really nice design details.

I've always like Wiper and True but never absolutely loved it. But I'm prepared to have my mind changed.

We had a cask pint to start which worked really well (even my brother might like it) and then a range of nice keg beers.

Staff were friendly.  Loos are inclusive.

The space feels airy and well thought out.

Almost best of all is the Wednesday opening - which is a rarity.

All in all, an excellent afternoon out and we'll definitely go back there.

Holding at Hot

 We were well-prepared for another sweltering day.

I went out early to pick up a new desk fan to try and give us a bit of respite and we drank lots of water and juice all day.

Nevertheless, as the sun came round to fully illuminate the flat we ran for the hills.  Well, a nearby railway arch.

We knew Martha's would be relatively quiet and there was a decent chance of a coolish space. We took a game, books and bottle of cold water, just in case.

Therein we spent a very pleasant few hours with good beer, comfy seats and not too much noise.

Today there's lots of cloud, there's been some rain (not a huge amount) and the temperature is around 8-deg cooler than the last few days.  It's not actually cool but it's sooooo much nicer.

I've just made the first piece of cooked "food" since we arrived:  a bacon sandwich.  Since Thursday we have exclusively been eating a dinner of bread, cheese, meat, tomatoes.  You never know, I might cook something exciting this evening...

Hot Again

 Seriously, this summer can do one.

I'm never a huge fan of hot weather and, right now, I've never wanted a chill wind and downpour more.

Yesterday the temperature in the flat was definitely a tiny bit cooler so it was 4pm before we desperately needed to escape.

We'd arranged to meet friends in a taproom as they'd only ever been to one (Martha's) and they like the vibe.

Difficult to tell which ones will be busy so we made a bid for Newtown Park/LHG area and were happy with our choices.

We arrived first and there were the usual exchanges with staff about the temperature.  Still, once you've sat somewhere that's not-too-hot for a few minutes after you've stopped walking, it doesn't take too long to recover, especially if you've got a beer in your hand.

It was lovely to catch up with our pals and share our love of a taproom.

We got home really quite late and, once again, bread and cheese were dinner.

I'd bought a couple of insulated bottle and filled them with chilled water to drink overnight.  It definitely helped.  Today I picked up a new fan and although the walk to the locker was warm, having the extra fan is a bonus.

Probably Martha's later, I think.

...and another prayer for a thunderstorm.

Still Hot

 By 2pm yesterday, the flat was unbearable.

There's a tiny local park halfway between here and the Moor Brewery Tap so we grabbed our books, called in at the pasty shop to grab a lunch and went and sat amongst the trees.

Definitely the right decision.  We were entertained by a small, but winning mutt who dropped a ball at our feet and turned big puppy eyes on us as we tried to ignore him.  When one of us finally caved and kicked the ball, the dog did a twirl of excitement before running madly to catch it.

Other than this, the park was quiet and, whilst the benches weren't the most comfortable in the world, it was an infinitely better way to spend 90mins than in the flat.

Around 3.30pm and after a little bit of a Twitter exchange, we strolled up to the tap.  The first thing the bar manager asked was "before you order anything else, can I get you some water?"

We'd already drunk a bottle with our lunch so we were fine, but what a brilliant way to be greeted.  A lot of the customers were taking him up on the offer.

This is another one of our favourite places to drink superb beer.  The staff know their stuff.  Even though we're not there each week, they know who we are.  Every beer style they make is distinct and, even if you don't like that style, you know it's a good version of the style.  That's quite a feat.

Eventually, we decided to risk the "garden" in the hope there might be a bit of moving air.  Actually, it was starting to cool a little and we even had an extra one to prolong the stay.

Today we're meeting friends at a taproom and there's, obviously, a good choice around.  But even so, I don't think they'll be quite as perfect as Moor.

Hot

 Trying to schedule a trip to Bristol at the moment is a bit like threading a needle.  Most of my work now revolves around cat-herding and meetings which requires me to appear in person.

Coupled with that, our building work at the house continues so we need to make sure we don't just go away if the builder needs us to be there.

The final piece of the puzzle is rail strikes.

Anyhow, the optimum time for us to come up was yesterday. In a heatwave.

We'd been monitoring the temperature in the flat and it had been pretty grim so we knew that the poor old orchids would be suffering.  We also knew that as the flat has an entirely glass curtain wall that it would be unbearable to sit in when we arrived.

All predictions were true (40-deg in the flat when we arrived) but we also have a practiced routine:  open all the windows, flush the loos, check the fridge, turn the immersion on and leg it to the pub.

The pub had LOADS of punters but, thankfully, relatively few wanted to sit inside.

Bar was crowded but himself grabbed a seat and I grabbed a couple of pints (cask, natch).  Clearly the poor ol' cellar was struggling a little and the beer was a degree or two warmer than ideal. Nevertheless it was lovely to sit in the pub with decent cask beer and be out of the heat of the flat.

We switched to keg which had line chilling in place and so was a much better temperature. This remains our favour proper pub - anywhere.

We couldn't face any form of cooking so on the way back we slid into Sainsbury's and picked up bread, meat, cheese and tomatoes and that was dinner.

It was still 27-deg at midnight but so much better than when we'd arrived.

It's marginally better this morning but there are 2 more days of heat to deal with and it's highly unlikely we'll be able to do anything terribly energetic.  I predict an early exit to Moor this afternoon.

Actually, given I often suffer from being too hot (being a middle aged woman can really suck) I seem to be weathering it slightly better than the boy who is usually cold.  

Thank goodness for the availability of the sheer amount of excellent beer we'll be able to find without too much exertion.