Jus' Checking

 Wiper and True taproom is not a place we go to often, despite being only a shortish walk away.

It's not that we don't like their beers, exactly, and it's not that we don't think they've done an excellent job on making a wonderfully inclusive-feeling space it's just that, well...it doesn't quite work for us, for some reason, and then there's the prices of the beers.

There's just something about all of it added together that doesn't make it somewhere we rush to.

I guess if it were as close as LHG, we might go more often on the way to or from some form of errand. But I like LHG a little better than W&T.

Nevertheless, yesterday with a slight reduction in the weather temperature I'd suggested we stroll over there and take a couple of urban grunge photos on the way (I've got the rest of a 24exp film to use, develop and scan before we head back on Monday).  He was happy with the suggestion.

We enjoyed the stroll which wasn't too warm and we took a slightly backstreet route so that was fun.  When we arrived, there was one cask on - fine.  It was called "Summer Ale" (3.8%) with no further description on the pump clip, so without any more ado we ordered two pints of it. (It's possible there was a fuller description on the big board behind the bar, but there's a lot to take in and we were served the second we arrived at the bar.)

Here's a problem with a bar that's a bit tall (it's about the height of my chest) - you can't always see what glass your drink is being poured into so you can't leap in and beg for straights over jugs.  Also, you don't really see your beer until it's lifted onto the bar (especially at my height).  

The beer was BROWN!  So that was a bit of a shock for a beer with "Summer" in the name.

The prices haven't shifted hugely (unlike some places) but at £5.60 for a pint of your own 3.8% beer, it still feels a little on the nose.  £1 or so more expensive than BBF in the BM, and about the same for all the beers in the Cornubia.

Nevertheless, we grabbed our beers and took them out into the garden, grabbed a seat and settled in.  Actually, I was really glad we did order it.  If it had been described as "bitter" or "brown" I wouldn't have ordered it and although I wouldn't want a second, it was really well done, and very enjoyable.  

The place started to fill up with a wide range of people (I love that - mostly) including a couple of families with ankle-biters. They weren't badly behaved but there was a lot of running around between all the tables and squealing with excitement.  It was less than relaxing, it has to be said.

We carried on chatting about the usual shite, I imagine. Then it was time for a second.  We generally like to try different beers to each other, but it wasn't feasible.  From the seemingly large and long list, actually there weren't many second-beers (loads of low and no, 3 different 7%+ IPAs, 2 or 3 lagers, one stout.,,etc) so we had Sundance a really solid 5.6% IPA which was lovely. (2/3rds - obvs).

We took in the variety of plants in the beer garden (vine, apple and fig trees, etc) and mused over food in pubs (he increasingly not wanting to eat in pubs, me still thinking there's a right sort of food at the right time).  We definitely want to go to both a Desi pub and to Bundobust - and we'll sort that out at some point.

Time for one more before leaving to start making dinner, using up the fridge contents.  Half of an 8% DIPA and 2/3rds of a 7.2% IPA.  Again, really well brewed beers which we enjoyed drinking.

And yet, I doubt we'll be going back there for a while - unless it's someone else's venue of choice.

Maybe the size is the issue:  weird when empty and overwhelming when full.  Yesterday everyone was outside and as it got noisier (and hotter) it might have been quite nice to retreat inside, except that we'd then have been outnumbered by the bar staff which always feels weird.

Yeah, I dunno.  I'd recommend it to people without hesitation and yet, it's not quite me. 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cornubia

 This is a pub I've been going to on and off for ...eeep, about 25 years???

The first manager/landlady I remember was no nonsense and a little bit scary.  I once took my beer back because it was off, I was quite nervous but she caught my eye and immediately said "oh, sorry, has it gone?" What else would you like?  Before I'd uttered a word.

I vaguely remember that Smiles had taken it on at some point to give them a bit more of a pub "estate" - but I don't think that lasted long. 

Then I remember Luke Daniels (of Bag of Cats fame) being there - I think I also knew him from the Hare on the Hill (same time, different time?  Who knows?) 

I don't really have much recollection of the change to Phil and Jackie - but that's probably because I wasn't working nearby any more but, anyway, it was about the time I first took the BBB to a pub in Bristol.  I'd hoped to take him to the Kings Head but it wasn't open (this is long before Good Chemistry's intervention) so, instead, we popped around the corner.

He was amazed loved it immediately.

This was a long time before our taste-drift towards the "fecking hipster".  But the Cornubia has stayed true to its traditional roots and doesn't seem to have made any radical changes since they sadly lost Phil.

What this means, of course, is that we don't always find ourselves in the mood for their beer - no matter how excellently kept it is (and it always is).

Yesterday it was a tad cooler but the temperature was still rising when we want to go out and so we thought going too far might not be a brilliant idea.  So we went and sat in the garden of the Cornubia.

It's brilliant to see it bustling and lively with maybe 50 or more punters in the garden.

Our first two beers (cask, natch) - straddled the modern-traditional  boundary deftly.  Mine 3.8 "golden" and his 4.2 "Electric...something" (sorry, can't remember the brewery).  We could have moved somewhere else but we were happy enough. He then had Twisted Oak "Quad Hop or something" and I switched to the Citra.  We were very happy.

 Long live the Cornubia (let's hope the "developments" nearby don't seriously affect its character)!

 

Beaking a Habit

 In the end we managed to stay in the flat yesterday longer than we thought.  When we ventured out it was about 34-deg.

Temple churchyard was soothing and tolerable but the church itself had already closed.

After pictures were taken we sought sanctuary in the Kings Head.  I normally wouldn't even look at keg for a first drink if there's cask on the bar but I was really hot and felt the need for cooling keg.

Abbeydale 3.8% was perfect for the job.

I followed this with Good Chemistry NEIPA at 5% and then had a repeat whilst his last one was a De La Senne Saison.

All was good.

We came home via Tesco where cold things were bought for dinner (bread, charcuterie, salad, hummus) which we had a little later than usual, accompanied by decent Italian Red we'd been keeping in the fridge.  The aim of keeping the wine in the fridge is for storage rather than drinking from...but we made an exception and it worked admirably.

Not quite so hot today but we'll still need to escape... 

First World Problems

 When we bought our Bristol flat, within sight of Temple Meads - it solved an immediate problem: a non-driver needing to travel between Sussex, Hertfordshire and Bristol.  When a parent moved into a carehome, it meant trips to Bristol were stressfree and visits could be met pretty easily even without a car (Train from Eastbourne, tube to Paddington, Train to Bath, Bus to Saltford, Parental visit, Bus to Bristol).

What I particularly fell in love with the first time I came to see the showflat was the glass curtain walls which give an all-round view.  Even better when the flat we had to buy as there were few left, was on the 10th Floor.  The view is superb.  When the BBB came to view it, he was similarly minded and wasn't sure why I'd waited for him to see it before making an offer.  

It's really energy effcient - rarely needs the heating on until November and it's usually off again by March and we can leave it alone for a few weeks and, generally speaking, it's unchanged when we return.

There is one downside - sunny summers.  

Today another heatwave is about to peak and, without any form of aircon, in an hour or so it'll become unbearable as the sun swings around.

We have a plan, though, we wandered to Temple Churchyard a few days ago and had a brief visit inside the church.  The gardens there are beautifully shaded and there's seating.  We need to take a few more film photographs so in a bit we'll amble around there making the most of the shade from street trees and try and keep sane for a bit.

What's that you say?  Is there beer near there?  What do you think? 

 

Don't be a Dick

Been reading a few things about whether beer festivals are fit for purpose in terms of making sure attendees feel safe and welcome.

This post from Boak and Bailey pretty much brought all the threads together for me.  It led me into a breakfast rabbit-hole following all the links.

I'm an introvert but no longer overly shy, as such.  I'm a part-time pensioner, still part-time working - I'm of Hobbit-like proportions and, not unlike one of the writers down that rabbit-hole, scruffy (jeans, t-shirt, slightly unkempt hair, you get the idea). However, I did also inherit my mother's withering "I beg your pardon?" look.  Let's face it, I was never someone who men would have looked at as a "first choice pull". I'm also (now, at least) immensely glad of all of this.

I'm mostly disappointed that sexism when it comes to drinking establishments is still a thing.

A good few years back, when I still lived in Bristol full time, I was coaxed into being the Bristol Beer Festival set-up manager for a few years. My pal from work was the treasurer, and said 

"look, you're a good project manager and that's what set-up needs".  

What he meant was 

"no one else likes doing that job because you have to tell people what to do, and they don't like it much"

It meant going to regular planning meetings with the rest of the committee.  Thankfully, the Bristol and District group were, on the whole, a good bunch and there were some brilliant women in the group - some alongside their partners, others on their own.  I was single at the time I started doing the role and, to be honest, it was a manageable way to at least pretend to be sort of sociable.

I mean, obviously it was still a bit of a boys' club - but I never really felt anything other than part of the team.  I also had my pal looking out for me to an extent.

Also, for context, I should say I worked in insurance in a niche area and project-managed with the IT dept.  Sufficient to say I had to deal with all sorts of men A LOT - some in positions of power, others in sales, others in roles junior to me - also straddling that "project manager" can mean something very specific an with a slightly grudging "you're not my line-manager, you can't tell me what to do" stuff.

Insurance was (I've been out of it for 15 years so who knows, now) a very patriarchal, hierarchical industry so women do have to learn techniques for dealing with stuff.

Anyhow - my first day on-site for a 3-day set-up was hard. I had a checklist and my pal had given me a list of "here are the documents you HAVE to make sure you get".  

All that said,  I really didn't know what it took to set up a medium to large festival and the timing that was needed to get everything on site in the right order - with getting the beer ready being the highest possible priority. 

In retrospect, I would have done better if I'd volunteered without a specific role before taking that on - but hey, I didn't and I'd agreed to do the job - so I just had to get on and do it.

 I think I was pushing 50, at the time.  Even so, a little younger than the mean age, I would guess.

Several of the folk who were actually doing the set up tasks had been doing the role for a few years and that made some of it a bit easier but there were far more "general helpers" who are there to do whatever is needed and it was my job to point them to an appropriate team to help, whilst fielding the "when is the xxxx arriving" questions and chasing suppliers, etc.  

The vast majority of the folk in the room were really fun to work with, it was impressive they were willing to give up so much free time to put the festival on.  Most were also gracious when asked to explain a particular thing when we were trying to work out how to overcome problems.  They also liked my willingness to get my hands dirty and help move the casks in when they were late arriving.

There were a few, however, who seemed to mostly be there for the "free staff beer" and staff t-shirt -  they were less than ideal, I remember general irritation (on both sides).

Only one incident really sticks in my mind: a bloke a few years older than me and an almost CAMRA cliche, when I'd had to ask him more than once to finish a particular job in a particular way because he was holding other people up,  did a bit of a "what do you know about any of this, anyway - you're a woman".

I can't actually remember what I said but I definitely channelled my mother in my "I beg your pardon?" look and he got on with it.  No one stepped in (in either direction) and it left me shaking.

There was no one in the room that I knew well - my pal wasn't on duty that day, so there wasn't anyone I could go and let off steam with, or ask whether that particular person was always a bit of a dick. 

I found out after, via my pal and one of the blokes who witnessed it that the other guys were impressed how I'd dealt with it and that he got on and did it, since no one else had managed to get him to do so.  And, yeah, everyone knew he was always a bit of a dick.

Younger me probably wouldn't have gone back.  I might even have left there and then - being single at the time, with only a recently empty home to go back so no one to talk it over with, might well have put me off doing anything similar ever again.

This is the thing.  An incident like this can stop someone ever participating again - in whatever it is.  You probably won't know, as an event-organiser or pub landlord, that it ever happened.  

Whether it's someone in your personal space (an insurance colleague - much taller than me - sniffing the top of my head and asking what shampoo I used - oh, do fuck off!); or a bloke in a pub trying to start a conversation with you by saying "what you reading there, girl?" (an ebook on microcontrollers for electronics and , no, I'm not explaining what a microcontroller is); or someone not getting out of your way when you're carrying three pints through a crowded pub because they think it's amusing (it isn't).  It's tiresome.

I'm lucky, I've never felt threatened or in danger and I think my age now gives me a weird form of protection but were I still younger and shyer I'd just stay away from your venue/event and I'd take my economic power, my project management skills, and volunteering effort with me.

Single-gender dominated spaces are always difficult - you ask any bloke whose first job in a large company back in the 70's/80's was to take stuff to the typing pool (yeah, I told you I was old).

This means if that space is under your control, or your livelihood depends on people using that space - then it's in your interest, as well as your responsibility, to make it fit for purpose.  Why would you choose to do otherwise? 

I'm probably repeating myself when i say I work with young people - mostly young men, most of whom are socially somewhat awkward and at risk of missing social cues.  We have an extensive "Code of Conduct" which everyone has to read and understand.  

"So what you're saying is - don't be a dick - in essence"?  Said one lad.  

Yeah, that's it - and everyone knows really what it means - they don't really need a list.  I don't believe any poor behaviour is because they don't understand the rules.  They understand, but they choose - for whatever reason - to ignore or flout them.

So, is that the reason I don't go to beer festivals any more?

Nah, it's much more mundane - I prefer pubs and there is more than enough really good beer available to me in Bristol (and to a lesser extent in Sussex) to try whenever I want.  I no longer need the festival to serve that to me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Talking Shite in the Pub

 Couple of little errands yesterday afternoon and a passably sunny day (for one of the errands was using up film in a vintage camera) meant we tootled out through Temple Church and found, to our joy, it's now open for public access.

Pictures duly taken, and architectural details noted, we headed to an Amazon locker to pick up a couple of little parcels.  From here, whilst there are in theory several possible pub destinations...in practice we usually go to LHG.

We grabbed a couple of pints of cask beer (theirs) and settled in.  The number of punters was perfect, as was the beer (pale, hazy, modern hops, 4% ish).

We were also delighted to see XII by Tiley's on the bar.  At 6.2%, definitely not a cask beer to start.

Often, when we go to the pub we don't have a huge amount to talk about since we often are in the same space for the day so we already know what's happened. However, for some reason we were pretty talkative (for us, that is) and, looking back, we covered a lot of range...

 - how the monthly monitoring of work targets was going and where some clarification ws needed (I think we nailed it and the monitoring is well underway today)

• Whether a particular track was Lou Reed solo or Velvs (no firm decision)
  
  
• How Nico (solo, not on teh Velvs album) had an interesting but strangely monotone delivery style.
  
  
• How, now we know some B&W film qualities better, might specify how we use particular brands also, how some cameras really can't hack 36 exposures but that 24exp often isn't avaialble.

• How the selotape roll I'd picked up from the Amazon locker was the perfect size for the project the engineer had in mind and how he was looking forward to putting it to use
  
  
• Also noting that when we arrived, the bar staff were chilled and at 5.25 when the rush started we watched them step it up a notch.

Then it was time for another pint.   He asked me what beer I wanted.  I just gave him a specification (measure, abv, characteristics) and he joined the queue.

He came back with a spec-meeting beer for me and he had the Tiley's.  The conversation continued:

• How the staff member charged with opening the bi-fold doors (like others before them) seem to struggle a bit with it.
   
• How the Tiley's beer was very traditional and perfectly pitched.  So good that he wanted to contact his "old man" friends and tell them to come immediately to try it (one lives in London, the other in Surrey so it wasn't very practical).
  
  
• How we were put in mind of the Moor project to replicate a traditional Fullers ESB recipe (great on cask, less so in a can)
   
• How Steeley Dan's name came about (something about a Naked Lunch reference but that might be apocryphal)
   
• Whether I'd make a better job than him of getting my 35mm film onto the developing reel whilst maintaining a tail of film which would allow reuse of the cartridge.
   
• How much we were keen to develop the two films we have (we haven't done them yet, but I'm going to get onto it in a moment).
   
• The fact that we needed to make pesto when we got back and how nice it would be to have some small frozen blobs of it stowed in the freezer.
   
• How "Cabin Pressure"'s episodes are named alphabetically (Abu Dhabi, Boston, Cremona, Douz, Edinburgh, Fitton...you get the gist)
   
• How "Herc" in Cabin Pressure is Mr Gently Benevolent (and Mr Giles, and the Gold Blend Bloke and Murray "one night in Bangkok" Head's brother

...and it went on. 

In all this nonsense, people came and went at the other end of "our" table.  Each smiled at and waved in in a jolly fashion.  After the third, it was time to leave but, in truth, I could have sat and nattered nonsense for longer.

Today it's all been a bit full-on compiling monitoring stats so I think a game might well be in order to take minds off it.

But first - I need to spool up some 35mm film ready to be developed. 

 

 

Small Pleasures

 At weekends (which include Friday afternoon, natch) we choose our venues carefully.

The great thing about Bristol, especially in the summer, is how it becomes a very specific sort of visitor city (I don't think it was like this at all when I was growning up).  

They're here for all sorts of reasons:  the music scene (yesterday and today Idles doing a couple of outdoor gigs to kick off an international tour), the Wallace and Grommit trail (whatever the latest iteration of that is), beer festivals, cider festivals, harbour festivals...

...there are also, of course, the hen and stag parties:  so many pubs, so little time.

Throughout the year there are sporting events (EFL season started yesterday) - football, rugby, basketball...

Obviously, then the breweries and distilleries, and taprooms and tasting rooms and pubs.  There really is more than enough to make it a city worth visiting for a day, or more.

As a result, then, some areas of the city are HEAVING.

So - as I say, we try and choose carefully.  This generally means staying on this side of town.

It goes to explain why we tend to go Moor on Friday or Saturday and yesterday it was particularly quiet there (there are reasons, but I hope that doesn't carry on for too long) and less beer on tap than usual.

Nevertheless we sat outside for one and tried to find photographs for one of our new silly cameras:  a 1930's tiny (127 film size) box camera, since you ask.  When we decamped inside we played a couple of games of Regicide and then got chatting with James which is always a fine way to spend a bit of time.

When we headed home we thought we might get one or two more pictures (there are only 8 to be taken, for goodness' sake) and a chap said "is that actually a camera?"...and that sparked a conversation about film photography and silly cameras, completely at random.  It was a delightful 10 mins.

 This morning I went out to try and take the picture on it and to try a "new" old camera:  a Zenith 11 with a Carl Zeiss lens, so I strolled over the bridge and was greeted with countless people in "band" t-shirts arriving by train, and crowds at the 'spoons.  I headed towards Martha's, assuming it would be quiet so I could take some urban pictures.  I was staggered to see the arches next door have been turned into a pop-up plant shop with huge queues of people waiting (to pay???) and Martha's, the Pasty Shop and the Forest Bakery with loads of people in attendance.  How brilliant!

I queued for some bread to take home for lunch and then was really relieved to remove myself from the crowds and look down on them from our flat.

When we bought this flat there were literally no people wandering around at the weekend but it's gone on to be a bustling little corner of the city.  It's got its good and bad sides but it's lovely to see these businesses making the most of it. 

 

 

 

Ahhhhhhhh

 It's been a bit busy and there's an awful lot of plate-spinning happening.

When we came to head up to Bristol the trip felt a little bit daunting - and we were also taking more luggage than usual (including a negative scanner...because, you know...).

As it was, it was as smooth a trip - we jumped on a bus at the end of the road, our train was already waiting for us at the station, the tube across London was painless and we only had 10 minutes or so to wait at Paddington.  Once we walk through the door of the flat and ascertain that there had been no obvious disasters in our absence, we can start to relax.

The utter delight of settling into the Barley Mow was unparallelled.  We observed that we don't really like pubs which are devoid of customers but the BM is a bit of an outlier in that, even if the pub interior is  largely empty, you know that there will be loads of people sitting outside so people are always coming and going.  We sit in peace inside, whilst knowing we're not actually alone in the place.

There wasn't an enormous range of cask we wanted to drink but it was Monday (we don't normally travel up on a Monday - it was a bit disorienting) we had lovely beer, and we relaxed.

Lots of work to do this week, but the knowledge of local beer availability makes it all a bit better.  Funding bid, anyone? 

Never Say Never

 It was the BBB's birthday yesterday.  Sadly, I had to dash into work for a meeting but I was back around lunchtime.  We'd toyed with the idea of a walk but rain threatened so we chickened out and wandered down to The Crown to watch some cricket, play a birthday-present game and make the most of the beer.

There was a Burning Sky APA and that was supplemented by Long Man Mosaic.

The APA was lovely but it seemed a crime not to even try the Mosaic...we're not Long Man fans but we needed to take one for the team.

Actually it was really, really nice.  So much so, we shared a final of it.

 I hope the birthday boy enjoyed the trip as much as I did. 

Regulars

 Saturday saw us both in work again as we were co-producing a new session for young people at TechResort (that is to say, we've a vague idea how it should work but we wanted to test it on some willing victims before we go further).

It was quite a lot of peopling for us both followed by developing 5 rolls of film in a non-dedicated darkroom...in other words, tanking up in the light-proof bathroom, and developing in the kitchen.

After the deluges of Friday night, the temperature crept up in the afternoon so by the time we left, we were hot and tired.  Beerarama seemed the best place to go.  Obviously, the prospect of Route 21 Cask beer was persuasive: we really enjoyed it but thought it might be more of a keg beer, YMMV.

On keg was a first (probably only) for Eastbourne:  an IPA from Brausyndikat Microbrewery in Zurich.  With the brewer also onsite.  Very nice it was too - definitely continental in style.

Beerarama is unlike any venue we go to in Bristol - it has a really good wine list and a decent keg offering at all times.  There's usually bag-in-box cider/perry too.

Their expansion into cask is very welcome but even if there's nothing on tap you fancy at that moment, it has a huge range of cans in fridges, together with an enviable no/low selection.

Speaking of Bristol, we're heading there soon (in a week or so) and I'm back to yearning for my home city and its variety of places.  As the BBB put it yesterday, it's also got more B&W photo-opportunities than Eastbourne.

We'll miss the garden but a couple of weeks watching balloons and peregrines whilst working will be the perfect reset from the amount travelling to venues and stuff I've been doing recently 

Reprise

 Friday we were working at base again so it seemed rude not to pop to Beerarama for some cask afterwards.

 This weekend's offering was by Almasty and was a lovely, hazy 4-and-a-bit percenter.

It had only just gone on and it was glorious. So much so that, despite some interesting looking kegs, we stuck with 2 more pints for our seconds.  Yum.

 Yesterday we had to go to the Wish Tower to meet the builder about some impending work so afterwards, we could have gone to the Bohemian, which is our usual after-tower venue but we wanted more of that lovely Almasty beer again before it went.  We almost never go to the same place two days in a row but this exception was definitely worth it.

Still fantastic but this time we moved to other beers after.  I asked Jamie how it was going and he was pleased to report they were making money out of it which is just lovely to hear.

 Today, I'm hoping for a bit of gentle garden-fettling followed by enjoying said garden with some Arbor beer.  I've another "out and about" week coming and next weekend also likely to be quite busy...some quiet time definitely called for. 

 

Eastbourne Developments

 D'you know, the beer thing might actually be looking in up in Eastbourne.

Granted, the starting place is pretty low but there are actual glimmers...

First, The Crown, our stalwart local that has a proper set of "regulars".  I'm starting to feel like one of them - cheerily greeted and bade farewell by other regulars.  A couple of the bar staff who have been around the pub as kids with their families (regulars, of course) and who started doing glass collecting at the weekends are now fully-fledged bar staff and we've seen them grow, and grow until now they're about 90-feet tall.  Landlord, Andy, tells us cask sales have increased some and now he's turning around more interesting cask beers pretty quickly - recently we've blinked and missed a new one!  When we tootled in on Monday afternoon there were two really nice ones on (Mallinsons Nectaron, Kent Prohibition) and that had followed NBB and Three Acres beers a few days before.  This cheers us enormously!

Then, if that weren't good enough, John and Jamie of Beerarama have starting doing one 9 gallon cask each weekend with a chiller jacket and a cask-tipper at the back of the bar.  Falling into the place after a stressful (but brilliant) work session with some volunteers, I asked for two-pints and John gave me a double-take.  "You don't drink pints!" he chuckled.  Frankly, it was just as well that we did because the bloody things didn't touch the sides...and lovely beer, too.

This week, I've seen on social media that a local micro-brewery (Route 21) and a local but well-known cider  producer are planning to open a new taproom in town (not far from the Eagle, it happens) and that's definitely cause for celebration. Even if we don't end up going in there all the time (like Ninkasi because it's not always convenient, or whatever) then it's nice to know that we can ring the changes.  Rest assured, we certainly will be.

Hopefully this will buoy up other similar places and maybe even convince others it worth opening. 

  

Not What it Was

 I had to go to That London last week for an event which meant me getting up stupidly early to get to "The City" for a 9.30 start.

 There's something to be said for Thameslink which meant that I could get a train a 7.30am (inhuman), change at Haywards Heath and arrive at City Thameslink at 9.15am, just a 10minute walk from the venue.  Doing this meant swerving the Tube on what promised to be a very warm day.

Since I'd had to shell out stupid money to get myself there it seemed a bit of a waste not to make the most of being in London so I'd suggested to the Boy that if he fancied the trip at a slightly more civilised (ie cheaper) time of day, we could meet up.  Alternatively, I could head home.

 He took the former option and we said we'd meet at Blackfriars station and maybe wander to Tate Modern with a Lomo camera to do a bit of film photography, and take in what was on there.

When I emerged from the event which had been really hot and stuffy I did so into this square with loads of public seating entirely surrounded by ridiculously tall glass buildings.  It was gloriously cool so I perched and caught up with stuff whilst I recovered from standing for an hour in the event.

After that, I had an hour or so to kill so I thought I'd stroll down to the embankment via Temple Church for a bit of an architectural gawp.  I passed Samuel Johnson's house and down to Fleet Street whilst getting hotter.  I thought there'd be a chance of a bench under a tree near the church but several hundred (well, about a dozen) people also had that idea and no seating in the shade was available.  So I walked down to the river but building works prevented walking alongside and the cool gardens that appeared to be available were very much "Public Keep Out".  Oh, yeah I'd forgotten places like that!

So I plodded on remembering that there used to be a long row of public benches outside the Blackfriar pub...but no, building works have absorbed that space too.

There were chairs and table outside the pub but I assume they were for Patrons and, as much as I love the building I didn't really fancy beer (and definitely not Nicholsons Ordinary) at the time.  Nevermind, a bit of shady perching space opened up outside the station so I waited there.  It's right next to the road and sound of irritable driving was intense.

Turns out, it may have been better to cross the bridge since the station has two exits...anyhow, we met up and wandered across together.

The south side of the river was also largely subsumed by building work - it looked like it was around my old company's disaster recovery side in what had been old bank building from the 70's.

We fought through pedestrians winding their way and eventually landed at Tate Modern.  I needed to eat but there wasn't any shade so we perched on a beautiful black stone bench which had managed to absorb all the sun it wanted and was, as a result, a bit of a bum burner!

I absolutely love the space alongside this bit of London but we needed to get some shade so we went inside.  My favourite exhibition bits was a Cuban artist's invocation of their home countryin sound, picutre and sculpture.  His favourite was some small metal sculptures.  When I leave a gallery not having seen it all, I sometimes feel like I'm doing it wrong...but we'd enjoyed most of what we'd seen, we took some Lomo pictures and we wanted to move on.

We headed toward Borough Market.

The first place we came across was The Rake.  As ever it's a wonderful pub/place with good beer on offer and not all of it at really Londony prices.  We relaxed and had a couple and I recovered from the heat and the walking (and the standing).  

 We thought it would be wrong not to go somewhere else, so we decided the Market Porter would be just the place.  It was crowded outside but looked cool and welcoming inside.  Except, the beer...there were 4 or 5 casks on but all of it was mainstream.  It couldn't possibly match up to what we'd just been drinking so, knowing there were 2 or 3 other really good pubs nearby we struck out again revisit pubs we'd enjoyed in the past.  We landed at the Old King's Head - a GBG stalwart with u21 football on the TV.  All they had was Tribute and not in good condition, either...though it was cheap in happy hour.  We watched some of the football but could only get halfway through the beer.  We wanted to stay within striking distance of London Bridge station for the journey home so we thought either the Royal Oak in Tabbard Street or back to the Rake.

To be honest, if we didn't live in Sussex we would probably have opted for Harveys Pub...but I wasn't in the mood and it was a bit hot for their beers.  Back to the Rake then, for another brilliant beer (Circle who had a takeover) before getting back on the train.

We reflected on the way home how disappointed we were at the changes in pubs we used to know and love but also now Borough Market is a very different sort of destination.  Where once were little independent restaurants etc, there are now mainly chains and maybe that's influencing the availability of a variety of different beer.  We'd literally seen nowhere we fancied eating and so we'd got an earlier train than otherwise would have been case, and made some pasta back at home.

I did also look on "Real Ale Finder" to see what beer might be available and only The Harp had an entry and none of what was on the list would have been enough to take me back over that way.  Looking on the What Pub app just listed a plethora of Fullers (at best) and similar places.

 The shame of it is that a lot of the pubs would be lovely to be in but without matching beer, I'm not going in.

If we have to do this again, I'll probably be looking at taprooms and the like which is a shame because whilst the beer might be superb...they're not proper London pubs, are they? 

 

 

Sometimes only the 'mow will do

 Work is kind of odd at the moment - lots of apparent interest in what we do but all the time knowing that work we do to promote ourselves won't actually pay off for ages (if ever).  This puts an odd pressure on me because most of what I need to do is this sort of future planning and development whilst making sure that the young team of brilliant workers we have back down in Eastbourne are properly supported.

Switching off from all this at the end of the work day is particularly hard at the moment. 

Anyhow, a hot afternoon (entirely glass curtain wall in the flat), battling with InDesign in bright sunshine on a 13" laptop had me uncharacteristically flustered by about 3pm.

Where to go for "after work" beer, though?  Being Friday, busy and noisy pretty much comes with the pub territory and I really didn't think I could deal with too many people or too much noise.  Were we in Eastbourne, I would probably have demanded beer in our own garden.  

"How busy do you think the Barley Mow will be...?" I ventured.

We agreed it was worth a punt.

It was busy outside with all the tables and the pews on the pavement fully occupied.  However, on stepping inside to the cool darkish interior, it was an oasis of instant calm. Even better, "our" corner was entirely unoccupied.

We were greeted by cheery staff and we got a couple of pints.  The second we sat down I relaxed - before I'd even touched my beer.  It's not just the beer in the pub, it's the pub itself.  Bit by bit my flusteredness ebbed away and I started to look forward to tackling the InDesign document the following morning.

The pub itself did start to fill up and the table of accountants next to us were a tad noisy but by then I was able to handle and because we couldn't hear ourselves talk, we started playing a card game instead.

I love this pub.  

 Today, I'm back to a bit of InDesign and vowing that, in future, I'll do the bloody documents at my desk in Eastbourne and not leave it until the last minute! 

 

Is it beer, though?

 We landed in Bristol on Thursday having dealt with a few things down south (where Things = ears and a Trustee meeting).  I insisted on catching the bus because we'd decided we wanted to make sure the "Beast" lens, a decent camera and a tripod were conveyed to the flat - mostly for the purposes of getting a better picture of the peregrines that use the nearby ledges as their dining table.  

Anyhow, I digress.

Despite more than usually bulky luggage, the journey was pretty-much textbook though watching people using the Paddington ticket gates, there's definitely a PhD in there somewhere.

Naturally, upon landing at the flat, the usual offices were carried out and we got out to The Barley Mow.  It being Thursday, it was starting to get reasonably busy but we bagged a good table, and started to neck a couple of lovely BBF cask pints.  Relax.  The second was another cask beer each (Tileys for me, Stroud for him).  We were pretty restrained on our final drink - despite some lovely (and strong) beers on Keg, we decided to avoid the strong and go with Summacrush from NBB instead. 

Friday we tinkered about with the camera, did a bit of work - and then knocked off a little early.  Moor had Illumination on cask so it would have been very rude not to.  We took our drinks out into the garden, got annoyed by a particularly gobby magpie and by a couple of annoyingly loud cars (we are old, after all) and then as it cooled down, sought refuge inside and played some Regicide.

Saturday is always a tricky day in the spring/summer - we definitely don't want to go towards town (we'd seen all the hen and stage parties arrive...shudder) so I took a look at the real ale finder app and the Kings Head looked like it had some interesting stuff on - so we strolled round there.

Got chatting to the chap who appears to be a new landlord/manager living-in???  An Oakham beer was on offer and I expressed delight.  Turns out he's from the midlands and so knows the brewery well.  "It's dividing people", he said.  Turns out not everyone likes the lemon peel that was added (I liked it a lot).

Second cask beer was a 5% NEIPA which we shared a pint and a half of (they don't really do 2/3rds on casks here).  It was excellent - and we'd barely touched the cask offering, really.

However, what we'd both seen was three (count 'em) strong stouts.  Fyne on cask, Vault city and Holy Goat on keg.  I bought 2/3rds of the Fyne which was 9.5% (so they can do 2/3rds...) and attempted a 1/3 of the Vault City (it was 15%) which was, fortuitously generously poured.   Both stouts were lovely in their own way and we shared them before strolling home for dinner - definitely feeling the effects.

Today I'm musing on 15% keg stout.  Is it really beer?  It's stronger than most of the wines we drink.  I certainly would have it again - it's almost the perfect last-beer but even I'm thinking it may be a bit too much...maybe.

Ennui

Contemplating the "beer scene" in Eastbourne doesn't make me smile.

Our lovely cask-ale local is a bit of an oasis of quality - but not necessarily of  huge variety.  This not a criticism but a reflection of pragmatism in the landlord who knows what he can sell reliably both in terms of quantity and style.  This is how it needs to be, for sure.

Beerarama has variety but no cask.

The Tiger and Bohemian are pretty good on cask quality, a little bit of variety - but pricey.

The Lamb has good quality Harveys but that's all.

Ninkasi usually has great beer but can be oddly quiet at the times we want to go in - and excessively crowded at other times.

Belgian bar is...well, unique.

We haven't been to The Hurst, The Vic (both Harveys), The Eagle, the Dewdrop or the Dolphin (limited cask options) for ages.

There are a load of pubs we simply don't and wouldn't go to for a variety of reasons.

Then there are the little outliers...

"Bibendum" wanna be chic restaurant/bar, where a cosy corner to sit in is in short supply because the bar area feels like the waiting space for the restaurant.  

"Frontier" half record shop, half bar is definitely a compromise venue usually has decent beer. If you're with coffee-drinking pals then the coffee-beer crossover time threshold can be painlessly managed.

So, when I got off my train on Wednesday having been a little traumatised by a 'spoons at lunchtime (has to be said the beer was really well kept) I wanted to hunker down in my "depeopling" mode.  We stood there wondering where to go.  Himself said that Ninkasi would probably be too quiet, suggest Belgian Bar - but I said I wanted to go there after work on Thursday (with pizza in prospect afterwards).  Beerarama chaps were on holiday.  So we ummmed for a bit.

Eventually I tentatively suggested "Frontier" because we'd not been there for ages, it was close and, well - you know where else????

They had three good beers on (two from a Welsh brewery, one from Pollys), there were sufficient, mostly young, people in evidence to make it perfectly peopled.  It's true that it wasn't cosy but, on the other hand it was comfy enough for us to stay for all the beers before grabbing a bus home...and we agreed that we'd really enjoyed it.  

Then old school friend of Beer Buddy got in touch to ask for recommendations for meeting up in Eastbourne over the weekend.  Much agonising ensued and it's highly likely these two old men will spend a lot of time on Sunday grumbling over the "not as good as they used to be" pubs of their youth,

 

Down South

 We're back in Eastbourne.

It was a painless journey back on Tuesday and we were blessed by a bus arriving just outside the station as we emerged.   We were home in just a few minutes.

The house seemed to be in order and even the garden hadn't suffered too much in the heat.

On Wednesday I had to go to Hastings so when I got back and needed to chill with the Beer Buddy, we went to Beerarama, had a catch-up with Jamie and came down from the after-effects of the work I'd been doing.

Thursday, the Crown's Easter Beer festival started so we made haste to try the first beers.  It was lovely to be there but we've noticed that our absolute beer capacity continues to reduce.  We managed 5 pints between us.  Same on Saturday, too. 

Easter Sunday was dull and cool, contrasted with the beautiful gardening weather of Saturday so we did a few jobs around the house, and then played boardgames with fridge-beer.

Both of us are a bit discombobulated at the excess of weekend - even though we were tinkering at "work" on Friday.  Today we have to go to the Wish Tower to meet with a member/builder who is going to help with some renovations we have secured funding for.  Undoubtedly there will be beer after that - possibly the Bohemian which is now - if not a regular haunt - then certainly an acceptable place to go in this town with few venues for us, at least, to choose from.

Betwixt

 We've been in the Bristol residence for nearly 3 weeks, now and heading back in a couple of days.

It's Saturday morning and I'm going to try and take most of the day off work - like the BBB says, when the "work" is as much hobby/volunteering as it is Work it's not so bad to tinker a bit at the weekend.

We've not been anywhere new, particularly, but we did make the pilgrimage to Arbor Brewery Tap - I'm so glad it's now regularly open on Fridays and Saturdays.  The day we walked over there, there was even a cracking impy stout on offer.

 On Wednesday this week we thought it would be safe to head to King Street and sit in the sun, surely it wouldn't be that busy at 4.30pm.  Boy, were we wrong.  As much as we generally avoid crowds, we actually both enjoyed sharing space on the outside benches with about another 150 people.  We won't be doing it again any time soon - but as a once-in-a-while thing, it made us smile.  It was followed by a quieter drink in Small Bar and then Potato Tikki Chat in Dhamaka-  yeah, it was fun.

Yesterday, I wanted to sit outside drinking beer for a bit...but I also wanted it to be fairly quiet.  A tricky one on a Friday.  So we strolled around to the LHG Taproom with its multitude of tables on tarmac.  We had a cracking pale cask beer (not overly generous in the poured pint, but delicious) and a signature NEIPA (two different ones, actually, but very similar in character).

Today, it's record shop day and the BBB has suggested a nod to the day by popping up to Plastic Wax and seeing what pre-loved 45's might be available.  I predict a taproom on the walk home...

Small Changes

There's been a subtle change at The Crown.

Andy has always had really well-kept beer. The first time we went in, the BBB is sure we had a pint of Harveys Best on gravity.  It was the day we first viewed the house we now live in we thought we'd check out a local pub and chat about what we thought of the house.

It was several months later we actually bought it and moved in.

Naturally, we revisited very quickly (I can't remember if it was the day we moved in or the next day) and found to our delight that it was Dark Star Hophead on gravity, along with 6X, Harveys Best and something like Spitfire.  Bit by bit a different guest would appear at weekends, and Andy ran beer festivals 3 times a year (he still does).

At the time The Crown was an Enterprise Inns pub and we asked Andy how he managed to get different cask beers in.  "I get a bit of latitude" he said.

A couple of years ago, we noticed that 6X was no longer a regular on the bar - "...only two blokes drank it and they died..." 

More recently Timmy Taylor started to appear - first intermittently, now as a regular beer.  Always well kept (obviously) good in a pinch for us but not really what we want to drink.

We learned that EI had sold on some of their estate to Heineken.  The craft beers on offer changed from Shipyard IPA to Gamma Ray and new keg ciders are available.

Then a couple of months ago, we noticed that now there's nearly always a nice "new" 4% or so pale beer on - and they're often ones we've not seen before.  Typically they'll be fairly local - but not always.  At the weekends there are typically two or more interesting beers on.

I read quite a lot of beer news from various sources and I'm guessing that, with shift in uber brands, seems to come a culling of cask beers so I'm guessing that Heineken pub estates now care much less about what cask is on the bar but probably don't allow much flexibility in the keg offering.

This would definitely explain the subtle shift (with its attendant improvement) in the cask offering for landlords(/ladies) who have a genuine interest in cask.

 I hate that once significant brewers no longer brew but if it means a bit more interest on cask from places we might not always expect - then for me it might be a price worth playing. 

Work, work, work

 Yeah, really busy of late.  Loads to do and far too little time in which to do it.

Last Sunday we ventured out for a properly old stroll.  The nice thing about living within spitting distance of the South Downs is that it's quick and easy to get onto a nice grassy hill with a good view.  

From our house it's about a 20minute, quite robust walk up a steep hill to "the top" (of course on downland there isn't a single "top" but you know what I mean).  Now that spring is starting to poke it's head up, it's the perfect time to get out there but I admit with some shame that after over ten years of doing the immediate walks near to home, I've got a little bit bored with them.

So when the BBB said "could we get out for a proper walk?" I suggested we do the other way of getting out onto the Downs...the Sunday "Beachy Head" bus that goes from the end of our road and takes about 10 minutes to get there.  It can feel like a bit of a cheat since the first part of the slog of the hill is done by diesel.  But, like I say, there's more than one "Top".

We got the bus to the foot of "Belle Tout" which is an oval shaped steep sided hill betwixt main road (with attendant stupid motorbikers riding like lunatics) and cliff edge.  There's a lighthouse on the hill that's already been moved back from the cliff edge once and now there's less than 10m of ground now between the nearest point to the cliff edge.  Time was the South Downs way travelled between the Lighthouse and the cliff edge.  Not now - it's been diverted to the other side of the lighthouse, closer to the road. 

Anyhow - we enjoyed walking the length of Belle Tout to Birling Gap, and we had the option if I didn't feel able to walk onto East Dean to pick up the bus again there.  But it was a good 20 minutes until the next hourly bus was due and about 2 miles (mostly up a gentlish slope) to walk it.  So we walked.

 We arrived at the Tiger Inn in good spirits as the sun was going down and so the temperature was starting to plummet but there were no seats to be had inside.  So we sat outside for a while but we started to get chilly.  We ventured inside and skulked around to see if we could at least share a table but before we need to try, the bar manager who clearly always has his eye on what's going on showed us to a small table at the edge of a room we thought was only for the pub's B&B customers.  Maybe not a table anyone would really choose but, actually, it was warm and comfy and we got to order another couple of pints.

The beer was lovely, even though the cask offering was a bit dull so we'd gone for a local keg beer.   Mind you  at close to £15 for two pints, we were a little taken aback.  But we reminded ourselves that the industry is really struggling so it was hard to truly begrudge it - even in rural East Sussex.

What's lovely about this little area to walk in, is that after you've been to the pub there's a 5 minute walk to the main road where there's a bus to take us home approximately every 10 - 15 minutes...even on a Sunday.

I don't think there will be this sort of walking this weekend I've just written my to do list and it runs to a page and a half of my A5 notebook - much of it with really tight deadlines and two days out and about next week.  Hey ho, down to our local later to watch some rugby, probably (even there cask beer has gone up to £4.60 a pint but at least you can still get two pints for a tenner).

(Wo)man Down

 So we managed a couple of nice pints in the Crown last weekend.  Instantly when you taste beer from Sussex and Kent you get very regionally grounded.

Tuesday, I had to go to a meeting in Hastings and I knew that it might take a while and the BBB had some work to do in our workbase.  So, once I was on the train back - a little later than I had originally anticipated - I suggested we keep it simple and meet in Ninkasi.

It was really nice to step off the train, and stroll directly across the car park and into the bar.  Good beer available as always and then the boy joined me and we were both able to quietly de-people, together.

Wednesday I spent the day writing funding bids...as is my want.  But by the time I'd finished I was cold, tired and rapidly developing a temperature. Great - again.

No beer since then and, truth be told, I didn't even fancy any.

I think I'm on the mend now so I might risk one later - though I'm not quite ready to hike to the pub.  Perhaps some nice fridge-beer.

Back in the Beer Semi-desert

 OK - that's a little harsh.  Let's just say the beer garden is a little less fertile down here.

Nice ol' train journey, followed by a quick visit to work to say hi and pick up a laptop then we high-tailed it home to the house, and raided the fridge for beer, freezer for dinner.

Today, quite a lot of work needed to be done/caught up on and, of course, beer ordered...tomorrow I have to go to St Leonards.  There will probably be beer involved either there, or when I get back.

 Yep, definitely back in Sussex now.

A Bit of a Theme

 Once again we decided to make a little bit of an effort to go a bit further and go back to somewhere we'd not been for a while.

This time:  North Street.

My goodness, this place has changed so much in the last 25 years since I lived in "The Chessels".  The change has been incremental and, I would say, moving in chunks but I kinda miss living in the area.

We headed first to the Bristol Beer Factory taproom which is the pubbiest of all the taprooms, we reckon.

There were plenty of south-Bristol accents in evidence but also a lot of people who are more recent dwellers in the area.

Beer, as ever, was excellent and well worth the walk.  After two, we thought we'd amble down and try Lupe in the place that was the Old Bookshop.  We also thought we'd maybe try Eatchu - which is doing the food there.  On the way we passed several new restaurants which definitely bear a visit - next time, perhaps.

The space in Lupe is the same...and yet, somehow, not.  It feels a bit less crowded in and a little more welcoming. There were a couple of strong/ish beers we wanted to try so we bought a couple of the "West Coast" one and settled in.  The menu looked inviting so we decided we'd go for it.

Then a beeper went off.  A chap scuttled off round the corner and reappeared with a tray of food and sat to eat it.  Ah!  A Heist kind of thing - we can do that, I thought.

We duly ordered and fetched our food.

It was tasty and reasonably-priced (£20 for enough food for us both).  Maybe not as easy to eat as I'd hoped but, still, I'm really glad we tried it.

Then the walk home and I was done for the day.

It was nice to make the effort and I know the walk is good for us. Definitely worth a revisit!

Another Revisit

Being nerds (what sort of nerds?, I hear you ask...ALL THE NERDS is the honest answer), we have a range of slightly out there pastimes.

Yesterday was time for the "buying old film cameras and making photographs with them...no matter how obscure they are" one.

Boxes of cameras bought at auction to distract us from the tedium of the pandemic are very much a mixed bags. Some of them are beautiful, some are a delight to use (some are even both of those things) but some use films sizes that were short-lived and either are no longer available, or only available at significant cost.

As a result we had about 4 or 5 cameras using a film format called "127".  Larger than the more modern 35mm film that most people are aware of, smaller than the still-widely-available-and-used 120 film.

A while ago, we found we had cameras which used film that was exactly the same size as the 120 film, but the spools the film comes on were slightly smaller meaning you can't fit standard film into the camera.  I learned to re-roll 120 film onto 620 reels, and the boy designed and 3D printed spare 620 reels (I meantioned we were nerds, no?).  I did this for no other reason than I don't like being defeated by a small problem like a money-grabbing film company (I'm looking at you, Kodak) deliberately trying to make you buy only their film (a story repeated so often by them, it's really not funny).

Anyhow...we did manage to source some 127 film but it's really expensive so we only bought a couple of rolls just to see how it went.  The BBB then reasoned that it ought to be possible use 35mm film on the 127 rolls if he used a bit of ingenuity and was a little creative with either old 127 backing paper and/or cut down 120 backing paper.  The 35mm isn't as big so you have to be conservative with your composition, and it has sprocket holes at the edge so the result is likely to be "arty" but it definitely seems to work.

All of this is by of an explanation, were one needed, of why we did a walk to the harbour in almost nice light to take pictures with ridiculously old and impractical film cameras.  Of course once you've taken pictures of the electric cranes, and the Fairbairn crane...and then a bit of railway line action followed by a "use it up" shot of the SS Great Britain there's really only one place to go by way of recovery.  

Bristol City were at home but the quick-route bridge is closed, so a bit of calculation is needed to get there at the right time (lunchtime would have been hell, probably). It so happened that at the end of our film, and energy came at the pefect time.

We slipped inside and it was fairly busy, but there was a cosy little corner table to be had.  I grabbed the seat and the BBB went to the bar.  There was Arbor C Bomb, ON GRAVITY so that was a no-brainer for me.  He, however, was all about the cider.

The beer was so good, I nearly weakened and had a second but I also know the joy of really good cider so the second round was 3 shared halves - one perry and two ciders.

People came, people left.  There were all sorts of people in there - from the auld fellas in another corner (talking very much like my dad did) drinking Natch, to the very loud large mixed family group being a bit sprawly but not too obnoxious, to the middle-aged couple who had clearly cycled there...and all the others.

It was lively and convivial and we loved it. It had been a while since we'd been and we kicked ourselves we didn't do this more often.  But maybe not on a Saturday.

We had calculated that it would take about 30 mins for any Ashton Gate fans to return - and at 5.29 a group arrived.  They were young and jolly.  No one else seemed to arrive from the match.

We'd decided on a third - Janet's Jungle Juice for me and something else (very dry) for him.

I was knackered after the walk home but very content.

Today?  We've developed the film that we took yesterday but won't be able to scan it until we get back to Sussex.  One of the brilliant things about a modern flat is the sizeable bathroom which is entirely internal and, as a result, makes for a pretty good dark room.

There's a Lancashire hotpot in a low oven and shortly we'll be heading in the direction of Little Martha.  Ah, Sundays.

Order, order

 It's been a trying few days.  The boy picked up another bug last weekend which, whilst not awful, wiped him out for a day or so...and then made the leap to me and did the same.  Coupled with this were a couple of tight work deadlines and some frantic activity trying to price up tech kit for work where every penny counts, but longevity is even more important.

So, Tuesday I did want to get out of the house...but I really didn't have the energy to go far.  Before we came up to Bristol we did quite a lot of "we should really make the effort to go to <insert name of pub we haven't been to for a long time>", so I suggested we tried The Bridge which is so close, it's a crime that we haven't checked it out for years.

It had gone through a phase of having beers we weren't particularly interested in - and that's probably the main reason we hadn't been in.

So at 4.30ish we noodled along the floating harbour, under one bridge, over the other and found ourselves in this tiny place.

Initially it was just us, and we'd interrupted the landlord's meal (stew and mash, maybe?). He seemed unfazed and we had a jolly chat about the available beers (him:  QPA, me 4% pale something by a brewery I hadn't heard of...something metally, perhaps??).  I also clocked the nice array of keg beers which seem to be a new feature since we last came.

A couple of blokes came in behind us and then kind of cluttered up the area of the bar whilst one of them held forth about a brewery which was in the keg line up.  I rolled my eyes and gently pushed my way past him.

We settled into the best corner in the pub (I've been coming to this place on and off for over 20 years and it's definitely the BEST corner) and read the gig posters on the walls (possibly also long-term residents of the pub) and did a bit of sleuthing to find out the year that Corn Exchange welcomed John Lee Hooker.

Meanwhile, the chaps had settled in the other side and had, let's just say, spread out a bit.

More folk started to come in and within a moment or two, the landlord came round from behind the bar and asked the chaps - in a way that it would be impossible to take as a rebuke - to take up less space to allow some other people to sit down.  We saw this repeated a couple of times with other space-hoggers - we admired his style.  Obviously it's in his interest for people to feel they can come in...the pub is pretty much full if there are 20 people in it, no matter how well packed they are.  Nevertheless, it's not often you see this in action - we like it.

It was also nice to see a couple of young women in the pub - it's not necessarily the first sort of pub you may think of when looking for a young woman friendly destination.

After our first pint, we went for a pint of Deya Steady Rolling Man - which was lovely.  Then we strolled back but vowing to return.

It'll be a nice addition to our "not far away and a bit cosy" list of places.

I'm Not Bitter

 The first beer I enjoyed was Theakston's Old Peculier.

After this, the man from Lancashire thought it was probably safe to introduce me to 4% Bitter.  Let's face it, in the 1980's that was cask beer, for the most part.  Can't remember what it was that I liked - probably Tetleys or Timmy Taylor Landlord.  Bit by bit, this was the beer I loved.

On holidays in Shropshire and Staffordshire there was usually Mild and I gained a liking for that too.

So, for the next 20 years-ish, brown beer, usually a Best Bitter was my go-to beer style.  Our Christmas polypins from the Brown Jug offie in Bedminster were always brown - usually in the 4.8 - 5.5% range (Exmoor Stag, Ringwood 49-er, etc).

All the while we went to Bristol Beer Festivals and tried loads of different things - but my memory was that most of the offerings were brown...or brownish.

Then we moved house, found a lovely "Local" run by a new brewery: Bath Ales.

Whilst I started as a resolute Gem drinker, over time - and in response to sharing jugs of beer with folk who preferred a new, lighter, hoppier style of beer - I migrated to a preference for more hops and lighter malts, by constrast my brother still prefers Bitter.

And now?  Where there's a choice, I tend to avoid Best Bitters and their ilk.  This often means there are pubs that we avoid because they seem to offer mainly bitters from different breweries.  This isn't a criticism, by the way, but to explain why we avoid them.

This week, on the single sunny day, we decided that we'd bunk off work(ing from flat) grab a bus to Clifton Village and take some actual film photos. 

We took the opportunity to pop into the Portcullis - once a Dawkins home, but now a small cask offering and a huge range of Belgian beers.  Here, it looks like bitter is popular.  Nothing light on cask.  So, although a bit disappointed,  we chose "Tileys Best Bitter".  

It was fresh as a daisy, beautifully kept and cooled and served in a sparklingly clean glass.  It was truly a beautiful thing.  Much like Penzance beers, Tileys nail the style they say they are.  Having met Johnny Mills (assuming he's still the brewer) this is absolutely no surprise at all everything he does seems to be deliberate and precise.  It was a really lovely pint.

We didn't want a second one, though.

All the other pubs in the village (according to digital GBG) seem to have mainstream bitters on.  So we decided we'd walk down into town (god, the hills are brutal on an old lady's knees) and take it from there.

So many choices, to be fair.  We bypassed the Grainbarge (mostly because crossing the road there just wasn't going to happen) and strolled onto the Bag o' Cats (Nails).  Peering in through the window to see whether there was a seat to be had, two young women sitting outside tried to enthuse us about going in "It's a Cat Cafe!!!".  I'm not sure Luke, the landlord would approve of the description.

We could see a couple of seats so we went for it.   Nothing particularly strong on the bar but a couple of nice options.  Him:  Fierce and Noble Stout, me: Arbor C Bomb (blimey it was lovely).

We hadn't been here for a good while and it was nice to be back. Nevertheless, we didn't particularly want to choose another beer there - so we moved on.

Still too early to eat so we went into the Lime Kiln.  Had an absolutely cracking cask, strong, pale and hoppy beer (to my shame can't remember the brewery) it was a fitting last pint.

From the Lime Kiln it's only a hop, skip and jump to Wong's in Denmark Street which we weren't sure of the first time we went in,  trying to find a replacement for Dynasty. The second time we didn't like it at all (not the food, so much as the ambiance) but when we went a couple of months ago, we adored it.

We ordered pretty much of a reprise of our last visit:  two glasses of wine, one dry fried green beans, one pork main and some fried rice with egg. Whenever we order dry fried beans we always get a nod of approval from staff - it makes us smile.

It's a quirky kinda place but you can't argue with the food and it would be brilliant to go in there with a large group of people and order almost random different dishes to try. 

After that, we strolled home.  I was knackered.  We never, never pub crawl but it was nice to pop into places that we wouldn't really consider to be three-pint pubs (ie:  stay for the evening) and for it to be a decent amble as well (5 miles, since you ask).

Thursday needed to be less strenuous and there were more funding things to be reviewed - so Marthas was the natural place to go.  Happily one of our friends who lives very close messaged us to ask if we fancied a pint.  We told him where we were and he joined us.  Lovely evening!

Yesterday was more of a hike.  Sweetmart beckoned so we walked over there, filled our bags with lovely things (okra, aubergine, spices, roti, rice...you know) and sought a pint in the Greenbank.  It's a place of convenience rather than sought-after destination, and it was a bit chilly and not the cosy feeling we craved but we had a couple of really nice pints and it's a brilliant example of a community pub in action. We followed that with a visit to Journey - a fusion Indian/Himalayan restaurant in St Marks Road.  It was delightful.

Bristol, however, is definitely Open

 On Thursday, we had to be in work again so we made another attempt at the Belgian Bar.  Thankfully it was open and we were greeted enthusiastically by the team there.  The IPA was on good form and we had a couple of pints of it.

The BBB had had a really long day, meeting builders at the Wish Tower by 8am (so had to be out of the house by 7.15am) on a freezing cold day. He'd flitted between the Tower and TechResort to warm up from time to time, and made himself useful there too.  Mind you, a public drop-in at HQ is quite hard work for an introvert too.

I'd arrived about 3pm to catch up with everyone and by the time we left at 5pm, even I was bit worn.  After beer, I suggested pizza and a glass of wine at our favourite italian place around the corner.  He agreed it would be nice - again, greeted with enthusiasm from people who excel at the whole hospitality thing.  It was clear, though, not many people were out in general and several other restaurants were either empty or closed.  It'll be a couple of months before the town gets lively, I reckon.

Friday was our travelling to Bristol day.  I'd cocked up a hair appointment meaning an earlier-than-usual one on Fridayso I was at the station just after 10am and had time for the coffee I'd missed at home.  I chilled (figuratively, and physically) quite happily and the BBB arrived just ahead of the train at around 11am.  Our usual train from Eastbourne is, at best 11.30am and more ususally 12noon.

The trip up to London was without incident and the transfer to Paddington was incredibly quick.  Whereas we usually arrive at Paddington just after (or maybe just as) the Bristol train has left we had just enough time (literally, just) to "run" onto the platform, smile winningly at the guard on the last open door and leap onto the 1pm train.

As we walked toward the front of the train to find a seat the train pulled out.  We were very pleased with ourselves.  

After about 20 minutes the BBB checked on the general trainy state of things and learned that we had just pulled out before an incident around Paddington that now promised to stop all trains leaving the station until about 4.30pm.  Weirdly, that knowledge made feel suddenly anxious about "what would have happened if...".  It was the oddest feeling.

We both agreed that we knew exactly what we would have done:  gone the pub, of course.  But I'm really glad it didn't come to that.  On a Friday (especially in winter), I really want to be in a place I know.

Anyhow - we arrived at our flat before 3pm and had no idea what to do with ourselves.  We were 60 - 90 minutes earlier than usual and it was weird!

As it was, and being a Friday (we don't usually arrive on a Friday) we knew the BM would be busy quite early so we popped round before 4pm. It was bliss.  We had a good seat (disappointed there was no fire but still...) there was a huge range of BBF cask beer (for all the world it looked like a tap takeover) and a good-looking keg list. 

The pub wasn't that busy - certainly not as much as we expected - and we wondered whether in fact there was a January drop-off here.  45 minutes later, though, there was a positive influx!

By 5.15pm the place was packed with loads of brave individuals choosing to sit outside with their beer in order to get a seat.  There was the usual lovely mix of punters - quite a few "older" (ie our age, pensioner ish) people, groups of women, mixed groups, groups of chaps, a couple of families, people in straight off the building site...etc.etc

As I suspected, Bristol doesn't really seem to have quite the seasonal lull - and we're very glad for it.

Eastbourne is Closed

 The contrast of living part time in a large, traditional (slightly old-fashioned) coastal resort and part-time in a university city which is generally considered to be quite trendy and hip is that the city never really "shuts down".  Yeah, it'll be quieter in the depths of non-pre-Christmas winter (ie Jan/Feb) but pubs and restaurants generally return quite quickly to a normal schedule.

Eastbourne, on the other hand, does not.

We took an extended break from work over Christmas and made a return to the office to catch up with the Team on Monday - almost a week into the New Year.

We already knew that Beerarama would be closed - the chaps who run it advertised their closure for a couple of weeks' holiday, well in advance...and, OK it was Monday but when we strolled around the corner to the Belgian Bar we were really disappointed to see it was closed.  As we strolled down that road which is supposed to be the Town's "flagship", "Cafe culture" street which, in theory, has been (or at least will be) the recipient of quite a lot of funding to enable this new culture...what do we see?  Closed.  Everything either closed or gone for good.  It feels like self-fulfilling prophesy - difficulty getting people in when you are open, so don't open, so no one seeks you out - so even fewer people come.

We're heading up to Bristol on Friday and what we do know is that is that whilst some places might be taking a bit of a break, there won't be wholesale closures of hospitality venues and it'll encourage us to try a few new places who are likely to be a bit quieter...but, crucially, open.

We see a lot about pub closures and I suspect that the prevailing culture in a town or city might very much drive how easy it is for them to ride out the lean times.  I'm not talking about the large company places here - like 'spoons, or Sam Smith, or whatever pubco - I'm talking about real community venues, run by people who put their lives into a place - those who see it as more than a job. 

I really, really wanted a bit of chill time in the pub with the BBB on Monday - it's different to chill time at home - but it wasn't to be.  There's more work to go out for tomorrow so no doubt we'll try again but I'm already anticipating we might be disappointed again.

Friday though...I know where we'll be around 4.30pm