I am breaking from the tyranny of chronology to share ten things learnt on a day trip to the excellent Hawkshead Brewery Beer Festival in Cumbria. 1. Trains to Staveley – where the brewery is located – do not always connect with mainline trains to Oxenholme, nine miles away. A wait of an hour or…… Continue reading Hawkshead Revisited
Lund Calling
The last stop on the Swedish leg of our trip was to the lovely university town of Lund, near Malmo. The impressive cathedral provides a central focal point together with Lena Lervik’s SkyddsmantelMadonnan (2015). The boldness of the art is matched by this modern diocesan architecture. Apart from a rather fine bakery the other attraction…… Continue reading Lund Calling
Stockholm Syndrome: Cask and Craft
CAMRA’s recent Revitalisation exercise illustrated members’ sharply divided opinions on the future direction of the organisation. Some were adamant that the sole purpose should remain the promotion and defence of cask conditioned beer (and cider), and that the rapid growth of (imprecise term) craft beer should not form part of its remit. Others have been…… Continue reading Stockholm Syndrome: Cask and Craft
From Scotland to Gotland
Gotland is a large island in the Baltic Sea, a three hour boat journey from south eastern Sweden and a popular high season holiday destination for Swedes. This summer the island hosted the 18th Island Games, a kind of Olympics for islands, and the opportunity to visit nine different football grounds was too good to…… Continue reading From Scotland to Gotland
Liking Leek a Lot
An allocation of three Good Beer Guide pubs for a town of 20,000 people would normally be more than sufficient. But Leek, in Staffordshire, could justify at least twice that number and the newest entry, the Earl Grey is arguably the best of the lot. Run expertly by two young beer afficionados, it seemed…… Continue reading Liking Leek a Lot
Dark Side of the Moors
After ticking off a couple of smart, food-orientated pubs in the area, it was a pleasure to visit the Royal Oak at Wetton in Staffordshire. A proper 350 year old rural pub as described approvingly here by Martin Taylor: https://retiredmartin.com/2016/11/05/manifold-contrasts/ On a day when temperatures reached 32 degrees a group of red faced walkers staggered into…… Continue reading Dark Side of the Moors
Pub Drought Ends in Derbyshire
In athletics it’s all about personal bests. Pub ticking is much the same only more athletic. But 38 days without ticking a new pub was a personal worst, so it was with some relief that I knocked off a few more Good Beer Guide pubs in Derbyshire at the weekend. The drought ended in…… Continue reading Pub Drought Ends in Derbyshire
