Borrowd’Ale

Borrowdale stakes a credible claim to be the most beautiful valley in the Lakes though like everywhere in that national park it gets heavingly busy.

The road meanders from Keswick along Derwent Water and 8 miles later arrives at the Glaramara, the setting for which is difficult to do justice to on a phone camera.

It’s a smart hotel – but you’d already guessed that – set back off the road with two beers. Our Tirril Borrowdale Bitter was a decent old fashioned English bitter.

Also in the hamlet of Seatoller is the Yew Tree Inn, just before the climb starts over Honister Pass to Buttermere. Only one beer here from Tirril – Honister IPA – but it turned out to be the best of the day, a proper full bodied example of the style. The streams of walkers who make it here need deep pockets. Two half pints cost £7; tomato soup £10.50; fish and chips £19.50; and even the humble fish finger and chips £15. A lovely, ancient inn with friendly staff though.

Such prices are the norm round here. The Langstrath in Stonethwaite charged £6.50 a pint or £7 for two halves from a choice of five cask beers. There are also two left-field real ale outlets nearby. In the days I used to go youth hostelling you were forced to stay out all day in all weathers, had to be back by 22.00 or get locked out and were required to do a job in the morning (like cleaning the toilets with a toothbrush or similar). Consuming alcohol on the premises would have got your gonads chopped off. Fortunately times have changed and this was the welcome scene greeting visitors to Borrowdale Youth Hostel.

The Vocation beer was sampled and found to be in fine condition. On enquiring if this was the only hostel selling cask beer we were told Keswick and Ambleside sold it too. Perhaps it’s time to look out my Life Membership card after all.

The other unusual outlet was The Tute – the Borrowdale Institute – a spacious village hall with Borrowdale Blonde fresh on cask. The sales team at Tirril Brewery have cornered the market in these parts.

On the way home we went to a Good Beer Guide entry to finish off Cumbria once again. The opening times look challenging.

But they are actually far more generous as it provides bed, breakfast and evening meals, mainly to people walking the length of Hadrian’s Wall. And when people stay overnight they open the bar up.

It’s a tiny bar with a good sized garden in the village of Walton, where the only other pub, the Centurion, remains long term closed after the owner sought, but failed to secure, change of use. The Old Vicarage Brewery is run by a guy who used to be part of the team behind Cherwell Valley brewery in Banbury. Two of his own beers were complemented by a very good Spun Gold from Carlisle Brewery.

Needless to say the Black Country Ale Tairsters had beaten us to it.

It was a good way to sign off but I still can’t believe we didn’t see a beer called Borrowd’Ale.