02 June 2019

Bristol - Gloucester Road and Stokes Croft

Thanks to Steve Kelly for organising a trail of Bristol pubs along the A38 on Friday 8 March 2019 for Simon, Mike and me. We had Plusbus tickets for economical bus travel for the day.
Simon, Steve and Mike

The Inn on the Green


From Bristol Parkway we caught a 73 bus towards Filton and walked from the Toronto Road stop to the Inn on the Green at 2 Filton Road.
This large pub had 13 handpumps and the Bristol Beer Factory Low Rider was a good half pint to start with.
There was a real fire and the low table with polished pennies was a further example of pennies used as a decorative feature in the pub.
A custom made Pubs of Gloucester Road wall display with objects in boxes to represent the pubs and copper pipework to show the sequence gave us a preview of our route.

 

The Wellington


We squeezed into a bus to take us to The Wellington, Gloucester Road, just south of Horfield Common. St Austell Tribute, Bath Ales Gem and Prophecy were the three beers available.
My Bath Ales Prophecy 3.8% ABV New World Pale Ale was rather hazier than it should have been.
There is a large dining area behind the bar as well as the spacious front bar area where we sat.
There are some locally relevant graphic prints for decoration.

The Drapers Arms

On the next bus south we spotted the Drapers Arms but as it was closed in the early afternoon we were unable to visit. Thanks to Boak & Bailey for tweeting occasional photos from inside the micropub they frequent which is obviously worthy of inclusion on any evening trail.

The Annexe

We passed the Sportsman on the way to the Annexe which is just beyond.
The Annexe offers a CAMRA discount on pints of ale.
There are eight cask ales from handpumps which are situated on a back counter.
Here I chose a half pint of Hanlon's Citra IPA, one of the two guest ales.

The Golden Lion

After retracing our steps to the bus stop on the Gloucester Road, we were opposite the Golden Lion, an externally decorated pub with regular live music.

The Gloucester Road Ale House & Kitchen


The next bus took us to The Gloucester Road Ale House & Kitchen.
The £3.20 per pint price for ales is reasonable but on this occasion my half of Dawkins Bristol Blonde turned out to be a disappointment.
The interior of the Ale House is smart and contemporary.
An upstairs room provides extra space in a similar style and there are some historic framed drinks-related illustrations on the walls.

The Urban Standard


A short walk south led to the Urban Standard at 35 Gloucester Road.
As there was no cask ale here I opted for coffee while the others had a beer with their meal.
Sadly, the Urban Standard would subsequently close down at the end of April, 2019.

The Gallimaufry


We crossed the Gloucester Road to reach the Gallimaufry (meaning a confused jumble or medley of things) which was not on Steve's itinerary but looked appealing.
At the bar my half pint of Bristol Beer Factory Beam Me Up was pale and deliciously hopped with Melba and Ella hops (£2.20).  Beers from Dark Star and Stroud Brewery were also available on handpump.
This is a bar with regular live music and quirky decor.
It is also spacious with a back room and an upstairs room.

The Cat and Wheel

We walked south along Gloucester Road which turns into Cheltenham Road and under the railway bridge which connects Montpelier and Redland stations.
The Cat and Wheel is the building painted blue just beyond the bridge. It also hosts live music at weekends and was on Steve's itinerary but we were now running late so did not go inside.

The Canteen

The Mild Mild West, a Banksy mural is just outside The Canteen at 80 Stokes Croft.
Inside, the range of cask ales included Moutere another excellent Bristol Beer Factory Beer. Hopped with Monterey, Rakau and Enigma a half pint cost £2 here.
The Canteen is an informal place with plenty of large shared tables. It is another live music venue with free events. The menu includes imaginative vegetarian options. Free publications with details of Bristol events can be found here.

The Hillgrove Porter Stores


It is a steep uphill walk between blocks of flats to reach the Hillgrove Porter Stores by the most direct route. 
The Dawkins pub at 53 Hillgrove Street North is also set on a steep gradient.
Inside, cask ales are listed on the blackboard. The Japanese lanterns are a reminder that Japanese food from the Kansai kitchen is available here.
We liked this pub and stayed for two beers.
My first was the favourite - Tapstone Brewing Co Sea Monster although the Moor Beer Co Espana Hop was also good.

 

The Hare on the Hill

It was only a short walk down Dove Street to reach The Hare on the Hill. The house decorated with cows and farm animals up the hill at 43 Thomas Street North has a blue plaque showing it as The Cow Byre referring to its historic origins. The mural was designed by Sophie Long.
A small Banksy mural 'Rose on a mousetrap' can be viewed across the street and a little way up the hill from the Cow Byre.
There are five cask ales at the Hare on the Hill. It's possible that I drank water here as there is no entry against the pub on untappd and the photographic evidence appears to supports this!
There is a blue theme in this pub which works well. Some good music was playing here including Junk Bond Trader by Elliott Smith.
The tasteful decor includes mirrors and toy cars.

The Crofters Rights

It was all downhill from here as we headed to The Crofters Rights at 117-119 Stokes Croft!
The light was fading as we ventured inside.
A tap wall offered a wide range of keg beers. The central taps include one for still cider (Ashridge) and three for cask ales including Boca from Bristol Beer Factory.
From the poster, it looks like there are gigs / events or clubnights every night of the week at the Crofters Rights.
At the side of the pub there is a counter for Ray's pizza and this was a good opportunity to order a meal.
The Crofters Rights has dim lighting and some unusual artwork on the walls.

 

Croft Ales

Our final visit in the area was to Croft Ales brewery and taproom at 32 Upper York Street. The taproom is open on Fridays from 4pm-9pm and on Saturdays from 3pm-8pm.
It was busy when we arrived so after ordering our beers we visited the brewery space at the back.
The beer I enjoyed here was BS2, a 4% Session IPA showcasing hops from around the world blended with English and German-style malts.

With a train to catch at 20.30 from Bristol Temple Meads we left the taproom at 19.45 to catch a bus to the station, after avoiding the youths on pushbikes hanging around the area.

Thanks again to Steve for keeping us on time and to Simon and Mike for company on this trip. 




22 May 2019

Real Bohemian Lager

If you can't sample real Bohemian lager in the Czech Republic itself then surely the next best place must be the Embassy of the Czech Republic in London?
I was lucky to be invited by CzechTrade to attend a Real Bohemian Lager workshop at the embassy on 16 May 2019. The event was organised in conjunction with Euroboozer, a leading UK importer of fine speciality craft brewed beers.
My preparation for the event involved a look at Evan Rail's Good Beer Guide Prague & the Czech Republic (2007) which I had last used on my first and only trip to Prague in 2008.
The Czech Republic has the highest per capita consumption of beer in the world according to Wikipedia 143.3 litres (2016). In contrast, 25th placed UK beer consumption is 67.7 litres (2016).
Situated east of Notting Hill Gate and west of the embassy of the Russian Federation, the 1970 building of the Czech embassy was designed as a tribute to the avant-garde Brutalist style. A lot of concrete and glass was used in its construction! After a major remodelling, the Czech embassy reopened in November 2017.
On arrival it was nice to be welcomed by Eva Provot of CzechTrade and Mitch Adams of Euroboozer and find myself in the company of Britain's best beer writers and judges. A useful welcome pack included a map showing industrial and craft breweries (above) and a Beer Guide to Prague which can also be found online.
OnTheWorld map shows Bohemia in west of Czech Republic
Ushered into the cinema we were welcomed by Martin Macourek of CzechTrade. He introduced Czech master brewer Jan / Honza Kočka linked with Kocour brewery and now involved with the Nomád project, a 'flying brewery' that brews on the equipment of others. 
We were informed that there would soon be a new website for the Czech Beer Alliance of eight breweries including Cvikov. Two representatives from Cvikov brewery had flown to London to join us for the workshop. 
page from Pivovar Cvikov website showing tanks and brewing vessels
A video was screened showing scenes from Cvikov brewery that included the 22 horizontal lager / maturation tanks and a healthy young man carrying a sack of malted barley over his shoulders up a flight of stairs. It was surprising that a lift or hoist did not exist for this task?!
Martyn Railton, the 'Austrian Londoner' of Euroboozer, mentioned his lifelong interest in collecting beer glasses. Martyn also provided a useful modern history of Czech brewing. A key date was the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989 after which Heineken moved in and breweries were consolidated. More recently business people have been buying up old disused brewery buildings and remaining equipment to set up new independent breweries. Many of the independent breweries have adopted the double or triple decoction mashing style which involves extra time and effort.

Katarina Hobbs, from Czech Tourism, admitted that Czech beer was her favourite drink. She mentioned that cycle and hiking trails to breweries have been developed and that there are beer festivals like the Brno festival (31/7/-3/8/2019) and the Sun in the Glass festival at Purkmistr brewery, Plzeň (Pilsen) which feature smaller breweries.
Czech master brewer Jan / Honza Kočka of Nomád brewing project was the final speaker. Jan said it was a visit to CAMRA's Great British Beer Festival in 2000 that opened his eyes to the wide realm of beer. After visiting the Great American Beer Festival later that year he was 'totally into beer'.
He mentioned that prior to 2000 it was difficult for microbreweries in the Czech Republic to succeed but afterwards the concept began to catch on.
Real Bohemian Lager is brewed with Czech malt and the Saaz hop producing a quaffable and thirst quenching pilsner in the 4%-5.2% ABV range. However, if dry hopping is involved it should not be called pilsner but rather lager or IPL.
Although many traditional and some new independent breweries use double or triple decoction, his Nomád brewing uses the simpler single decoction which is good enough for pilsner.
Jan recommended visiting the Czech Republic as it is a small country, with relatively short distances to travel around and visit breweries and historic towns.
He particularly recommended visiting the beer festivals that feature small breweries. The festival at Prague castle gardens 14-15 June 2019 includes over 60 breweries. The Sun in the Glass festival at the Purkmistr brewery on the outskirts of Pilsen 20-21 September 2019 includes 70 breweries.
The afternoon continued with a beer tasting led by Jan / Honza Kočka. Our tables were set with glasses and a sheet listing the beers to be tasted.
Without any previous experience of a serious beer tasting exercise I was lucky to be sitting at the back, near Jeff Evans, Chairman of the International Beer Challenge, who I could follow without any major breach of etiquette. Key points are not to fill your glass to the brim and not to drink all the beer in the glass.
Relevant details for each beer on the sheet were projected on a screen e.g. Cvikov 12° / Draught / Style: Premium pale lager / Malts: Pilsener / Hops: Saaz hops, Premiant / ABV 4.9% / IBU 32.
We started with shared bottles of Holba 11°, Bohemia Regent 12° (with CzechTrade Export Special label) and Kutna Hora 12° poured into straight glasses.
The draught beers served in stemmed glasses were Muflon 11°, Cvikov 12°, Albrecht 11°, Kanec 12°, Kanec 12° Vienna.
Large bottles with flip tops from Frýdlant brewery were for different styles. We enjoyed Albrecht Philipp 13° (American Pale Ale with Victoria Secret and Enigma hops) and Albrecht Katerina 12° (Czech Dark Premium Lager with Czech Light, Munich, Caramel, Chocolate and Black malts).
Finally we reverted to a draught Real Bohemian Lager - Cvikov 10° to finish the tasting on a lighter note.
A useful tip from Jan / Honza for roughly converting degrees Plato (or Balling) to ABV is to subtract 2 and then divide by 2 so that 12° becomes 5% ABV.
Jan / Honza could now relax with a lager! 
The lagers I was keen to taste again were Albrecht 11° and Cvikov 12°.

My thanks go to all involved with the workshop. I look forward to the next event and to visiting beer festivals, breweries and bars in the Czech Republic! 






25 April 2019

Porto landing - Monday 25 February 2019

After a busy British Airways flight from London Gatwick to Porto there was time to explore the hotel's local area and dine on fish and visit a Cafe Macau for a glass of a port and a beer before bedtime.

The Flying Horse, Gatwick Airport

With an afternoon departure there was time for a beer at the Flying Horse in the departure lounge of Gatwick's South Terminal before heading to the gate.
After the 50p reduction for a CAMRA member's Wetherspoon voucher, a pint of Titanic Brewery White Star cost £3.85 and helped pass the spare time nicely.
The ceiling, floor and walls of the Flying Horse have been made over recently and it was also interesting to view the cellar housed behind windows with text describing the 'Making Beer' process.



At 18:00, after an uneventful flight, a coach transferred passengers from the aircraft stand to the terminal giving views of  parked planes and the evening sky above the Atlantic coast.
By checking the Metro do Porto website in advance I had made a plan to buy one Andante Azul ticket with 5 x Z2 (2 zone) fares for 6.60 euros total and a second Andante Azul ticket with 2 x z4 (4 zone - for airport to/from city centre) fares for 4.60 euros total. Each cost includes 60 cents for the rechargeable tickets that can only store one type of fare at any time.
Andante Azul (Blue) tickets - front and reverse
Uniformed staff in the ticket machine area can give assistance to tourists using them for the first time. Payment can be made by card or cash and receipts are also issued.
The Metro train would fill up after the photo I took on boarding at 18.20 having validated my journey by presenting the 4 zone ticket to a reader on the way to the platform. There was space under the seat for my carry-on cabin bag. Porto is in the same time zone as London and the light was now fading fast. The train headed inland and then turned south towards Porto.
I left the train at Trindade, revalidated my 4 zone ticket and found the platform for the orange D line train heading north west towards Hospital São João and travelled a further two stops to Marquês.
At 19.10, on the way to Hotel Grande Rio, I stopped to take a photo of the floodlit church of