Ben's Brewery Recomendations.

So I mentioned my house mate's sister came up the other weekend with her boyfriend both Natalie and Ben are big beer lovers (take note of the article of hers I posted in an October post). Ben works at a pub called the The Duke of Wellington in London. I forget what part (rubbish memory hence the little red notebook) but he sat down and was kind enough to tell me lots about ale from the pouring to drinking and everything in-between. So we got to talking about breweries and all the different one so he wrote me a (hugeee) list of a few breweries to keep an eye out for. Admittedly they are mainly daaawwn south but there are a few from around and about but I thought I was being a bit selfish so I would share the list with you. Let me know what you think or if you have any more that should be added to the list.  

Disclaimer. I going to try to transcribe his list as he has written with stars (I think they mean favorites) and underlines (I think these mean super favourites). Also I apologise for mistakes I could go onto blame his handwriting but it's probably me being a bit of an idiot!

Ben's Brewery Recommendations.


1. Darkstar - Sussex
     Beers- Hophead(Ben's favourite), Hylder Blonde, Saison, Winter/summer solstra etc

2. Harveys - Sussex

3. Hopdaemon - Kent

4. Ascot - Surrey
     Beers - Alligator, Single Hop's (varying hops), Anastasia's Exile Stout.

5. Brodies - Leyton, London

6, Crouchvale - Essex
     Beers - Amanillo, Brewers Gold

7. Marble - Manchester

8. *Harviestoun* - Bitter & Twisted

9. *Fyne Ales* - Scotland
      Beers - Avalanche etc.

10. Itchen Valley - Hampshire
      Beers - Pure Gold, Godfathers.

11. Langham - Sussex

12. Hepworth - Sussex

13. Bristol Beer Factory - Bristol

14 Arbar Ales - Whiltshire (I think)

15. Moor Brewery - Bristol

16. Woodfordes - Norfolk
      Beers- Whenry (v. good bitter)

17. Red Squirrel - Hertfordshire
      Beers - Redwood American IPA

18. Kelham Island - Yorkshire
      Beers - Pale Rider

19. Williams Brothers, Seven Giraffes - Scotland

20. St Austell - Tribute.

21. Purple Moose Brewery -  Porthmadog, Wales

22. *Kernel* - Bermondsey London (bottled)


23. Acom - Barnsley

24. Othey - Wales

25. Redemption - London
     Beers - Trinity, Fellowship Porter

So there is the huge list!

Off off the top of his head may I add. I managed to catch him the morning after because I suspect if I had asked him in the pub the list would have been shorter and harder to transcribe. Anyway keep an eye out but if you think there are anymore to add or amendments let me know!

Trippy Beers

So I stumbled across this website called bevShots who have discovered an amazing way of photographing beverages with a microscope and a camera to create these amazing images. It's an american website so things are a bit weird and american and they are now printing them and selling them on different types on merchandise like neck ties for instance. I really liked the concept and how the images are produced.

'BevShot images are made by first crystallizing the drink of choice on a lab slide. Using a standard light microscope with a camera attached, the light source is polarized and passed through the crystal. This creates the magnificent colors we see in our favorite drinks featured on this site. "


here is just a selection of my favourites.

American Amber Ale

 Black Russian

English Oatmeal Stout

 Gin

 Irish Stout

Have a look at the others at www.bevshot.com.

Victoria Hotel

So I visited The Victoria with friends and some of their parents. I would even go so far to say this is my favourite real ale pub in Leeds. I love it, like going back in time but on this visit it was only fleeting so I'll tell you more information about The Victoria Hotel another day. So I had a swift pint of Nutty Black which I had before but in a bottle. I really liked it again but I can't decide if I like it better bottle or cask?

Then I moved onto a pint of Oakfield Brewery's India Pale Ale which was nice and refreshing after the darker smoother Nutty Black. I would recommend this as a drink if you didn't want to be too weighed down with a dark ale. Finally my friend had the other IPA they had on Japur IPA which she said

"Delicious and at the strength it should be. Desert-like and luxurious like a turkish delight"

They usually have about 8 pumps on at the Victoria but this occasion they only had 3 left on which was but a disappointing but hey what can you do?

Jumbo Records 40 year anniversary ale.

So we managed to get our hands on the elusive Jumbo Records 40th Anniversary Ale. It was by pure fluke that my housemate's sister and her boyfriend came up for the weekend and she mentioned one of her favourite bars is in Leeds, The Reliance, and that's where we found it.  

I had never actually heard of The Reliance, head off past Sandinistas part of town it was in a really random place to be fair but well worth the wander! A lovely airy and light bar with an arty feel. Relaxed atmosphere with floor to ceiling windows with wooden floor boards, and also 3 pumps on! 

They also do food, one of our company got a Sunday dinner which he said was really nice, but the portion wasn't massive for a tenner. They also do picky bits like olives, hummus and brownies.

So the Jumbo Records Ale is brewed by Revolutions Brewing Company which are a perfect match apparently all their ales are names relating to music (ie the Kraftwerk Braun Ale) but also their  abvs are generally at either 3.3% o 4.5% (reflecting the two speeds turntables play at). 


Pier my housemate had this to say


"Nice well rounder. Malty with a disappointing head"


which was sad to say but true, nice flavour to it though! I will be making that stroll up to that bar again though!

North Bar with Sam

So after work on Friday my friend Sam finished at the same time as me so we decided to go in search of something to drink. Not many pubs stay open past 11 so at midnight finding somewhere to drink was a bit of a treck. So we decided on North Bar which is one of my more frequented places last year. With 8 pumps and hundreds of bottled beers there is something for everybody!

Quite an artsy atmosphere in this long thin bar it also serves food. I've tried their brownies before, which are to die for! A lovely place to meet friends for a chat a beer since it is central in Leeds and easy to describe the location (to the left of Primark!).

So Sam had one of their permanent beers Outlaw Wild Mule which he said tasted nice and because it was quite pale it was very drinkable. I had their guest ale Thee Swords which I really liked, it was amber in colour and really fruity with a hoppy and chewy aftertaste.

I then asked to try St Petersburg which at £4.30 a pint I couldn't really afford but it did taste really nice! A dark beer with a really smooth toffee taste it was quite chewy but that only added to it's charm, if it was cheaper I would have had a pint. Sam and I ended up just having a pint of what the other had luckily because we were thrown out for end of day having to leave half a pint each!

I really like North Bar but it's a bit expensive and with the modern interior might be good for some people but I much prefer older bars which are cozier and more comfortable.

First pint of many!

So last night I finally got the chance to pull my first real ale pint!! We have finally got a pump in work and we have hobgoblin on at the moment! Our cheapest pint at £3.50 but I really enjoyed it.

The same day I join camra was the same day I pulled my first pint!

I'm going to more research into pulling the best pint. Tips? More info to come!

Mr Foley's cask ale house. Leeds

So Mr Foley's was first found by my Dad when he came to visit me in Leeds for my graduation I think, with Mum, Ella and the Good Beer Guide in tow. Flicking through and we decided to go for a hunt and found this amazing pub. Anybody visiting Leeds needs to pay this bar a visit a quick walk up from the station.

 The bar staff are always friendly and knowledgeable and eager to share their opinions. The evening I went down the bar staff were all women!! It was amazing!

Mr Foley's is a warm cozy pub with seating on lots of levels, even without lots of people in (like when we were there) it's still homely and keeps the cold out. There is so much character in this pub and what I liked the most was the wide variety of customers; old and young, male and female.It makes Mr Foley's so welcoming and much less intimidating.

 Also the bar is situated in a perfect location, straight opposite the Leeds City Art Gallery, Leeds City Library and next to The Light which is a cinema/shopping complex (save yourself some pennies, instead of paying stupid amounts for a scoop from Ben and Jerry get a pint from Mr Foley before the film!). If your doing an ale trail you are in the prime location to plan out your next move! With the Town Hall Tavern a couple of doors down The Victoria Hotel over the road-ish The Angel round a few corners! Perfect!


So last Wednesday I decided to swing by before going to see a film at the cinema, perfect location as noted above! I went in with my housemate Megan, who is getting into real ale but likes the lighter pale ales. They had 14 pumps with about 4 IPAs so with a wide selection. Meg decided to go for the Saltaire Blonde at £2.90 which she said tasted like

"a summer day's drink. Which is really light for easy drinking when socialising. I can imagine drinking this with friends in the park."

I decided after reading so much about it I decided I had to try Ghost Ale £2.63 from the close by York. I'm sure I read somewhere it's the only ale brewed within the castle walls in York! Considering it's a ghost it was one of the darkest beers I have drank! Beautiful deep full oaky flavours! Meg made the final decision about this ale

"a drink for last thing at night in front of a big open fire"

So there we have it, from someone who said they don't like dark ales to her deciding after tasting Ghost ale that she could manage a half as long as it was in front of a fire was a winner for me!

Then we moved onto another York beer Scrumdown which is amber in colour that was fruity with a coffee aftertaste and a Yorkshire Terrier which I've had before in The Victoria which is lovely and soft and then ends quite hoppy, one of my favourites!

Just how I would like to have my trips to the cinema begin every time! I think I might make it my new tradition Foley's then movies!