On Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:48:40 +0100
Martin wrote:

On Wed, 25 Jan 2012 01:29:12 +0000, Bill Wright
wrote:

John Rumm wrote:
On 23/01/2012 13:09, Bill Wright wrote:
Martin wrote:
On Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:16:50 +0000, bugbear
wrote:

Bill Wright wrote:
Marks and Spencers on line are selling bottle conditioned real
ales at very reasonable prices. If you get two cases it's
carriage free. I got some and the packing etc is excellent. As
is/was the beer.

We find it difficult sometimes to find bottle conditioned beer
on the supermarket shelves.
My local Morrison's has several.

Even our local Lidl in Holland has Shepherd Neame and Hobgoblin
occasionally.

Bottle conditioned? I've always regarded Hobgoblin as a
'marketing ploy' beer.

Possibly - but its ok'ish... in the same sort of way that Old
Peculiar is.

Anything above 5% tends to taste all right, superficially at least.

Not Heineken

The
alcohol is a taste enhancer. The clever thing is to produce a
palatable beer at 3.6%.

Munich beer used to be very palatable and have a low strength.

Which one(s)? Most German cities have numerous breweries (burp).
--
Davey.

In message , Bill Wright
wrote

Anything above 5% tends to taste all right, superficially at least. The
alcohol is a taste enhancer. The clever thing is to produce a palatable
beer at 3.6%.


If the brewer spends a bit on the hops low ABV beers can taste great.

--
Alan
news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

On Jan 25, 12:33*pm, Davey wrote:

Munich beer used to be very palatable and have a low strength.

Which one(s)? Most German cities have numerous breweries (burp).
--
Davey.

Augustiner for me, but the best one I had, heller bock was 7.2%!

Alan wrote:
In message , Bill Wright
wrote

Anything above 5% tends to taste all right, superficially at least.
The alcohol is a taste enhancer. The clever thing is to produce a
palatable beer at 3.6%.


If the brewer spends a bit on the hops low ABV beers can taste great.

Yes, it's a quality issue.

Bill

"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...
R. Mark Clayton wrote:
"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...
Marks and Spencers on line are selling bottle conditioned real ales at
very reasonable prices. If you get two cases it's carriage free. I got
some and the packing etc is excellent. As is/was the beer.

We find it difficult sometimes to find bottle conditioned beer on the
supermarket shelves.

Bill

Which is why I have the CAMRA guide for my area an buy it draught in the
pub...
Due to not wanting to drink and drive we seem to drink at home far more
than we go out.

Move nearer a pub!


I find the national book rather unreliable. It seems to me that local
branch members distort the list of pubs entered for their own (not always
creditable) reasons.

This was the local book - pretty accurate for the ones I knew about.

I complained to them about the paucity of entries for the Dales compared
to the dozens of York pubs in the same section. There was no reply.

Well lots of people visit York and last time I did there were lots of olde
worlde pubs serving decent beer and food (roast leg of beef!).

OTOH I got ripped off £12.50p for a hackney carraige to the station - the
only "taxi" available was a horse drawn one and he charged per person, so
about quadruple the cost in a motor car!!!


Bill

In message , Bob Latham
wrote

Much as I love the idea of "real ale" pubs I do find that I often do not
like the taste of the beer on offer. Mostly, it is extremely bitter and
tastes very strongly of hops. I confess I seriously dislike the flavour.

I only drink real ale and I like beers that are bitter and taste of
aromatic hops. Unfortunately most real ales are brewed to a price and
seldom taste that bitter or overly hoppy.

One pub within walking distance is also a micro brewery
(www.sadlersales.co.uk) and has been on national TV. They sell a range of
about 8 beers in there and used to produce a dark IPA which I loved but
now its all these hop monsters and frankly when I go in there,

There are a LOT of malt/sweet/dark beers around. It's a style of beer
that I don't particularly like that much, especially all in the same
glass

I drink the
guinness in strong preference.

Surely Guinness has many of the qualities you say you dislike?


My favourite of all beers on the rare occasions I see any, is Abbot
Special Reserve.

Personally I wouldn't wash my dog in it - but on the other hand it may
save some poor soul from having to drink it

Think that's what its called but it blows my socks off,
love it. If that makes me a philistine then so be it. Hops are horrible.

Philistine! The thing with real ale is that there are hundreds of
breweries in the UK producing thousands of different beers. There are
probably hundreds of different flavours in these beers but you may have
to drink in pubs that are not tied to big breweries, or to a large
pubco, to find them.

--
Alan
news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

On 26/01/2012 17:20, Alan wrote:

Philistine! The thing with real ale is that there are hundreds of
breweries in the UK producing thousands of different beers. There are
probably hundreds of different flavours in these beers but you may have
to drink in pubs that are not tied to big breweries, or to a large
pubco, to find them.

+1!

That's exactly the point. They aren't brewed to a lowest common taste,
they're all different.

Andy

In message , Bob Latham
wrote
In article ,
Andy Champ wrote:
On 26/01/2012 17:20, Alan wrote:

Philistine! The thing with real ale is that there are hundreds of
breweries in the UK producing thousands of different beers. There are
probably hundreds of different flavours in these beers but you may have
to drink in pubs that are not tied to big breweries, or to a large
pubco, to find them.

+1!

That's exactly the point. They aren't brewed to a lowest common taste,
they're all different.

Andy

Why am I a Philistine because I dislike the taste of hops?

Written somewhat in jest. You like some styles of real ale and I like
others. Within the UK there is enough variation to suit us both.

I also dislike
garlic does that make me a double Philistine?

Yes - and if you don't like pork scratching a triple Philistine.


I do use free houses and micro breweries and I don't like the majority
because I don't like hops or other acrid tastes.

With the breweries around my way, Essex, most of them produce in their
range both a style of beer that I enjoy and another that I don't.

One observation, the kind of beers that I like are the ones that
disappear first at pub festivals and the ones that you appear to like
are those that struggle to get sold. High strength beers are also the
last to go.

For me the words Real Ale, Micro-brewery or Craft brewery don't
necessarily say quality. There are small breweries that consistently
try to provide something different to what is available from the large
national brewers and some that try to compete on price and only wave a
single hop or some malt above the hot water when brewing

--
Alan
news2009 {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk