TOPIC:

Anyone see Countryfile on the Beeb yesterday morning? They introduced a piece on microbrewies. After stating about the sale of S&N "the last British owned big brand brewery to Heineken", they went on to say that it was not all bad; 70 new microbrewies opened in the UK last year to cope for the rise in the sale of "bitter and cask ales". They visited this brewery in Kent (Westerhams) and spoke with the owner Robert Wicks. It is located on a farm in disused out-buildings benefitting the farmer with rent and brewery effluent as fertiliser spread on the land.

The interesting bit for me was the visit to a cellar of a local pub, with the landlord explaining about the beer being a living product, still fermenting. The cellar was 9-10 degrees to allow for a serving temp of 10-14. Education indeed.

Dam missed it, sound good

Really make my heart bleed when I think of the poor Irish publican having to tap kegs and charge us outrage price for the privilege

There's certainly much more work involved in cask handling, which is probably why we'll never see the likes of it in Ireland again.

Makes me wonder why, if the Porterhouse have gone to all that effort to have cask-worthy cellars, they don't make something else on cask, even if it meant taking TSB off while selling it. Four seasonal cask beers would be a much better idea, I reckon. There can't be that many TSB purists who wouldn't give something else a go.

I like TSB and I normally have a pint of it when I'm in but I wonder how much it sells. If they can't shift a lot of it they may be reluctant to put anything else on cask.

edit: was in PH North yesterday and the Vienna Lager is back. Very nice.

If they can't shift a lot of it they should [i:1c158mwy]definitely[/i:1c158mwy] put something else on cask. I doubt two simultaneous cask beers would be practical, given that it is just a novelty. But a rotating alternative might be.

I'm just miffed because I'm in favour of the whole cask beer thing, I just don't like TSB.