Two beer festivals in one day - a couple of hundred yards from one another.
First The Hope in Carshalton. Then The Windsor Castle just down the road.
Started off on milds around 3.5%. http://www.hopecarshalton.co.uk/bfbtbm.html
I love the fact that The Hope is a co-operatively owned pub. A deserved CAMRA Greater London pub of the year.
Just opened the Pinot Grigio that the missus brought back from Tesco.
Last edited by Bishop of Briggs (2013-05-26 12:47:33)
Had some great beer in Chester today, so good in fact I can't remember what it was called.
Hic.
I'm not drinking it yet, but I bought a bottle of Armangac. Château du Tariquet XO. Esquire wrote that it is "($84) bright and juicy, like a liquid lemon bar." Oh, gosh, I hope so, doesn't that sound loverly? Did you catch that it is eighty-four dollars, 'Merican? That's a pricey tipple. I'll probably look right dandified at the neighborhood barbecue this evening. "I see your craft beer and raise you to infinity, typical American Dad slob."
Now should I wear my silk cravat or go with a bowtie?
Have a some mint going crazy in the herb garden, so took the opportunity to make some mint gin rickeys over the weekend.
The coldest spring for 50 years here at the moment, yesterday it was not much above 10 degrees with a chilly wind making it feel much colder, so had a whisky last night: Glenfiddich's Malt Master's Edition, doble matured in oak and sherry casks.
Absolutely, superlative! A really fine expression, with a pure whisky taste and a finish that lasts for several minutes of malt, vanilla, hay and toffee. This is the kind of whisky to be savoured over several hours, the kind that two doubles will last you all evening. For 36 Euros, this cannot be beaten, I would have placed this in the 90+ Euros league. But in saying that, since I've been out of investing in the malt arena, the prices seem to have come down somewhat!
Some will say that Glenfiddich is too big, how can they maintain quality? Well, the proof is in the dram: the 15 year old, 21 and 30 year olds are amongst the best out there, and with now with this, and possibly the Rich Oak which I haven't tried recently, Glenfiddich remains a distillery that you can trust to deliver consistently. Still, I don't rate at all the 12 and 18 year old expressions.
Not so much drinking at the moment, but l had these drinks today:
* pea shoot juice
* red clover sprout juice
* fenugreek sprout juice
* dulse purple sea weed in water
* blue-green algae juice
* green algae in water
* lentil sprout juice
* sesame sprout milk
Felt really off my tits today too. High energy and worked all bloody day without a break. Should have picked weeds but l had so many green sprouts to drink that l wouldn't have been able to fit it in today. lt's easy to stay all raw when you have those types of drinks.
Last edited by The_Shooman (2013-06-02 08:02:21)
A bottle of Greene King's Abbot ale.
Last edited by The_Shooman (2013-06-05 18:48:36)
Jacob's Creek sauvignon blanc - on offer at my local store for £5.50 a bottle.
Thats pretty cheap Bish. Its dearer than that here I think. Maybe not - $9 aud a bottle = 5.5 GBP
Poor Old Jacobs Creek is struggling to keep the brand name here. Seen as the one overseas people buy or those who don't drink wine. Not that its all bad just a bit ho hum for what you can get locally at the same price. I can get a better reds for $12 for 4L box here. The NZ sauvignon blanc 's are often cheap and tasty here.
Jacobs Creek seems to be synonymous with supermarket plonk these days, cheap and nasty. It's lost ground.
My wine buddies all tell me that New Zealand whites are not what they once where and should be avoided.
I'm not a fan of whites - I do like one chilled glass or so on a hot day outside but thats about it. Same with beer - I enjoy a stubby or two on a hot day but cant drink it in any quantity. I stopped making home brew simple because I had a shed full I couldn't drink. Pity. I was getting good brews too.
I seem to go through stages, but with wine, it always ends with a realisation that it is inferior to whisky when judged by the grogginess of the morning. With whisky you get to the stage where you fancy a long drink of beer. With beer you get that wonderful beer buzz, but then you can get that bloated feeling. Gin and tonic sometimes is nice, but mostly it's pretty inert and I've seem grown men cry on it. Vodka martini's and premium plantation rums are great apertifs IMO.
Aussie vineyards in general have squandered their reputation and now most of it is inky kack.
Was drinking some lambic beers last night, then finished off with a couple of Tullibardine's and the next thing I know I am waking up at 7am.
ha heppie
we keep the best - export the rest!
The Germans do the same, some great German reds now.