Beer & Art, Art & Beer

Whilst reading Ralph Steadman’s memoir The Joke’s Over recently, it occurred to me how much his schizoid imagery is ingrained into the ethos of Flying Dog, the brewer whose beers are advertised by these little works of art. Before you’ve drunk it, you kind of know what you’re going to get.
Steadman leads a tirade against the corporate brewing houses in one chapter, and then gleefully recounts being the guest of honour at a beer festival, along with some prototype artwork for the GABF 2004.
It’s all pretty heady stuff for not only a beer-nerd but an avid collector of all things Gonzo. It didn’t start here - he designed a wine label for Oddbins (which, if I remember correctly had a pirate or a parrot on it?) a few years back, and as you read he turns out to be quite the beer, wine and whisky aficionado; only too happy to lend his images to those he feels a kinship with. And why not? To a design whore like me, the label of a beer can often be the hook that lodges in my cheek, pulling my hand toward that particular beer. And it could just be serendipity that one of my favourite artists happened to hook up with a craft brewer (If only Coop or Jay Ryan would do some labels - I’d be in beer-art heaven).
We lament so many hoary, old-fashioned and formulaic beer label and pump-clips flooding our senses, that when something new and shiny pops into view it invigorates us and renews our fervour. Listen up, folks – This is good. This is progress. Sure, we love ‘Breweriana’ but need something more -and there’s not a lot of it in the UK, I’m sad to say. This is probably due to our proud brewing history –and I’m not for one second berating that. But I can’t help thinking - Did I only buy that Flying Dog beer due to the instantly-recognisable Steadman artwork? Maybe -That first bottle, an outstanding Gonzo Imperial Porter, sits empty in my kitchen, like a proud work of art. So it did its job. I passed up one other beer...for that. A sale for Flying Dog. Hurrah, everyone’s happy.

They (‘They’ being the sinister marketing men - booo) say that you take the first sip of a drink with eyes. If faced with a pump clip of a cartoon hound rutting a leg and had a comedic name like ‘Quickie’ or ‘Knee - Trembler’, you wouldn’t drink it, would you? It may as well be called ‘Trad crap-beer with a vaguely humorous label (if your humour was based on entirely 1943 standards)’.
I’m ranting, obviously, but all I want is good design – not for me; I’m lucky enough to like beer enough to try most things. I’m calling for good design to hook in those who don’t know what they are getting, but simply ‘liked the label.’ The industry needs those new drinkers.


So what appeals to me? I love the Orval label, an exercise in cleanliness and simplicity. Wonderful. Anchor Steam’s cartoony, hand-drawn lines and playful ‘skittle’ bottle-shape always brings a smile to my face. I love the brash colours of Speight’s – but not so much the beer. Ommegang’s Hennepin – now that’s a sexy label. Give me a poster of that for above my fireplace. I love the intricacy and faith to type that Sam Smith's keep going; and Bath Ale's modern way with country themes are great. I could go on, but this is a long enough post already.
What’s your fave? (and please, don’t suggest Brewdog’s Zeitgeist. That’s been done.) Have a think about it.

If you've not been on the Flying Dog site, do. It's very good, and yet again another example of what can be done if you really think about what your customers want.

Foley's Online

I am happy to announce that Mr Foleys Cask Ale House, one of Leeds' best watering holes, now have a blog up and running - and is linked over on the right. Do drop by; there's some details of the new additions to the bar - Sleemans IPA (Very nice indeed, fans of SNPA should give it a whirl) and Taddington Moravka (which I really don't need to say any more that in the last month or so I've converted at least four 'lagerheads' to this wonderful stuff. That's an impressive strike rate!)
...And Congrats from us for winning the CAMRA Pub of The Season. Well deserved.

Thanks, Dean.

'Village' Spaghetti

We've been to Greece enough times now to have a pretty good idea of what food the country has to offer. Imagine my surprise, then, when a dish I hadn't actually heard of turned out not only to be delicious but quite new to us. Immediately after eating, I whipped out my phone and started writing what I thought could be a recipe for it, to try when I got home. And here's the result. Yes, I could have asked the chef how he made it, but that would be cheating, wouldn't it? My version has more Rosemary and Spinach in it for no other reason that I like them both...lots. Anyway, it's named after the restaurant we ate it in, just like they do.

'Village' Spaghetti (serves two hungry people)

Spaghetti

About 10-15 sliced green olives

Four pork sausages, taken from skins and pulled into peices

Three rasher of smoky, streaky bacon - chopped

150ml Double Cream

1 tblspn Tomato Puree

1 tspn Red Pesto

1/2 tspn Dijon (Or good English) Mustard

Pinch of dried Rosemary - or fresh is better

Spinach - a good couple of washed handfuls

Black Pepper

Olive Oil

1. Get your Spaghetti cooking in a deep pan of salted water.
2. With a glug of olive oil, brown your sausage pieces. When browned, add your bacon and turn down the heat to cook through.

3. When the bacon and sausage is cooked through, season liberally with black pepper & rosemary and add the sliced olives.

4. After a further couple of minutes, add the cream, pesto, mustard and puree to the meat and stir through to create your sauce.

5. By now your pasta will be well cooked, so drain it.

6. Stir the spinach into the sauce and let wilt; once wilted, you can pour over your pasta and mix.

7. Enjoy.

This is one of those dishes that looks familar due to the ingredients involved, but turns out to be quite unique. As always, do make sure you use good sausages and bacon - and you must use smoked bacon. So do give it a try, you'll like it, I tell ya.

I paired this (somewhat out of season) with Flying Dog's Dogtoberfest Ale. This Marzen-a-like has sweetness, but enough slightly smoky body to compliment the creamy sauce rather than overpower it.

Cheers!

The Old Village Taverna is on the main street in Skala, Kephalonia. Do try. It's one of the best tavernas in the village, and has great wine and whole fish dishes.

Holiday

Right, that's me done until mid-June. Speak to you all then - and keep drinking.

Spotlight on...Abbeydale

Abbeydale have, for some time now, been one of the most consistent (as in consistently good) beers available in Yorkshire and beyond. Driven by sheer nosiness and curiosity (as all writers are), I contacted them to pick their brains. Luckily, Sue Morton was more than happy to answer my questions, and I share them all with you here.

Leigh: So, how's business?
Sue: Absolutely fine. The brewery has grown, sometimes steadily, sometimes rapidly in its almost thirteen years. It is always necessary to manage the growth so that we maintain the quality of the beers and also continue to give good service to our old customers as well as our new ones. At the moment we are having to manage the orders to stay within our capacity.My husband Patrick started the brewery. He was an enthusiastic and very competent home brewer from when I first knew him. He started his working life in the family scissor-making business in Sheffield, leaving that for a more corporate life in the eighties, travelling the world as a process control engineer. When he tired of that and wanted to start his own business, a brewery was an obvious choice. So he gave up a well paid job, worked for a few years at Kelham Island Brewery and then, with the help of his father who had sold the scissor business and was looking for another project, started the brewery.
Do you remember your first brew?

Yes, I remember it well. It was August 1996, Absolution, the brewplant was cobbled together on the mezzanine floor in what then looked like a huge shed (it now looks like a much smaller and very crowded shed though it is the same place). The beer was fine and the very first delivery of it was made to The Three Stags Heads in Derbyshire which sells Absolution to this day.

So, what are your favourite beers?

So many. We make beers we like to drink (An excellent point, often lost on brewers - Leigh) , . Highlights are always Moonshine and Brimstone. But there are then memorable specials Belfry, Alchemy, Deception are particular favourites.

...And what non-Abbeydale beers are your tipples of choice?

Personally I love Oakham beers - Inferno is a favourite. Anything pale from Marble - especially Janine's One or Pint as it now seems to be called, and of course their Ginger, Allgates beers, Brewsters, Ufford Setting Sun is a favourite as is Severn Vale's Severn Sins. It's also good to try the new micros that come along, some of them are producing splendid beers.

Further afield I love some of the Belgian beers - Pat has a soft spot for the sour reds such as Duchess de Bourgoyne and the Cantillon beers, I prefer some of the trappists especially Westvleteren. We both love some of the North American craft brewery beers. Wherever you go on the States there always seem to be a few local craft breweries turning out lovely beers in keg and bottle. My personal favourites tend to be the IPAs. I could go on but that's probably enough.
What's your proudest achievement?

Can I choose two?

Every year Sheffield CAMRA do a real ale survey in Sheffield, to compete for the honour of having more real ale on offer in the city than any other city. There is a keen rivalry between some of the northern cities. One of the outcomes of the survey, which targets pubs serving real ale, is that they identify the most frequently encountered real ale. In 2007 it was Greene King IPA. In 2008 it was Abbeydale Moonshine. That made us really proud.

And then recently a couple of local cavers, Rob Eavis and Robbie Shone, were exploring a hitherto unexplored part of the enormous Titan cave system under the Peak District when they made a breakthrough and discovered some new caves. The colours in one of these caves reminded them of their favourite beer, Absolution, which they drink at their regular haunt, The Red Lion at Litton. So they named the new cave Absolution. We didn't know the cavers at all but Rob emailed us to tell us so we are trying to get a party together for them. That kind of thing is just wonderful. I have attached the special edition pumpclip we produced which shows Katie Dent, Rob's girlfriend and part-time barmaid at the Red Lion in Absolution shortly after its discovery. Read more on www.peakdistrictcaving.info/cave0901.htm.

I see the brewery is expanding. Any plans to bottle?

Yes - the brewery continues to expand steadily; but no, we don't plan to bottle. For us, beer should be enjoyed in good company in a pub. Pubs are struggling, why would we want to contribute to their demise by making our beers available in bottles and especially cheap in supermarkets. We supply real ale off-licences like the Archer Road Beer Stop in Sheffield who will supply any quantity of take out from 1 pint to 18 gallons and most pubs will allow people to buy carry outs - we have 4 pint containers for that purpose. If you want to enjoy our beers, go to the pub.
Any advice for budding brewers out there?
Talk to lots of brewers before you try to start up, preferably go work for one for a bit. Remember it's about selling beer as well as making it and that it is about consistently making really good beer that helps to sell itself.
What's your fondest beer-related memory?

So many to choose from! Sitting in any pub and just counting the people drinking our beers. But recently some of my best memories have come from the summer beer festivals we have organised at our pub The Rising Sun at Nether Green. We have a large car park at the back so we were determined to run beer festivals there. We do them around the middle of July and are on the third this year (9-12 July). We do 60+ beers and it has proven to be very popular and successful. For me the pinnacle is always Saturday evening when my hard work is all done and I sit back and relax and watch everyone enjoying themselves. Although we have generally had poor weather, both years the Saturday has been quite good or at least dry. I have attached a few pictures, including one of Patrick surveying the festival with great satisfaction.

So, what does the future hold for Abbeydale?
Hopefully lots more beer and fun for all involved. If it weren't fun, at least most of the time, we wouldn't do it.

Abbeydale really do represent a modern, yet tradtional Yorkshire brewery that continue to operate successfully without compromising on thier values. If you see any of thier wares, particulary my favourite, Daily Bread, give them a try.

The Fox & Newt, Part 3

I don't get a day off from work often, so when the opportunity presented itself a few weeks back I welcomend it with open arms. What better opportunity to sample home-brewed beers at the Fox & Newt, a pub I visited late last year, just before the brewery steamed into production? Expecting it to be dead, I was pleasantly surprised to fnd this wednesday lunchtime buzzing, and more importantly, drinking beers from the Fox Brewing Company.

They must have spied me as a hack as I ordered my second pint (I wonder what gave it away: the notebook and pen, the sports pages strewn in front of me) - as a young chap who was sitting at the bar asked me what I thought of the beer. A conversation ensued, and he offered to show me the brewhouse. Turns out he was involved in the brewing, and only too happy to show me around.

Having a quiet beer in that one room that seemed packed with gear, he took me through the origins of the kit and the various pitfalls and pleasures associated with brewing. A faulty part was hindering production at the time, which meant that what we were drinking was more or less the last of that particular batch. But plans are being made for the future, and the Fox Brewing Company seems in good health.
But what were we drinking? Well, first up was the Clarendon Dark Mild; and my favourite of the lot. A moreish, smokey take on the style, this could easily substitute for a well-known stout if you want to go that far. A great beer. Nightshade is a no-nonsense bitter, but with a rich, toffee accent, and the IPA disappointed only in the nose - I expected a more American take on pale ale - instead being a sweet, honeyed golden ale that would certainly deserve more than one pint. Mr Tod was unavailable, but seems to be the most popular of the lot. Add to this roster beers by Leeds, Brewdog (on occasion), and Moorhouse among others an you've got a worthy beer destination.
The good news is that sales of their own beers are admirable, and production should roll on soon enough. That's great news not only for the beer drinkers of Leeds but for the business: the Fox & Newt has been a brewhouse many times before, and never quite seems to bed in. Let's hope the recent owners push this one through.

Rich over at Them Apples was far more on the ball than me and sampled The Fox's range ages ago - for his view, click here.

Leeds's Leodis Lager

I like The Brewery Tap, I really do. The latest addition to Leeds' Brewery's stable, I find it more welcoming than The Midnight Bell, more authentic than Pin. It sort of sits in the middle of those two, not really a bar, not really a pub.
I think it's more of a brewpub - although with only a small brewhouse upstairs, which produces lager. Yep, that's right - Lager.

Launched on St George's Day, Leodis is brewed on-site, and in a lot of ways represents Leeds's ability to tap into what's popular right now. Well, with me, anyway. I didn't really know quality lager existed in the UK (If it wasn't Pilsner Urquell then I wasn't interested) until my head-turning epiphany with Taddington's Moravka, so this came at the right time. And The Brewery Tap is a fine place to drink it in - if you indeed want to choose it over the Midnight Bell.

Anyway, I was here for the lager. Incredibly lively, with a big buttery nose, it certainly smelled interesting. After the big citrus kick, the flavour mellows out somewhat, leaving a flinty, dry finish that reminded me of Dortmunder Union or a much less hoppy Jever. However, I fear that this won't replace the lager-drinker's tipple of choice too soon. Why? This is a big beer. 4.6% abv, there's a lot of flavour packed in there, and it was incredibly fizzy. In short, not something I would deem too sessionable. But then again, like I said above; maybe I don't give 'Lager drinkers' enough credit.
However - that's just me. If people switch from Peroni or Beck's onto Leodis, then surely that is a result. Who knows, maybe they'll go from that to the Leeds Pale, and from then on it's onwards and upwards; and it's not all about 'converting people' either - Leeds are brewing something a little different, and serving it a lot colder than usual. Brewing something new is good.

Leeds Brewery

The Brewery Tap. 18 New Station Street, Leeds. 0113 2434414

Foley's Beer List Announced

Here's the beer list (so far) for Foley's Cask Ale House's upcoming beer festival, focusing on Northern Brewers. I'm sure there will be additions in the upcoming weeks.

Watermill Inn Brewing Co – A Bit’er Ruff, W’Ruff Nite
Lytham Brewery – Amber, IPA
Prospect Brewery – Nutty Slack, Blinding Light
Outstanding Beers – Ginger, Stout
Allendale Brewery – Golden Plover, Wolf
Fallon Brewery – Red Merkin (what!?!?), Dark Prince
Mallinson’s - Halicarnassus, Let There Be Hops
Leeds Brewery – Midnight Bell, Ascension
Hornbeam Brewery – Bitter, Black Coral Stout
Idle Brewery –The Idle Landlord, Grunter
Yorkshire Dales Brewery – Butter Tubs, Muker Silver
Village Brewer – White Boar, Old Raby
Yard of Ale Brewery –Yard Hopper, One Foot In The Yard, Black as Owt Stout
Cumbrian – Dicky Doodle, Lowes Water Gold

Jarrow – Rivet Catcher, Westoe IPA
Black Hole – Red Dwarf, StargazerSheffield – Paradise Pale, Porter

As you can see, beers from Doncaster, Denton, Cumbria, Hexham, Huddersfield, Askrigg...a fine selection indeed. I'll be heading straight for the near-mythical Rivet Catcher from Jarrow, and have heard excellent things about Hornbeam & Black Hole. Any recommendations, people? Nice to see York Brewery supporting the smaller guys, too.

There will also be a 'Meet the Brewer' Session with the ever-improving Mallinson's. I've not had a bad beer from them yet - excellent for such a new brewer. Also, I hear that the excellent Moravka could be a regular feature at Foley's from May onwards. Definately one to keep an eye out for.

Mr Foleys 'A-Z of Northern Brewers' Beer Festival: 7th - 12 May 2009.

Tel 01904 621162 for more info

Bacon & Cheese Toasts

Ahh...Bacon...Cheese...can't go wrong. Sometimes, you just want something to graze or snack on when enjoying a good pint, rather than a full meal. This easy snack gets rids of those munchies, and really compliments a good, strong bitter.

You will need:
2 large knobs of butter
Bloomer Loaf
Plain flour
Milk
Chopped and fried smoked bacon or ham
Wholegrain Mustard
Cheese of your choice – I would go for smoky or strong tasting cheese. Or more than one kind – the choice is yours!! Manchego is very good with this, as is Lincolnshire Poacher. You want something with bite.

1. Ok – first thing’s first – preheat your grill to about 180c.
2. To make a simple béchamel sauce, melt your butter in a pan, and when melted sprinkle flour over it, slowly, stirring or whisking at the same time. The butter will thicken into a paste. At this point, add milk and whisk; but slowly and a little at a time. You want a thick sauce, so don’t add too much milk.
3. To the sauce add two teaspoons of wholegrain mustard, and the cooked bacon.
4. Stir, and then grate in about 100g of cheese.
5. Leave the sauce to combine whilst you slice some big slices of crusty or bloomer bread.
6. Top the bread with the sauce, top again with more cheese (the more the better!!) and then grill for 5-8 minutes. You want the bread to toast around the edges, and the cheese to bubble and melt on top.

Done. Eat at once, with a good, strong bitter – I enjoyed mine with York’s Yorkshire Terrier - Perfectly robust enough to stand up to all that good smokiness from the bacon and cheese. The addition of mustardy béchamel sets this posh toast -topping apart.

An Easter Treat

...A warm Hot Cross Bun, smeared with a generous helping of Tangerine Marmalade, and a Budwieser Budvar Dark. Although you may think it a little thin, the yeastiness of the bread really works with the lager, and the gentle Saaz hoppiness accompanies those citrus fruits in the bun and the marmalade perfectly. Give it a try.

Nice Pub, But The Atmosphere's Dead...

Regular readers of TGS will know that another passion of mine is local history; and it would seem that recently, I keep coming across stories of haunted pubs in and around the Leeds area. A result of too many pints of Tetley’s, or genuine scary stories? Pubs do seem to attract the odd lost soul.
Take TGS favourite The Palace; a ‘gray lady’ resides there, although no one can really pick out a figure from the pub’s history that would fit the bill whilst they were alive - some even think it's a man dressed as a woman, in fact. Staff of the Queens Hotel in City square tell of sharing their work with a number of ghosts – particularly two men; one victim of a shooting and one hanged man. My favourite inner-city pub ghost tale has to be that of The Old Red Lion, situated opposite The Adelphi. The upstairs rooms there supposedly rattle with goings-on; girls being seen at the windows despite the rooms being empty, and even blood dripping from the ceilings onto drinkers! The doors to these rooms now remain locked. Awesome stuff. The Golden Lion also has reputedly been the site of sightings of a man dressed in Victorian clothes, striding up and down the basement.
My local, The Abbey Inn in Newlay, is a treasure-trove of paranormal activity. It’s even been on the telly for this reason - Bar stools re-arranging themselves, piled on top of one another like Jenga bricks. The rope on the bar-bell swinging when no one is around it; ashtrays and such flying across the bar. Perhaps the most perturbing is the spooks’ habit of making the handpumps keep going once a pint is filled. Its ok poltergeists stacking furniture, but beer wastage is bad enough for a landlord to manage without cheeky spirits emptying casks.
Further afield, The Black Bull in Otley reports heavy footsteps in the upstairs rooms, ‘unpleasant feelings’ and people having their faces stroked by unseen fingers, and the ghost of Branwell Bronte haunts the Black Bull pub in Haworth, another pub that I've sank more than my fair share of pints in. Although these are my favourites, it would seem almost every moderately old pub has a friendly (or not so) friendly ghost wanting to share a pint with you. So beware – that ‘cold spot’ you might inadvertently sit may not be a draft from an open door – you could be sitting on the knee of someone who’s been sitting on that barstool for a very long time...

More Festival News..

....And the fests keep coming. TGS stalwart Mr Foley's Cask Ale House, Leeds, have announced thier first of the year - with the theme of 'New Northern Brewers'. Sounds interesting. 7th - 12 May, it'll be a good lark in pleasant surroundings. North's Belgian Festival kicks off this week (report on by the weekend, I hope), too.

Also, it's National Pub Day on Saturday (as if we need a reason), so if you're thinking about popping open a bottle after lunch at the weekend, get yourself to a pub instead. That's all you need to do.

Onward and Upward.

Saturday Afternoon In Horsforth

...And we begin at an entirely pleasant little beer festival, set up to raise funds for the local church, which is having works done to secure the most eco-friendly future it can have. Given that I live about ten minutes away from Horsforth, it would have been rude not to drop in. Of the few beers sunk, a couple stood out. Firstly, Springhead's Puritan Porter was great - quite smooth, all roast coffee flavours and at 4% abv, dangerously drinkable. The Storyteller's Brewery, out of Terrington (near York), provided a copper-coloured, toffee-flavoured beer called Genesis which was very well-balanced; and 3 Rivers Pligrim's Progress offered a light, floral pale that yearned for slightly warmer weather. Good show, and I hope the beer festival becomes a regular occurance.

It would have been rude not to drop into the Town Street Tavern - the only place worth drinking in in Horsforth these days. Being a Market Town Tavern, you know what to expect, but it really is a little oasis amongst the overpriced and oversubscribed bars - quiet, brewriana plastered everywhere and a good range of beers - Leeds' Pale hit the spot with a somewhat more grapefruity hop bite than usual (change of recipe, lads?) and Taylor's Best on also - not something you see outside of Keighley often these days, with Landlord being so popular.

Overall, a good afternoon's drinking. And Leeds United won too - what about that, eh?

A Week for Stout

...Well, it has been, hasn't it? With St Patricks' day and all, I wonder how much Guinness has been sold in the UK alone?

So, in a strange sort of tribute, I decided to track down some alternative black stuff this week, and came across two gems.

Firstly, TGS stalwart and 'measure of quality' Outlaw had their simply named 'Irish Stout' on tap at Foleys. A great, thick creamy head gave way to an intitally coffee-laced mouthful, but a long, dark-chocolate dominated swallow really surprised. Maybe because it was an Outlaw beer I expected something a little more ...out there, but what I got was a fantastically balanced, dry, stout. Not too sweet, I really could drink a lot of this.

When I got home, I popped open a bottle of Left Hand Milk Stout that Zak had recommended to me on a rare midweek visit to BeerRitz just before Christmas. "Try it", he urged, "it's really quite good." and, being Zak, he was right. I am partial to Milk Stout, but a little cynical about American offerings. But this really was good - creamy, light, and sweet. A little too sweet to drink a lot of of, but surprisingly even-handed. If the Outlaw stout was a lovely shot of espresso, the Left Hand was a latte; to be sipped rather than sessioned.

My mum allegedly craved Mackeson's Milk Stout when she was pregnant with me; I've always attributed by affection for beer as a result of this. Really.

Saturday Night

After sitting in The Scarbrough Taps a few weeks back and noticing a steady stream of people coming out of newly-opened Ephesus Mangal, I resolved to visit - and I'm glad I did, because I suspect that many people simply don't know its there.

Ephesus Mangal is basic; don't get me wrong. But many of the best places to eat are, (Jino's Thai cafe in Headingley is a good example) and you should be visiting for the food anyway - not the location or the decor. The food is basic too - but delicious. Essentially a Turkish grillhouse, the smell of smoke and sizzling meat gets your stomach rumbling as soon as you sit; if you've holidayed in the Med recently you know the scent straight away.

So, onto the food. A mixed salad of olives, bread and a deceptively hot tomato, pepper and parsley salsa sets us off, and the hummus that arrives shortly thereafter is perfect; lemony and garlicy in equal porportion. Filo pastries, rolled and stuffed with feta cheese before being deep-fried, were light despite being fried and incredibly moreish. The main courses arrived presented simply with salad and rice: kofte meatballs and chicken wings, charcoal grilled to perfection. How can you not be pleased with grilled meats?

There's no license, so bring your own (Birra Moretti for me, thanks), and I would advise booking - we were eating relatively early but saw quite a few people get turned away. The meal for two cost £25 in total, which I was more than happy with; the service was a little rushed but seeing as though the waiter was working alone I think he did more than well enough! Ephesus Mangal - recommended.

Then it was on to North for a cheeky Outlaw Wrangler (on form as usual, very long, bitter and with a tropical fruit hit beyond belief) and then we joined a birthday celebration at The Reform, where draught Anchor Steam flowed copiously and rounded off a very pleasant night out.

Ephesus Mangal

88 Bishopgate Street, Leeds

Tel; 0113 2438567

The Session: Love Lager

When the Beer Nut suggested writing about Lager (or at least pale beer) for this month’s session, my heart sank. Surely I could find nothing to say; given the miniscule proportion of ‘Lager’ I actually drink.
Then I had a think about it. I do drink lager! On holiday!

One of my loves is The Mediterranean. Some of my fondest memories stem from long, long nights in Greece, Spain, and Turkey (when I was younger), and indeed the cuisine informs most things that I cook from April to October. And despite the Med being full of awesome, cheap and mostly bespoke wine, flowing like nectar from numerous visited wineries, there’s something to be said for a lager, chilled the hell out of, and sipped at a beach bar with the sand between your toes.

Glistening bottles of Mythos and Marathon in Greece, getting greasy from the rapidly expanding pile of prawn shells piling up at the side of my plate. Efes Pilsner, Amstel and Heineken in Turkey, washing down the beauty that is the proper Turkish kebab. And huge steins of Kamenitza and Zagorka in Bulgaria, their flinty sharpness cutting through all that heavy, Eastern European food. Hell, the Greek island of Samos had reasonably kept Warsteiner in most bars (seemingly a concession to the amount of Germans that swarm the place in the summer), and that beer in particular underwrote most of my memories of that holiday. And don’t get me started on Spain and Cruzcampo. I could die in a vat of that stuff.

Of course, at night I generally flit back over to wine, but for me, the scorching heat of a typical summer’s lunchtime on holiday does, as much as I wouldn’t want to admit it, bring me memories of a cold, frosty one. So, despite my Beer Nerdism, Lager has its place in my palate after all. Imagine if I finally got around to visiting Czechoslovakia, or Germany!

I recently tasted Taddington Moravka on draught and it was possibly one of the best ‘lagers’ I’ve ever tasted. It certainly got me thinking - am I missing anything else in this area of beer I know the least about? Looks like I’ll be a little more interested in the world of (the palest) pale from now on. It doesn't have to be cheap fizz, and if it does - well, as long as you're in the right place, it can be very pleasant indeed.

The photo at the top is of sunset at an awesome fish joint in Sozopol, Bulgaria. The terrace was on the side of a sheer clifface, the crystal clear Black Sea below. We drank steins of Zagorka lager, and accompanied this with plate upon plate of fried whitebait and mussels and mozzarella topped tomato salad. The plan was to start there and then move on for the evening, but we didn't. We just carried on there. Sometimes there's no reason to move.

The Midweek - Saltaire and Fuller's

...Two great, great pints enjoyed this week at The Palace.

First up, Saltaire's Texas Brown which, ludicrous name aside, is a formidable beer and one that I hope they brew a lot more of - they get through a lot of brews, those Saltaire fellas. A huge, malty, complex bitter, with a toffee and caramel nose and a massive hops hit at the end of the gulp. Verrry nice, verrry moreish - but at 4.7%, very warming too.

Next up, Fuller's Chiswick. Call me slow on the uptake, but this, I liked. I sometimes can be guilty of passing up 'big' brewers in favor of smaller ones just for the ethics of it but I am really glad I chose this. A classic, creamy pale body with a great floral/peppery hop aroma and light enough that it disappeared at record speed. I'll be trying this again, no worries.

Hop Back Brewery

Ah, Summer Lightning. Brings back memories of those days when 'Beer' was something alien to me, but Summer Lightning represented something different, something all together more palatable to my lager-numbed tastes.
Now, years later, I realise the importance of Summer Lightning's advent on the beer scene. Practically cornering the 'Golden Ale' market (Possibly inventing it? Help me out here?), the pantheon of awards it has garnered its brewer, Hop Back, is truly justified.

But what of their other ales?

I realised last week that, aside from a anti-climatic encounter with Crop Circle, I hadn't really got to know some of Hop Back's other wares. As any true beer fan would do, I put that right last weekend.

We all know of Hop Back's mastery of the golden, but what about the dark? Entire Stout (4.5abv) comes with another set of awards backing up its pedigree, and I was pleasantly surprised. Apart from the relatively thin body, the beer is surprisingly well balanced - lots of dry, bitter chocolate, and a slight natural carbonation from the bottle-conditioning. Roasted notes come through at the end, along with a rounded smooth finish. Despite not expecting much, this stout managed to be both a nice example of the style for a bottled beer, and a singular brew at the same time. Will be looking out for it on draught, for sure.

I have an aversion to beers 'with stuff in them' - and Spring Zing (4.2abv) certainly counts as that. "Lemongrass Beer" the label screams; '...Jesus Christ...' my heart groans. However, a broad smile was plastered on my face on the first sip. This is a really, really interesting beer that is super-drinkable. The nose is practically the same as Summer Lightning - all grassy hops and sweet malt. Yes, there is a lemony/citrus kick to the taste- a massive one actually - but it works really well. Again, SZ is a thin-bodied beer that chills down well, that manages to pack in a peppery, ginger note right at the end of a long sip. Its sweet, but has enough hoppiness to cut through and not be cloying. I'd happily drink this again, and I think that IPA lovers in particular should seek this out as a lip-puckering alternative if a change is fancied.

http://www.hopback.co.uk/

John Betjeman in Leeds

...Recently, the BBC announced that they were considering showing John Betjeman's 1968 film A Poet Goes North. For some reason the BBC never showed it, despite commisioning the poet to create what looks to be a poem to a city he admired and the changes that were happening to it under his nose.
Why am I telling you this? Well, despite being full of bygone Leeds stuff (which it may surprise you to know is a bit of a passion of mine), Mr Betjeman visits Whitelocks - and we have a wonderful segment showing some of that wonderful interior work, most of which still exists today.
Whitelocks may have wobbled in terms of beer (both choice and quality) in my times, but you can't deny that the interior is wonderful, and truly one of a kind in Leeds - only The Garden Gate in Hunslet comes close in my mind, in terms of preservation. Betjeman's love of Whitelocks, along with the other 'Alley pubs' in Leeds was well documented: he declared it to be 'The very heart of Leeds.'
Keep an eye out for the film: an excerpt can be seen here and the Whitelocks section is towards the end.

A Trio of Wheats

...Going through a bit of a Wheat phase at the moment... I'm not sure why, maybe it's a purge from all that heaviness over Christmas. So, in keeping with this, I decided to have an afternoon sampling all the Wheats I had sitting in the cellar.

First up, Little Valley's Hebden's Wheat. A regional brewery I'm really getting into recently: head brewer Wim Van Der Spek seems to have a canny knack for taking traditional styles and twisting them around a bit; making the ordinary seem a little more eccentric. Bottle conditioned, organic Hebden Wheat is a bright, straw colour with a fair bit of haze - as you'd expect. A quick sniff gives you a really earthy, almost horse-blanket (as i beleive the term to be amongst the professionals!) aroma; but the taste is pure coriander up front, and then followed by tons of sherberty lemon. I've never tasted anything quite like it; and to be honest I quite liked it. The spirit of adventure is alive and well in Cragg Vale, it would seem. Keep up the good work. Nice website, too.

It's across the pond now; of course it is - my love for American Beers knows no bounds - Blue Moon Brewing Co's Belgian White. And one look at this label had me sold; wonderful stuff. As for the beer - well, it looked the part: hazy, creamy yellow, and a great citrus nose. However, for me, the taste did'nt quite live up to the hype; very thin body and massive citrus - that all important spice coming on way too late and nowhere near prominent enough. Oh well.

Finally, back to the UK and the ever-ready Meantime Wheat. Pouring much more golden than the previous two, this was lesson in balance: a noseful of banana, vanilla and possibly cloves, and a much more warming taste than the previous two. Taste-wise, Citrus seems to play second fiddle to the full, tasty wheat body - but still managing to be a refreshing Wheat beer.

A good afternoon of tasting, that. I might try and group together more sessions according to style!

Beer Fests Coming Up

Now that (an albeit Arctic) 2009 is well and truly underway, those Beer Fests are starting to pop up. There's a few happening locally, so get along, buy your tokens and get sampling. Support your independent brewers.

Boston Spa Beer Festival 2009 - Feb 21st (one day)
Boston Spa Village hall, LS23 6AA
20+ local beers, food, entartainment, starts 12 noon. Direct bus (770) to/from Leeds runs well into the evening.

Bradford Beer Festival -Feb 26th - 28th (Thu-Sat)
Victoria Hall, Victoria Road, Saltaire, BD18 3JS, 2 mins walk from Saltaire Railway Station
www.bradfordcamra.org.uk
100+ real ales, cider and foreign beer.


Harrogate Charity Beer Festival -Feb 26th - 28th (Thu-Sat)
Harrogate International Centre, Kings Road, Harrogate, HG1 5LA
Good selection local beers , starts at 6pm each day. Entry ticket required.

Leeds CAMRA Beer, Cider & Perry Festival 2009 - Mar 19th-21st (Thu-Sat)
Pudsey Civic Hall, Dawson's Corner, LS28 5TA, 4 mins walk from New Pudsey Railway Station
150+ real ales, 20+ cider & perry, Global Beer Bar.

Horsforth Beer Festival - Mar 27th - 28th (Fri-Sat)
St. Margaret's Parish Church Hall, Church Road, LS18 5LQ
www.stmargaretshorsforth.org.uk/6.html
40 beers plus food and entertainment, building the future appeal fund.

APRIL

North Bar Belgian Bier Fest 09 - Apr 2nd-16th (Thurs for 2 weeks)
24 New Briggate, Leeds, LS1 6NU
Unusual, rare and classic Belgian beers alongside the usual treats.

Guiseley Factory Workers Club 3rd Beer Festival -Apr 3rd - 4th (Fri-Sat)
6 Town Street, Guiseley, LS20 9DT
20 real ales and 2 ciders.

Barnsley Beer Festival - Apr 10th-13th (Fri-Mon)
Milton Hall, Elsecar, S74 8EZ
5 Minutes from rail station
http://www.barnsleycamra.org.uk/beerfestival/2009.shtml
40 real ales from local and Cumbrian breweries

Doncaster's 19th Beer Festival - Apr 16th-18th (Thu-Sat
The Hub, Chappell Drive, DN1 2RF, The Waterfront College building
90+ real ales, ciders and foreign bar

Further North - April 16th - 24th (Thu- next Fri)
194 Harrogate Road, Leeds, LS7 4NZ
Selection of Belgian beers

3rd Skipton Beer Festival - Apr 23rd-25th (Fri-Sat)
Town Hall, High Street, Skipton, BD23 1DT
60+ Real Ales, Cider, Perry, Fruit Wine, European bottles

If you're holding or organising a festival, be you a events organiser or a landlord, and you want to let TGS know - give me a shout on the email above.

Taddington Moravka @ The Maltings, York

It's not often I need an excuse to go drinking in York. There are plenty of great pubs, spots to eat, and pints upon pints of good beer to be had. The cherry on the cake, however, has to be The Maltings' latest addition: Taddington's Moravka.

After lusting after this stuff for some time now - spurred on by Stonch's rightful championing of it - a pint was finally in my hands. And, lord, was it something. If this is the case for unpasteurised beer, then sign me up.

John, Sharon and I sat down and drunk: perfect citrussy, clean lager, but with an awesome creamy malt backbone, with a really interesting yeasty note lurking within. In perfect nick, the head was something to behold: billowing, fluffy and never dying. We tried to put what we were tasting into words, but at the risk of sounding like 'Beer Twats' we just shut up and drank. Talking was eating into drinking time.

I'm converted - if only all Lager could be like this. Much like pretty much everyone who drinks it, Moravka is now installed in my top ten list of beers, somewhere around the top.

Shaun, landlord at the Maltings, was more than happy to talk Moravka as he poured, and he proudly stated that it should now be on constantly at The Maltings. Clearly proud of the beer, the fact that he took time to talk aduring a packed lunchtime (and it was heaving) tells you what you need to know. Shaun wanted it here, and he took time to pursue it. The Fuller's London Porter was on storming form as well.

And that's just one more reason to visit York for beer.

I did try and take a picture of the pint for you, but pictures of pints in dark, packed pubs taken on cameraphone usually turn out crap. Rest assured, it looked as good as it tasted. During our afternoon out in York we visited the Evil Eye Lounge for some draught Kupper's Kolsch and sampled the Blue Moon Wheat beer, as well as a couple of pints of White Horse's Village Idiot at The Last Drop Inn.

Garlic & Mushroom Pork with Herbed Roast Potatoes

This easy to make, quick recipe has a cosy, wintry feel – perfect for these darker, colder nights. It’s easy to make but looks great, and tastes pretty good, too!

You will need:
One pork tenderloin, cut into inch-thick medallions (you should get about 8 medallions)
Roasting Potatoes – about four per person
Goose fat
Olive oil
200g Double Cream
Butter
Garlic (4 Cloves)
Seasoning (Salt, Black Pepper, fresh Thyme & Rosemary, chopped)
Fresh Parsley, chopped.

1. (For the roast potatoes) Preheat the oven to 200C – Chop the potatoes into chunks and dust in plain flour. Add the chopped herbs, coat, and then transfer to a roasting tin. Add the goose fat, and roast for about 30 mins, basting with the fat every ten minutes or so.
2. When the potatoes are cooked, Slice the pork into medallions, about half an inch thick. Heat your griddle pan until hot, and then sear the pork on each side. When cooked to your liking, take off the pan and leave to rest.
3. In a good pan, melt one knob of butter, and add the chopped garlic. Leave to sauté for a minute or so, and then add the chopped mushrooms. Add a little more Olive Oil, and then turn down the heat and add the Double Cream. Season with crushed black pepper and warm through.
4. Arrange the pork on the plate and pour the sauce on top. Serve with the potatoes and some steamed greens such as Spinach and Runner Beans.

There – I said it was easy! I served this with Saltaire's Goldings Ale – light, golden, fragrant and sharp, the beer offers enough bite to cut through the strong garlic and herb flavours, yet is mellow enough not to overpower. Saltaire are producing some great beers right now - in fact, I enjoyed a couple of pints of thier Rye Smile only last night - a great, fresh session ale. Cheers!

http://www.saltairebrewery.co.uk/

Shepherd Neame Winter Hop Ale

One of the upsides of being known for having a love of beer that ventures into obsession is that I get a lot of beer bought for me. People go to new places, they bring me back beer. My partner is now trained so highly that if she is visiting somewhere and sees beer that she's not seen me drink, she picks it up. I really couldn't ask for more.
Of course, Christmas meant a bumper crop of beers to swell my cellar. Among all the treats nestled this Shepherd Neame offering, Winter Hop Ale. Now, something of a secret. It went to the back of the queue because - and this may shock - but I'm not generally a fan of SN's beers.
Don't get me wrong, I've been known to enjoy the odd Spitfire on draught, and who hasn't cut their teeth on Bishop's Finger - but it's exactly that for me. Surely my palate is...more refined now to go back to these hoary old beers of my youth?
Apparently not. Because I really enjoyed Winter Hop.
The only clue to it's 7% abv was an entirely pleasant chest-warming sensation: not overpowering at all. Although the head disappeared faster than Usain Bolt, this light mahogany-shaded beer remained well-balanced until the end. Smooth, caramelly maltiness dominated the mouthfeel, but that trademark SN peppery hoppy note lingered on the nose. Boiled sweets came to the fore at the back of the throat, and i don't mind confessing I've actually bought another bottle of this since. It's surprisingly smooth and a pleasure to drink; although I would not pick it up specifically as a 'winter warmer'.
My lesson had been learnt. Write off breweries at your peril.

A Good Weekend

Yeah, in general. A Good Weekend. Firstly, Leeds United finally won a game and - more importantly - kept a clean sheet away at Brighton. Cue a collective bout of fist-pumping (oo-er!) and fratboy style high-fives in the household.
As if that wasn't enough, we'd decided to treat ourselves to a Tapas supper at our Mediterranean joint of choice, Dos Amigos. And it didn't disappoint - although it never does. Deep-fried whitebait dunked in pungent Aioli, Salt-Cod Croqetas, Bread getting soggier by the second due the amount of crushed tomato and garlic smeared on top, a luscious ragu of slow-cooked, rosemary-tinted pork belly, prawns in a chili sauce...the dishes just kept coming. /all washed down with a few pints of draught Cruzcampo, a lager I never tire of. The Best tapas in Leeds, and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise.
Waking up this morning with that still in mind, I slung a bottle of Otter Bright in the fridge to chill to obscene levels (something I wouldn't ordinarily do) whilst I whipped up a spanish-inspired fish stew.
In a pan went one tin of plum tomatoes, which I simmered down with a pinch of salt, some chili flakes, a massive splash of olive oil, a pinch of sugar and a squirt of tomato puree. Next, a small fillet of Cod (any firm white fish will do: I've made this with Monkfish and got good results) was chopped and added to the sauce to cook. In a separate pan I then lightly sauteed some sliced chorizo sausage - just enough to leach out that lovely, saffrony pork fat - then dumped the whole pan into the stew along with a handful of chopped, pitted black olives. Simmer all together for five minutes and serve in a suitably rustic bowl with warm bread and Tabasco to taste.


The Otter Bright chilled down well, and added an inoffensive fruity coolness to the rich, hot stew. and what do you know - as we were eating, the sun came out. Lovely.
Dos Amigos
68/70 Abbey Road, Kirkstall,
Leeds, LS5 3JG. Telephone: 01484 720338

I did try to take some pictures of the food at Amigo's but for those who don't know it, it's very dark and very cosy. I didn't feel like taking a flash to ruin the atmos for the sake of the blog. You'll just have to go to find out what it's like!

Freedom Dark Lager

Interesting stuff, this. I was drawn to it simply because I had never heard of it, which I often find a great tactic to use when buying beer. Turns out that Freedom have been around for a while - since 1995 - and seem to have the vegan/organic lager market cornered, producing only three brews - Lager, Dark Lager, and a Pils. I opted for the Dark Lager, given that's where my tastes lie.
...And it wasn't bad at all. The label said it had an underlying toffee note lurking within, and it did; a distinctly American burnt-caramel sweetness. Despite being fairly thin body-wise, it was a nice, rounded beer that belied a 4.7% abv. There was nothing outstanding happening here, but when teamed with a home-made pizza it sang a little higher and held up the beer end, so to speak.


The pizza was made with a simple dough (Strong Flour, Yeast, a dash of Olive Oil, tepid water and some salt), topped with a plain sauce of chopped peppers, a tin of cushed tomatoes, a generous hit of tomato puree, some black pepper,sugar and Basil - with a load of garlic going in when reduced. I find that putting the Garlic in any sauce at the end rather than the start gives a stronger but more balanced Garlic hit. I then topped this with some Mozzarella, some ends of cheddar I had left over (which gave a nice, sharp contrast to the Moz), some Parma Ham and a couple of slices of peppery, zingy Salami. A good Pizza makes a good partner to beer - a lot of the time.

http://www.freedombeer.com/welcome.asp

Timothy Taylor's: Chasing The Havercake Dragon

You have to face it; Timothy Taylor’s beers are seen as somewhat untouchable in certain parts of the country –and for good reason. Landlord is viewed by many as a high-water mark in Brewing, and is without a doubt there Holy Grail for Homebrewers (of which I am one). Ram Tam has attained almost cult status in Yorkshire; one of the few beers in the country truly worth travelling for. Timothy Taylor’s humble brewery is one of beer’s unassuming gods.

I was certainly excited when they announced, early in 2008, that a brace of new (or rather, one new and one re-imagined classic ale) beers would be brewed to coincide with their 150th Birthday. Havercake Ale, named after a nickname for the Duke of Wellington’s 3rd Battalion for which Taylor had an affinity, would be brewed for only the third time in Taylor’s history, alongside Celebration Ale, a new recipe. I must, absolutely must, taste these beers, I thought at the time.

But then, as often happens, real life got in the way. A hectic period of work meant that the trip to my favoured Taylor’s inn – The Fleece, in Haworth, had to be delayed by a week – and this was disastrous. When I finally got there, the barmaid apologetically informed me that all the Havercake and Celebration Ales had run dry. In fact, had just run dry. Excursions to other Taylor’s pubs yielded similar results. I was running round Yorkshire, always one step behind this elusive beer. I gave up. I resigned myself to the fact that I had missed the boat. Lesson learned, young drinker.
Fast-forward a few months to October 2008; we’re in Haworth again. After a pleasant stroll through Bronte country, we popped into The Black Bull for a pint of Ossett’s Silver King, and then, purely out of habit, dropped into the Fleece. Whilst lifting my lips to the first sip of fresh Landlord, my eyes caught something on the back of the bar. A box. A presentation box. With a bottle each of Havercake and Celebration Ale gleaming within. I felt like Indiana Jones faced with the Crystal Skull. Needless to say, it was bought and promptly cellared; kept away for a special occasion: the first beer of 2009.

Celebration Ale poured a clear-as-a-bell amber colour, and the main difference between it and other Taylor’s beers, in my opinion, was the nose: sweet honey and floral hops all round. A robust, typically Yorkshire biscuit malt body gave way to a long bitterness as you’d expect to find in bottled Landlord. Celebration Ale is a much easier-drinking, almost summery beer, and one that I can heartily recommend to Taylor’s nerds.

Havercake Ale, upon pouring, doesn’t seem that different, but the nose gives it away: much less hop profile, and an almost soapy note hang in there. The head did not hang around long on my sample; but the beer itself was malt all the way, with a much softer, less assertive bitterness than the Celebration Ale. As it turns out, quite a contrasting beer.

I understand both beers to have been a success around the country and I think they’ll be popping up now and again in the future. I hope so.

http://www.timothytaylor.co.uk/