Brilliant Brewery For Sale!

I was engaging in my usual wake up activity, browsing Twitter on my phone while drinking a huge mug of coffee, when I came across news that the Breconshire Brewery is up for sale. I was lucky enough to visit said brewery just a few weeks ago when my best pal Sue took me there as a surprise, belated birthday present.

It may come as a shock, and it’s certainly a bit of an anomaly for someone who loves beer so much, but I’d never been to a brewery before. My friend picked a good one for my first time and although I’d never been inside one I did at least know what to expect. It was a great lesson in beer for me though, with a charming and patient teacher in the shape of Head Brewer Buster Grant.

I was a little perturbed at his invitation to taste the malt (the partly germinated barley which is one of beer’s primary ingredients), but as my friend was already happily munching away I popped a pinch in my mouth. It was a bit like a healthy, but tasty, breakfast cereal, or at least the pale one was. The darker ones had a different flavour and we weren’t even allowed to taste the darkest of all with Buster warning us it worked in the beer but would be disgusting to eat.

After checking out the malt, it was downstairs to where the action is. Although I know that real ale is a craft product made by skilled brewers I didn’t appreciate, until Buster explained, just what a precise process brewing is. Get the temperature wrong in the mash (where the malt starch is turned into fermentable sugar and brewing gets underway) and “you might as well go home”, Buster told me.

It was a fascinating insight into my favourite drink and as such the highlight of the tour was getting to taste the finished product. Now I understood why my friend had kept insisting that she would have to drive us on this surprise trip and that my car had to stay at home.

We began with Brecon County Ale which had a hell of a lot of flavour for a 3.7% beer, not to mention that Buster offered his apologies that the warehouse being so cold might affect our tasting experience. But even at a tad too chilly I could detect a fruity, grass clipping aroma which somewhat belied its biscuitty, hoppy flavour. I could imagine myself putting a few pints of this away on an evening out with friends and from Sue’s reaction I could tell that she regretted that as designated driver she could only have a little sip!

Next up was Golden Valley a refreshing golden beer with a good degree of carbonation, which I experienced as a pleasant little fizz. It had a really hoppy flavour, which came from a single variety (Progress). Finally I sampled Ramblers Ruin. I must confess that only having had a small breakfast before setting out meant this 5% ‘old ale’ pushed me over the edge into tipsydom, but I don’t think I disgraced myself. Too much. My beer book notes are certainly sensible and legible in any case.

Me (looking tipsy after sampling Ramblers Ruin) and Buster.

I’m not so much a fan of dark beers as I am of the lighter varieties, but Ramblers Ruin had a lovely toffee/caramel aroma and a sweet aftertaste which put it firmly on the list of beers to have again. Sue’s reaction was also a surprise. She loved it! If I’m trying to convert female friends to real ale I normally start them on something golden and summery, but I’d have done a better job with Sue if I’d suggested darker beers. Indeed, she took home some Really Wild Nut Brown Ale which sent her into raptures. She now has plans to attend the Brecon Farmers Market to stock up on more of Buster’s brews.

As well as the pleasure of tasting the beer, Buster gave me a few tasting pointers and an important lesson. Never tell a brewer that his or her beer’s got a sort of, well, sour, quality to it. Whether you realise it or not, it’s not actually what you mean. If the brewer is a friendly one, and realises that you didn’t mean to insult the beer they’ve laboured so carefully to create, they will put you straight and at the same time introduce you to some of the terminology you are lacking. Fortunately for me, Buster fell into this category. I now know that what I had been describing as sour is more properly called ‘astringent’.

If I had the cash, I’d snap this brewery up. It’s got great beers being made by not just a great brewer, but someone who’s a people person too. Here’s to the Breconshire Brewery; long may it continue.

 

To read the news story about the brewery being for sale click here:

http://www.thepublican.com/story.asp?sectioncode=7&storycode=69271

Keep it Cornish…

Those of you that have noticed the unrelenting march eastwards of the Cornish ale Doom Bar might not be surprised to hear that its brewer (Sharp’s) has been sold to Molson Coors. You might, however, gasp a little at the £20 million it sold for. The price tag demonstrates that the business of real ale isn’t to be sniffed at, but when that sort of money is changing hands I can’t help but worry about the future quality of the beer – in a world that places profit before almost everything else. But maybe I’m just a cynic.

Industry reaction has been to cautiously welcome the news, but fears have been raised for Cornish jobs – not to mention the future of Sharp’s other ales – especially if the new owners decided to move the brewery from its home at Rock on the north Cornwall coast. I suppose only time will tell, but I’m sure you can expect to find Doom in even more pubs than you do now.

On a somewhat lighter note, the news about Sharp’s coincides with a piece I wrote for Cornwall Today magazine about the county’s ales. Grab a copy of the March issue to read how Sharp’s came this far and about Cornwall’s other marvellous ales – somewhat overshadowed by their more commercially successful cousin.

My word limit for the piece meant that I wasn’t able to include the opinions of real ale drinkers about what they love – and hate – about Cornish beer, so I’ll take the opportunity to do so here.

Much as people will tell you that Guinness in Dublin tastes better than it does in the UK (a subject that I’ll not get into today!) there seems to be a view that Cornish ale tastes better in the Westcountry than up country. Spud Murphy, who lives in South Devon, says he’s a fan of St Austell Brewery’s flagship beer, but felt it was affected by the aforementioned Guinness Syndrome: “Tribute is an excellent session pint, although I don’t think it travels very well. I feel the same about Doom Bar, an excellent pint, but far better in the South West.”

But Rob Wain, a publican from Cambridgeshire, says: “There is no such thing as a beer that doesn’t travel well – think back to the original IPAs – brewed to be SHIPPED to INDIA! You actually have to work quite hard to spoil a beer.”

Pat Wright, from Newcastle Under Lyme is also a fan of Tribute when he’s in Cornwall. “The Tribute at The Blue Peter at Polperro was one of the best pints I’ve had in ages. It tasted lovely but went down a bit too easily and led to a wobbly walk back to the campsite at closing time. ‘Didn’t stop me going back for more the following night though.”

Dave Jones from Plymouth is mostly a Guinness drinker, but also enjoys Cornish ales, especially when he’s away from the area. “I tend to look out for Cornish ales when I’m out of the South West and Guinness is unavailable because I know I’m going to get a very decent pint,” he told me.

Cornish natives are justly proud of the beers Cornwall has to offer, but can find themselves spoiled for choice. Rachael Pine is originally from Falmouth. She says: “I always experience that buzz of anticipation and excitement when entering a decent pub, what beer will they have for me to choose from? Will I go for truly local – I live in Devon, or will I go for local to my heart – meaning Cornish.

“This decision’s easy when I walk to the bar and they have Skinner’s, of pretty much any variety, but having lived in Devon for the last ten years I’ve become very fond of local beers, like O’Hanlon’s Yellowhammer and Otter Bright.”

But Rachael adds that her ‘first choice’ is Skinner’s. “I get a buzz every time I drive near the place in Truro! It’s good beer that tastes excellent and it holds very special memories for me. It’s always a great moment when I can get hold of a pint or two in a pub in Devon.”

I’m rather partial to a pint of Heligan Honey myself and, like Spud and Pat, also enjoy a pint of Tribute. I like Doom Bar too, but have also found that some pubs serve it better than others (which is probably true of any beer). My favourite Cornish beer though, indeed one of my favourite beers in general, is the bottle conditioned gem brewed by St Austell, Clouded Yellow.

St Austell Head Brewer, Roger Ryman explained the beer’s history: “It was actually a competition winner some years ago and was initially exclusive to Tesco.”

He also told me that not everyone loves it as much as I do. “It’s a bit of a Marmite of a beer, because inevitably the more a beer moves from the mainstream, the more it will polarise opinion. Clouded Yellow’s got quite a unique flavour, it’s quite different, but that forces opinion, so you’ll find customers who love it and equally you’ll find those it doesn’t appeal to.”

For those that don’t know it, Clouded Yellow is a vanilla flavoured wheat beer. It is very sweet and I think it goes well with curry or Thai food, but maybe it’s more of a woman’s beer (my Lord!)?

“I think to a degree it is,” says Roger, “Which is actually a huge opportunity because the whole female market is ultimately is 50% of the population.”

 Whether you opt for a bottle of Clouded Yellow, some Doom Bar, Tribute, a pint of Skinner’s, or something from one of the county’s many microbreweries be in no doubt that Cornwall is well and truly on the real ale map. Overlook Cornish beer and you’ll be missing out big time.