*The Real Ale Thread

The Baird? Lovely pub, really well kept ale, but typical N10 prices

Marston's Old Empire at the Wetherspoons today. Not the best ale out there but at £2.35 (in my 'spoons) for 5.7% abv it's well worth a couple of pints (at lunchtime).

Ridiculously detailed review of the bottled version here- http://hywelsbiglog.wordpress.com/2...’s-old-empire-original-export-india-pale-ale/

I'd give it more than 3.8 on it's strength alone.

Lunchtime ales? That's a slippery slope

Getting a poor rep imo, that's a fine IPA, and at that price a bargain.

http://www.urban75.net/forums/threads/the-real-ale-at-home-thread.283885/

Alkie

I prefer the term 'enthusiast'.

It's not ale, but it's not piss either. Last night I had a few too many Cotswold Lagers (5%) and I didn't have any trace of a hangover this morning. Miracle lager

I really like Cotswold Largers. I had a couple on the weekend then moved pubs and had a pint of Kronenburg. After the Cotswold Premium it was horrible - my next pint was an Ale.

There's a splinter organisation of CAMRA that recognises that good beer does not have to be ale. The liberal faction is The Campaign for Really Good Beer - http://camrgb.blogspot.com/

Is it me, or does their link to their new website just link back to the same blog?

Ok, it's http://www.camrgb.org/

also- http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/18346

Was in the Beehive (Wetherspoons) yesterday, they've got rid of the 5.7% Old Empire so I was drinking a nice Autumn ale whose name I have forgotten cos I ended up having quite a few of them.

Did anyone have any of the Youngs Christmas Ale over the 'festive period'?

The Trinity in Brixton are currently selling theirs off for £2 a pint which is a welcome change as Youngs pubs are normally quite dear.

4.8% and not dark like some Christmas Ales. Very similar to Youngs Special but slightly stronger. Lovely.

I'm pretty sure I had a few halves of that in the Clockhouse on Peckham Rye. Or maybe it was my partner. (That suggests a long, amnesia-inducing session, which it wasn't, honest).

Partner is now saying he had someone else's real ale in the Dog and Bell in Deptford.

I should unsubscribe from the real ale thread really.

I was in a little pub in Wigan the other week, drinking beer from theAllgates micro-brewery. It was the loveliest beer I've had in donkey's years. Only £1.90 a pint, I would've paid twice that. And there was free chips and cheese & onion sandwiches!

There's a pub which sells Fullers beer around these parts (the otherwise excellent Harcourt Arms in Jericho). Anyway on their menu the put prices on mixes of ales - such as half a Chiswick and half a London Pride. Never seen that before.

Had a few pints of 'Dutchman' last night watching the football. A very nice pint. 4.5%

For nostagia sake I had a couple of ramrod and special mixes in the Spreadeagle in Camden, it's a Young's pub - ramrod out of the pumps, special in a bottle - usually you get over a pint - used to drink it years ago when I lived near Wimbledon (more Young's pubs that way)

ramrod and spesh

You sure it's not Special out of the pump & Ramrod in a bottle?

And got to be more than the cost of a pint cos you're involving the cost of a bottle, hasn't it?

actually I think you're right
and I can't remember how much it cost (it was a few weeks ago) but I don't remember it being excessive

My work local is a Youngs pub and I love a pint of Special so I might give this a go sometime.

went there again the other day - £3.75 for a ramrod and spesh - which I thought reasonable - it's more than a pint!

eta - not your work local - unless you now work in Camden