Wikio - Top Blogs - Wine and beer The Real Ale Girl: 1000 ales!

Monday 2 November 2009

1000 ales!

Welcome to Naughty November!
Having spent a few days in Swansea for a lovely wedding in a groovy, modern hotel (which sadly only served a rather warm and vinegary Reverend James), I was back in London on Saturday night and ready to wipe away the late night, all day wine drinking of the wedding with a good ale session.
Luckily, we heard about the Halloween festival at the amazing 'gothic' Patriotic Building in Wandsworth. Having never been to its normal freehouse Le Gothique, the sight of this eerie, intimidating pile was perfect for Halloween night, and the beers were gloriously as dark and spooky as the costumes. (My 'costume' was only my Brodies Special T-shirt, but it did lead to a weird conversation with a man who claimed to love Brodies and their pub, but didn't actually like any of the beer.)
Anyway, this wasn't just any old beer festival event for me- this fest would hold claim to my 1000th different real ale (since records began), and I celebrated it in style with Dark Star's Winter Meltdown, the multi -talented and bewitching Seasick Steve's music and a cheers with our long haired friend from The Pigs Ear Festival Games Division, who offered us some homemade pickled onions if we attend the next one.On that note, I am intending to volunteer on a couple of nights- will keep you posted.
My 1002nd beer Downton's Chocolate Orange Stout, however, was the business and had me making all sorts of inappropriate noises of appreciation, but then so, surprisingly, did the 10% Thomas Sykes from the fabulous Burton Bridge. Drinking any of their beers takes me back to our Easter Burton pilgrimage, but being 10%, I was expecting to find this too sweet and overbearing, but it was dangerously easy drinking. Seek it out, strong beer fans.
I finished the night having been made to jump 5 times by the same masked man but on a new score of 1011. How long until I reach 2000?

3 comments:

  1. What a great selection of porters and dark ones at the Halloween fest. Well done on hitting 1000!

    ReplyDelete
  2. haha, inappropriate noises of appreciation!!! i can just hear them now along with the faces of appreciation that went with them!! x x

    ReplyDelete
  3. He didn't like ANY of them?? Oh well at least he liked standing in the pub (not drinking the beer). ;)

    ReplyDelete