Hotel with public bar or Pub with rooms?

It's an interesting job running a place that has two very different trades. On the one hand we have a section of the building allocated to providing an establishment that has comfortable rooms and a restaurant that serves quality food. Carpeted throughout and we're trying to raise it's standards.

Alternatively we are in the middle of the mountains. It's beautiful and there are plenty of opportunities for outdoor activities. When it's sunny we get very busy with passing trade. When it suddenly starts to rain everybody runs for cover and many make it to our bar. We get muddy boots, wet dogs, dripping waterproof clothing. When it rains for a few days on the trot, which it can do, it all goes very quiet. For 6 months of the year it is just very quiet.

Our hotel trade is far more lucrative, is stable for more of the year, the customers demand higher standards and due to the lack of wet clothing, muddy waterproofs and careful control of resident's dogs the place is more comfortable.

3 years ago we segregated the general public from our lounge bar and reserved it for residents and restaurant use only. We have now gained 3 stars with the AA for our accommodation. The muddy path that crossed our lounge bar carpet has gone. We are increasing the revenue from the hotel operation.

We think of ourselves, in some ways, as a hotel with a pub attached. The pub is here because there is a hotel, not the other way round.

We still welcome all manor of wayward walkers, dogs, muddy boots and even, if we have to, children into our walkers bar. Our walkers bar is sparse but robust. Some fail to understand the need for segregating the bars. I was inspired to write this after this post appeared by Adrian Tierney-Jones, he's a good guy and entitled to his opinion. To be fair we really TRY not to be grumpy, at least most of the time and we don't treat "off comers" with disdain. Meshing quality with the outdoors can be tricky. Matching tourist trade with local trade is also a problem.

Beer Makes Strong Bones

With all the fuss made over alcohol by various agencies and the press, it's nice to find a healthy bit of news, especially for women drinkers. It seems that beer drinkers are less likely to get osteoporosis. It's no great surprise to me. The best beer is made with water rich in various mineral compounds, including calcium salts. That is bound to make your bones stronger, Sherlock.

The slightly scary thing is this research also shows that beer really does contain female hormones. These plant derived hormones are called phytoestrogens and are similar to human oestrogen. Perhaps that explains why male beer drinkers are prone to developing man-boobs.

Yeah, I know there are plenty of sexist jokes out there on this theme. If you haven't seen any just type "beer female hormones" into Google to find them.....but I didn't tell you to do it, OK?

Hops and Glory

One man's search for the beer that built the British Empire.

Book Review

Everybody knows that IPA was made to survive the long sea journey to India during the age of international sailing trade. Tall ships were the only way to transport goods to the far east and regular British beer would not be good at the end of the journey. Further more, IPA's hoppy light style suited the climate down to the ground. Moreover, so the legend goes, the style of beer actually improves by the extremes of the journey. There, what else do you need to know about IPA?

It seems Pete Brown was significantly unhappy with only knowing this. Moreover, he decided to risk life, limb and most importantly the patience of his wife to get to the bottom of the legend. He got himself a beer brewed, as authentic and true to the 19th century beer as possible and took it on the very same journey that the beer made during the great age of sail. The main purpose of the journey, apart from "toughening up" Pete with his poor ability to travel¹ was to find out if indeed the beer goes through a magical transformation as a result of the wild fluctuations in temperature and sea movement endured.

It was bound to appeal to me², my early book reading career being put in motion by Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons. So, a book that combined ancient sea travel with beer? I was sold on it before I even received my copy. I was also keen to get on with the job of reading it as my friend Jeff Pickthall makes a key appearance when Pete gets into difficulty. Jeff turns into an infamous international beer smuggler when the mission is looking like it might fail completely to achieve it's aims. The picture above, stolen from Jeff's Picasa library, is the moment Jeff saves the day, just in the nick of time.

The book does tell an exciting and gripping tale about Pete's trip by barge, train, plane, cruise ship, tall ship and finally container ship from Burton through to India. Following the route as closely as possible turned out to be a challenge. Nobody travels that route by sea any longer, but one man has done it now. This man puts himself through an ordeal that seems to go well beyond any rational justification, but anybody who is passionate about beer can immediately understand why he has done it, at least you will after reading the book.

But more than the re-creation of the sea journey Pete weaves into his narration the history of IPA. He tells of the building of the magnificent and often cruel world of our imperial past in India. The triangular sea trade that included the far east, where, through each leg there were goods filling the ships. Beer from the UK formed part of that trade and we learn how IPA becomes the dominant style that was shipped. We also learn how it continues to influence nearly 140 years after the Suez Canal is re-opened³ ending the necessity for such a long journey.

I'll confess to being too engrossed in Pete's adventures to take in all the historic stuff. I scan read much of the alternate history chapters as I was too excited to find out what near scrape Pete was heading for next. I fully expect to return to the book and take in more fully the comprehensive information contained there.

If you like beer or history or salty old sea dog stories then you'll like this book. I like all three, so I loved the book. Of course, Pete's humour makes you often laugh out loud, which can be embarrassing when you are sitting on a crowded train.

Perhaps buying the book just because Woolpack Dave says it's a good book is insufficient reason. If none of the above convinces you to buy the book then perhaps there is one good reason left. I met Pete recently during my trip to GBBF. I also met his enthusiastic wife Liz, and without whom, it is apparent from the book, Pete's trip would not have occurred. Pete has apparently promised Liz a good holiday from the proceeds of the book. As I write this Pete and Liz are on "holiday" in rainy Blackpool. There, that's a good enough reason to buy the book, saving Liz from such trauma.

¹Actually Pete has not claimed to be a "crap traveller" since his earlier book Three Sheets to the Wind. After this epic he daren't I expect.

²Of course Pete's copious use of that literary tool, the footnote, also appeals to me.

³The canal is not an entirely modern concept. There is significant evidence of a canal over 2500 years ago that linked the Nile and the Red Sea.

More Morris Dancing

It's Saturday, I'm too busy to post anything intelligent. Today members of the local CAMRA branch visited and C de C left me a copy of the video she took of the Morris Dancing that happened here some months ago. Note our staff risking their lives with the sword dancers to deliver food.

If you are very observant you'll see me having a dubious beard stroking moment behind the bar.

Contrarian?

Being a beer blogger and a publican perhaps has it's pitfalls. I like to think of myself as an honest person. This blog projects what I'm thinking, perhaps resulting in my heart being worn on my sleeve. I am also aware that what I write might perhaps upset customers or friends. I do sometimes wonder just how far that effect might reach.

I'm a CAMRA member. When I can, in the winter, I try to attend meetings. During the season my time is too precious, and so I don't. I do think the organisations intent in some areas has it's benefits and one of those significant benefits is to encourage pubs and publicans. I've said before, the CAMRA awards are a great boost to morale. Beer festivals are also a good thing and our local branch organise one that I think, in my humble opinion, is pretty good.

I'm not however going to pretend that I don't have opinions against some of the campaigns and policies of CAMRA. I would like to think that I have the democratic right to free speech. It seems though at times I am branded as anti-CAMRA, which is a shame really, because that is not the case. See the rather interesting Session Ale Project, where I get named. This blog is run by an American chap who seems to be fed up with the over dominance of big beers in the craft beer scene over the pond. I think he's got a point. In this country we seem to have an over dominance of session beer, at least that's what it seems like to me.

The local branch, West Cumbria and Western Lakes, are promising to visit Saturday lunch time. It also seems at least one of the most active members reads my blog, perhaps I should just say a big thanks for the nice stuff the branch said in the Summer Edition What Ales. Note page 25, if anybody is interested. Read the rest of the mag, the team do a great job and deserve their efforts to be read.

Finally, and most importantly, I've been having a bit of a fetish for big and even massive beers lately. However, looking at the article in What Ales it can be seen that we do not turn our back on low ABV session ales. Hopefully I'll have my Light Cascade 3.4% on the bar for the girls and boys on Saturday. That should at least please one blog reader.

Incidentally, the weakest beer I've ever had on sale was Drive Me Mild 1.9% made by me. It did OK, for a mistake. The strongest has just gone on sale and is Tokyo* 18.2% made by some people in Scotland and I don't expect to sell much of it. It's all about diversity really.

Old Dog, New Tricks

Well, that's a surprise, Tokyo*, the controversial 18.2% beer, is something of a revelation. My delivery arrived yesterday. I was quite excited. A chance to try this beer. I guessed I'd like it quite a lot¹. I was not wrong. Described by others and Mark does a good job, so no point me repeating it here. But my significant other, Ann does not generally like beer. She pulls a horrible face when she tries nearly any beer. She tried Tokyo*, and she likes it².

This all comes neatly on the tail of a discussion over on Impy Maltings blog about "blonde" beer names being marketed to men only and possibly being offensive to women who might like to try beer.

I'm really intrigued to know how much marketing, taste, upbringing and culture have an effect on the desire or otherwise for half the population to generally snub beer. I don't know the answers, but for now, I've found another beer to add to Ann's list; Kriek, Geueze and now Intergalactic Fantastic Oak Aged Stout.

Bugger, better order some more then.

Of course we drank it out of wine glasses and we shared the 330ml bottle between two of us. It is not an everyday beer, and probably best with a good blue cheese or a rich chocolate desert, or ideally, a desert that combines the two³. Treat it like a fine port wine, that's my advice.

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¹I seem to detect phenols in this beer, but it seems to work. I'm still getting my palate trained to recognise various "off" flavours. What is also intersting is that I'm finding that certain flavours that might be wrong in one beer work for me in anouther. Phenols in double stout is OK, phenols in IPA is wrong. Just my view of course.

²Look at that "watchit, anymore of this stuff and you'd better be up for it" kinda look. Perhaps sharing my beer has some advantages.

³A white chocolate, cream cheese and blue cheese fondant dark chocolate crunch base bomb. Known as a Blue Bore Bomb to us. Perhaps I'll have to post about that sometime. Extreme beer and extreme deserts, fantastic.

BrewDog mystery

I've just had a delivery. Great. But what is the mystery freebie 13th bottle? Has anybody else found the same in their BrewDog order?

All arrived safely, without any breakages. After reading reports of poor packaging used by the guys up in Scotland, I just wondered. Can't fault this delivery. I might have to start to consider stocking them. After I've tried them out for quality, of course.

If I had a grumble, it would be the 10 days between ordering and delivery. I gather that might be a demand problem. Victims of their own success? Actually, the spare bottle might be a kind of apology because they had to substitute part of the order due to low stock. Either way, it's always nice to get a little extra you didn't expect - thanks lads.