So people, I’m getting married in July and have brought it upon myself to find one Bury St Edmunds and one Sheffield ale for the wedding.

For t’ up north one i’m leaning towards Bradfield’s Farmers Blonde (I’d much prefer the stout, but we need a crowd pleaser really) Is there anything else that comes to mind that’s better?

Daahn Saarf will likely be something from Greene King, odds on Bury St Edmunds. Again, answers on a postcard if you can think of owt better! (though a mate has just suggested The Old Cannon brewery’s offerings)

Cheers all!

That’s a really difficult one – you have to bow to the needs of the many at a wedding IMHO. You shouldn’t lay on Auld Badger Arse for you and 5 mates if the other 95 would prefer John Smiths. That said, Greene King IPA is just a study in mediocrity and cannot be considered. Old Speckled Hen wouldn’t be my taste but it’s a popular ale. Ruddles best has been decent when I’ve had it (not sure if GK brew this in Bury St Edmonds or just own the Ruddles brewery elsewhere).
An everyman choice for the Southern ale, and something more creative for the Northern one? That sounds an appropriate partition.

Daahn Saarf will likely be something from Greene King

you bastard.

If you find your self in The Dove, Hospital Rd, Bury St Eds you could ask the landlord. Old Rog knows his local ales but can talk for England.

Can’t answer for the north but not Greene King, Bury has a lot better beers than that.

The Old Cannon is a lovely little micro brewery with some quality ales.
Another micro brewery is the brewshed which is on the list to try next time we’re in Bury (http://www.brewshedbrewery.co.uk)

Bigger brewery is Nethergate, they do some lovely brews (if you like darker beers try Augustinian)

Hope this helps

you bastard.

Having had a much longer chat with the southern bunch, this seems to be the common opinion. The Old Cannon and St Peter’s breweries have been put forward. I’ll have to go for a piss up next time I visit the flatlands 😀

Yeah, I have to straddle the line between interesting and drinkable by the many, but I’ll be damned if I drink crap at my own wedding! (in addition, the Hotel will have their own beers, smiths, carling etc.)

Left field choice. Calvors Suffolk lager from Coddenham comes in session and premium V-Power strengths.

For Suffolk I’d probably go for something from St. Peter’s

http://www.suffolkcamra.co.uk/pubs/brewerylist

For Sheffield there’s these:

http://www.sheffieldcamra.org.uk/ShfCAMRA/sheffieldbreweries.htm

or consider one of the big Yorkshire jobs like Black Sheep, Sam Smiths or Timothy Taylor

whatever you do, you’re going to have to make the personal sacrifice to try as many as possible to find the right one 🙂

Adnams Broadside for the Southern option?

cannot believe that no one has suggested Abbeydale for the Sheffield one, Moonshine would be a great all rounder.

Hobgoblin is good for a Southern ale and how about Black Sheep as a Northern brew

Go with the flow. Serve up to sate the locals.

some nice Sheffield brews

Abbeydale brewery – moonshine or absolution
or
Kelham Island – easy rider or pale rider

St Austell – Tribute (other side of the country, I know but WTF)

The St Peter’s Best Bitter is a very nice, easy to drink but tasty 3.7% bitter. If you can get it in barrels that would be my choice, with a more ‘interesting’ Yorkshire brew if you want. I’ll be keeping an eye on this thread having moved to Cambridgeshire to see what other breweries exist around here (other than GK!).

We had Ringwood Best and FortyNiner (both in a 50pt keg!), and a few different ‘mini kegs’ of lagers. (Carlsberg & Grolsch, I think).

Even sneaked in a cheeky pint of Ringwood Best before the wedding, at the local….

Probably the hardest deciswion to make for a wedding day.

For the northern one my vote would go with Timothy Taylors (tried to get that for mine but failed), but the Kelham Island ones are good too. Not tried the Abbeydale stuff…..hmmmmm

Whatever you go for, remember to drink a lot of it.

Moonshine would be a great all rounder.

Nope, it has been repeatedly agreed between me and my mates that it tastes like dishwater by the bottom of the pint. I’m aware that tastes differ, but I honestly can’t see what people enjoy about it. :/ I’m open to their other offerings however!

I have thought about Kelham island, it’s piss easy to get kegs off them. But while all of their beers are good, they’re also instantly forgettable. Still, they are a good crowd pleaser.

All of this necessitated a bar crawl in both Sheffield and Bury, for research purposes…honest…

I know, I’m frequently amazed by how much of a stranglehold Greene King has over that little town.. it’s odd.

Choosing the beer is both the hardest decision, and the only one I’ve really had any input in. Besides the occasional “yes dear that’s lovely” it’s all been her planning (she wouldn’t have it any other way mind!) so I’m making sure I do this one thing right!

As it’s a special occasion I’d dodge the Green King decidedly un-special beers.

Depends on how far you are willing to travel from Bury but there is Milton brewery too which produces some lovely casks. (konagirl tours are available).

+1 for sweaman2
Adnams broadside is one of the nicer suffolk beers.

http://adnams.co.uk/category/beer

You need to do more first hand research, you need to taste them all to make this decision. 🙂

BTW, off topic, Bury St Edmunds has never been “down Saarrff”. Its oop norf, just not as far North

Bury St Edmunds has never been “down Saarrff”

Tell that to the fiancée’s accent! Though her dad was a proper cockney geezer, that might have something to do with it…

Either way, it’s south of the Watford gap 😛

Echoing the voice of many, Greene King is dull dull dull dull.

I’d go for Old Cannon – lovely stuff.

St Peters is OK too and a lot of peole really like it, but personally their style has never been to my taste, can’t put my finger on it but something in their beers just doesn’t work for me.

Just a thought. If you need any help in the research, do please let me know.

email info@brewshedbrewery.co.uk

Drank some of their beers at ‘The One Bull’ in B-S-E. There was group of us, maltsters mainly, and they were well received.

As an aside, one of our group completely confused the waitress by asking where they sourced their malt from, never miss an opportunity!

Matt

What’s wrong with Greene King? Oh, I forgot this is STW where Greene King is too ‘mainstream’. Obviously you need the ale equivalent of a rigid singlespeed made in a shed.

Abbeydale Absolution is a great beer but it is rocket fuel.

i had a mate like this.. was getting married so his contribution was to choose the back ground music for the reception.. i know its a big job.. after months of compiling playlists etc scoping opinions looking for that elusive track come the big day the cd was doen folk started walking in and.. yeh the cd player broke.

it aint about music, drinking its about relaxing with family mates and the best person you ve ever met ( or a close second best)

Grum – Greene king pubs can be a bit generic and cliche’d interior-wise, their standard food menu is cheap and not overly cheerful their IPA and the eponymous BSE are woefully dull beers.

They also rarely allow guest ales from other breweries in, so they stifle the range of ales available.

Essentially I can take you up the road to a Greene King, which is ok, or to a Free house which is great.

BSE – south of the Watford Gap?
BSE: 52.24927,0.705864
Watford Gap: 52.316455,-1.055574

Pretty marginal really!

Pop in to the Harlequin and ask for the brewer, talk through what you want and then work together on a wedding brew for the event. It may cost a little more. He will happily move on the rest of the beer and the beer ticking community gets a one off.

Some friends had a pin of Milton Pegasus from cambridge for their wedding, that went down well.
http://www.miltonbrewery.co.uk/beers/pegasus.html

I’d go for an Adnams (Southwold) ale over Greene king. Not the most distinguished but Good session ales – you don’t want anything with too much character

I not up to date on the micro brewery stuff from out east these days

brown cow, sixer or Yorkshire farmer surely. that or wimbulldon as that is bradfields summer beer. all are better than blonde

Kelham Island Pale Rider for the sheffield beer.

Following on from trb’s post, Milton brewery’s Marcus Aurelius is an awesome beer, strong and very dark – not sure how it would go down at a wedding though!

Those two beers would give a balance of a light summer beer and dark beer.