Shere brewery - Shere drop is lovely. +1 for darkstar as well. I'm also quite fond of TEA from the hogs back brewery and my local, Harveys is quite good too.
Been drinking a lot of this recently, bloody lovely:
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Kelham Island brewery - Easy rider
Saltaire brewery- Blonde
Abbeydale brewery - Absolution
Timothy Taylor's - Landlord
Everard's - Tiger
thristy now 😛
Badger is one of my favourites, I reckon.
Wychwood is pretty good too.
And while Charles Wells probably isn't niche enough for the likes of STW, you can't beat a nice pint of Bombadier, or for that matter their Banana Bread beer or a nice glass of Waggledance.....
Mmmmmm! Beer...
Oooooh, Theakstons.......mustn't forget Theakstons.....
Ringwood Brewery fan over here 🙂
Had a keg of Ringwood Best at our wedding.... happy days!
Hawkshead Brewery make some beautiful beers too.
Thwaites Wainwright are my personal preference at the moment...
SA Gold isn't bad either, or Blacksheep, not forgetting Doom, Shropshire Lad, Bathams....
feel a sicky coming on and spending the day in the Nags, pity I'm skint. 😡
My brewery, yesterday...
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If you can find it though, the best session ale is Hobson's Twisted Spire, only 3.6% but loads of flavour.
I bought a couple of bottles on spec on a recent trip to Worcs. Absolutely superb.
I lover the sheer variety of beers available, and the fact that standards are being raised all the time.
I grew up in the next village to [url= http://www.hooknortonbrewery.co.uk/ ]Hooky[/url]. I still have left an single unopened bottle of [url= http://www.hooknortonbrewery.co.uk/news2010/Shining_Light/Shining_light.html ]their Shining Light[/url], which was brewed to celebrate the 150th anniversary of my school.
Now, however, living in Lancs, my two favourites are from close by:
[url= http://www.southportbrewery.co.uk/ ]Southport Brewery[/url] - their Golden Sands, Sandgrounder and Natterjack are superb. Served in my local on regular rotation.
and
My true favourite is [url= http://prospectbrewery.org.uk/ ]Prospect Brewery of Standish[/url], with their Silver Tally and Blinding Light being possibly the finest beers I know. [url= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZm1C5hrpGs ]Link to vid of Oz Clarke and James May visiting the brewery[/url]
Oh, and honourable mention to [url= http://www.phoenixbrewery.co.uk/index.htm ]Phoenix Brewery of Heywood[/url] whose Arizona is quite magnificent.
Long live British brewing..! 😀
Jennings - best brewery in britain +1. - I'm biased though.
Cumberland cream - if you can get it is gorgeous.
London Ale alert - I was in St John's - Archway boozer, on Sunday night and they had Cockerhoop on tap. woop .
I had two whole pints. 😯 😀
Next fave is that Timothy Taylor landlord , followed by that Doom bar stuff . I now fancy a pint - may have to take half a day!!
Bank Top. Thread closed.
Another good call.
Shame beer is off my #idiet... 🙁
My beer last night.... Not what it says on the glass, but a stout called Profanity, on offer at £1 a bottle from Sainsburys - very nice too!
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There can be only one
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All interesting beer'idge..
But..
THe Flower Pots in Cheriton (Hants) brews the best beer "like eva"
You all clearly know nothing
Wye Valley
Thread closed
[url= http://www.bridgeofallan.co.uk/ ]Bridge of Allan Brewery, near Stirling[/url] gets my vote.
The beer's excellent, they open late if we ask them, and they don't care how muddy we are. They even sell dog biscuits.
You all clearly know nothingWye Valley
Thread closed
Yes, the Butty Bach is very nice - but Best Brewery? 😕 Not convinced.
Thornbridge is pretty great too.
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any self respecting brewery wouldn't dream of putting beer in a bottle to go stale . . .
Thread closed, . . again!! 😀
[url= http://www.blackislebrewery.com/ ]Black Isle Brewery[/url]
My parents got me a mixed case of their ales for my Birthday, every single one was exceptionally good.
Bathams brewery is about a mile from my house. Craddocks is even closer and nicer,
Do tell me "informed ones".. Why do breweries call their beer(s) such stupid names?
Butty Bach? Qui?
No idea...but imo Wye Valley don't make a bad pint, even their ltd editions are great
20 years ago this would have been a much closer competition because there wasnt as much choice and so much of it was utter crap, now just about anyone is producing half decent beer.
As to what part of the UK can serve a decent pint of beer, that is a different matter all together IMO. IMO West Yorkshire and the Pennines is the best place to get a decent pulled pint.
I work over the road from [url= http://www.britishpubguide.com/cgi-bin/pubsearch.cgi?results:West_Midlands:100085 ]Pardoes.[/url]
Ashamed to admit I've not been in since I started here 7 months ago!
"If you Bradford lads haven't tried the Sparrow Bier Cafe then make a trip soon.."
Just googled it, and that would mean having to go in to the centre of Bradford though 😯
Micro Breweries are abumndant in Hants and if you take in West Sussex (herumph) and Wiltshire too then you are bombarded with choice.
Long may that continue IMHO..
Oh and Bakeries too, they seem to be popping up all over the place..
Next we'll be growing our own veg and planting Olives..
You Northern Folk need to remember [url= http://www.spitfireale.co.uk/spitfire-adverts/ ]who saved your arses so you can create your horrendous brews[/url]
Kent - Beer Savior of the free world
I'll agree with the OP. Cumberland Ale, Cocker Hoop and Sneck Lifter are all superb.
My wife could tell that Cocker Hoop was from the same brewery as (her favourite) Cumberland Ale because of the "pure water" taste.
There are other nice beers of course.
Do tell me "informed ones".. Why do breweries call their beer(s) such stupid names?
A lot of people choose the beer on the name on the clip alone. A long time ago, I worked in a brewery and we produced a little something called Pigswill. Sold very well, as people liked the name. In other cases, there's something personal about a brew and the name comes from that, or perhaps there's a historical/local link to it. Either way, a good/funny/interesting name sells a lot of beer.
My current favourite is Tryst Raj IPA
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Looking forward to trying many of Scotlands best shortly 8)
http://www.stonehavenrealalefestival.co.uk/
(Watches onion's video clip. Weeps tears of joy)
Beer snobbishness/facism/parochialism is stupid. Everyone has different tastes, and it's fantastic that we live in a nation which produces such an incredible range of beers. Go to other countries, like Spain f'rinstance, and try to find such beer-o-diversity.
I always like to try 'local' beers whenever I go to other places. Had some right lovely stuff, and some not so good pints, but beer is good.
To say that 'X brewery is best' or rubbish like 'ee the only place where you can get a good pint is Y', is just daft.
As to what part of the UK can serve a decent pint of beer, that is a different matter all together IMO. IMO West Yorkshire and the Pennines is the best place to get a decent pulled pint.
See? Codswallop. Every area could claim that.
Beer is one of the few things that can help unite us in this nation, and we should celebrate it as we should celebrate all forms of diversity and choice.
Williams Bros. Obviously
Going to Eastbourne Beer Festival at the weekend, will look out for some of the above, some of my current and all time favourites, and I make no apologies for a US ale, splendid summer beer.
Harvey's of Lewes: Best Bitter, Copperwheat
Brewdog: Punk IPA, Hardcore IPA
Sierra Nevada: IPA, Torpedo
We really are lucky to have such a wide range of great beers in this country. Apart from Belgium, I can't think of anywhere else that comes close.
To say that 'X brewery is best' or rubbish like 'ee the only place where you can get a good pint is Y', is just daft.
You mean like claiming that London is 'the greatest city in the world'?
That's different, Grum.
As you well know. You're just trying to cause trouble.
Stoppit please. Thanks.
X
FD - nothing wrong with goiing into bradford, nobody else does so you'd have the place to yourself 😉
I went to a gig in town on a Friday night in Feb 2010. On my walk from Forster Square to Westgate I saw 5 other people. Yes, 5. At 9.30 on a Friday night.
Tumbleweed springs to mind
I've an "aquaintance" in Bavaria, muchos beer'idge producing and comsuming going on there I can tell ya's.
I brew my own beer now anyway. Got a Hobgoblin clone in the fermentation vessel...
Bradford is nice. I know a Brazillian babe who rates Bradford as one of her favourite places in the World (and higher than London even! 😯 ). She is a bit mad though tbh.
Mrs FD has lived just north of Bradford for 2 years now, and I keep promising to take her into that mythical place that is the centre of Bradford. So far though we have not found the need, or the inclanation to travel to this near but distant land.
Shame really, back in the day it had some cracking pubs.. yes I know some are still there but as John says the atmosphere and the people have disappeared.
Elfin - Just because you live in denial. Anywhere is nicer than London, even Bradford
Anywhere is nicer than London!
You're wrong, but I respect your right to be.
The West Country is full of amazing breweries - Bath Ales, Butcombe, Box Steam Brewery, Abbey, Exmoor, St Austell to name just a few.
Current favourite is Arbor Ales: Oyster Stout, Yakima Valley (like Sierra Nevada Pale Ale with a bit more kick), and Inferiority Complex are all great pints.