re autovacs, isn't it a bit of a moot point how good they are/were - I'd heard years ago (as Martin mentions above) that they were outlawed by Health & Safety or Environmental Health?
If they still are legal to use, by the sounds of them, I'd still prefer it if they weren't!
Does anyone know of any decent pubs still using them, I guess even if illegal or frowned upon, there's likely to be one or two still dotted about? I think many moons back The Reindeer brewpub, Norwich used them & the landlord raved about them (but you must understand that he also once told me his favourite pint was well-kept Courage Best :o) I never saw the autovacs in action. cheers MikeMcG.