Spoonfest

Tried the Wetherspoons Fest in a number of West Yorkshire Pubs.

All spot on! Well done Tim Martin! I never thought I'd be paying £1.39 for beers we will almost certainly never see here again.

Interesting about the 'gas leak'! If I were a CAMRA pedant, I'd be fuming, writing to trading standards, my local branch, undergoing counselling, be on anti-depressants etc etc ad nauseam.

Life's too short for that. If it tastes ok, and is at a good price, then that's fine for me.

Well I'm paying £1.69 but no complaints here.

I (obviously) didn't try the beer in Ross, but I have no reason to suspect it's dispense would be different to other spoons, where the carbonation is not evident. I've submitted feedback on the wetherspoon website in the past, but not had any response.

Probably just an assist to get it to the point of dispense. Common enough and it won't be in contact with the beer. Peter

More likely some prat who doesn't understand the difference between cask and keg!

How does that work, then? Pressure on a membrane? I must admit that when something similar happened in one of my local pubs my assumption was that they were using cask breathers.

Have a look here, similar devices are very common now, apparently, to allow use of small bore tube:-

Paul

NB the 800ft pipe length on a narrow bore is one of the most critical. In most cases a line with anything other than an incredibly short length means the person serving would need muscles like a body builder to serve even a dribble of beer. The pump means the local up front assisted lasses can do the job.

I take exception to that! ; no they were selling keg only, the "reason" for not selling cask was that they'd "had a gas leak".

The "prat" I was referring to was a Spoons employee! :-)

I tried the Stone IPA (Californian, 7.0%) in my local (West Yorkshire) Spoons last night - for £1.39. A superb beer, BTW, however, it appears to have been brewed by the original brewer, but in the UK - at Shepherd Neame, I believe.

How authentic does that make it?

I haven't seen the Japanese one yet.

Hi Mike, I had the Japan Black on Saturday in Bolton Spoons.. an excellent brew (made in Burton, for transport reasons). The Californian lasted just a few hours on the first day in Bolton but there is another barrel to go on before the end of the festival and I'm looking forward to a sample. I'll call in tomorrow afternoon on the off-chance :-))

A couple of other worthy of note have been, Marston Pedigree Six and the "slightly cloudy" Ecaussinnes Cookie Beer.

If there are no "Programmes" about then ask for one at the Bar.. good for making notes.

KW

On at The Cherry Tree Huddersfield at 1400hrs this afternoon

Well, I will have no problem with that for a while. Our barmaid is destined to be the next Miss Universe in body building :-)

Dave

I have always been one to ask about accents that come into my local real ale pub, but I am curious as to your name.

You do not have to answer this and I will not take offence if you do not.

Can you let an Englishman know how you say it and where does the name originate from?

Many thanks

Dave

How about "backwards arse"? :=)

I've just returned from sampling the GK Abbot Reverse, which at 6.5% is wverrra nice (hic!) Also (difrent spoon) Stone me 7% Californian double IPA - well push the limits OK, but this is just too much for me YMMV.

Mentuioned in dispatches: Oakham JHB, Georgenbrau Bierkeller - nice, if I was sur le contonent, I'd drink this as an acceptable british beer substitute.

the Polish Plum stuff not to my taste, again perhaps trying too hard.

Roosters Outlaw - well hoped as you'd expect. for me (with a Mild Tendency) I'm looking for the Mauldon's Blackadder.

It's still April 1, innit? No, wait, I'm eight hours behind British time...

Ii think you may have that arse backwards.

I'm glad you enjoyed the Tokyo Black. I regularly meet the brewer, Toshi Ishii at beer festivals here. He's very proud of his beers.

Wayne