Try your luck

The big Wetherspoon on Camden Street, Keavan's Port, does seem to be quite good at what I want a Wetherspoon to do: turning over the cask ales with decent regularity and having them on a few at a time, plus Jaipur as a regular. Irish cask ale would be a double-plus bonus, and it does happen, though it's a rarity. Today's post begins with three beers from a random dismal Sunday in February.

Brains's flagship bitter The Reverend James has appeared on these pages previously, back in 2006, when I found it assertively hoppy. That seems weird, now, for a bitter, so I thought it would be worth a revisit to see if 2022-me's palate finds it any different. It settled a clear and attractive dark garnet colour and from the first sip I understand what 2006-me was getting at. This is no twiggy brown bitter nor chewy malt bomb, despite the appearance. The primary flavour is lemon: an almost spritzy freshly-squeezed effect. The body is light for 4.5% ABV and there's a dry tannic quality providing backing support for the citrus. A very mild soapy quality is the only slight bum note, but it's minor. This is a highly quaffable, thirst-quenching bitter, perfect for the session, though my session wasn't going that way.

Next it's Wolf Brewery from Norwich, and Granny Wouldn't Like It. I'm not sure why she wouldn't: it's a 4.8% ABV red ale which was SIBA's Supreme Champion Cask Ale in 2005. Granny should be all over it. A dark chestnut red, it smells sweetly of milk chocolate and tastes even sweeter. To the chocolate you can add strawberry jam and a wood-sap bite in lieu of bitterness. The pumpclip says it's "oaky" and I guess that's what that is. I'm not wowed -- it's a red ale, after all -- but I enjoyed it. The cask dispense really moves it up a bracket for me: I can't imagine it would be up to much served cold and fizzy from the keg, but cellar temperature with a faint sparkle makes it a real charmer.

Two good beers in a row is unusual for a Wetherspoon session. What are the chances of making it three? The decider was Kingsdown Special Ale from Arkells. There's a whopping 5% ABV to deal with so of course I left it to last. It's a dark brown colour, though still clear. This is one of those plummy English dark strong ales, with notes of port and cork. For all that it's quite easy drinking: you get the sweet fruit up front but it fades quickly off the palate without any sticky residue. I think I'd like some sticky residue. As-is there's a certain blandness to the offer. I enjoyed it, but I think I wanted something bigger and more rounded to finish on. Oh well.

I was back a few days later when Loddon Bamboozle had been added to the line-up. I've not been a big fan of Loddon's wares so far but this is a good one. Their beers, in my experience, tend to be quite thick and soupy, and this bright golden one has a bit of that, but the malt is plastered over with a layer of floral perfume and honey which improves it no end. While still no thirst-quencher, it works well as a dessert, sweet and sippable, feeling far above its 4.8% ABV. One pint was plenty, though.

Regardless, I can't say there was a bad beer in this lot: all well-made and well-kept. There are worse ways to spend €11.80 on beer on Camden Street.

Back on the ale trail

I spent a couple of days in London over the weekend and managed to fit in a fair few pints of the interesting. Or at least what counts as interesting to me.

Starting simple I tried Young's Bitter, which is London's answer to a pint of plain: very well-balanced and ticking all the right boxes for bitter without being too fussy. Another quality Young's beer. Courage Best is in the same league, though lighter and less challenging. Also at the entry level is Greene King's IPA. While this suffers from a bit more of a sparkle than is strictly warranted in this kind of ale, the bitter, hoppy aftertaste is very pleasant.

Broadside is a fairly common premium bitter. It is, in fact, very bitter indeed. I think they were trying to do something daring with the recipe here, and while the result is certainly bold and distinctive it lacks the warmth and subtlety of good bitter. Olde Trip tries to do something similar as well, but fails and fades into quite an average, non-descript beer.

Turning up the hop quotient we have a Welsh bitter on sale in Wetherspoon's called Brain SA. It has a very unusual raw green vegetal taste with hints of smoke. Very tasty. Similarly vegetal is Landlord, though this one crosses the line from bitter into sour and is a bit of an acquired taste, I reckon. Reverend James is so hop-laden that is has almost no foretaste but packs a big bitter hops punch at the end. Yet even it pales in comparison to my find of the trip: Theakston's Black Bull. The Bull is strikingly headless, despite having a faint trace of sparkle. Tastewise it has nothing up front but holds back a massive green hops taste which is quite delicious. And at the end there are hops dregs in the bottom of the glass. If that's a gimmick, it worked. Theakston's, you've done it again.

While I was contemplating my Black Bull in the Museum Tavern in Bloomsbury last Friday evening, one of the regulars mentioned to the barman that it was too warm to be drinking ale. Nonsense, I thought, but over the weekend I noticed that the brewers and their marketing people seem to have been making an effort for the ale fans who want something in their line more suited to warm weather. And so, from Fuller's, we have Discovery. This is hand-pumped but lager-like in appearance. It's certainly much lighter than bitter, but it didn't put anything back where the bitterness and warmth were taken out. The result is rather hollow and bland. Summer Solstice is in the same genre and suffers from the same lack of flavour.

Not only was it summer, of course, but the World Cup was on. Our friends at Greene King have produced a series of guest ales being sold in Wetherspoon's. 4-4-2 is a pale ale with a big taste. Daring, but a bit cloying. Perhaps one pint is supposed to last the full ninety minutes plus stoppages. 1966 is much better: bitter and spicy with a solid dose of hops for flavour. The Wychwood people have also made a World Cup beer, called England's Ale. This is dark, smooth and easy-drinking with a smoky, burnt character. Up to scratch with the other quality Wychwood beers.

So much for England. While in London I made the obligatory visit to the mighty Belgo. I wasn't especially adventurous in my beer selection: plumping for two from the Grimbergen stable on draught. The blond is a very full-flavoured heavy, dry beer. The dubbel is rich, sweet and chocolatey.

If every weekend was filled with this much English and Belgian beer I'd be very happy. And very very fat.