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The campaigning magazine of the Reading and Mid Berkshire CAMRA Branch. Autumn 2014
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CAMPAIGN for REAL ALE
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THE CAMRA MAGAZINE FOR READING AND MID BERKSHIREISSUE THIRTY ONE • AUTUMN 2014 • FREE - PLEASE TAKE A COPY
IN THIS ISSUEPub & Brewery News Cider Pub of the YearGood Beer Guide 2015All About YeastJoin CAMRAVolunteering
PUBS MATTER
Contact UsUseful contact details for this magazine, CAMRA and other important things…Mine's a Pint Circulation: 3,000.Outlets: Over 70 across the region.
Editor: Phil [email protected] 455 029381 Addison Road, Reading, RG1 8EG
Magazine published on behalf of Readingand Mid Berkshire CAMRA by:
Orchard House Media [email protected]
For advertising enquiries please contact Jane Michelson:01733 211 [email protected]
Reading & Mid Berkshire CAMRAwww.readingcamra.org.uk
Social Secretary: Jon [email protected] 483 334
Contact for all other branch matters:Katrina [email protected] 401 9437
Local Trading StandardsReading Borough Council:www.reading.gov.uk 0118 937 3737
West Berkshire Council:www.westberks.gov.uk 01635 519930
Royal Borough of Windsor &Maidenhead:www.rbwm.gov.uk 01628 683800
Wokingham Borough Council:www.wokingham.gov.uk 0118 9746400
The next issue of Mine’s a Pint will be published in December. Please feel free to submit copy or ideas by 8 November.
The opinions expressed in Mine’s a Pint arenot necessarily those of the editor or theCampaign for Real Ale. © Campaign forReal Ale 2014.
SEPTEMBERFri 26: Southall Curry Night. Meet 19.30 onwards fordrinks at the Conservative Club, High Street, Southall, UB13HB, then Nagina Karahi restaurant at 20.45. ContactJohn Robinson on 0118 940 2787 / 0790 434 3187 /[email protected]
OCTOBERThu 2: First Thursday of the Month Social. 20.00 start inBurghfield Village (Reading Road, RG30 3TH) – HatchGate then Six Bells (for quiz night).
Fri 3 – Sat 4: Ascot Racecourse Beer Festival. 50% offadmission for CAMRA members – use the promotion code“BEER14” when booking and show your card on arrival.See www.ascot.co.uk for details.
Tue 14: Branch meeting. 20.00 start. Royal Oak (Buratta’s),Ruscombe Lane, Ruscombe, Twyford, RG10 9JN – conser-vatory at rear of pub. CAMRA members only, please.
Sat 25: Beer Census. A survey of the real ales on sale in thebranch area. To help contact Katrina Fletcher on 0779 401 9437.
NOVEMBERSat 1: CAMRA Super-Regional Conference. ConferenceChamber, Town Hall, St Aldate's, Oxford, OX1 1BX.
Thu 6: First Thursday of the Month Social. 20.00 start.Park House bar, Reading University, Whiteknights Campus,Reading, RG6 6AQ.
Tue 11: Branch AGM. 20.00 start. Corn Stores, 10 ForburyRoad, Reading, RG1 1SE – upstairs. CAMRA membersonly, please.
Wed 26 Nov: Branch Strategy Meeting – review of the lastyear and deciding our strategy for the next. 20.00 start atFox and Hounds, 51 Gosbrook Road, Caversham, RG48BN. CAMRA members only, please.
DECEMBERThu 4: Christmas Meal. Details TBC. Register your interestwith Dan Cane-Honeysett on 07811 403701.Thu 11: Branch 40th Birthday.
See www.readingcamra.org.uk for updates.
For details of an event with no contact listed, to suggest an eventor to receive regular e-mail updates of the branch diary, contactJon Parish: [email protected] / 07977 483 334.
Branch DiaryEvents are open to all unless specified.
Pubs Matter. They matter to the economy,they matter to local communities and theymatter to the social fabric of our country.
A few months ago, figures were released thatshowed the rate of pub closures in the UKincreasing from 26 to 28 per week. I'm nowsad to say that the figure has risen to 31 perweek (Source: CGA / CAMRA Pub Tracker).London and the South East is now the worst-hit area, with eight pubs a week closing theirdoors, and Reading hasn't escaped the storm.
In response, CAMRA has launched its PubsMatter campaign, which calls on theGovernment to recognise that pubs matterand make a simple change to the law inEngland so that a planning application isalways required before a pub is demolished orconverted into another use.
We think it's wrong that communities are leftpowerless when a popular local pub is threat-ened with demolition or conversion into asupermarket or housing. What sort of com-munities? Try Silverdale Road in Earley,where the fate that Tesco has in mind for theMaiden Over is conversion to a supermarket.Or in Theale, where a developer has alreadyclosed one village pub and converted it tohousing, and now wants to do the same withthe Red Lion. Will your community be thenext to be hit?
If you think communities should have a say,then visit www.pubsmatter.org.uk today. Youcan read in this issue more about the commu-nity fightback, and also read some people'sstories who will inspire you to get active with-in CAMRA and lend your help to our cam-paigns.
Cheers.
Phil Gill - [email protected]
Mine’s a Pint4
From the Editor
Contents From the Editor 4
Pub & Brewery News 5 - 11
Cider Pub of the Year 12 - 13
Small Beer 14 - 15
Good Beer Guide 2015 17
Pump Clips 19
Yeast 20 - 23
The Dieseases Hitting Reading’s Pubs 24 - 25
Volunteering 26 - 27
Join CAMRA 30
The Bull Hotel WARGRAVE RG10 8DD
TEL 01189 403120 email:[email protected]
A delightful 15th Century former coaching inn, totally refurbished following Jayne’s return.
We have a well deserved excellent reputation forfood and Jayne’s Sunday Roast is a firm favourite.
For the beer lovers we serve Brakspear ales, a regular guest ale along with wide selection of
quality wines.Kitchen Closed on Sunday evenings only
We also have 5 very comfortable ensuite bedrooms, please call for further details and bookings
£5 LUNCH MENUMon to Sat only. Choice of5 dishes. Selected MenuValid October - Novenber 2014
EVENING DINING £25 per coupleMon to Thurs, 2 maincourses with a bottle of
house wine. Selected MenuValid October - Novenber 2014
FRIDAY NIGHTS£30 per couplefriday night only. Fish and chips
with a bottle of fizz.
SUNDAY ROAST£25 per couple
Jayne’s sunday roast withyorkshire puddings
Valid October - Novenber 2014
Pub News
CAVERSHAMThe ALTO LOUNGE on Church Street nowserves no real ale and has had its one hand-pump removed. Replacing it on the bar is akeg beer called Cruiser, from the Bristol BeerFactory.
One place you might not expect to find anybeer is MY ALACARTE restaurant onProspect Street. In fact there's a choice ofthree bottles from Loddon Brewery, and thefood comes highly recommended.
In Caversham Heightson Kidmore Road, theGROSVENOR hasbeen serving up consis-tently good quality realale in recent months.There's 20p off everypint of real ale forCAMRA members,which we enjoyed at August’s First Thursdayof the Month social.
In response to the piece in the last issue aboutthe BARON CADOGAN on Prospect Street,we're happy to acknowledge that the pub’s
good beer quality and entries in the GoodBeer Guide is down to a team effort. ManagerRebecca Turner-Smith has paid testament tothe efforts of the entire team and managerspast and present, and wants to reinforce thepub’s commitment to and focus on real ale.
EARLEYThe MAIDEN OVER on Silverdale Road wasclosed at short notice and owner EnterpriseInns want to lease it to Tesco for a supermar-ket. Locals and CAMRA are fighting back.Read more about this in Gareth Epps' articlein this magazine.
GRAZELEY GREENA visit to the OLD BELL over the summerproduced Sharps Doom Bar, West Berks DrHexter's Healer and St Austell Tribute onhandpump. This spacious Chef and Brewerpub is found on Goring Lane and, like allChef and Brewer outlets, offers a 10% discount on real ale to CAMRA members.
NEWBURYOut of our area, but definitely of interest is anapplication for a micropub in Inch’s Yard,
Market Street. Micropubs are anew concept of small, wet-ledpubs, often converted from shops,and this one is just 24 squaremetres in size. If approved it will bethe first that we know of inBerkshire. Planned name is the Cowand Cask.
PLAYHATCHRecent events at the FLOWING SPRING onHenley Road have included chilli week – featuring “the ultimate chilli pizza”. Just after
Mine’s a Pint5
Pub and Brewery News
CONTINUED OVERLEAF
Grosvenor
publication of this magazine, on 14September, the pub takes on the Baskerville,Orwell’s and Plowden Arms in a grand tugof war tournament at the Shiplake VillageSummer Party. An Autumn Real Ale andCider Festival is planned for 3 – 5 October.
READING
Katrina Fletcher is leaving the ALEHOUSEon Broad Street on 22 September. We hopethis iconic pub will stay in safe hands. It’sbeen nominated as an Asset of CommunityValue, with a decision due from ReadingBorough Council just after we went toprint.
As expected, the planning applicationto convert the WOODLEY ARMS onWaldeck Street into four flats wasapproved in July.
The ROSE AND THISTLE in ArgyleRoad has been refurbished with newcarpets, new furniture and redecorationthroughout. A few extra handpumps sellmainly Greene King products, with StAustell Tribute also spotted on a visit overthe summer.
Bottled Good Old Boy from West BerkshireBrewery is available in the bar at theCROWNE PLAZA HOTEL, just by
Caversham Bridge. The riverside terrace islovely and a great place to watch the sunset.
EVISSA bar and nightclub on Castle Streetis having a makeover and is due to reopenas RYND. There’s a suggestion that craftbeers may be on sale after it reopens.Meanwhile, the latest baron Friar Streetto get amakeover inFriar Street isthe Bed Bar,which is toreopen inSeptember asMATCHBOX,advertising “cluband cocktails”.
A belated welcome to Andy Saxby who isthe new manager of the GREYFRIAR onGreyfriars Road. This pub has six hand-pumps serving a changing range of beers.On Monday and Tuesday all ales are 20%off, and CAMRA members get the same dis-count all week. Alongside that a sandwichdeli counter is available Monday to Friday12-3pm plus, for something a little different,
there's a wide selection ofgins including a different“gin of the week” everyweek.
Another welcome for a newlandlord – Tom Ludbrookhas taken over theFORESTERS ARMS inBrunswick Street. It’s a tra-ditional locals’ pub close to
the town centre, with two bars, threehandpumps for real ale and a beer gardenwith play area. Tom hopes to feature beersfrom local breweries wherever possible,alongside nationally known names – WestBerkshire, Andwell and Abingdon breweriesfeatured on a recent visit.
PUB NEWS CONTINUED
Mine’s a Pint6
Greyfriar
The BUTLER on Chatham Street has beensold by Fullers and is now run by a groupincluding Ted Allnut from the Nags Head.It’s not intended to be a “Nags Mark 2” butthe range of real ale has immediatelyincreased to up to six, mainly from localmicrobreweries. The place will be refur-bished and upgraded over time and more ofwhat is a very large and historic buildingbrought back into use. We hope to featuremore about their plans in the next issue.
At the end of August the ROEBUCK onAuckland Road held its first “Oscars Night”to celebrate the achievements of locals incategories including Best Entertainment andMost Contribution to the Local Community.Details of the winners were unavailablewhen we went to press but we’re sure it wasa good night. The pub is open all day withfood served 12-9pm, and offers pool anddarts for customers. Three ales were on saleon a recent visit – Abbot, IPA and a 3.9%house beer, all from Greene King.
Two unexpected real ale gains are theFRUIT BAT on Erleigh Road and theROYAL ALBION on Oxford Road. Recentvisits yielded Sharps Doom Bar andMarstons New World at the Fruit Bat, withGreene King IPA and Golden Hen at theRoyal Albion.
The ELDON ARMS on Eldon Terraceclosed at the end of July. There's no evi-dence yet that owners Wadworth Breweryare looking for new tenants but we hopethat it reopens soon. Read more about thisin Gareth Epps’ article.
Nearby pub the LYNDHURST on the cor-ner of Watlington Street also suddenlyclosed in mid August. At the time of writingits future was unclear but the location andprevious good levels of trade must weigh inits favour.
Also in the same part of town, there seemsto be some stability at the RETREAT on StJohn’s Street, with a new landlord and talkof a small budget for refurbishment, startingwith the toilets.
Reports have reached us that the HORN-CASTLE on the A4 Bath Road has closed.
Mine’s a Pint7
PUB NEWS CONTINUED
CONTINUED OVERLEAF
The Eldon Arms before its recent closure
FORESTERS
The
Arms
Offering 3 Real Ales with a selectionfrom local breweries, regular live
music nights and wine and real aletasting evenings.
We have a large beer garden at therear with a kids play area and
are a dog friendly pub.
Families are more than welcome.We hope to see you soon!
The Foresters Arms79-81 Brumswick Street,Reading RG1 6NY
Tom and Vikki welcome you totheir community pub...
Mine’s a Pint8
Supplying all your brewing needs throughout Reading and the surrounding areaWe currently have the largest stock of beer, lager, wine andspirit kits in Berkshire. Pop in and be spoilt for choice.
See for yourself just how easy it is to make your own homebrew and become part of a fast-growing breed of ‘masterbrewers’ in your own home.
Perfect for Parties, BBQ’s or watching thebig game with your mates!
DELIVERYSERVICEAvailable
Opening TimesMonday to Friday: 11am - 6pm
Saturday: 10am - 5pmSunday: Closed
Professor Keith Wesnes is the new landlordof the FISHERMAN'S COTTAGE onKennetside, havingbought it from Fullers. It will be reopening asan independent freeholdfamily run pub, offering awide range of beer and cider,from both large and local brew-eries. It’s currently undergoing afull refurbishment, and is hoping toopen this autumn. You can keep upwith progress on the Facebook page “TheFishermans Cottage” or website www.thefishermanscottagereading.co.uk
SHINFIELDEnabling works to convert the ROYALOAK on School Green into a supermarkethave been approved and are well underway.This is an area that needs your support, andluckily the improved bus service on the no.3“Leopard” route makes visiting all the pubsalong the road to Arborfield a lot easierthan before.
THEALEFollowing the closure of the RED LION onChurch Street, a planning application hasbeen submitted for residential conversion,with demolition of the skittle alley and newflats in its place. Nine dwellings are pro-posed. The company behind it appears to bethe same one that closed the nearby Lambin 2011, and looks to be on some kind ofmission to rid Theale of its pubs – althoughquite why, remains a mystery.
WOODLEYJust like its Caversham cousin the AltoLounge, the BOSCO LOUNGE has also hadits handpump removed and no longer servesreal ale.
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PUB NEWS CONTINUED
BREWERY NEWS OVERLEAF
WHISTLEY GREENThe ELEPHANT AND CASTLE has hada bar refit and now sports six handpumps(two always Abbot Ale and Morlands,with four other guests), together with areal cider. Landlords Pennie and Waynealso offer a menu of traditional pubfayre, with much of the produce sourcedlocally. Best of all, there’s 10p off a pintfor card-carrying CAMRA members.You can find the pub on Lodge Road,near the B3030 / A321 junction, a littleway south of Twyford.
Brewery News
ASCOT ALESSeptember’s Single Hop brew isAmethyst, a Czech Republicvariety that has earthy, citrus and spicy aromas.October’s offering is Palisade, aUSA variety with citrus, black-currant and grapefruit aromas.
The multi award winning Anastasia'sExile Stout (5.0%) is now available inrebranded form as one of the OfficialMonster Raving Loony Party Co-ALE-itionales. It's called Monsters in The Dark.
BINGHAMSThe popular, single hopped 4.5% Craft HopSeries continues with Herkules fromGermany, Waimea from New Zealand andthen Chelan from America. A 5.0% beercalled Summer should be brewed just beforethe Summer disappears, and will be singlehopped with Australian Summer hops. HopHarvest will also make an appearance inSeptember – a golden, 3.7% beer made withfresh rather than dried hops for a differenthop character. The beer has to be brewedwithin 24 hours of the hops being harvestedto get the full benefit of the flavour.
The breweryscooped twoGold medals anda Bronze at theSIBA South EastCompetition heldin July. The Goldmedals were forDoodle Stout inthe Porters,Stouts, Old Ales& Strong MildsCategory, and forVanilla Stout inthe SpecialityBeer Category.The category
winners were then judged againsteach other and Doodle Stoutwas awarded a Bronze Medaloverall.
HOP KINGA new name that we under-
stand is a “nano brewery” basedin Eastern Avenue, Reading. The
½ BBL plant (144 pints) is based in agarden workshop and, to date, our only
sight of the beers has been in bottles in theGrumpy Goat.
LODDONCAMRA members can get 10% off all pur-chases of beer from the brewery shop.
It's hoped that Loddon beer will be avail-able at the Bottle and Glass in BinfieldHeath when it reopens. The pub closed inJuly 2013 but has now been bought fromBrakspear Pub Company by LordPhillimore, on whose estate the brewery isbased. The pub will be let and will continueto serve the local community.
SHERFIELD VILLAGEThe brewery is supporting its local Sherfieldon Loddon Beer Festival, to be held on 27September at Sherfield Village Hall. Seewww.sherfieldbeerfestival.org.uk for moredetails.
SIREN CRAFTTwo new fermentation tanks were installedin August and a new bottling line is makinglife much easier for the team. There's a greatvideo of it in action on the Facebook page“Siren Craft Brew”. Half Mast at 2.8% isgetting great reviews in local pubs.
WEST BERKSHIRETommy Atkins Traditional Ale has beenbrewed to mark 100 years since the start ofthe First World War. There are four differentlabels, each featuring a soldier's war story
BREWERY NEWS
Mine’s a Pint10
Chris Bingham with hisdog Stout, the inspira-tion for the Doodle Stoutrange
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along with their picture, and all from theRoyal Berkshire Regiment.
The beer was launched at a special event atthe Allied Arms, where families of the sol-diers featured were presented with a giftbox of the commemorative beer. The Alliedis in the hands of the Rolls family and thecurrent landlord is the grandson of GeorgeRolls – one of the soldiers who adorns thebottle labels and pump clips. George volun-teered in 1914, seeing action in many bat-tles, and was one of only sixteen survivorsfrom his original battalion.
WINDSOR AND ETONWith the 800th anniversary of the sealing ofMagna Carta coming up next year, and asthe closest brewery to Runnymede, Windsorand Eton are brewing a celebratory beer. Toreflect the democratic principles of MagnaCarta this is a beer “by the people for thepeople”, assisted by the London AmateurBrewers. The winning beer is by ManmohanBirdi and he joined the brewery, along withhis daughter Jani and beer writer RogerProtz, to brew his recipe on 21 June. Thefirst brew will be available from earlySeptember.
BREWERY NEWS
The Rolls family at the launch event forTommy Atkins Ale
48 SURLEY ROW, EMMER GREEN Tel: 01189 481507
Quiz night every Wednesday from 8.30pm
SEPTEMBER EVENTSThursday 25th - Psychic Night
Saturday 27thBuble Vs Williams Tribute Act
Fantastic range of drinks including a selection of Real Ales at brilliant prices.
Be part of the proper pub of Emmer Green!
I’m sure most readers will know aboutCAMRA’s national Pub of the Year award,but fewer will know about our nationalcider equivalent. However, you may be sur-prised that this competition is now 10 yearsold. The latest winner, the Railway Arms inDownham Market, Norfolk receivedunprecedented media coverage, with TVcrews from both local BBC and ITV featur-ing the presentation.
The popularity, interest and availability ofreal cider and perry has greatlyincreased during these 10 years.Over 1,500 pubs have signedup to the ‘Real Cider SoldHere’ initiative and CAMRAcurrently gets around 200nominations for the CiderPOTY award.
So what makes a great realcider pub? The most importantfactor is obviously quality realcider and perry in top condition,which is on sale all year round. The othertop priority is given to pubs that haveknowledgeable licensees and staff who carepassionately about the product, are commit-ted to explaining its virtues and who makeevery effort to promote it. In addition, theother criteria are those used in the national
Pub of the Year, e.g. community focus,atmosphere style and décor, service and wel-come, sympathy with CAMRA’s aims, andoverall value.
Currently, pubs (or clubs) can be self-nomi-nated, nominated by a branch, an individualmember, or even a non member; but, asmore and more branches run their owncompetitions, the intention is to movetowards a position of every branch puttingforward their branch Cider POTY winner
for judging in a regional round. Untilmost branches are doing this,
“public” nominations, andthose from non-members, willcontinue.
Public nominations, eitherfrom individual members ornon-members are invited
during October andNovember. This is done using
the form either printed in What’sBrewing, on the CAMRA website or
in the branch mailout. After this deadline,branches are sent details of any entries intheir area. They consider these and can addfurther nominations if wished. The branchselects its winner and these are then notifiedto the Regional Cider Co-ordinator byabout the end of March.
Mine’s a Pint12
Regional judging then takes place, to comeup with the 16 regional winners by midMay. The Cider POTY Organiser randomlyarranges these into 4 groups of 4 regionalwinners to form a super-regional round,with these results in by about mid July. The4 winners from this stage then form thefinalists and the overall national winner ischosen by early September. Details of thesefinal 4 are kept confidential so as to max-imise publicity for the ultimate winner,which usually receives its accolade on 1stOctober, to coincide with the start ofCAMRA’s Cider and Perry Month promo-tion.
So far, there have been winners from sevenCAMRA regions: Central Southern [2012:Royal Oak in Wantage], South West,Wessex, East Anglia, Yorkshire, EastMidlands and West Pennines. Perhaps wecan add other regions to this list soon.
Let’s see if we can all encourage pubs tostock this fantastic traditional productwhich is truly enjoying a great resurgenceand hopefully they can benefit from thiswith increased sales to ever discerning realcider drinkers. It also helps preserve theexistence of so many of our wonderfulorchards, small producers and many of thefascinating characters who enrich many avisit!
Sarah NewsonCider Pub of the Year Organiser
Mine’s a Pint13
One of the many benefits of CAMRAmembership is £20 worth ofWetherspoons vouchers every year.
Just in time for Cider Month in October,these vouchers can now be used to buyreal cider as well as real ale, so ciderdrinkers now get just as much benefit asother members.
Award-winning, family Cider makers since 2006
Tel: 0118 974 4649or 07836 296996
CIDER PUB OF THE YEAR COMPETITION
CLUB OF THE YEAR
Our branch Club of the Year has beenannounced and the winner is, once again,the Wargrave Snooker Club. Branch mem-bers are seen here presenting the certificateto this perennial favourite. The clubs servesup to two real ales and pub games includingbar billiards are available in the lounge,together with three full-size snooker tablesin a separate room. You can find the clubbehind the library in the Woodclyffe Hostelin Church Street, Wargrave, althoughbeware of the restricted opening hours (7-11pm, weekdays only).
UPDATE
We welcome the Crown on the Bridge inBridge Street, Caversham, the latest pub tojoin the LocAle scheme. Two real ales fromLoddon are usually available, and in goodcondition on recent visits.
Unfortunately the Maiden Over in Earleyhas closed and so can no longer be a mem-ber of the scheme.
On the brewery front there are two newbreweries that fall within our LocAle area (a30 mile radius from Reading). Both withgood real ale names – “Malt” fromPrestwood in Bucks, and “Mash”, based atEast Stratton, Hants. Also coming soon isHedgehog Brewery, who have been trialbrewing in Cobham in Surrey but are nowinstalling their proper plant at Stroud Farm,Virginia Water.
CHAMPION BEER OF BRITAINThe winners of this year’s Champion Beer ofBritain have been announced and are:Gold – Timothy Taylors, BoltmakerSilver – Oakham, CitraBronze – Salopian, Darwin’s Origin
Boltmaker is a regular beer in this area atthe Swan at Three Mile Cross, so why notpay them a visit and try the winner.
SAVE MONEY – JOIN CAMRA NOWIf this issue of Mine’s a Pint has temptedyou to join CAMRA, do it now to takeadvantage of the current membership rates.The last rise in subscriptions was back inmid 2012 but, from 1 January 2015, rateswill rise to take account of rising costs – forinstance, postage has risen by 25% since thelast rate change.
Single membership if paid by direct debit iscurrently £23 and will rise to £24. Jointmembership will rise from £28 to £29.50and still represents great value. Why notlock in at the current rates now? You'll finda membership form towards the back of thismagazine.
Small BeerA roundup of news and information...
Mine’s a Pint14
SUPER-REGIONAL CONFERENCECAMRA will once again be running a seriesof super-regional conferences in the autumnand one is to be held not too far away inOxford. The conferences are an opportunityfor CAMRA members to discuss the policyand direction of the campaign and are agood chance to catch up if you can’t make itto the national AGM. 1 November is thedate, so mark it in your diary now. Therewill be more information available in What’sBrewing (CAMRA’s monthly newspaper)and on camra.org.uk closer to the date.
DRINKING BUDDIESSir Tom Jones has topped a poll of pop androck stars people would most want to havea pint of beer with. CAMRA’s survey, undertaken for the Great British BeerFestival, showed that Sir Tom would be themost popular drinking companion. RobbieWilliams, Gary Barlow and Annie Lennoxalso featured in the poll.
SMALL BEER
Mine’s a Pint15
Where everyone is welcome, from the young tothe old, and our four legged friends too!
6 Cask Ales & Real Hand Pump Cider
BT & Sky Sports
Homemade Food
Seperate Family Bar
Free Function Hire
Children’s Play Area
Dogs Welcome
Pub Quiz Thursday
Come down and meet the team and see what a real pub is.
www.theelephantandca stlepubhurst.co.uk*CAMRA Membership card must be presented
10p OFFReal Ales &
Real Ciders for
CAMRA Members
Mine’s a Pint16
2 Broad Street Reading, RG1 2BH
01189 [email protected]
A Community pub in theheart of Reading
Follow us on twitter @AlehouseReading
3 West Berkshire Ales5 Guest Ales
Real Cider, Perry and Mead
Local CAMRA Pub of theYear 2014 Runner Up
Local CAMRA Cider Pub of the Year 2013 & 2014
Pub quiz first Monday of the month
e e
The Royal Oak at Knowl Hill, Bershire is a smallHomely family village pub. The locals say “It’s thehub of our village”, ideal for walkers, cyclists andis situated by The Knowl Hill Bridel Path, so it is
also great to hack out to for lunch.
Call 01628 822 010for more information
3 Real AlesOpening Times: 11am to 11pm Mon to Sat,
12pm to 10.30pm Sunday
Food Served: All day Saturday and Sunday
KNOWL HILL COMMON RG10 9YE
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Call: 01628 826622 / 2781 Email: [email protected] Visit: www.birdinhand.co.uk
The Bird in Hand, Bath Road,Knowl Hill, Twyford,
Berks RG10 9UP
A charming 14th Century Country Inn betweenMaidenhead and Reading. The Inn serves a host
of regularly changing Real Ales.
The beautifully refurbished Restaurant overlooksthe garden and the Inglenook fire provides a
warm and cosy setting.
The Inn has 22 en-suite bedrooms - standard,superior and suites. One room is adapted forthe disabled. Free wifi available throughout.
Join us for ourQuiz Nights
Free Entry. Winning team geta free round of drinks.
No charge just a bit of fun! 8pm start
21st Sept, 12th Oct, 2nd &. 23rd Nov, 14th Dec.
There has probably never been so much realale in this country and so many new brewershave started up that it is often difficult tokeep up with it all. So when I see a pump clipon the front of a handpull I am always keento find out more about the beer being sold.However, this is not always possible as somany brewers produce clips with little or noinformation on them. Quite often a veryclever (or silly?) name or amusing picture or,quite often, just the name of the beer - that’sabout it.
OK, I don’t need a tirade of brewing terminol-ogy or to know which field the hops weregrown in, but I would like to know a bit moreabout the brew on offer.
So what do I want to see on the pump clip?Well, here’s my list:(a) the brewery name(b) where the beer is brewed(c) the ABV, which is a guide to the strengthof the beer, and(d) some indication of the style of the beer -e.g. “a golden, citrus ale made using NewWorld hops” or “a ruby-red bitterwith a malty finish”.
Of course, you can still have theclever name and amusing picture(though I have to admit that a fewof them are a bit tasteless) butplease let me know what the beer isgoing to be like. Several brewersprovide descriptions on little tags on
the rear of thehandpump andthis gives thebar staff someinformation about the ale,which they can impart to the punter.
Many good pubs will also have blackboards giving a brief description of thebeer on offer and most will offer you a smallsample to try it. But I have been into a lot ofpubs where the pump clip had no informationand the bar staff had no idea about the taste,colour or aroma of the ale.
Locally, if you want to see what I’m on about,then look no further than Binghams ofTwyford who provide all the information Icould ever want on their pump clips. There’salso Sherfield Village who tell me about thebeers and most of our other local brewers dolikewise. But I think more of them (large andsmall) need to match Binghams style and giveus the same amount of information about
each brew, especially as there are somany new types of beer and somany seasonal ales being produced.I love them and enjoy searchingthem out, so a little more info onthe pump clip and I will be able toenjoy them even more!
Dave McKerchar
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Please tell me more about your lovely beers!
IntroductionThe story of yeast in human developmentis immensely important and it goes backto the dawn of civilisation. Remnants ofyeast have been found amongst earlyEgyptian artefacts dating back to around4,000 BC.
Yeast is vital to the production of beerand leavened bread and also takes a partin the production of most blue cheeses;we could live without it but the worldwould be a much blander place. Yeastproduces the alcohol that we like to bepresent in our beer but most of the yeastis removed by settling so that the endproduct is usually clear. During fermenta-tion yeast also acts as a barrier to otherbacteria and also provides a chemicalenvironment that discourages growth ofother bugs.
The Biology of YeastYeast is a single-celled microorganism,technically classified as a fungus and iswithin the Eukaryota domain. There arearound 1,500 different species of yeast,but beer drinkers are particularly interest-ed in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae (beeryeast) and its sub-species which ingestcarbohydrates/ sugars and produce car-bon dioxide and alcohol in a processcalled fermentation.
Beer yeast works in a wet environmentand needs water to remain active – in thebrewing process this water is called Wort.Carbon dioxide bubbles to the surface,escaping into the atmosphere when possi-ble but near the end of the brewingprocess is captured and remains dissolvedin the beer. It is responsible for the condi-tion or fizz in good beer that adds to thepleasure of consumption.
The alcohol stays in solution but eventu-ally the concentration of alcohol poisonsthe yeast itself which dies and begins todecay. Various strains of yeast have dif-ferent tolerance to the concentration ofalcohol, and this will usually limit thestrength of the beer to around 10% to15% but special varieties such asChampagne yeast can go up to over20%.
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Yeast Cell Magnified, courtesy of www.woodlandbrew.com
The flavour of a beer is defined by thecombination of ingredients, processes andyeast. Brewers prefer to use a yeast thatthey know well, and relatively recentlythey have been able to keep samples oftheir yeast in a Yeast Bank. This acts asboth a storage facility and a laboratorywhich will store a viable sample of theyeast and generate new yeast generationsunder controlled conditions so the brewercan call on them as a sort of insurance policy should they get an uncontrolledmutation or an infection (or a total lossin a fire) and can get back to the originalyeast.
The History of YeastBack before recorded history, someone inthe Middle East left some grains in abowl of water. The natural yeasts fromthe surface of the grain or from theatmosphere fermented with the sweetsugars in the grain and produced alcohol.The result was seen as a gift from God!
When brewers became a bit more organisedthey soon discovered that if they re-used the froth skimmed off the top ofone batch of beer as a starter for the nextbatch, the beer would ferment muchmore quickly and the results were muchmore predictable.
Yeast has been the subject of research fora lot of scientists who subsequentlybecame famous. Louis Pasteur discoveredin 1857 that if you blow oxygen through
a yeast broth the cell division rate willincrease but the amount of fermentationwill decrease. Emil Christian Hansenworked for the Carlsberg brewery inDenmark and managed to refine a batchof yeast cells so that there was only a single strain of yeast present, he namedthis Saccharomyces carlsbergensis in hon-our of his employer. This strain has beenused since 1883 for the production ofmost of the Lager style yeasts (this yeastis nowadays called Saccharomyces pastorianus after Pasteur).
Top Fermented BeerTop fermented beer is the style that weassociate with most British beers. Whenthe yeast works it floats to the top of theferment. The yeast on the very top driesout a bit and forms a crust that acts as abarrier to external contamination. Topfermenting yeast ferments very quicklyand generally ferments the wort in beerwithin 3-5 days. When beer is fermentedin the summer months in the UK it canget too hot so many brewers' fermenta-tion vessels have cooling coils runninground the edge to “attemporate” it.These same coils can also be used towarm it up a bit in winter. Beer brewedwith a top fermenting yeast generally hasa warmer taste. It should be tasted at12°C where the best natural flavoursdevelop.
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ALL ABOUT YEAST
In the fourth of a series of articles about the ingredients of beer, Russ Woodtalks about the living organism that helps it all develop – yeast. Photos are by Russ unless otherwise stated.
CONTINUED OVERLEAF
Bottom Fermented BeerBeer production used to be a seasonal oper-ation in many European countries, where itwas often too hot in summer to ferment reli-ably. Beer was made in winter and springand then stored in caves so it could be con-sumed all year round. Lager is the Germanword for “to store”.
Bottom fermented beer generally has acleaner and sharper taste than top ferment-ed. It should be consumed at a lower tem-perature than other beers, the taste suffers ifit is too warm. Some of the mass produc-tion brewers (who may brew over beechwood and use rice in the wort) use a farcooler temperature to disguise the inferiorquality of their offering. Longer storagemeans that the yeast has longer to settle outand the beer was naturally clearer than whatwas available up until then.
Around 1842 Joseph Groll, a Bavarian-bornbrewer from Plzen brewed the first golden
beer using light malts with lower proteinand the benefit of the local soft water. Thisbecame known as Pilsner Urquell (originalpilsner). The clarity and lightness of the newbeer made a move from opaque stoneware,metal and leather drinking vessels to glasswhich made the beer more appealing.
Spontaneous FermentationLambic beer, generally brewed in Belgium,depends upon spontaneous fermentation.The brewer does not pitch a specific yeast
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YEAST - CONTINUED
Yeast waiting to be pitched
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but the wort “catches” the local yeast fromthe environment. Lambic Beer will be thesubject of an article to be published in afuture issue of Mine’s a Pint.
Wine production depends upon the yeastalready present on the skins of the grapes.This is one reason why grape juice is notboiled during production.
Bottle Conditioned BeerBottle conditioning provides an extra dimen-sion of taste to a beer. It allows the beer toapproach the complexity of taste of a goodcask-conditioned draught beer.
Uncontrolled fermentation in a bottle willcause a build-up of pressure with the carbondioxide so the brewer wants to ensure that thebottle doesn’t burst. The beer has to be fer-mented to a stage where only a precise amountof the sugars remain. One way is to ensurethat all the sugars have been fermented out firstand then add a precise amount of new wort toeach bottle in a process called priming.
Some brewers will filter the beer so that allof the original yeast is removed and replacedby a slow-acting yeast that will also form afirm sediment that won’t kick-up and becloudy when it is poured by a drinker with asteady hand. Another reason to substitutethe yeast for a more durable one is to makesure that the dormant yeast cells don’t actu-ally die and generate off flavours.
Cloudy or ClearWorking yeast is suspended throughout thewort. As the sugar is consumed the dormantyeast cells will settle to the bottom. When ithas settled sufficiently the beer will bepoured off this yeast into casks, tanks etc. A small quantity of yeast will remain in suspension for secondary fermentation tooccur in the cellar of the brewery. Justbefore it is delivered to the pub the brewermay add a fining agent to help the yeast tofully settle.
Some brewers intend that their beer isserved cloudy and do not filter their beer atall or add finings. A little bit of yeast willnot harm the drinker. Wheat beers andSaisons are usually cloudy, and other beerstyles can be cloudy, especially if they haveexotic ingredients and brewers should indicate on the pump clip if a beer shouldnot be served clear.
Did You Know?The Oregon State legislature officially appointed Beer Yeast as the Official StateMicrobe.
La méthode champenoise that was traditionally used for bottled champagnewas invented by an English cider makerChristopher Merret, beating the discovery20 years later by Dom Perignon.
Yeast multiplies as part of the process of fermentation and as a by-product can costmoney to dispose of. I believe that the brewers actually pay Unilever to take awaythe raw-material for their delicious Marmiteproduct (love it or hate it!).
When beer ferments it produces a lot ofCO² so that if it is not properly vented tothe outside air the brewery workers have towear breathing apparatus and work in pairs.In years past there have been a number ofdeaths!
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YEAST - CONTINUED
Square open-top fermenting vessel
The CausesSupermarket conversions: The Maiden Over, EarleyAt a week’s notice, Earley’s Good BeerGuide - listed community pub was shut byEnterprise Inns amid reports Tesco hadsigned a lease. This meant that attemptingto list the pub as a community asset was tono avail; government policy allows pubs tochange to supermarkets without needingplanning permission (unlike a residentialconversion). One measure remained to tryand keep the pub open; the quickly-formedresidents’ group asked for a little used toolcalled an Article 4 Direction to force Tescoto seek planning permission [see the defini-tion to the right]. To our delight,Wokingham councillors overruled their officers' recommendation and imposed theArticle 4 just as we went to press. TheFacebook group “Maiden Its Not Over” hasbeen set up by campaigners.
Sold to a developer: The Red Lion, ThealeAnother sudden closure of a Good BeerGuide-listed community pub took place in
the spring when Punch Taverns shut the RedLion and sold it to a developer. The skittlealley, the only one in the area (the onlyother in our branch is at the GardenersArms in Emmer Green), is proposed to bedemolished as part of a residential develop-ment application. CAMRA is objecting andthe recent pub protection policy introducedby West Berkshire Council will be tested inthis case where no effort took place to market the pub as a going concern.
The toxic cocktail of high rents, low repairsand poor licensee relations: The Lyndhurstand The Eldon ArmsInstances of pubcos and some family brewers mistreating licensees have grown inrecent years, with 4 critical Business SelectCommittee reports leading to action in thisyear’s Queen’s Speech. This includes reportsof astronomical rent increases, artificiallyhigh costs, poor building maintenance anddubious advice, with some licensees com-plaining about being sold a lease under falsepretences. Part of the reason for pub closures is that potential entrants to thetrade are being warned off. According toreports, both the Eldon and Lyndhurstclosed due to different problems betweenthe pubco or brewery owner and the publi-cans involved.
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The Dise
The CuresIndustry reformThe Fair Deal for your Local campaign iswinning part of its battle to deal with pub-cos mistreating licensees as a statutory codeof practice is being brought in, with a pow-erful adjudicator. CAMRA wants theGovernment to finish the job and ensurepublicans are no worse off in a tied pubcolease than if they were free of tie. The miss-ing ingredient is the right of a publican to beoffered a fair market rent only option, sowholesale beer prices become the same as inthe free trade. Join the campaign atwww.fairdealforyourlocal.com and write toyour MP to press for action on this.
Planning reform - because Pubs MatterIn August CAMRA launched a new cam-paign to close the very rules that Tesco andEnterprise tried to exploit in shutting theMaiden Over. It will focus on requiringplanning permission to turn a pub into asupermarket, as well as strengthening theAsset of Community Value process.www.pubsmatter.org.uk
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asesGareth Epps writes about the diseases
threatening the future of our pubs – the causes and cures.
The technical bit …Change of use is legally defined as development.Development requires planning permission.Change of use from pub to shop is automaticallygranted permission by national policy. An Article 4 Direction removes that nationally-granted permission and means that instead permission has to be sought from the localcouncil for the change of use.
It does not save the pub on its own, but it doesmean that the proposal has to go through theplanning process and be properly examined. It means that local communities can have theirsay. And it levels the playing field dramatically.If you think that change of use should alwaysrequire planning permission, then sign the petition on the Pubs Matter website.
Hitting Reading’s Pubs
CAMRA is a Campaign of Two Halves – there'sa social side and a more active, campaigningside. The social side is important because it’s fun… the campaigning side is important because,without real ale and the pubs to drink it in, thesocial side wouldn't exist.
So you’re a CAMRA member, but how can
you get more involved with the campaign?And, more importantly, why should you?
Here are some stories from two local peoplewho are active at all levels of CAMRA.They explain in their own words how andwhy they joined, and why they volunteer todo more for the campaign.
I joined CAMRA after a few friends (whowere members) pointed out that the beer Iliked was actually real ale. So I joined, andimmediately set out to visit local Good BeerGuide pubs where I lived in Essex. When Igot back to uni, I found that a couple of myclosest friends had gone through the samething! Much exploration of Leicestershirewatering holes ensued.
I went to a few meetings early on, but foundthem tedious. I went to meetings over theyears in different areas to see what went on,but nothing had changed. My involvementas an active member came after a change ofpersonal circumstances. After going to amembers weekend in Southport, my firstmeeting was the Berkshire South Eastbranch AGM! Everyone was welcoming andI started to make good friends and reallyenjoy what we did - at first the social sideand then as magazine editor, before pro-gressing to branch chair. It taught me thatactivating people starts with keeping a funelement and being friendly and welcoming,alongside the branch business.
Five years as branch chair is enough, and sostanding for RD - once all the children hadpassed their 18th birthdays - was the logicalstep. Having taken a keen interest in whatwent on at regional and national levels itwasn’t a big step except for the time com-mitment. And I am enjoying it, the little greycells get stretched, and I keep meeting somegreat people and making new friends.
In fact, the wonderful people I have metthrough CAMRA and the friendshipsformed over a pint or three is rewardenough for getting involved in itself. As tothe future, who knows, but I know I coulddo a job in the campaign at any level.
Hi, my name is JD, I am moving into myfourth year at university and in my sparetime I work at the Alehouse on the bar andin the cellar. I am also a keen home brewer,enjoy working at beer festivals and enjoy agood pint of stout even in the summerweather!
I became involved with CAMRA originally
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Why Volunteer?
Nick BoleyRole: Regional DirectorLives: BracknellJoined CAMRA: 1976
JamieDuffieldRole: Young Members’ContactLives: ReadingJoined CAMRA: 2013
because I was the President of ReadingUniversity's Real Ale Society (RURAS). Asan officially affiliated society, at the time I felt that we were disconnected from thelocal real ale scene and should seek to buildbridges between students and the widercommunity, be that in socialising, campaign-ing or brewing. With CAMRA’s backing, weset up our very first ongoing pub of the yearcompetition with great success and haveorganised socials and meetings with theintentions of intermingling our members.
As a result of our efforts, RURAS won lastyear's “Most Improved Society” award atthe societies ball.
I ended up volunteering for the role ofyoung members' contact last year, with theintention of maintaining the link betweenRURAS and CAMRA from the other side ofthe fence. I am also responsible for organis-ing joint socials as well as other events with-in the young members' community.
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If JD or Nick have inspired you, then please come along to one of our local branch events or speak to Katrina, our
branch contact, to find out more. Events and contactdetails are listed on page 3 and we'd love to see you.
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