Aha!
We have a firm opinion from (surprisingly); a chap called Rich from Darlington (or possibly Milton Keynes)...
He’s probably gone to bed by now (well he should have), but I’d be interested on his take on this subject.
He strikes me as exactly the kind of person that would look at you with dismay as he asked everyone what they were having and you said “I’ll have a pint of Doom Bar please”.
He’d quite possibly bring it back to the table and pour it over your head in fact...
Although you’d never be quite sure what you’d done to upset him as he’d never talk to you properly again.
So Darlo. What should we have ordered? Some of us need help here...
(And even I wouldn’t have asked for Doom Bar
)
Where to start!
Firstly, I am northern. Therefore proper, northern, working men's brown ale is best. On that there can be no discussion.
Secondly, I will try anything. Last weekend was Rhubarb ale and i have even found some southern ales I like!
If i walk into a pub and there is only Doom Bar ( which was quite nice till they sold out to the man) I will have a bottle of lager. i cant stand boring, mainstream ale when there is so much good stuff out there and I cant stand brew dog. All style, no substance. I relaise that my tastes will not be the same as everyone else but PLEASE try to look wider than the mainstream rubbish out there. There are so many good local beer shops, bars and breweries out there. Go and find them and explore.
So what do i like? My favorite breweries are:
- Maxim Brewery (Sunderland)
- Mordue (Newcastle)
- Ilkely
- Ossett
- Timothy Taylor
- Hornes Brewer ( MK)
- Blackened Sun Brewery ( MK)
- Williams Bros
- Cairngorm
- Orkney
- Swannay Brewery (Orkney)
- Saltaire
- Castle Rock
- Exmoor
- York Brewery
- Leeds Brewery
- Harviestoun
- Titanic Brewery
- Brass Castle (Malton)
- Hadrian Border
- Shepherd Neame ( Shamefully)
- Skinners (Truro)
- Harveys ( Sussex)
- Tyne Bank
In Spoons pubs up north I have found that Doom Bar is always served though a sparkler and I think it ruins the taste and feel of the drink. But when fresh and pulled straight I love it and bar staff are always accommodating in that regard.
Beer should always be served with a sprinkler otherwise you get a pint of flat, horrible, southern dishwater.
Old Speckled Hen seems to me to be brewed for the bottle, either that or it's always a bit too slow to be shifted and I get it a few days past its prime.
Horrible.
Hobgoblin I find travels and keeps well and I can be assured of a good pint whenever I see it.
Horrible
Otter Ale doesn't make it to these parts often but I enjoy a pint whenever in the south west.
Acceptable - bit thin and insipid for me
Bishops finger and Abbot seem ubiquitous in the south east, but they must be very cheap to the trade to see them as often as I do up north.
Horrible mass market tosh
Landlord definitely best, it can travel well, but not always.
Decent. Proper Yorkshire ale
Old Golden Hen is my preference Over speckled.
Wouldn't drink either. Awful.
Old Speckled Hen is one that I have seen, and probably tried. Hobgoblin and Abbot, maybe - they sound familiar, but I don't recall (as often happens when beer and I mix).
All three are awful
My current favourite is probably Inveralmond Brewery's "Ossian",
Good choice.
Living in Scotland, it's mostly Scottish ales that I'm exposed to, but I did once receive a basket of ales from the Black Sheep Brewery as a thank you for pet-sitting, and I found them to be quite enjoyable. Golden Sheep was one that I particularly liked. There was also one called Riggwelter whose name apparently is derived from the situation where said animal ends up on its back, unable to get up!
Black Sheep was very nice and was often superb when i lived in North Yorkshire but is now only OK as they seem to have lost their mojo and gone away from making decent Yorkshire ale to trying to attract clueless trendy craft ale beady hipsters of the type who think Brew Dog is the best thing since sliced bread.
Riggwelter is still a good drop. They haven't messed that up like they have their best. It is a disgrace that a decent brewery like Black Sheep is knocking out rubbish like a golden ale. They make a bloody IPA now ffs. Shameful.
There may be a theme going on here, but along similar lines, Cairngorm Brewery do a beer whose name may breach forum rules...
Good call. Cairngorm is a good drop.
London Pride is the No1 for me but being on a budget of late Aldi's have some called Jesse James and Wild Bill and a few others which seem to hit the spot .
London Pride is awful. The quintessential cockney ale.
In London* I'll go for London Pride, especially if in a Fullers pub. If I see Landlord on the pumps that will normally trump anything else. Otherwise I will usually try something I'm unfamiliar with, especially if local.
I would only ever drink London Pride in an emergency. Awful southern rubbish.
I must admit, the beers listed aren't what I would normally drink, being generally either too strong or too dark for my taste.
Bishops Finger is probably one I'd prefer, it having quite a pleasent taste in spite of its strength.
Both Shepherd Neame (Finger) and Sharps (Doombar) have lesser known beers that I would prefer - Spitfire and Atlantic Ale respectively.
I never could get on with Old Speck (tastes too strong) and Hobgoblin (too dark).
Can't remember what Otter's like so can't comment.
My ideal pint would be light, a bit (but not too) hoppy and around 4.5%, but none of the above quite fit into that bracket. Not to say they're not perfectly good ales for what they are.
None of the above thank you. Awful. Bishops Fingers is about the only one worth considering
Harvey's pub several pints of their dark mild go down very nicely.
Harveys is a good drink, even if it is southern!