Managed to get to Pissarros today, even though I hadn't planned to drink this Friday, but an error with my heating meant I didn't really want to sit in a cold flat, and I was very happy I did visit. Pissarros now has 3 real ales served from handpumps, sells decent food, part of the building being a restaurant, as well as being able to eat in the bar area, and accommodation, which looks comfortable, and good value for Hastings (see website).
The ubiquitous Harveys Sussex Best (4%) was available, as usual; a guest ale at £2.95 a pint, all the way from Cheshire, the 4% Beartown Brewery's Kodiak Gold, a pale 'gold' coloured bitter; and my choice for the day, as I've had it before at the Dolphin, in Hastings medieval 'old town', Long Man Brewery's (see website) Old Man. This was excellent, a dark, deep red coloured 4.3% old ale, with a strong roasted malt flavour; and it appears to be a semi regular at Pissarros too, I'll have to watch out for it more, as I do often walk by this bar on my way to and from the railway station, the only negative being it's relatively expensive price at £3.50 a pint.
I also took advantage of my CAMRA membership at Hastings' Wetherspoons, the John Logie Baird, with my 50p voucher that knocked the price down from an already good value £1.99 a pint to drinking my pint of Spirit of Kent having spent just £1.49, cheers Mr Tim 'spoon! This is a 4% "XXX Pale Ale" and it did what it said on the label, it's a decent pale bitter from Westerham Brewery in nearby Kent (see website).
I finished off the day drinking in the Dolphin at Rock-a-Nore, by the fishermens' huts at the seafront below the 'old town', insufficient snow for me to get a decent outside shot, but a nice photograph of the fireplace, which was very welcoming, the strong wind making the sub-zero temperature feel even colder. Of course, being very obvious, of the 6 cask ales available, I mostly drank the Dark Star (see website) Hophead, talked about many times previously, pale, hoppy and bitter. I also had a pint of the only change to the beer menu from my last blog, ie the Loxley Ale being replaced by the 5.2% Laughing Frog, brewed by the Sussex-based 1648 Brewery (see website); 4 of the 6 ales on offer coming from local Sussex breweries. The Laughing Frog is a far too easy to drink full-bodied bitter, nice one.
Then, back out in the cold... Cheers!
