Harveys Dray to visit Hastings again...

The Harveys dray is once again visiting Hastings this Saturday, 9 months after the last visit. They start off at the Horse & Groom at St Leonards, I do believe, and then wander along the front to the 'Old Town', calling at various stops on the way, such as the White Rock Hotel, before reaching the Dolphin at Rock-a-Nore, where this photograph was taken last May. 

The dray, plus attendant wee dog, opposite the Stacey Marie (facebook). 

Promenading in Hastings...

Only a short stroll along the seafront, in the sunshine, from The America Ground to the bottom of London Road, St Leonards, and I found 3 bars that sell real ale, at prices mostly cheaper than the town centre, ie at £3.20-£3.50 a pint, nice!

Almost immediately I start walking, below the Grade II listed, late Victorian, 'gothic' Palace Court (star of the vampire film Byzantium, which I still haven't seen), I reach the Pig in Paradise, which changed hands earlier this year. I didn't eat at either of these establishments on the day, and they all serve food, but the Pig also has regular 'comedy club' nights, and music, a recent gig saw The Lambrettas playing! 

In addition, they have 2-4 real ales available, always an ale from the East Sussex brewer Long Man, and regularly a more common beer like Wychwood Hobgoblin or Sharps Doom Bar. On this visit I had the Long Man Best Bitter (4%), which was very pleasant, I do like their ales, as recently discussed. They also have a huge range of bottled beers, including 'craft' beers, eg from Meantime Brewery,  BrewDog and many American beers, and not a few Belgian beers either! They also sell a crafty keg from Long Man, ironically (to me) called Crafty Blonde (4.1%).

Next stop was the regular CAMRA Good Beer Guide entry, the bar of the White Rock Hotel, with its fine balconies looking out onto the seafront and pier. Here, one is blessed with a choice of 4 Sussex-brewed real ales, on this visit including the ubiquitous Harveys Sussex Best, Rother Valley Golden Valley, and Dark Star Hophead and The Art of Darkness, a pleasant easy to drink 3.5% deep dark red bitter with loadsa hops used. I do understand how they make these dark hoppy 'pale ales', but it's still an oxymoron, and still I'm always amazed at the flavours coming through from the hops... I do like this ale!  

My final port of call was in-between Warrior Square Gardens and London Road, St Leonards, the Gecko Bar & Bistro, 22 Grand Parade, which also has regular music, and which is a very recent find for me, though David, the licensee, assured me he's been here for 2 years now! Anyway, beers, in addition to the one real ale they have available, which David is planning to increase to two, and we had a bit of a chat about this, they sell a couple of BrewDog beers on draft. OK, crafty kegs, indeed, but BrewDog do know how to get the best out of the hops for their Punk IPA (5.6%), though a bit more costly at £4.60 a pint, though I've seen it for much more.

The Gecko Bar has an ale from Long Man as its regular, and it looks like it should be their excellent 4.2% bitter, Copper Hop, for some time to come now, and what a good choice too, though I'm looking forward to seeing what other ales may be appearing in the future, cheers! 

My interests in Dark Star...

Some people must think that I work for Dark Star, or have shares in the company, so I must declare my interests, much as politicians should... The only interest I have in Dark Star Brewing is drinking their excellent hoppy ales! If I was living back up in Sheffield, I'd be talking about Little Ale Cart or Steel City perhaps, or if Magic Rock or Oakham ales were more available to me locally, I'd be talking about them... 

Indeed, I love my hoppy ales... so let us begin with 2 Dark Star ales recently spotted at the White Rock Hotel, overlooking the beach and pier in Hastings. The Hophead (3.8%) is readily available elsewhere, and reported on lots by me, but I see the Art of Darkness (3.5%) much less, so I had to try another pint of it here, dark and hoppy, not easy to get too drunk on, consequently an excellent session ale, I love it! They also had Harveys Sussex Best (4%), and another interesting darker bitter from Rother Valley, the 5% Blues, which was bitter with a hint of coffee, and a dry finish, not bad at all.  

Of course, the Tower, London Road, 'higher' St Leonards/Bohemia, is another regular supplier of Dark Star ales for me in the locality, American Pale Ale (4.7%) being a regular on the bar, and Winter Meltdown (5%) a seasonal medium dark copper coloured bitter, a 'winter warmer' some say, but not up to the level of my old favourite ale of that style the Winter Warmer (5%) from Youngs, as was, which I was weaned on as a baby ;-) The Tower also recently had the very local brew, Hastings 'Vanilla' Porter, a special vanilla flavoured version of their 4.5% Porter at just £2.50 a pint! This has a roasted malt flavour, more what I would expect from a stout, with a dry aftertaste, not bad at all. Oh yes! A hint of vanilla too...  

Talking about Hastings Brewery, at the Albatross Club (RAFA club in nearby Bexhill on Sea), another regular supplier of Dark Star ales too, I recently re-tried the Hastings 'Handmade' number 5, the award winning (eg at the recent Eastbourne and York Beer Festivals) Hop Forward Pale Ale (4.8%). This is brewed with just a single hop, as the 'Handmade' brews are, in this instance 'Galaxy' hops, and like them all, plenty of hops are used too, which is likely why I prefer them to their regular brews. Number 5 is pale, very bitter, and very good too, so good that they brewed a lot more of it, and it is available in bottles and the recent mini-keg version of 'Party Sevens' (just in time for Christmas).

Talking about hoppy ales, the Dolphin at Rock-a-Nore, opposite the Fishermens beach and huts in Hastings 'old town', always has Dark Star Hophead on sale; my nickname in that establishment being 'Hophead Steve' unsurprisingly. However, also, recently, saw the return of Oakham Scarlet Macaw (4.4%), another excellent hoppy ale from Oakham, and this must be at elast the third time it has been on sale at the Dolphin, great stuff, cheers!

Hastings and even more great ales!

So, starting with the Tower, London Road, St Leonards, and, as you can see, it is about to get a makeover, hence the scaffolding... Anyway, great to see Lousia behind the bar, always good to keep in touch and be aware of the local updates.  Because of the refurbishment, Louisa has put the price of ale up by 10p a pint, hardly bank breaking, and very understandable, Louisa, and you do keep your prices extremely competitive; great ales at great value prices still, so, what to drink this time?

Whilst watching England thrash South Africa in the cricket, I drank a pint of all the 4 ales on offer, starting with the 3.9% Hopback Hop Medley, a slightly biscuity flavoured and dry pale bitter, very nice and just £2.40 a pint. Then the 4.4% Bristol Beer Factory Sunrise, a dry pale golden bitter with plenty of body at £2.60 a pint, followed by a pint of the 4.7% near-regular here Dark Star American Pale Ale (APA), the brewery having certainly kept up the excellent quality of this ale in recent months, pale and very hoppy, and at a great value £2.50 a pint! Finally, another excellent ale, Triple fff Brewery Ramble Tamble, the most expensive ale here on Wednesday at £2.90 a pint, but for that you get 5% of a pale-ish bitter with plenty of body and a fruity aroma and flavour that smacks your palate into submission!  Great stuff again Louisa, cheers!

 

I sat outside the White Rock Hotel bar, looking at the Channel and pier, (it was a bit foggy over the sea) and I sampled 2 of the 3 local ales they were serving on Tuesday, all at £3.10 a pint; 1 handpump not being used this day. I ignored the ubiquitous Harveys Sussex Best (4%), and, as you will see from my photograph, I had a half of the Arundel Sussex Gold, a 4.2% "golden bitter", quite pale though, with a slightly tart flavour, very nice by the second mouthful.  I also had a pint of the 1648 Saint George, a slightly darker bitter with a sweetness to the initial taste, then dry, slightly malty and bitterness coming through with the aftertaste. Not bad at all, and I do like to sit beside the seaside!

Finally, at the Dolphin, where all the ales are £3.50 a pint, here in the posher end of town, there were the usual 4 regulars, Sussex Best, Youngs Special and Dark Star Hophead and APA, and the ale pictured above from Nottingham.  Castle Rock ales are being seen a lot more of down here these days; they also have Elsie Mo (4.7%) coming on soon, and it's like never having left the North, with beers from Yorkshire breweries too, notably Kelham Island and Rudgate, more of shortly.  Anyway, one of the guest ales was Castle Rock Preservation "Fine Ale", a 4.4% 'heavier' ale with plenty of body, sweetish to taste and then with a dry aftertaste, not bad, but... 

...I'd missed them having the excellent Oakham Bishops Farewell, sadly, as it is a favourite of mine, it must have gone down a bit too easily, but now, on the bar, there was the Rudgate Norse Necta, 4.3% of pale dry bitter, reyt easy to drink, so I did!  If you see it anywhere, and you have a similar taste to mine, go for it...

Cheers!

Some disappointment in Hastings...

Not so much at the Tower in London Road, though, but then again... The lovely Sara was working, always pleasant, and some great ales on sale still, Ilkley Lotus IPA and Dark Star Revelation and APA (which I appeared to get the last pint of, thanks very much, but the other 2 are just to strong to only be drinking at a lunchtime visit, and, quite frankly, Doom Bar is very much a reserve for me, like if I'm dying of thirst!). I miss Hophead here at the Tower, longing for its return...

So, to the White Rock Hotel, down at the seafront, which did have Dark Star Hophead on sale, but nothing from the other 3 pumps, though it was after 12 noon, and it appeared 2 other ales may be pulled through at some time, but the lad behind the bar wasn't sure. OK, Hophead at £3.10 a pint, instead of the £2.30 the Tower charges, but... Quite frankly, that's me, 'frank' to the point of candour, I was reminded that, despite selling ales daily from 10.00 here, it's getting close to summer, and the beer was a bit warm, had definitely not been pulled through at all, and I wouldn't serve it up so cloudy (it was OK to drink-ish, and I always say I don't drink with my eyes, so can't be hypocritical, but I'll have no problems with my bowels this week!), this is why I don't drink in this establishment much during the summer, shame, as I like sitting out on the verandah looking at the sea...

So, where did I end up? At the General Havelock, to get my 'loyalty card' stamped and drink a decent pint of Hophead, but at £3.40 a pint now (inflation in a day). They also have Timothy Taylor Landlord and Harveys Sussex Best as regulars, and the Hophead of course, and Dark Star American Pale Ale (APA) as a guest on this day.  They usually sell Westons Old Rosie cider too, but a busy bank holiday weekend had seen that go down many gullets!

Good value food at the General Havelock too, had a wee chat to the lovely Ellen, serving today, and Jamie, the manager came in too, so pleasant company. For £4.45 I had a very nice cheese and red onion sandwich with mayo in brown bread, and a bowl of thick cut chips (the oil seemed a bit 'tired' and they were a bit fatty, but can't complain about the good value).  Cheers for another day...

Meanwhile...

So, Mark and I wandered the wilds of Kent and East Sussex a bit, but a few updates on other pubs back in my new home town of Hastings, starting with The Jenny Lind in the High Street in the 'old town', where I was pleased to meet up with Sarah again...

This is the new (I believe) raised area at the end of the main bar at the front of the pub, good to watch what's going on from, I should imagine.  Anyhow, they had 2 different ales on from my last visit, J W Lees John Willie's, which, for a 4.5% bitter, was easy enough to drink, but could have had more to it maybe, and Franklins Grumpy Governor, another 4.5% ale that I have discussed before.  I also had a pint of Theakstons Old Peculiar, which I hadn't drunk for many a year: 5.6% of a dark ruby red ale, that looks like a porter, but tastes fruitier than I remember, my taste buds they are a-changing!

It's also always a pleasure visiting the Tower, London Road, St Leonards, Hastings, and Sara (I think it's spelt, sorry if incorrect) was serving up the ales, many thanks, and we may even have a connection through Lewisham Hospital, I shall have to do some research...  Anyway, excellent value ales there, of course, that included Bateman's Yellabelly Gold (3.9% and £2.30 a pint), Sharps Doom Bar (4%), the excellent Dark Star American Pale Ale (APA, 4.7% and £2.40 a pint), and the classic Hop Back Summer Lightning (5% and £2.80 a pint), a full-bodied pale bitter, with a nuttier flavour from the hops than I can remember; though a lot of beer has gone down the guzzet since my last pint of it, great stuff! 

I hadn't been to the North Star, just off Bohemia Road (St Leonards), for a while, so a visit was required, and I saw Jamie there, which was a pleasant surprise, as he's usually opening up his other pub, the Havelock, around late morning/lunchtime. The usual Directors, Sussex Best, and Landlord were on, also Goddards Ale of Wight (3.7%) and Banks's Cereal Thriller (4%), and it does what it says on the label, cornflake flavoured beer, presumably a lot of wheat malt involved!  Jamie said they had a new Dark Star ale coming on soon, Carafa Jade (5%), so watch out for reports...

The White Rock Hotel, on the seafront, continues to sell 4 local ales at a respectable price, usually £3.10 a pint, unless a particularly strong ale.  On my recent visit, they had Isfield Toad in the Ale (4.8%), Harveys Sussex Best (4%), and Full Moon Celestial Blonde (4.3%), which was what I was going to sample... But! At £3.40 a pint, and well worth it, there was Dark Star Six Hop Ale, which I have discussed well before, so I shan't say anything other than 6.5% of full-bodied pale, fruity, hoppy bitter, with a dry finish, with a peach and grapefruit aroma, love it! 

 

Finally, a reminder, the real ale festival at the Albatross Club, near the seafront in Bexhill-on-Sea, starts 11.00 today (guess where I'll soon be?), ending Sunday, depending on remaining ale stocks, I should imagine. It will be open to the public, so not just members and guests, and CAMRA members, and just £2.60 a pint for every real ale, most served by gravity, can't be bad... so hurry up before it's all gone!

Cheers!

Wandering in Hastings - Part III (the final part, for now)

So, the cheapest and best value ales in Hastings?  I've already covered the 'old town' in Parts I and II, what about central Hastings and St Leonards/Bohemia?  Of course, the John Logie Baird, our Wetherspoons, sells cheap ales, guests usually at £2.09 here, with CAMRA tokens, that knocks the price down to one pint at £1.59 a day, but 'spoons are 'spoons and not what I'm looking for in this price comparison really...

Virtually opposite the (soon to be rebuilt) pier, at the seafront, is The White Rock Hotel, which has been the best value bar in the town centre since I moved to Hastings just over 2 years ago, and it remains so now with ales at £3.10 a pint, unless of high strength, which usually begins at about 5.5%...

So, buying Dark Star's Hophead (3.8%) at £3.10 a pint was a must for this visit, always a great ale to drink as it suits my palate. There were also 3 other local ales too, an excellent 'locale' policy from this establishment, thank you very much; the ales including the seasonal Harveys Sussex Old Ale (4.3%), Isfield Bitter (3.7%) and a tawny bitter from Arundel Castle (3.8%). Certainly, in the town centre, The White Rock Hotel offers the best value at £3.10 a pint for most ales, not taking Wetherspoons into account.   

Above St Leonards, in London Road, not far from Hastings own 'Bohemia', is the Tower, a good real ale house that sells ales from £2.30 a pint, where I've never had reason to complain about the condition of their ales, which has always been superb on my visits, as with my last two very recent visits, where even the 5.9% Thornbridge Jaipur, always a pleasure to drink, was on sale for just £3.00 a pint, excellent ales and excellent service from Sara(h) and the landlady, Louisa, many thanks!

I first drank the Dark Star Hophead, yet again, at 3.8% and £2.30 a pint, great ale at a great value price, excellent indeed, however, this was not available on my second visit, when Shenstone Hop 'Easter Beer' (3.8%) had replaced it; this is from a new brewery in Staffordshire.  As said earlier, I had the Jaipur, and the Dark Star American Pale Ale (APA), another light bitter at 4.7% with mucho fruity hop flavours and only £2.40 a pint.  There was also Banks & Taylor's Edwin Taylor's Extra Stout (4.5%), sorry, didn't try it as I was in a light and hoppy frame of mind, as I usually am.

Overall, the best value had to be at the Tower, London Road, £2.30 for Hophead, compared to up to £3.50 for the same ale elsewhere in Hastings, and only £2.40 for the APA!  As said above, central Hastings best value bar has to be at the White Rock Hotel, and, as said in a previous blog, the First In Last Out (FILO) has to be the best value in the medieval 'old town', with their own ales starting at £3.00 a pint, and guests at £3.30 a pint.

It was an arduous task, now over, for a while, cheers!

Sunday 27th January - Grumpy Guvnor at the Dolphin...

Obviously not Mark, the Dolphin's landlord, who's usually very jolly, but the 4.5% ale Grumpy Guvnor, brewed by one of the newer Sussex brewers, Franklins of Bexhill (website), I tried their session ale, the 3.8% English Garden, at the White Rock Hotel last week, as already reported.

There was also the usual regulars/seasonal regular, Dark Star Hophead, Youngs Special, and Harveys Sussex Best and Sussex Old Ale, and another ale too (oops! Forgot to note the name); but still 6 ales, whilst most years they drop to 5 for February, which shows how real ales are the only dynamic sales in the current beer climate!  Anyway, the Grumpy Guvnor is a deep reddish-brown coloured bitter, with a slight taste of roasted malt, very much like a traditonal best bitter, and very nice too, and they are soon to be serving the Franklins' 5.5% Citra, which I am very much looking forward to. Cheers!

Tuesday 22 January - The Albatross and White Rock Hotel.

Having to attend a meeting in Bexhill-on-Sea meant I could go to the Albatross Club in the evening, instead of making one of my more usual lunchtime visits.  Now, a song written by Elvis Costello and Paul McCartney, sung by Costello and, I believe, with the original recording including McCartney playing bass on it, may seem a strange way to kick off this blog, ie "Veronica" (youtube).  However, I'd been with a colleague of mine, I'm sure you can guess her name, and, at the Albatross Club, I met a second Veronica in one evening.  Whenever I see my colleague I always sing to myself this song, so it was, and is, very much on my mind.

Anyway, enough of my waffle, ales!  To gain entry to The Albatross, you need either to be a guest of a RAFA member, or a CAMRA member, and, as a visitor, you become obliged to donate a £1 fee for the visit, soon recovered when considering the ales cost around a pound a pint more elsewhere.  This year, though, I decided I should join the RAFA as an associate member, and so, I collected my membership cards to the Association and to the club, many thanks for accepting me!  So, ales...



4 ales available, which will be increased to 5 in the next few months, once a bit of work on the bar is sorted, all at £2.60 a pint, and always an interesting choice. This Tuesday there were 3 Sussex ales available Isfield Toad in the Ale, Dark Star Hophead (3.8%),and Rother Valley Exit, and Youngs Special (4.5%) for the more conventional drinker, ie, you can get this all over the country. Now, Dark Star beers too, can be bought in many places, indeed, I drank my first pint of Hophead some years ago, when I was living in Sheffield, and I've reported on this excellent pale hoppy bitter many times, so I shan't report on either today.

I've had the Isfield Toad in the Ale (4.8%) before, but couldn't remember what it was like, so had to try a half, and happy to.  It's a very dark deep red colour, which I couldn't remember, with a hint of chocolate malt in the flavour, very nice too.  The Rother Valley Exit (5.7%) was a more hoppy brew, subtitled as 'Sussex Strong Ale', much paler than I thought it would be, with a hint of malt 'biscuits' and a dry aftertaste.  So, 4 very different ales on offer, and all good!  

As can be seen, The Albatross Club won the South East Sussex Club of the Year award for last year, and Geoff, the Head Steward/Bar and Cellar Manager, I'm not really sure of his title, together with the Club officials and activists, must take much credit for providing this oasis for real ale drinkers in Bexhill.  As would be expected, convivial spirit was present, and much rewarding conversation was held with Geoff, the regularly present, Jonathan, and many others, including the Social Secretary (another nurse).  In addition, there was a very good band playing called 'Creole Jazz', sadly, the weather not allowing for too many people in the audience this evening, and Geoff even brought round plates of roasted potatos, very nice touch, cheers!

Now, why, if coming back home via the White Rock Hotel, should I place a photograph of the English Rose in Luton here?  Logical, really, for me anyway... As it was tipping down, I decided not to walk the 5 miles home, as I'd already got soaked walking the 5 miles to Bexhill earlier in the evening, so I cought the train back, but, wishing to visit the White Rock, and with about half an hour to spare before closing, I got off at Warrior Square instead of going all the way into Hastings. Once the barman, Johnny, and I started talking, by now I was the only customer, and his cleaning and tidying up was easy to balance with me talking my usual 9 to the dozen.  Anyway, we'd talked before, some time last year, and he comes from Luton, and we had discussed pubs there before, and I wanted to give the English Rose a plug, as I had a great time drinking there before a 'friendly' match at Luton a couple of years ago, together with my co-author of this blog, Kieran, and his mother, Cath, who lives in Luton, and who put us both up for the night, thanks muchly.  So, there you go...

In addition, during the clear up campaign, I also chatted to Johnny's colleague, Louise, indeed, they were both very pleasant company for a sodden peasant, as I felt at the time, balancing the tidying and cleaning up, with keeping the customer happy (moi), and, probably, just wishing I'd go home!  Many thanks for your patience. Oh yes, ales, they had the ubiquitous Harveys Sussex Best (4%), Franklins Pudding Stout (4.2%), which I have very recently commented on, so I had a pint of the Franklins English Garden, a 3.8% session bitter, pale, and very easy to drink.  Unless an ale is very strong they price them all at £3.10 a pint here, which is very reasonable, especially for a hotel on the seafront, and not very far away from the town centre, and there are usually 4 ales on sale, always from Sussex brewers.

So, a nice end to a very enjoyable evening (and I had a hot shower when I got in), many thanks and cheers!

Wednesday 16th January - White Rock Hotel + Tower again, Hastings

Another nice bright day, though a bit chilly, and a walk along the front, which enticed me into the White Rock Hotel, overlooking the sea, and delighted to see Kerry behind the bar again, who immediately suggested I drink the ale that I chose for myself anyway, excellent decisions.

 

There were 4 ales on, as usual, 1648 Signature (4.4%), Harveys Sussex Old Ale (4.3%), Dark Star Rock Star (6%), the result of cooperation with Magic Rock Brewery, an "American Brown Ale", and Franklins Pudding Stout.  I had a pint of the Pudding Stout, which Kerry said she had tried elsewhere and really liked, and it's a 4.2% very dark reddish brown ale, with a very strong chocolate aroma, less prominent in the taste, which has hints of spice, immediately a bit sweet, but with a bitter finish; liked it!

 

I then wandered up London Road to the Tower again, sadly, Louisa wasn't behind the bar this time, though she does employ lovely barstaff to fill in when she's not present, so no worries. There were 3 ales from Dark Star, the 6% Rock Star, 4.2% Winter Solstice, which I was going to drink, but didn't get round to (the music got a bit loud and she put snooker on the tv, pretty boring for me), and the 4.7% American Pale Ale (APA), which I did drink after trying a pint of the Nethergate "Growler Brewery" Hound Dog (4.2%).  This was a decent pale bitter, but not a patch on the APA though; Dark Star must have changed the recipe, I think, as it is tasting more bitter to me these days, crackin'!

 

 

I ended up walking back eastwards along the beach to the Hastings 'Old Town' and the Dolphin, which had the same 6 ales as I've already reported, the Hophead, Special, Sussex Best and Old Ale, Riptide and Loxley Ale, and the wonderful Louise and Debs behind the bar.  Also, I met The Quaffer, editor of Sussex Drinker, and had a good chat to him, and became a bit merrier than I usually get.

Cheers!
 

New Year 2012-13 - Hastings

Happy New Year!

So, apart from visiting the Dolphin, Rock-a-Nore, 'Old Town', have I been anywhere different, or drunk anything special over the New Year?  Well, yes, actually... The Dolphin had it's usual Dark Star Hophead, Young's Special and Harveys Sussex Best on, as well as the Harveys Sussex Old and Hastings Porter, plus the 4.2% St Austell 'Cornish Pale Ale' Tribute, another pale and hoppy beer, so Christmassy beers no more...

But not at the White Rock Hotel, on the seafront, vitually opposite the Pier, where I wandered in on the off chance to see if the Dark Star Imperial Stout, a massive 10.5%, was on tap yet, and, luckily, it was being drawn through by Kerry as I waited!  A whopping £2.50 a half, but then, when considering the strength, a half of this is like drinking a pint of strong ale at an equivalent 5.2%, so not so expensive really. "What was it like?" I hear you ask, well, it was nothing like the 10% Imperial Stout I remember drinking many years ago, that was brewed by Durham Brewery, in fact, if given this in a blind tasting, I would have guessed it was either a barley wine or Christmas beer, because it released a Christmas Pudding basinful of flavours in my mouth, very full bodied and nice, but a tad too sweet really for me really.

What else did I get up to? I visited the Tower, London Road, to watch a football match on Sky, and to take advantage of their excellent value ales. I started with a couple of pints of the Kent KGB, that I recently reported on, gave the Sharp's Doom Bar (only £1.99 a pint for a seasonal special price until New Years Eve), and even the Dark Star APA, a miss, because the 5.7% Dark Star Revelation was available at £2.90 a pint, crackin' ale and crackin' value...  The Revelation, as I've probably said too often, is a revelation, a pale ale bursting with hops and flavour, and from this month, it becomes a permanent ale on the Dark Star inventory, crackin'!   

Finally, I also visited the Hastings Arms, George Street in the 'Old Town', a Shepherd Neame pub, so the choice was... well, as you can see in the photograph above. Although the ale you can see me about to drink is in a Bishop's Finger glass, I had that fine ale last time I was here, as recently reported, but I drank the 5% Christmas Ale, at £3.50 a pint, more the norm for Hastings prices, a more easier to drink ale than the Imperial Stout, which had tasted like a 'Christmas' ale to me, maybe even like one of those big beers from Belgium, like Gulden Draak.  No, Shep's version of Christmas Ale was lighter than expected, quite bitter, and with a nutty, maybe 'walnut', hoppy aftertaste. Liked it! 

So that was it, I've plans to go further afield soon, but in the meantime, it's Hastings for me, cheers!  

19th December - Hastings 2nd Christmas Fun Day for me.

I'll try to get to many of my regular pubs and bars in Hastings before Christmas, but for logistical and monetary reasons, I shan't make them all, sadly, but I'll have a bash!  First this Wednesday was the White Rock Hotel down on Hastings front, near the pier, and Kerry behind the bar, always a pleasure to see her there, very knowledgeable and a great barperson too.

The ales here are usually £3.10 a pint, unless over 5%, and consequently, we see the 7.8% Harveys Christmas Ale at £4.00 a pint, which was certainly worth trying a half of (I hate to think of people drinking too much of the 10.5% Dark Star Imperial Stout that is due to come on very soon, I'll probably only have a half of that too!).  So, the Christmas Ale, very nice, if a tad too sweet for me, full-bodied, as you'd expect, a bit of a 'Christmas Pudding' of a beer really! I also had the Rother Valley Blues, much easier to drink at just 5% (I'll try to keep seasonal exclamation marks to a minimum), a very nice dark, roasted malt of a stout, very much enjoyed by me.  They also had Dark Star The Original (5%) and Hastings Brewery's best ale to date (in my opinion) their 4.5% Porter.

Up London Road at St Leonards, and on the corner of Tower Road, I reached the Tower, which I still am not sure of the reason for the name, was there an old Norman tower here, or is it named after a church tower? I shall find out, have to really... Anyway, my favourite St Leonards pub, great ales at good value prices and friendly female bar staff, what more could a Beermeister want?  I did mention ales, yes Dark Star's not quite strongest yet Critical Mass, a mere 7.4%, and their APA too, 4.7%, call that strong?!?

Anyway, I avoided the two Dark Star ales, being a bit worried about falling over sometime today before I get near to my bed, so I decided between the other two, Hop Fuzz English (4%), which I have already had before, so it had to be the wheat beer from Rother Valley Golden Valley, and a very manageable 4.2%.  This was a very pale, quite dry and bitter beer, very much to my taste, cheers!

I then crossed Bohemia Road to the North Star, where I found 5 ales on that I've drunk at least a pint of every one in the past, though some very interesting Christmas ales, and Dark Star 'mad' ones, to come on soon, bother... Anyway, the ales were Moorhouse's Pendle Witches Brew (5.1%), always a pleasant dark ale with a strong flavour; the ubiquitous Harveys Sussex Best (4%), OK if you like a dependable bland session bitter; Timothy Taylor Landlord (4.3%), so well written about elsewhere, and a decent pint when well kept, as they do here; Hogs Back TEA (4.2%), it was a bit like being in a Kent pub, see my previous blogs re Kent; and Rudgate Jorvick Blonde, 3.8% and my choice for this visit, a nice pale hoppy bitter, well, that's my taste.  After wishing everyone a "Merry Christmas, if I don't see you before" I decided to go down to Hastings Centre and visit the North Star's sister pub...

the General Havelock.  5 handpumps, which had 4 ales and a cider on, Westons Twist (4%), a "mulled cider", apparently with "a warming winter spice flavour".  Anyway, I looked to the ales, Dark Star Hophead, Timothy Taylor Landlord, and Harveys Sussex Best, and the 4.3% Sussex Old Ale, that I gladly had a pint of, and gratis too, a reward of the sister pubs' loyalty card, cheers and Merry Christmas Jamie!

Thursday 8th November - Hastings

Visited by the 'Larkmeister', a Mackem today, so, we had a few pints over the course of the day, first at the First In Last Out (FILO) in Hastings Old Town, (High Street).

 

Mike, the landlord, was at the bar when we arrived, but was not staying for a drink, however, as usual, he's great company, and always a good conversation, although only brief today. However, the lovely new Latvian barmaid, Elina, was there for when Mike had left, not so bad company either to be honest, and a good pint puller to boot, thanks for the ales Elina! 

 

Four of their own beers were on sale, and Harveys Hadlow Bitter (3.5%). The 4 FILO ales were Crofters Best Bitter, their 3.8% session ale, Old Town Tom (4.5%), if you haven't visited for a while this is a renamed ale due to another brewery's threat of prosecution over its old name, Cardinal Sussex Porter (4.6%), and Gold, a 4.8% Premium Bitter, which I rather enjoyed, nice and pale, quite bitter, with a good body. 

From the FILO, we wandered over The Bourne (now a road, not a river anymore) and walked down All Saints Street, enjoying the medieval buildings; I make a reasonable tour guide, I hope.  Anyway, we wandered down to the seafront and westwards to the White Rock Hotel, near the pier, which has a reasonably priced bar with 4 real ales, always sourced locally, not so bad for a bar very close to the centre of Hastings.

 

The 4 ales were Hastings Best (4.1%) and Pale Ale (4.7% and using American hops), Harveys Sussex Old Ale (4.3%, not bad, but not a patch on their 4.5% Old Ale, more of which another day), and the 4.1% V S Old Ale from 1648 Brewery. I had to try the 1648, as new to me, the ale, that is, not the brewery, and it's a very decent seasonal ale with a hint of licquorice, like many of these darker ales.

Now we were a wee bit hungry, so wandered back to the Old Town and visited what many locals regard as the best Fish & Chip shop/restaurant in Hastings, the Life Boat Restaurant, where we enjoyed our meals, and the Larkmeister even 'supersizing' his meal up to a large piece of cod for just 20p extra, and it was a huge piece of fish too, he even ended up leaving some food! Anyway, I stuck to a normal sized piece of fish, which was fairly large in itself, and we were served by an enchanting young woman, originally from Eastbourne, I believe her name was Jess, but regret, for once, not making a note of her name, sorry if I'm wrong, Tess/whoever, I'll buy you a drink...

Our final port of call was the Dolphin, for the Thursday night quiz, which was a great laugh as ever! I shall update details of the Dolphin's ales very soon, in another blog, as I was there a few times in the following days.

 

Cheers!

Tuesday 16th October - Bexhill and back...

A 10 mile round trip today on foot along the seafront, first eastwards to Hastings 'Old Town' to drop something off for a mate, then westwards to Bexhill-on-Sea, to the De La Warr Pavilion, no longer sporting a bus falling off the roof (work of art, apparently)...

To the RAFA Club, The Albatross, with it's 3 ales on sale, a slight mix up, but soon sorted out, the good company of Jeff, the 'steward' and purveyor of fine ales, and many others, including Jonathan and Tim, who both bought me a half, and I shall have to remember the mutual round on my next visit, many thanks, gentlemen! Jonathan had also told me about a local 'get you home' service he's been using, where someone turns up on a wee bike, puts it in your boot and drives your car home with you in it, see www.booterscooter.co.uk for more details; this branch is obviously for the Hastings and Bexhill areas in East Sussex, but I've heard of similar around the country.

So, what were the ales this Tuesday? Well, it was there, so I had to have a pint of it... Dark Star Hophead, love it! But, to prove I'm not just a 'Hophead', I had to try at least a half of the other two ales, both from Rother Valley Brewery. So I had a half of each, the Ruby Wheat Beer (RWB), a 4.4% ruby wheat ale, does what it says on the label, though more a brown colour than ruby red, but who's quibbling? The flavour is distinctly of toasted walnuts to me, Jonathan suggested another nut, but we agreed this must be from the use of the wheat in the recipe, whatever, very nice.

 

But, to the Northiam IPA, a 5% IPA, you may not be surprised to read.  Now this was excellent! I can't believe I wanted to drink more of this rather than go back to the Hophead, but I did, how can I describe it? It was refreshing, though full bodied, a crackin' dry pale bitter, I loved it, and, frankly, as it was 5% I did get a wee bit merry, cheers lads!  And so, back eastwards, walking very much on the beach as the tide was a fair way out...

To the White Rock Hotel, virtually opposite Hastings Pier, and Johnny the bartender here this afternoon, good chat inbetween other customers, cheers, good service. As ever, 4 local ales; one of the good things about both the White Rock Hotel and The Albatross is that they sell local ales from the smaller breweries, great support! 1648 Britannia (4.1% and reported before); W J King Kings Old Ale, a 4.5% darker ale for the Autumn, presumably, the norm for this time of year; Weltons Sussex Pride, a 4% pale-ish bitter; and Dark Star English Pale Ale, a 4.5% ale made from "100% English malt and hops", plenty of body and pale, very nice again, as I sat on the veranda quaffing my pint and completing the sudoku in the Metro.

 

A very enjoyable day, cheers!