Supterday

Hello,

         on Saturday I popped in the pub after overtime. I had earned some extra cash and decided to spend it about 7 weeks in advance. In the end, due to events far North in Cumbria, Tash was quite late joining me. Very quite late. Luckily, in the meantime, I decided to sup in the pub. And virtually remained sober. Here are the details of those twelve hours....

I got to Shakespeares at 14.15 and had a pint of the excellent, biting hopped Arbor Triple Hop at 4.0%. I supped this very slowly as it turned out, joined briefly by Paul and his family, before I spotted T_i_B from the internet. Having got his attention (he does not answer to Tib) I chatted with him for a good hour or two. He started on the super strong Brodies Simcoe for Breakfast whilst I moved onto a 7.2% Red IPA from Buxton - just a half of course. Tom (for it is he) then moved down to the Arbor and I joined him for a last couple of halves of the same, before heading for food nearby.

The Three Tuns was busy, as it often is thankfully, and I managed to get a seat at the right near the bow end of the pub. I had a half of Blue Bee Motueka and ordered a chip butty with blue cheese and bacon. The menu is reduced since this time last year and this was actually quite a small butty, but it still did the trick. I spoke to Tash and she was still trying to find out details of the flooding in Cumbria so I quickly got myself another half of Motueka and sat back down.

I walked very slowly (deliberately) around 19.00 up to the Bath Hotel - this was also rammed, and  initially I had to stand at one end of the bar. I bumped into Nick out with some mates and supped a pint of the excellent Hopjacker Kansas City Shuffle, a 5.5% pale ale brewed at the Dronfield Arms. This was an excellent pint, and I eventually got sat down and ordered a half a pork pie and a glass of water. The pub was emptying a little now, around 20.00 and I moved on to a half of Jaipur on keg. Heading to the bar for more water,  I was spotted by Clare and Gav.

They were in enjoying drinks having been out walking their dog Jezza and I was allowed by the same to join them. They were also on keg Jaipur (which I think is a good price at £3.90, or rather about 50p only, more expensive than the cask) and I stopped on my dwindling supplies until Tash turned up about 22.00. She was really stressed about the flooding since her Mum and Brother live in Carlisle - by Sunday morning they had been evacuated. In an attempt to distract her I bought her and myself a pint of Hopjacker each and we chatted to Clare and Gav.

About 23.00 we were joined by Emma, Matty's friend. She arrived quite late but just in time for a glass of wine and persuaded Matty to get out of bed to join us. I bought me and Tash another pint each of the excellent Hopjacker and Matty turned up just after last orders.

From here we secured funds and caught a taxi to Shakespeares. In all honesty I can only say for definite what I had for the last rather than the first round. I know Matty had a pint of Abbeydale Marshmallow Meltdown, a 7.0% stout brewed with Hop Hideout, and am guessing I sensibly went for a pint of the Triple Hop. We were joined by Katie and Lee and sat in both the clock room and outside in the yard catching up and putting the world to rights. I finished on a half of the Simcoe for breakfast, the 10.2% Brodies breakfast stout before we caught a taxi about 02.40.

Notwithstanding the ride home, when Tash was treated terribly by the taxi driver for reasons that I on't share on here, this was a great day of (mostly) restrained drinking of excellent real ales and keg beers in three different fabulous pubs. I may have had nine or ten pints in all but I wasn't that drunk and crucially I really enjoyed every one of them. Even if I forgot one of them....

With thanks to Tom, Gav, Clare, Emma Katie and Lee and of course Matty and Tash for their company on a wonderful long short pub crawl.

Cheers!


Wee Beefy