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There's a lot of good smallish breweries which have sprung up in Scotland over the past 10 or 15 years or so, from Sulwath in Castle Douglas to Valhalla in Shetland. My particular favourites are Kelburn, Harviestoun, Williams Brothers and Orkney, all of whom produce several excellent beers. My brother who lives near Edinburgh enthuses about Stewart Brewing's beers, but I've rarely seen them over this side of the country.
Unfortunately too much of Scotland is still a quality beer desert compared with most places south of the border.
Harviestoun "Bitter and Twisted" appears occasionally at my local here in North Wilts and is an absolute favourite - really dry and tangy.
Sainsbury's used to sell it in bottles but annoyingly stopped stocking it.
Unfortunately too much of Scotland is still a quality beer desert compared with most places south of the border.
This is true, but things are improving. Cask ales are available in an increasing number of pubs in this area, even discounting the barn-like Wetherspoons.
My usual drink is Deuchar's IPA, but I had a lovely pint of Peter's Well from the Houston Brewery earlier this week.
(For the avoidance of doubt, that's Houston Renfrewshire, not Houston Texas as the Google page indicates. )
This is true, but things are improving. Cask ales are available in an increasing number of pubs in this area, even discounting the barn-like Wetherspoons.
My usual drink is Deuchar's IPA, but I had a lovely pint of Peter's Well from the Houston Brewery earlier this week.
(For the avoidance of doubt, that's Houston Renfrewshire, not Houston Texas as the Google page indicates. )
Would this Houston be any relation of the magnificent Renée Houston of the Blood Royal Houston () latterly of BBC Radio's The Clitheroe Kid and The Petticoat Line?
Would this Houston be any relation of the magnificent Renée Houston of the Blood Royal Houston () latterly of BBC Radio's The Clitheroe Kid and The Petticoat Line?
Not as far as I am aware, amateur51, and I think it unlikely. However, I can confidently state that Houston Renfs. and Houston Renée are pronounced in the same way. There is no intrusive "y" as there is in Houston TX.
(I'd never heard of the Blood Royale Houston. What a source of erudition this board is! )
Gurnemanz, yes, Harviestoun's Bitter and Twisted is very good indeed (and it's even better on draught). I realised even before Mangerton's comment that I'd missed Caledonian off my list of top Scottish breweries. They were one of the first of the modern real ale breweries up here (along with Broughton), and as well as Deuchar's IPA they brew an excellent 80/-, a very fine example of a traditional Scottish heavy.
Heavy is roughly the same as an English bitter, but tends to be a bit maltier and less hoppy. It used to be a pretty ubiquitous style up here, but has got displaced from the mass market by lager and from the real ale world by hoppier golden ales (such as Deuchars or Bitter and Twisted).
Must look out for "heavy" next week then. The Deuchars and Bitter&Twisted sound worth a try too. Do you think they'll be available around Dundee or St. Andrews, or even bottled in shops thereabouts?
Must look out for "heavy" next week then. The Deuchars and Bitter&Twisted sound worth a try too. Do you think they'll be available around Dundee or St. Andrews, or even bottled in shops thereabouts?
Available in all the best supermarkets, Dave - but if you're around Dundee a trip to the Speedwell Bar in the Perth Road never disappoints, in my experience.
Gurnemanz, yes, Harviestoun's Bitter and Twisted is very good indeed (and it's even better on draught). I realised even before Mangerton's comment that I'd missed Caledonian off my list of top Scottish breweries. They were one of the first of the modern real ale breweries up here (along with Broughton), and as well as Deuchar's IPA they brew an excellent 80/-, a very fine example of a traditional Scottish heavy.
Heavy is roughly the same as an English bitter, but tends to be a bit maltier and less hoppy. It used to be a pretty ubiquitous style up here, but has got displaced from the mass market by lager and from the real ale world by hoppier golden ales (such as Deuchars or Bitter and Twisted).
I'd add to this the Fyne Ales from Cairndow in Argyll which you can get bottled in the west coast and islands - I have found them to be most satisfying - mind you I'm easy pleased.
When I told an organist colleague and real ale enthusiast (he'd probably say that this is in the wrong order) that I was to be moving temporarily to Herefordistan, he retorted that this would be a sheer waste of time; the reason for his answer was clear and I can perhaps best illustrate it by providing my own answer to this thread, as follows.
No.
That was, is and ever shall be, world without end, Amen, my answer to anything with "beer" in it (unless followed by "enauslese" and even more so if also preceded by "trocken").
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