Is This the End of the Campaign for Real Ale? ...Or the Beginning of Something New? 29 APRIL - 2 MAY
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to OFrom Overton to KKirkhamgate Issue 67 . Spring 2016 . FREE! CAMRA 1971-2017? Is this the end of the Campaign for Real Ale? ...or the beginning of something new? 29 APRIL - 2 MAY BACKYARD BURNERS Sat 8pm JUST JOHN Sun 7pm ROOT 45 Mon 5pm Welcome What good beer is has changed since 1971 but too much cask ale sold these days is of poor quality, not only what is brewed but also what is served. The rise of “craft beer” has brought back that dreaded word to some “keg”. I don’t know exactly It is fair to say the headlines were rather dramatic what “craft beer” is but some of it is very good, “Could CAMRA’s campaign for real ale be over?” better than a lot of cask beer and some of the beer “Real ale group CAMRA could call time – on itself” in key-kegs is more real ale than some cask beer. “Camra fears it’s drinking in the last-chance saloon” Quite often the beer is placed straight in to the Not least because as CAMRA put it themselves key-keg without finings and having never seen a “After 45 years of being one of the largest single- conditioning tank which is quite unlike what some issue consumer groups in the world, the Campaign cask beer is which is virtually bright as it reaches for Real Ale (CAMRA) could be coming to an end. the pub. The organisation is embarking on a consultation of CAMRA of course does support real ale in Keykegs as many as possible of its nearly 180,000 members and it is making its way in to CAMRA beer festivals to ask them who and what it should represent in but can CAMRA support filtered keg beer? If it the future - and it may no longer be focussed on is “craft” then it should, we should be promoting real ale.” keykeg and keg craft beer and trying to get this in to pubs instead of mass produced industrial beers This all comes under the “Revitalisation Project” from the big produces. lead by CAMRA founder Michael Hardman. Whatever option is picked, and I hope it is A) or B) The Revitalisation Project is CAMRA’s response to with craft beer added, it is bold move what CAMRA a beer and pub industry which has changed hugely is doing. Let us hope it works out. since the organisation was founded in 1971. If we pick E) then sorry, but I can’t see myself The rise of craft beer and a resurgence of interest editing a magazine saying how Pub X should stay in beer in recent years, plus renewed threats to open when all it sells is John Smith’s Extra Smooth, pubs, has challenged CAMRA to review if it is best the biggest abomination of a “beer” ever made, it’s positioned to represent its members in the future. bad enough having to promote the “cask” version. Visit https://revitalisation.camra.org.uk/ by the 30th April to view all the information and make Mark your feelings known. The future of CAMRA is in the hands of its members but also if you are not a CONTENTS member you can have your say. How do you want CAMRA to speak for you? PUB AND CLUB NEWS 4 The survey is asking for opinions on six options on ALVERTHORPE WMC 5 how CAMRA should campaign. THREE HOUSES, SANDAL 9 A) Drinkers of real ale THE BROAD SIDE 12 UPCOMING BEER FESTIVALS 15 B) Drinkers of real ale, cider and perry FIVE TOWNS 17 C) All beer drinkers OKTOBERFEST BEERS 19 D) All beer, cider and perry drinkers BELGIUM 2016 20 E) All pub-goers, regardless of what they prefer to BRADBURY’S BEER MATS 23 drink CIDER MONTH 24 F) All alcohol drinkers ON THE HANDPULL 26 There is another option for none of the above BEER LEAGUE DVD 29 which is the one I filled in. ANNABEL SMITH 31 My view is that CAMRA should be an organisation BEER DAY 2016 32 that remains true to it’s founding principle - Good BREWERY NEWS 35 Beer. Wakefield CAMRA OtoK Spring 2016 | 3 Pub and Club News Ackworth from David Oates The Pledwick, Sandal Ackworth continues to go from strength to strength on the real ale front. Five of the pubs have at least a regular real ale and a changing guest beer. The other pub serving real ale, the Rustic Arms, has two regular real ales and is seriously looking to add a third hand pump to enable it to have a guest beer too. All the real ales ‘sampled’ on the visits for this report were of a good or better quality. Angel: Black Sheep Bitter is regular with a changing guest which recently has included Moorhouses, Copper Dragon, Roosters and York. Ego at the Beverley Arms: Ossett Blonde is The Pledwick is under new ownership and is now regular plus a guest from either Fernades or Rat. freehold. Keeley, aka Molly, is the new landlady, Boot and Shoe: Four hand pumps serving she runs Molly’s Flowers nearby. The pub is now Sharp’s Atlantic and a changing Ossett Brewery locally owned which it hasn’t been for many years Beer(White Rabbit on my most recent visit), a having been in hands of a number of distant changing guest( Revisionist Brewery Irish Peat owners with managers installed. Ale was an unusual most recent guest) plus John There are four handpulls with local people happy Smiths Cask. that in the few weeks Keeley has been in charge Brown Cow: Three hand pumps currently serving the pumps have been rotated with new beers a Black Sheep Bitter as a regular beer, a guest ale number of times. Beers have included Acorn and plus John Smiths Cask. Robinson’s Dizzy Blonde Trinity. There is a new chef joining soon and there has proved a very popular recent guest. is live music at weekends also. Malones Bar and Restaurant: Shirley intends try Keeley wants the pub to be a community hub and real ale again sometime in the future. is dog and child friendly. Masons Arms: Bradfield Brewery Brown Cow and Farmers Blonde continue to be very popular Horbury The Victoria is for sale. regular beers. Two further hand pumps and lines OssettThe Thorntree is for sale. have been fitted to make a total of six alongside a Angie Cromack & Stephen ‘Chalky’ Whyte sharing bar frontage refurbishment. the running of Ossett Tap. Chalky comes from Rustic Arms: Black Sheep Bitter and Ossett Brewers Pride and Rat & Ratchet. Blonde are regulars. Real ale continues to Pontefract Good news from Dean Smith who increase significantly in the amount sold and is now at the Tap & Barrel that he has two new Mark and Caroline are to approach Enterprise handpumps and will be having two Revolutions Inns to add a third hand pump. beers, one to be known as Pontefract Porter. Wakefield There is now a sixth handpull in the Rugby Union Real Ale Black Rock. The Harewood Arms remains partially From Nathan Spencer open whilst it is up for sale which will hopefully be sorted out soon, it was disposed of towards the Stanley Rodillians RUFC are selling real ale on end of last year by Punch Taverns as not core to Saturday home games. This is usually a changing their business. guest ale with this mostly being a Five Towns ale, Greg Sharpe new manager at Fernandes. He used or one from Clark’s. to run Shepherds Boy at Dewsbury. The fixtures are on www.rodillians.co.uk and Ossett Silver King is now a regular at the Black show when the clubhouse will be open. Horse and the newly refurbished Elephant & Castle (see opposite). Real Ale is on sale in the Waterloo. 4 | Wakefield CAMRA OtoK Spring 2016 Elephant And Castle, Wakefield Club Of The Year 2015 ALVERTHORPE WMC A worthy winner of the award in this WMC. Featuring Snooker, Darts and its own Bowling Green. Live music is regular and there is large TV You wouldn’t know it from the outside, it’s Grade 2 for sports fans. listed and can’t be changed but the inside has been Beer wise you can get Theakston Best Bitter transformed. The bar has been moved back, and (replacing Tetley’s because of quality issues, “it’s with a few internal partitions removed the pub has not the beer it was” is the general feeling) and been opened out. Bob’s White Lion which are permanent. There are The beer range has been transformed also with also guest beers which on the award night included six cask ales. Currently the range includes Ossett the excellent Rat Brewery Black Rat. The quality of Silver King and Copper Dragon Golden Pippin. the beer here is consistently excellent. Added to this is a fridge with some craft bottles and cans including Stevens Point and BackYard Brew. The addition of the Elephant makes for a great area in Wakefield, with the Black Horse, Unity Works Cafe Bar, Hop, Harry’s Bar and Old Printworks all selling real ale. 189 Bus Route Survey from 19th March 2016 Horse & Groom, Heath – Black Sheep Best Bitter & Bradfield Farmer’s Blonde. Winter Pub Of The Season King’s Arms, Heath – Ossett Yorkshire Blonde, THE CARLETON, PONTEFRACT King’s Arms Bitter & Silver King, Marstons Longer Days, Phoenix Pale Moonlight, Titanic Plum Porter & Allgates Pepper Lane Pale Ale. Plough, Warmfield – Trinity Belle Vue Blonde & Taylor’s Landlord. Ole Int Wall, Normanton - Trinity Belle Vue Blonde & Caledonian First Dawn.