PINT of Stella, mate!
14-02-2008, 06:05 PM
Well, here we are again. It's been a while, mostly due to laziness and incompetency on my part but meh, what can you do...
Anyway tonight we've got a man who's knowledge of fine ales, impressive bike collection and general witty repartee make him the perfect candidate for a Meet The Farkers. So without further ado, I give you... Fatman.
http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h34/taylorndt/DoveStreetbehindBar.jpg
Behind the bar at the Dove Street Inn, Ipswich, Suffolk.
So tell us a bit about yourself
Before I start you had better grab a few bevvies and a comfortable chair, I’ve been known to rant.
Sorted? Okay let’s get into it.
David Muir, 31. I’m currently studying a Bachelor of Environmental Management at Macquarie University and working at uncle Dan’s shifting lot’s of booze. I’m married to an incredibly patient and understanding woman who has been putting up with all my crap for the past 13 years, (most would consider her role as one of a babysitter;)
Now with a username like yours, one would expect a rather stout gentleman. Is this the case or is it an example of subtle irony?
I got the nickname from my grandma when I was a baby, my eyes used to disappear when I smiled, fat kids always know where to get the best eats. Right now I’m about 5’11” and 103kgs, so I’m not really living up to my end of the bargain when it comes to corpulence, there are much bigger farkers than me I assure you. My mates, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews all call me fatty or uncle fat though.
I did however have quite a bit of beer fat on when I lived in the UK. I was ‘working’ my way through 411 different draught beers and 86 bottled varieties over the period of a year and was in the pub practically every day, I had a significant amount of beer fat on as you could imagine. But we returned to Oz broke and jobless so my internal reserves had to see me through the lean times and I dropped quite a bit.
When did you sign up with farkin and why?
I can’t really remember too much about it, I was probably under the influence. As a matter of fact I seem to remember sending many pm’s with Squid about beer rather than anything to do with riding.
I tried a few US and Canadian sites but they weren’t really relevant to me, I wanted to meet people locally and talk the same bollocks with people from Australia. Some mates of mine started a site called DeadlyTreadly but he left the job he was at and lost the space on the server, still we got a few free months out of it, thanks Price Waterhouse. So when farkin appeared I just signed up, I guess I don’t make too much of a nuisance of myself on here.
You’re well known for having a stable that would put a lot of manufacturers teams to shame. Tell us a bit about it?
It may be no surprise that I am a bit of a fan of GT bicycles, just a little bit. My first ‘real’ mountain bike was a GT Palomar which I rode to death and must have spent double what the bike was worth upgrading it. It got stolen and I had an excuse to buy a new rig, I haven’t stopped since.
You know how when you were a kid your parents said “When you’re old enough you can get whatever you want”, I’m taking full advantage of that. Besides, I never really had a bike when I was a kid, five kids and one old repco clunker between us meant I missed out most of the time.
I went through a collection of GT hardtails and got my first dually in ‘99, a GT XCR4000, I still have the frame but it went everywhere and did everything with me. But through the noughties the bug bit me very hard and I had to have a bike for every discipline of riding despite having neither the talent nor the bottle to do well in any particular area, working in a bike shop back then didn’t help either as I was surrounded by temptation. One day I saw a picture of the Six13 on the Cannondale website, I dragged the boss down to Mona Vale at lunch time to pick one up personally, it was the first time I fell in love with a road bike and it hasn’t happened since. I did however cop a lot of shit for buying an American aluminium and carbon bike with a Japanese groupset from some roadie mates, I don’t care it’s a beautiful thing and rides very well but fat men in lycra are still scary.
The Ellsworth Moment is the bike I should have bought first, I probably wouldn’t have bought any others. For the way I ride it is just so well sorted and does everything I ask it to, it has never let me down and is truly the ‘one’ bike. I also love it because my wife bought it for me for an engagement present, for the amount I spent on the ring I figure it was fairJ Working in a bike shop and wrenching at many Scont & enduro events I’ve gotten to sample all sorts of bicycle exotica but I’d still come back to this one.
I love each of my bikes for a different reason and enjoy riding them immensely, I have little else in my life that I enjoy as much as bicycles, except beer of course. I love the form and function of them and also the simplicity of many bikes, I enjoy riding my rigid steel 29’r just as much as the full suspension Ellsworth.
Any favourites?
I’m am unashamedly in love with one particular bicycle model, the Zaskar. I have loved it ever since I first saw one back in the very late eighties, piloted by the one and only Hans Rey. This was the bike that ran and won everything back in the day, a jack of all trades and also master of them.
I rarely could afford to get better than one of the entry level bikes so the Zaskar eluded me until 2003 when I got hold of Josh Flemming’s race bike. I was saving for one of the clearance models from Supergo at the time and when I had the dough the large models had all run out, a chance call to the Melbourne Bicycle centre saw me running to the bank and my bike arrived a few days later. It was everything I could have imagined and more, light and super fast, far more capable than me. I don’t ride it anymore, I used to race it but it is irreplaceable. I would probably do almost anything to get my hands on one of the re-issue frames or a Carbon Team model. I was going to mug a bloke on the train with an early nineties ball burnished model today but sanity prevailed, just.
http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h34/taylorndt/DSC00038.jpg
A GT, yesterday
Now, you’re also known as one of the more discerning farkers when it comes to beer. At the risk of sounding sycophantic I’ll go one further and state for the record that you really do know your shit when it comes to beer. So first off, what’s taking up all the spare room in your fridge at the moment?
I thank you for your flattering comments and your gratuity will be sent accordingly. I must come across as a complete wanker going on about beer the way I do, I’m just quite passionate and opinionated about the stuff and want people to stop drinking mediocre swill and try something different. I’m also a bit hard headed about the stuff in that I don’t like hearing or reading anything about beers I haven’t yet tried so don’t form an opinion on them, if you believe the marketing hype you will drink anything. People also have vastly different tastes to me so we are blessed with that many more varieties of beer to sample. I’m still learning about beer, it’s a constant process because there is always someone who knows more about something than you do, I want that knowledge and will milk the info from those better informed.
Right now I have the following in my beer fridge, mostly singles of;
Matilda Bay Dogbolter, Monteiths Radler , Budvar (the real Budweiser), Peroni Longneck, Erdinger Alkoholfrei (don’t ask), Krusovice, Alfa, Boag’s Honey Porter (Well out of date and from my private stash, but it is still gorgeous), Squire Hop Thief, Cascade First Harvest, Lord Nelson Three Sheets, Hoegaarden and some longnecks of my brothers home brew which is usually quite good.
Sorry mate, no Stella.
What about your all time favourites?
I have several, some for no better reason than they remind me of somewhere or something but others because the brewers were truly inspired by God. There are honestly too many as I have a fav in each style of beer and there are also too many yet to be sampled.
Timothy Taylor, Landlord, this stuff is brewed in the North of England and is probably the finest Pale Ale on earth. I drank far too many of these in a very short trip to York in a 600 year old pub, (a note to all you southerners, get the northern monkeys to take the sparkler off the tap.)
Caledonian, Deuchars IPA, not strictly an IPA in that its alcohol and hop content are quite low but it is nectar when served properly in Scotland. I jumped of the train after returning to Edinburgh and ran to Bennett’s Bar to enjoy several, smooth and hoppy, not so good from the bottle.
Shepherd Neame, Spitfire, I first tried this one just for the name at first, they do have some exceptional advertising. It is beautifully coppery and bitter with the rich Kentish Goldings hops bursting with a unique flavour. One of my locals in Southend was a Shepherd Neame house and it was always served well.
Dark Isle, Oyster Stout, made in tassie and a gorgeous smooth stout. Their Leatherwood porter is slightly better than Boag’s in my opinion too. Doesn’t travel well though.
Dark Star, APA, Sex in a pint glass. Redoak’s American Double IPA comes close.
Grand Ridge, Yarra Valley Gold, while I really enjoy Little Creatures Pale I absolutely love Yarra Valley Gold.
Brouwerij Bosteels, DeuS, An amazingly complex and dry golden ale brewed in the method of Champagne, costs nearly as much too. The name is latin for God, it truly is divine but an acquired taste
Crouch Vale, Brewers Gold, it’s on the keg in my avatar, gorgeous clear golden ale with the aroma of creaming soda and passionfruit. Light, smooth and bitter, very well balanced. It was Supreme champion beer of Britain two years running.
Pretty much anything from Unibroue in Quebec and the list of Belgians and Germans are far too many, I really can’t put them all here.
Actually, whilst we’re on the subject:
What are ye having?
Right Now? Aforementioned longneck of Peroni, hopefully followed by some three sheets and then some homebrew of my little bro’s.
Pot, Middy, Schooner or a Pint?
There is for me only one real measure and that is the Imperial Pint, 568ml of wonderful nectar. I remember holding a schooner for the first time after returning from the UK and feeling quite cheated by this dainty glass, still there is method to the madness of smaller glasses,
a) most Aussie beer served in them is crap so it is a relief to finish them quickly
b) hotter climates make your beer get too warm too quickly (dependant on style) which in the case of XXXX makes it doubly intolerable.
c) Belgian chalices are rarely bigger than 330ml and the presentation in the correct vessel for these beers is half the enjoyment.
Now I’ve gotta bend your ear about a few ales.
1. VB. I think it tastes fairly rotten but at the end of the day it is slightly drinkable and it does have quite a rich heritage and a classic ad song. What are your views on the Green Can? (actually that sounds a bit like The Green Fairy but not as bohemian, pretty apt really…)
It’s Australia’s number one selling beer by quite a margin but I’m arrogant enough to say that all these people are wrong, I am not a fan of VB, a bitter which has no noticeable bitterness. But given the usual bbq choice of VB or New I would go the VB.
I’m pretty sure my last VB was at Summernats in 2001, apart from the equally ordinary VB Original Ale which was a little more recent. No I tell a lie, I was in a Wetherspoons in Southend when VB was on promo and the locals wanted to taste some Aussie beer, my usual crowd all bought them despite my protests and proceeded to give me crap for the next hour about the nasty stuff. It does have a place but definitely not in my beer fridge.
2. Stella, Heineken, Becks, Kronenbourg etc. – Mass produced (but still damn tasty) European lagers brewed here under license yet priced as imported. Pretty damn popular too. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
I’m not sure how to respond to this one, it makes me a little peeved. I have been advising people about BUL*shit beers for some time and since an episode of Currently Afarce people come in acting all holier than thou and accusing me of trying to pull the wool over their eyes.
I won’t drink it, it isn’t the real thing and shouldn’t pretend to be and certainly shouldn’t be priced like an import. Even many of the imports are brewed under licence in another country, and for any Tooheys drinkers have you checked the carton your beer comes in lately? Brewed under licence happens with local drops as well. As for the flavour of them, I still reckon there is a slight difference but it isn’t huge.
As I am a hypocrite I can subscribe to a microbrewery trying to expand and getting their beer brewed by someone with the capacity to supply, so long as the flavour doesn’t suffer.
Snowy Mountains brewery is a prime example, brewed by Bluetongue but their Crackenback Pale and Charlotte’s Hefeweizen are stunning.
But putting my other hat on as an environmental scientist the importation of beer from OS is a serious misallocation of valuable resources which should be discouraged and an alternative found. Besides, there are some exceptionally good local breweries putting out wonderful beers so you shouldn’t have to drink BULshit or imports all the time.
3. Guinness – Do you find it to be a genuinely nice stout or something gassy and chemically that thrives on saturation marketing . Speaking of which, you work in a bottle shop. What cool guiness merchandise do you have lying around at the moment? I reckon the golf bag’s a winner but I quite like the slippers they had a few years ago…
I must admit, like everyone says you must try Guinness in Dublin, and of course you get swept away in the moment and wax lyrical about its virtue. I personally prefer Murphy’s or Beamish but when sitting in the gravity bar at the brewery you forget these things.
The Storehouse at the brewery is a treasure trove of swag, I must admit I bought a t-shirt and some placemats. Guinness has great advertising. St Patrick’s day 2005 saw a few pints downed so I got all sorts of swag but the bush hat with little pints as corks hanging off was pretty cool. I gave the hat to Justin Havukainen after we drank a case of the stuff in about two and a half hours, it was rather messy, I hope the black stains have come out of our mate’s carpet.
4. Back to the Europeans. Whaddya reckon about the whole craze for Belgian Cherry/Raspberry beers? Tasty tipple or a more expensive alternative to cider> Also, might as well throw in banana beer whilst we’re at it…
I happen to really like Lambic ales, I’ve tried quite a few here and some of the local offerings are very nice, particularly from Redoak. I also drank quite a few in Belgium but I stopped after having one called Oud Beitje, it was a strawberry ale and had the piquant aroma of a greengrocers rubbish bin, really pungent and pretty nasty. I’ve only tried one banana beer called Mongozo, it was not a flavour I’d be chasing after again. The small breweries are really taking advantage of the fact many people haven’t heard about or tasted these beers and are cashing in. They are nice but not the God’s gift some make them out to be.
And as a university student how could I possibly knock cider, not so popular or powerful in Australia as it is in the UK but I don’t mind a few now and again.
Any cool, drunken and debauched stories for us?
Bugger me another question, haven’t I taken up enough of these good people’s time, well mostly good except for Rooks and maybe Bowlo. Actually mate I do have an important day of ‘research’ at Redoak, The Lord Nelson, The Australian, Squire’s Brewhouse, The Lowenbrau and the Fortune of War lined up right now so I’ll have to get back to this in a little bit.
.
Okay, back again, damn what a trip, where were we? Oh yeah,
Well there was this one time with three circus performers a Russian female gymnast a keg of Stella and tub of petroleum jelly…………………………………………..
No not really.
Honestly I have been in some very interesting situations while conducting my ‘research’ but as I haven’t yet been formally charged I must use a terrible Americanism and plead the fifth.
Come out for a few beers and I may tell a story of two. I’m a firm believer that God takes special care of those under the influence, I’ve found myself in foreign lands doing stupid things but always managed to get home somehow mostly unscathed. And besides, RCOH who is a wise and genuinely great guy one said ‘only amateurs count’, I would add to that ‘recount to others’.
Anyway tonight we've got a man who's knowledge of fine ales, impressive bike collection and general witty repartee make him the perfect candidate for a Meet The Farkers. So without further ado, I give you... Fatman.
http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h34/taylorndt/DoveStreetbehindBar.jpg
Behind the bar at the Dove Street Inn, Ipswich, Suffolk.
So tell us a bit about yourself
Before I start you had better grab a few bevvies and a comfortable chair, I’ve been known to rant.
Sorted? Okay let’s get into it.
David Muir, 31. I’m currently studying a Bachelor of Environmental Management at Macquarie University and working at uncle Dan’s shifting lot’s of booze. I’m married to an incredibly patient and understanding woman who has been putting up with all my crap for the past 13 years, (most would consider her role as one of a babysitter;)
Now with a username like yours, one would expect a rather stout gentleman. Is this the case or is it an example of subtle irony?
I got the nickname from my grandma when I was a baby, my eyes used to disappear when I smiled, fat kids always know where to get the best eats. Right now I’m about 5’11” and 103kgs, so I’m not really living up to my end of the bargain when it comes to corpulence, there are much bigger farkers than me I assure you. My mates, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews all call me fatty or uncle fat though.
I did however have quite a bit of beer fat on when I lived in the UK. I was ‘working’ my way through 411 different draught beers and 86 bottled varieties over the period of a year and was in the pub practically every day, I had a significant amount of beer fat on as you could imagine. But we returned to Oz broke and jobless so my internal reserves had to see me through the lean times and I dropped quite a bit.
When did you sign up with farkin and why?
I can’t really remember too much about it, I was probably under the influence. As a matter of fact I seem to remember sending many pm’s with Squid about beer rather than anything to do with riding.
I tried a few US and Canadian sites but they weren’t really relevant to me, I wanted to meet people locally and talk the same bollocks with people from Australia. Some mates of mine started a site called DeadlyTreadly but he left the job he was at and lost the space on the server, still we got a few free months out of it, thanks Price Waterhouse. So when farkin appeared I just signed up, I guess I don’t make too much of a nuisance of myself on here.
You’re well known for having a stable that would put a lot of manufacturers teams to shame. Tell us a bit about it?
It may be no surprise that I am a bit of a fan of GT bicycles, just a little bit. My first ‘real’ mountain bike was a GT Palomar which I rode to death and must have spent double what the bike was worth upgrading it. It got stolen and I had an excuse to buy a new rig, I haven’t stopped since.
You know how when you were a kid your parents said “When you’re old enough you can get whatever you want”, I’m taking full advantage of that. Besides, I never really had a bike when I was a kid, five kids and one old repco clunker between us meant I missed out most of the time.
I went through a collection of GT hardtails and got my first dually in ‘99, a GT XCR4000, I still have the frame but it went everywhere and did everything with me. But through the noughties the bug bit me very hard and I had to have a bike for every discipline of riding despite having neither the talent nor the bottle to do well in any particular area, working in a bike shop back then didn’t help either as I was surrounded by temptation. One day I saw a picture of the Six13 on the Cannondale website, I dragged the boss down to Mona Vale at lunch time to pick one up personally, it was the first time I fell in love with a road bike and it hasn’t happened since. I did however cop a lot of shit for buying an American aluminium and carbon bike with a Japanese groupset from some roadie mates, I don’t care it’s a beautiful thing and rides very well but fat men in lycra are still scary.
The Ellsworth Moment is the bike I should have bought first, I probably wouldn’t have bought any others. For the way I ride it is just so well sorted and does everything I ask it to, it has never let me down and is truly the ‘one’ bike. I also love it because my wife bought it for me for an engagement present, for the amount I spent on the ring I figure it was fairJ Working in a bike shop and wrenching at many Scont & enduro events I’ve gotten to sample all sorts of bicycle exotica but I’d still come back to this one.
I love each of my bikes for a different reason and enjoy riding them immensely, I have little else in my life that I enjoy as much as bicycles, except beer of course. I love the form and function of them and also the simplicity of many bikes, I enjoy riding my rigid steel 29’r just as much as the full suspension Ellsworth.
Any favourites?
I’m am unashamedly in love with one particular bicycle model, the Zaskar. I have loved it ever since I first saw one back in the very late eighties, piloted by the one and only Hans Rey. This was the bike that ran and won everything back in the day, a jack of all trades and also master of them.
I rarely could afford to get better than one of the entry level bikes so the Zaskar eluded me until 2003 when I got hold of Josh Flemming’s race bike. I was saving for one of the clearance models from Supergo at the time and when I had the dough the large models had all run out, a chance call to the Melbourne Bicycle centre saw me running to the bank and my bike arrived a few days later. It was everything I could have imagined and more, light and super fast, far more capable than me. I don’t ride it anymore, I used to race it but it is irreplaceable. I would probably do almost anything to get my hands on one of the re-issue frames or a Carbon Team model. I was going to mug a bloke on the train with an early nineties ball burnished model today but sanity prevailed, just.
http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h34/taylorndt/DSC00038.jpg
A GT, yesterday
Now, you’re also known as one of the more discerning farkers when it comes to beer. At the risk of sounding sycophantic I’ll go one further and state for the record that you really do know your shit when it comes to beer. So first off, what’s taking up all the spare room in your fridge at the moment?
I thank you for your flattering comments and your gratuity will be sent accordingly. I must come across as a complete wanker going on about beer the way I do, I’m just quite passionate and opinionated about the stuff and want people to stop drinking mediocre swill and try something different. I’m also a bit hard headed about the stuff in that I don’t like hearing or reading anything about beers I haven’t yet tried so don’t form an opinion on them, if you believe the marketing hype you will drink anything. People also have vastly different tastes to me so we are blessed with that many more varieties of beer to sample. I’m still learning about beer, it’s a constant process because there is always someone who knows more about something than you do, I want that knowledge and will milk the info from those better informed.
Right now I have the following in my beer fridge, mostly singles of;
Matilda Bay Dogbolter, Monteiths Radler , Budvar (the real Budweiser), Peroni Longneck, Erdinger Alkoholfrei (don’t ask), Krusovice, Alfa, Boag’s Honey Porter (Well out of date and from my private stash, but it is still gorgeous), Squire Hop Thief, Cascade First Harvest, Lord Nelson Three Sheets, Hoegaarden and some longnecks of my brothers home brew which is usually quite good.
Sorry mate, no Stella.
What about your all time favourites?
I have several, some for no better reason than they remind me of somewhere or something but others because the brewers were truly inspired by God. There are honestly too many as I have a fav in each style of beer and there are also too many yet to be sampled.
Timothy Taylor, Landlord, this stuff is brewed in the North of England and is probably the finest Pale Ale on earth. I drank far too many of these in a very short trip to York in a 600 year old pub, (a note to all you southerners, get the northern monkeys to take the sparkler off the tap.)
Caledonian, Deuchars IPA, not strictly an IPA in that its alcohol and hop content are quite low but it is nectar when served properly in Scotland. I jumped of the train after returning to Edinburgh and ran to Bennett’s Bar to enjoy several, smooth and hoppy, not so good from the bottle.
Shepherd Neame, Spitfire, I first tried this one just for the name at first, they do have some exceptional advertising. It is beautifully coppery and bitter with the rich Kentish Goldings hops bursting with a unique flavour. One of my locals in Southend was a Shepherd Neame house and it was always served well.
Dark Isle, Oyster Stout, made in tassie and a gorgeous smooth stout. Their Leatherwood porter is slightly better than Boag’s in my opinion too. Doesn’t travel well though.
Dark Star, APA, Sex in a pint glass. Redoak’s American Double IPA comes close.
Grand Ridge, Yarra Valley Gold, while I really enjoy Little Creatures Pale I absolutely love Yarra Valley Gold.
Brouwerij Bosteels, DeuS, An amazingly complex and dry golden ale brewed in the method of Champagne, costs nearly as much too. The name is latin for God, it truly is divine but an acquired taste
Crouch Vale, Brewers Gold, it’s on the keg in my avatar, gorgeous clear golden ale with the aroma of creaming soda and passionfruit. Light, smooth and bitter, very well balanced. It was Supreme champion beer of Britain two years running.
Pretty much anything from Unibroue in Quebec and the list of Belgians and Germans are far too many, I really can’t put them all here.
Actually, whilst we’re on the subject:
What are ye having?
Right Now? Aforementioned longneck of Peroni, hopefully followed by some three sheets and then some homebrew of my little bro’s.
Pot, Middy, Schooner or a Pint?
There is for me only one real measure and that is the Imperial Pint, 568ml of wonderful nectar. I remember holding a schooner for the first time after returning from the UK and feeling quite cheated by this dainty glass, still there is method to the madness of smaller glasses,
a) most Aussie beer served in them is crap so it is a relief to finish them quickly
b) hotter climates make your beer get too warm too quickly (dependant on style) which in the case of XXXX makes it doubly intolerable.
c) Belgian chalices are rarely bigger than 330ml and the presentation in the correct vessel for these beers is half the enjoyment.
Now I’ve gotta bend your ear about a few ales.
1. VB. I think it tastes fairly rotten but at the end of the day it is slightly drinkable and it does have quite a rich heritage and a classic ad song. What are your views on the Green Can? (actually that sounds a bit like The Green Fairy but not as bohemian, pretty apt really…)
It’s Australia’s number one selling beer by quite a margin but I’m arrogant enough to say that all these people are wrong, I am not a fan of VB, a bitter which has no noticeable bitterness. But given the usual bbq choice of VB or New I would go the VB.
I’m pretty sure my last VB was at Summernats in 2001, apart from the equally ordinary VB Original Ale which was a little more recent. No I tell a lie, I was in a Wetherspoons in Southend when VB was on promo and the locals wanted to taste some Aussie beer, my usual crowd all bought them despite my protests and proceeded to give me crap for the next hour about the nasty stuff. It does have a place but definitely not in my beer fridge.
2. Stella, Heineken, Becks, Kronenbourg etc. – Mass produced (but still damn tasty) European lagers brewed here under license yet priced as imported. Pretty damn popular too. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
I’m not sure how to respond to this one, it makes me a little peeved. I have been advising people about BUL*shit beers for some time and since an episode of Currently Afarce people come in acting all holier than thou and accusing me of trying to pull the wool over their eyes.
I won’t drink it, it isn’t the real thing and shouldn’t pretend to be and certainly shouldn’t be priced like an import. Even many of the imports are brewed under licence in another country, and for any Tooheys drinkers have you checked the carton your beer comes in lately? Brewed under licence happens with local drops as well. As for the flavour of them, I still reckon there is a slight difference but it isn’t huge.
As I am a hypocrite I can subscribe to a microbrewery trying to expand and getting their beer brewed by someone with the capacity to supply, so long as the flavour doesn’t suffer.
Snowy Mountains brewery is a prime example, brewed by Bluetongue but their Crackenback Pale and Charlotte’s Hefeweizen are stunning.
But putting my other hat on as an environmental scientist the importation of beer from OS is a serious misallocation of valuable resources which should be discouraged and an alternative found. Besides, there are some exceptionally good local breweries putting out wonderful beers so you shouldn’t have to drink BULshit or imports all the time.
3. Guinness – Do you find it to be a genuinely nice stout or something gassy and chemically that thrives on saturation marketing . Speaking of which, you work in a bottle shop. What cool guiness merchandise do you have lying around at the moment? I reckon the golf bag’s a winner but I quite like the slippers they had a few years ago…
I must admit, like everyone says you must try Guinness in Dublin, and of course you get swept away in the moment and wax lyrical about its virtue. I personally prefer Murphy’s or Beamish but when sitting in the gravity bar at the brewery you forget these things.
The Storehouse at the brewery is a treasure trove of swag, I must admit I bought a t-shirt and some placemats. Guinness has great advertising. St Patrick’s day 2005 saw a few pints downed so I got all sorts of swag but the bush hat with little pints as corks hanging off was pretty cool. I gave the hat to Justin Havukainen after we drank a case of the stuff in about two and a half hours, it was rather messy, I hope the black stains have come out of our mate’s carpet.
4. Back to the Europeans. Whaddya reckon about the whole craze for Belgian Cherry/Raspberry beers? Tasty tipple or a more expensive alternative to cider> Also, might as well throw in banana beer whilst we’re at it…
I happen to really like Lambic ales, I’ve tried quite a few here and some of the local offerings are very nice, particularly from Redoak. I also drank quite a few in Belgium but I stopped after having one called Oud Beitje, it was a strawberry ale and had the piquant aroma of a greengrocers rubbish bin, really pungent and pretty nasty. I’ve only tried one banana beer called Mongozo, it was not a flavour I’d be chasing after again. The small breweries are really taking advantage of the fact many people haven’t heard about or tasted these beers and are cashing in. They are nice but not the God’s gift some make them out to be.
And as a university student how could I possibly knock cider, not so popular or powerful in Australia as it is in the UK but I don’t mind a few now and again.
Any cool, drunken and debauched stories for us?
Bugger me another question, haven’t I taken up enough of these good people’s time, well mostly good except for Rooks and maybe Bowlo. Actually mate I do have an important day of ‘research’ at Redoak, The Lord Nelson, The Australian, Squire’s Brewhouse, The Lowenbrau and the Fortune of War lined up right now so I’ll have to get back to this in a little bit.
.
Okay, back again, damn what a trip, where were we? Oh yeah,
Well there was this one time with three circus performers a Russian female gymnast a keg of Stella and tub of petroleum jelly…………………………………………..
No not really.
Honestly I have been in some very interesting situations while conducting my ‘research’ but as I haven’t yet been formally charged I must use a terrible Americanism and plead the fifth.
Come out for a few beers and I may tell a story of two. I’m a firm believer that God takes special care of those under the influence, I’ve found myself in foreign lands doing stupid things but always managed to get home somehow mostly unscathed. And besides, RCOH who is a wise and genuinely great guy one said ‘only amateurs count’, I would add to that ‘recount to others’.