I expect to be in the Postal Order at 11:30ish for pre-drinking stomach lining.
I expect to be in the Postal Order at 11:30ish for pre-drinking stomach lining.
A bit p*$"*d off I cant make it, mainly down to timings and a bit of financial,the day is booked off anyway and the time scale and cost will allow me to get over it with a visit to the Winchester beer festival, have a good day all of you that can make it, I'm sure you will.
"Everybody's got to believe in something. I believe I'll have another beer."
-W.C.Fields
With impeccable timing, I managed to come down with the lurgy, yesterday. Can't see it shifting before tomorrow, so it's almost a certain no show from me. Bugger. Mrs a&h was also looking forward to meeting some of you reprobates. Have a good day guys.
'And where he supped the past lived still. And where he sipped the glass brimmed full' John Barleycorn, Carol Ann Duffy.
Have a good time everyone. I would've loved to join in on this one, but I've just returned from five days drinking around Lancashire and I've got a trip to Barnsley lined up this Saturday, so I've had to pass on Worcester for the sake of my liver and wallet alike. Look forward to hearing how you all get on.
PSM
Starting the day with a Wether-breakfast in the rather fine Foley Arms in Malvern, admiring the fantastic view over the town and vale. Back to the station in a minute for the short ride on a train (ultimate destination of which wierdly seems to be Brighton) to Foregate Street to see who's made it to the Postal Order...
A splendid day in Worcester - what a shame some people were unable to make it. As well as ROB Camra and others previously notified earlier in this thread, aleandhearty's late withdrawal due to illness was echoed by Soup Dragon - hope you both feel better soon.
Those that made it to the Dragon were:
Bucking Fastard
Quinno
Dave M & Tammy
Gillhalfpint & Ray
Real Ale Ray & Fiona
rpadam
an_ecumenical_matter and his twin brother Gavin (I kid you not) and friend Gerry
and me...
Come On You Hatters!
I wasn't at the Postal Order, so can only report on events subsequent to the full meet at the Dragon. I had Beowulf Folded Cross 4.3% and Little Ale Cart Old Black Nose 4.7%, the latter being a typically over the top one-off from the brewery behind the Wellington in Sheffield. The first splinter group formed almost at once, with Quinno going off to the Saracens Head just across the road with RAR. The full baker's dozen reformed in time to make the short trek around a corner or two to The Paul Pry (excellent Ludlow Best 3.7%) and The Cricketers (Prescott Hill Climb 3.8%). The former was a great pub, with lots of features both external and internal that some of our reviewers will no doubt be dwelling upon - was it a wake or an AGM going on in the other room?. The barman at the latter coped admirably with AEM's jovial attempts to help him serve food to the lunchtime shoppers, and the first three pubs (or four - or five if you count the 'Spoons) can be counted a success.
The next pub was either a mile away or just around a further corner. Non-walkers luckily missed a horrendous shower of hail and heavy rain as the other nine of us walked beside Worcester's racecourse and over the river, but we arrived at The Wheatsheaf as the sun came out, forming a rainbow over the retrospective of the city. The Wheatsheaf was an excellent village local, and we enjoyed St George's Bitter 4.1% and were entertained by a local couple and their greyhound before undertaking the walk into St Johns for the next stage of the crawl.
The Bell is a popular local, being quite busy by the time we reached it on a Friday afternoon - does no one work in Worcester after 3pm? I had Hobson's Old Prickly 4.2%, which seemed to have something to do with a hedgehog charity, unless I totally misunderstood the pump clip. We found room for us all (OK, there were only nine of us) in a snug to the right of the front door. We went a little off-piste at this point, after I persuaded the group to try The Berkeley Arms, five minutes' walk up the road. I had my first not quite right beer of the day here - Marstons/Elbow Charge, a rather bland, boring and frankly tired beer which I'm reliably informed is not surprising considering who was involved in the brewing.
We next made our way to the recently reopened Bush Inn, where we were reunited with the splinter group and the barman kindly took a photo of the whole bunch (which someone else will be adding to this thread, no doubt). A second poor beer here (Prescott Track Record 4.4% - bottom of the barrel), but I washed it down with a better half of Prescott Hill Climb before we made our way back into the city.
The Plough was probably my pub of the day, but that's not to say the others were no good - there had been some crackers up to this point, but the Plough is the last one of which I have a clear memory. Church End Grave Digger 3.8% was an excellent ale here, and then it was a sprint finish: The Farriers Arms, The Cardinals Hat, The Eagle Vaults, The Pheasant, The Swan With Two Nicks and The King Charles II flashed by in the space of just an hour, if my notes are to be relied upon (to be fair, not everyone did all of these - thanks for keeping me company, Quinno) and we all (as far as I could tell) ended up in The Firefly at 18:45. I had a half of craft brewed stout at an inflated priice - I'd tell you what it was called if I could read my notes. Luckily I checked the time half an hour later and was just about able to make a mad dash for my train back to Sheffield at 19:28.
Hope everyone else got home all right.
Last edited by sheffield hatter; 21-03-2014 at 23:12.
Come On You Hatters!
Glad those that made it had a good day, just as well I didn't make it ,opting for the more financially friendly Winchester for the beer festival with the plan of notching up a few new pubs before and after the dreaded lurgy took a serious grip on me so had to cut my day short. Coming back from Winchester was bad enough , Worcester would have been seriously bad news, I did manage three pubs before caving in.
"Everybody's got to believe in something. I believe I'll have another beer."
-W.C.Fields