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I’ve been having a bit of a clear out of my beer stash recently,and as reported in a previous pot unearthed a bottle of Sam Smith’s YorkshireStingo. I also uncovered another of Humphrey’s beers, in the form of a bottleof Winter Welcome which, despite being nearly six months past its BBE date, stilldrank exceptionally well.There will probably be a write-up later about this seasonalwinter special, but for now I want to describe a couple of craft beers that Ipicked up on last autumn’s cruise, in Cagliari – capital of the largeMediterranean island of Sardinia.
On a blisteringly hot day, and after leaving MrsPBT’s in the relative coolness of the Queen Victoria, I departed from the portarea, and headed up into Cagliari’s old town. You can read more about mybrief visit to this bustling Sardinian port here, although if truth beknown I was content to sit at a table outside one of the many cafés and bars,overlooking the old market square.I only made it so far though, as beyond the main squarethere is a much steeper ascent up into what must have been the original part ofthe town. An imposing, and impregnable looking fortress dominates this area, asdoes a majestic cathedral, but I was content to sit for a while, enjoying alight snack, plus a couple of refreshing beers at a table outside one of themany cafés and bars, overlooking the old market square.
The beer was asslightly cloudy IPA, produced by a craft brewery based on the Italian mainland,called Birra del Borgo. Suitably refreshed, I decided to gradually make my wayback to the ship, whilst taking in a bit more of Cagliari on the way. I hadn’t gone far before I chanced upon a shop specialisingin local Sardinian produce.
Il Cuore dell’ Isola diAbbi, in the Piazza Yenne, just off the historic city centre, provided a welcomebreak from the heat, with its air-conditioned interior, so I was happy to stayinside and browse for a while. Not having taken any photo of the exterior, Icouldn’t remember the name of the shop, but fortunately, and almost quite byaccident, Google came to the rescue, and I was able to instantly recognise theplace whilst searching for the name, and origin of the two artisanal beers Ibought. One was a blond lager, whilstthe other was a red one. Both beers are sold under the Cuore dell’ Isola brand, and this appliesto much of the produce as well. The shop also contained a small restaurant,although that seemed closed at the time of my visit.
So, some six months after purchasing the beers, I finallygot round to drinking them. Both were unfiltered and unpasteurised, in otherwords they were “bottle conditioned”, and I have to ask the question, why? CAMRAused to claim that bottle conditioned ales (BCA’s), were the equivalent of “realale in a bottle”, even though there’s no such thing, and increasingly over theyears I’ve become increasingly wary of such beers, and with good reason. Thered lager was alright, but the blond one fobbed all over the place. It’s a shame, as it was a pretty good beer, although that’sof little comfort when the bottle is behaving like Mount Vesuvius, and thecontents are spreading their way all over my computer desk, quicker than I canmop them up!
I thought I’d seen the last of fobbing bottles, but this one wascertainly on the lively side, despite having been kept refrigerated for severalhours. Coincidentally, I’m drinking another lively BCA at the moment, in theform of a bottle of Rakau Pils, from the London’s The Kernel Brewery. The bottle didn’t fob, but the beer was rather too well-conditioned,so much so that it was impossible to pour the entire 330ml contents into a pintglass, in one movement. Three different Kernel beers were included as “guests”in this month’s shipment from Braybrooke, which is why I am now drinking one ofthem. I’m a little bit peeved, if truth be known, as I signed up to receiveBraybrooke beers, rather than brews from other breweries, however good theirreputation.Let’s move on now from fobbing BCA’s, and return toSardinia, and I mean that quite literally because in a couple of months’ timeMrs PBT’s and I will be making a further visit to this attractive Mediterraneanisland, having booked another cruise. This time we will be sailing on Cunard’snewest cruise ship, the Queen Anne, and apart from two days in Italy, willmainly be visiting Spain. The second of our two days on Italian soil, will bespent in Alghero, which is in the north-west of Sardinia.As well as being a major resort, Alghero is described as one of Sardinia's mostbeautiful medieval cities. The town, with its historic centre, is within easywalking distance of the port, so there will be no need to book excursions, orqueue for shuttle buses. This should mean that Mrs PBT’s will be able to spendsome time ashore – something she is keen to do owing to her claimed Sardinianancestry of 1%!
A few word of explanation. Seven or eight years ago, Eileenand I both submitted saliva samples to the online genealogical research/data-basecompany, Ancestry, and on the last update we received regarding our DNA, MrsPBT’s came back showing 1% of her genetic makeup was Sardinian in origin. A relativelytiny amount, of course, but interesting because due to their isolated positionsfrom mainland areas, island populations often tend to exhibit some veryspecific genetic markers, that are unique to that particular location.
Anyway, that set the lady of the house off on a train ofthought, that sometime in the dim and distant past, someone with connections toSardinia contributed a small amount of their DNA, to her genetic makeup. Isuggested a sailor, as the most likely candidate, although at the end of theday, it’s just a bit of fun really, but still, something to tease her about,when I get the chance.
Finally, a few words about Sardinia’s smaller, but stillquite sizable Mediterranean island neighbour, Corsica. One of my work colleagueshas a Corsican wife, and so is a regular visitor to the island, along with therest of the family. I’m sure he particularly enjoys spending Christmas in the relatively,but he also told me that Corsican's pay a lower rate of duty on both alcohol andtobacco. My colleague no longer smokes, although he still enjoys a drink, andshowed me a few photos of locally produced, super-strength beers. Not my cup oftea, but my workmate is partial to the odd bottle of McEwan’s Champion, or evenFuller’s Golden Pride. I’m not sure why or how this differential duty rate for Corsica, came aboutand I can find little about it online, but seems like a suitable ending forthis post, on nearby Sardinia.


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