retiredmartin

September 2024. Bishops Stortford.

It had seemed an eternity since Stortford (or “The Bish” to the kidz) had a newbie in the Guide, which says a lot about the pace of pubby change in Hertfordshire.

Blimey, you could walk to the Belgian Brewer in just over an hour, perhaps do a day trip from Albania ? Make sure there’s no planes before you cross the runway, mind.

In contrast, it seemed barely a day since my last “Tap Room on an industrial estate experience“, which I rate only marginally higher than a Conservative Club in Maidenhead on a league table of pub types.

I knew Duncan had actually stayed in “Bishy” recently, but recently turns out to be the month before Covid lockdowns, and the Belgian Brewer is more recent than that.

And it’s only recently that CAMRA has embraced diversity and allowed into it’s real ale Guide places brazenly not serving real ale.

As you may have learnt on this blog, I DON’T CARE whether the liquid in my glass is “real”, or key keg, or autovaced, or frankly even beer.

I only cared that the Summer Blonde was tasty and cool,

which it was, and the welcome warm,

which it was, and the bar a bit quirky,

which it was, and the soundtrack very OId Skool,

which it definitely was.

Honestly, some folk take this beer thing MUCH too seriously. Pub, now that’s a serious business.