July 2025. Sheffield.
At the Great British Beer Festival* yesterday I had to confess to living on the edge of Kelham Island but not visiting its pubs every day.
In truth, I seem to make it to the Kelham Island Tavern, perennial Pub of the Year, barely biannually.
And on one of these trips I’m going to have a duff pint.
But not today.
As usual, I start with the “almost” house Blue Bee Five Hop, and Will will chastise me for not noting exactly which hop variety this version has.
Oversized glass, cool to the touch, crisp and sensationally bitter. NBSS 4.5.
Actually, too bitter. In the stifling heat, I can’t face a second pint. But then, on the table opposite, the women order pints of Red Willow Weightless (NBSS 4),
and I know I need to follow suit, if only so I can eavesdrop on conversation about trips to the doctor to discuss alcohol intake and Kurly Kale.
To my right, a bloke drinking Flensberger suddenly shouts “You stopped my DSS claim !“. You don’t get that in the Old Shoe. It’s certainly not a pub that’s just for Real Ale Twats.
Ooh, who’s that at the bar ?
It’s the lovely Sheffield Hatter, wearing posh newly acquired jacket, whose arrival means I have to stay for the obligatory half of crafty keg (Pastore, obvs),
beautifully decanted from Henderson’s Relish (?) tulip into my pint glass for that northern head.
The KIT remains pinnacle of beer quality, I reckon. But is it my favourite Sheffield pub ?
*Great beer quality, some chatty Cov folk, but I prefer pubs.
retiredmartin 
Sheffield Hatter’s new jacket is either slimming or he’s in even better shape than ever.
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He looks after himself. And Luton joint top of League One tonight. I might put him in charge of my wardrobe.
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Quite dapper looking. He could work with you; I’m a lost cause.
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Wasn’t Kurly Kale a prop for Widnes?
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Doesn’t a new jacket, preferably brown, mean an interview with a national newspaper ?
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I think Will is talking to the Telegraph about the appeal of Wetherspoons.
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, and tell them that any man so dressed might even have their pint poured BEFORE handing over his money and a voucher !!
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That was version #81 of Blue Bee American Five Hop, but I don’t know which five hops were used. I also scored it NBSS 4.5 the day I met you and the day after as well, when it was disappointing not to see you there, knowing that you live so close to Kelham Island.
Mind you, I’ve only been there 40 times so far this year, so there’s still an 82% chance you can call in without having me force you to drink more than you intended.
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