WARNING : Contains yet more of me wittering on about THAT day. 10th September 2022. A momentous day that your grandchildren will surely be taught about alongside 13/05/12, 04/07/20 , 00/00/00 and 22/12/64. The day Retired Martin completed the Good Beer Guide. In 1966, England won the World Cup. A year later the Scots became… Continue reading A NERVOUS WAIT FOR THE FERRY FROM TINGWALL
PRE-EMPTIVE TICKS IN KIRKWALL. DOES A SINGLE MALT COUNT ?
Five Kirkwall GBG pubs ticked, and it’s only 7pm as we enter what professionals call “Pre-emptive time”. This is where CAMRA comes in, What Pub providing a list to all the cask outlets in Kirkwall, the closest of which attempts to bewilder us with its pointy arrows. The Neuk was closed, the Bothy Bar was… Continue reading PRE-EMPTIVE TICKS IN KIRKWALL. DOES A SINGLE MALT COUNT ?
THE AULD MOTOR HOOSE
9th September 2022. One more Beer Guide pub in Kirkwall, the penultimate tick in the whole GBG. Back to the Auld Motor Hoose, with this classic car seeming to guide us through the quaint shopping streets on our way. A plain exterior greets you, but the interior is a motor-themed marvel, particularly for fans of… Continue reading THE AULD MOTOR HOOSE
Despite Garth Brooks, the St. Ola in Kirkwall was a classic
9th September 2022. We’d ticked three of the Kirkwall Five, and our research confirmed the Auld Motor Hoose wasn’t closing any time soon, so let’s Do the Ola (a popular dance move in 1950s Orkney). The beer in St Ola wasn’t the best of the night (but still a cool NBSS 3), but I’ve rarely… Continue reading Despite Garth Brooks, the St. Ola in Kirkwall was a classic
A SCAPA SPECIAL
9th September 2022 (still, obviously) The big night in Kirkwall, the day before the completion of the Good Beer Guide (what could possibly go wrong now ?). The Auld Motor Hoose left till later, the Ayre ticked with a half of foam, we now reached three (3) GBG entries IN A ROW. This is what… Continue reading A SCAPA SPECIAL
KICKING OFF IN KIRKWALL
Look who we met today ! Yes, it’s Colin the Cauliflower (in back pack) and his “friend” Simon. What a joy to bump unexpectedly into BRAPA when you’re minding your own business in Kent. Simon and I compared progress on our respective blog; BRAPA will report to you in December, my post in December (’23).… Continue reading KICKING OFF IN KIRKWALL
SAY “YES” TO YESNABY
Before I start, a big “Thanks !” to reader “Pauline” from Greater Maidstone. Although she couldn’t meet me in my chosen GBG pub today on account of there being pashminas to wash, she very kindly visited it to confirm I wouldn’t get stabbed. Let that be an example to you all. Back to the blog… Continue reading SAY “YES” TO YESNABY
JO’G ON
John O’ Groats ? JO’G on ? Geddit ? 9th September 2022. We left Wick to its anguish of a doomed Spoons (“When you have lost your Wetherspoons, drown your empty selves, for you have lost the last of England Scotland“) and forty-two minutes later we’d reached the top of mainland Great Britain, though of course a pedant an expert will tell… Continue reading JO’G ON
AT MY WICK’S END
Friday 9th September 2022. Anyone following the blog will have noticed that this is the day it went completely to pot. From a measured count-down that had started with the final 22 ticks, to utter chaos in the Orkneys. I DID manage to produce a little post about the Spoons in Wick, written in 10… Continue reading AT MY WICK’S END
WHAT WERE YOU DOING ON 8 SEPTEMBER 2022 ?
I was driving 460 miles from Waterbeach to Kingussie ahead of the biggest weekend of my life. We’d brought Dad home on the Tuesday, made sure he was well fed that night, and even did a bit of tidying in the garden the next day. I love my parents’ company, but I struggle with the… Continue reading WHAT WERE YOU DOING ON 8 SEPTEMBER 2022 ?
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