Hitchin 2009 Beer & Cider Festival : North Herts CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale)

Hitchin 2009 Beer & Cider Festival

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Peter Lilley, MP for Hitchin and Harpenden launched Hitchin’s biggest and best Beer and Cider Festival on the afternoon of Friday 13^th March.

There is a lot of talk in Westminster of the current economic recession and the organisers were somewhat concerned that recession might put a dampener on the event. How wrong we were!

With 20% more stock than last year we hoped to see a similar number of visitors to 2007, that didn’t happen – we got almost as many on the first day this year as we had for the whole event last year! It was frantic and everyone was having a great time supping the 60 British cask beers, 10 ciders and 30 foreign beers we had on offer.

We had to close the doors at 7pm on the Saturday after literally everything had been drunk. It was so painful to see prospective customers being turned away but those coming along earlier had drunk their way through 6,550 pints in a record 19 hours – that’s an average of 344 pints served per hour or about 1 pint every 10 seconds!

There were several ‘classics’ on the list of cask beers, many of which have been multiple award winners in the past. Local breweries were well represented once again this year with several beers each from B&T, Buntingford, Crouch Vale, Red Squirrel, Saffron and Tring. The visitors selected B&T’s Black Dragon Mild as their Beer of the Festival. It’s pleasing to see a local product win an accolade and really endorses CAMRA’s LocAle initiative.

Besides Mr Lilley we welcomed another guest in the shape of Gene Rowe who was signing copies of the ‘The Quest for the Holy Ale’ a novel he co-authored on ale, the Chosen Alcoholic Monks of Righteous Ale (CAMORA!) and people trying desperately to get pissed in an outrageous fantasy world! Hitchin Town Hall sure did seem like a fantasy world a couple of times on Friday night!

The Hitchin Beer & Cider Festival, is a joint venture between North Herts CAMRA and the Hitchin Round Table. The Chairmen and the Organising Committee would like to say a big thank you to all who visited the festival and drank all the beer. Equally we’d like to apologise to those who made a journey to find nothing left

We hope to return in 2010 which will be the 10^th birthday of this event. The Town Hall’s future has been uncertain for two years now but we’re told the Town Hall will still be available for us to hire next year. We hope to be back on the 19^th & 20^th March 2010 and we’ll try to cram in some more beer….

See you next year?

Andy Rawnsley & Chris Owen

Here’s the beer list that you missed. Tickers note the Red Squirrel ‘New Mild’ made it’s debut at the festival.

No.	Brewery	Beer	Location	ABV	Tasting Notes
1	Abbeydale	Brimstone	Sheffield, South Yorkshire	3.9	Brown beer made with Amarillo hops. Aromas of malt loaf, marmalade and apricots. Flavours are coffee, toffee and liquorice with underlying spices.
2	Anglo Dutch	Magnum	Dewsbury, West Yorkshire	3.7	Pale half wheat half barley beer strongly hopped with German Magnum hops.
3	Anglo Dutch	Oliver Crunch	Dewsbury, West Yorkshire	3.6	Pale beer with a dry hoppy finish.
4	B&T	Black Dragon Mild	Shefford, Bedfordshire	4.3	Strong Dark mild with pronounced roast flavours. Brewed using Pearl Pale Malt, Crystal Malt, Black Malt, Roast Barley, Wheat Malt, Golding Hops.
5	Barngates	Westmorland Gold	Ambleside, Cumbria	4.2	Crisp flaxen coloured ale with strong zest. Fruity and hoppy nose. Brewed with Goldings hops from Kent.
6	Bazens	Knoll St Porter	Salford, Greater Manchester	5.2	Very complex malt flavours form the basis of this multi-grained dark beer. Velvety smooth with a drying fruity hop finish.
7	Black Sheep	Black Sheep Ale	Masham, North Yorkshire	4.4	Full flavoured premium bitter, with a rich fruity aroma. Brewed with Golding hops giving a bittersweet malty taste, followed by long, dry and bitter finish.
8	Brewdog	Zeitgeist	Fraserburgh, Scotland	4.9	No notes yet, but it will probably be in your face hops and attitude.
9	Buntingford	Ardent	Therfield, Hertfordshire	4.0	Copper coloured bitter. Like Highwayman but stronger.
10	Buntingford	Golden Plover	Therfield, Hertfordshire	3.8	Golden hoppy session bitter.
11	Buntingford	Polar Star	Therfield, Hertfordshire	4.4	Blonde ale with a hefty grapefruit punch.
12	Buntingford	Skiddaw	Therfield, Hertfordshire	3.9	Dark and fruity.
13	Cairngorm	Nessies Monster Mash	Aviemore, Scotland	4.4	A predominantly malty, lightly hopped beer giving a satisfying fullness of flavour with a warm finish.
14	Cairngorm	Tradewinds	Aviemore, Scotland	4.3	Light golden, with wheat giving a clean fresh taste. Perle hops and elderflower give fruit and citrus flavours. Champion Speciality Beer of Britain 2004-6.
15	Castle Rock	Sherriff’s Tipple	Nottingham	3.5	A ’supping’ bitter with distinctive hop character from Goldings hops.
16	Coniston	Bluebird	Coniston, Cumbria	3.6	Very pale, hoppy and malty with orange notes. Supreme Champion Beer of Britain 1998.
17	Crouch Vale	Brewers Gold	South Woodham Ferrers, Essex	4.0	Pale, refreshing and hoppy beer with gorgeous aromas of tropical fruits. Supreme Champion Beer of Britain 2005 and 2006.
18	Crown	Hillsborough Pale Ale	Sheffield, South Yorkshire	3.9	Straw-coloured bitter with citrussy nose, flowery head and petal undertones.
19	Dark Star	Hophead	Haywards Heath, West Sussex	3.8	Clean-drinking pale gold coloured ale with strong floral aroma and elderflower notes. Does what it says on the tin, full of hops.
20	Empire	Golden Warrior	Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire	3.8	Pale bitter, fruity with a sherbert aftertaste, moderate bitterness.
21	Fuzzy Duck	Feathers	Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire	4.0	Light coloured and quite hoppy, with citrus notes and a floral aroma.
22	Golcar	Mild	Golcar, West Yorkshire	3.4	Dark mild with a light roasted malt and liquorice taste.
23	Grindleton	Old Fecker	Clitheroe, Lancashire	4.0	It’s beer, but that’s as much as we know… Go on we dare you to try it. Be careful how you ask for it.
24	Hambleton	Stallion	Melmerby, North Yorkshire	4.2	A distinctly malty character with a hint of nuttiness while the enhanced hopping rate recalls the good old days of a true Yorkshire bitter.
25	Harviestoun	Schiehallion	Dollar, Clackmannanshire, Scotland	4.8	Cask conditioned lager. Crisp, dry and airy with a fresh, grapefruity taste. Made using Hersbrucker lager hops. Champion Speciality Beer of Britain 1996-7.
26	Hogs Back	TEA	Tongham, Surrey	4.2	Pale brown, with a hoppy and slightly fruity aroma supported by malt in the taste. Bittersweet beer with a long dry finish. Champion Best Bitter of Britain 2000.
27	Ironbridge	Coracle	Ironbridge, Shropshire	3.8	Session bitter with Goldings hops.
28	Jarrow	Rivet Catcher	Jarrow, Tyne & Wear	4.0	Light, smooth, satisfying gold bitter. Subtle fruity hops give the taste profile on the tongue and nose.
29	Kelham Island	Yorkshire Best Bitter	Sheffield, South Yorkshire	3.8	A straw coloured, thirst-quenching beer with a strongly hopped flavour and ‘nose’.
30	Leeds	Best	Leeds, West Yorkshire	4.3	A classic Yorkshire Bitter, full flavoured beer with a superb hoppy finish.
31	Mighty Oak	Maldon Gold	Maldon, Essex	4.4	Pale golden ale with a sharp citrus note moderated by honey and biscuity malt. Champion Golden Ale of Britain 2007.
32	Mighty Oak	Oscar Wilde Mild	Maldon, Essex	3.7	Roasty dark mild with suggestions of forest fruits and dark chocolate. A sweet taste yields to a more bitter finish. Champion Mild of Britain 2006.
33	Milestone	Raspberry Wheat Beer	Newark, Nottinghamshire	5.6	Continental Style Fruit Beer, Mouth filling fruit, with zingy finish.
34	Moorhouses	Black Cat	Burnley, Lancashire	3.4	Dark mild with distinct chocolate malt flavour and smooth hoppy finish. Supreme Champion Beer of Britain 2000.
35	Nethergate	Umbel Ale	Pentlow, Suffolk	3.8	Bitter flavoured with coriander. Champion Speciality Beer of Britain 2000.
36	Old Bear	Goldilocks	Keighley, West Yorkshire	4.5	Light golden ale, with a pungent hoppy taste but with a lemon tangy fruit aroma which comes from the complex blend of four hops.
37	Ossett	Silver King	Ossett, West Yorkshire	4.3	Lager style beer with a crisp, dry flavour and citrus fruity aroma.
38	Pot Belly	Beijing Black	Kettering, Northamptonshire	4.4	Strong dark mild. You won’t like it.
39	Slaters	Common Road	Porthmadog, Wales	3.8	A crisp, malty, reddish coloured session bitter with a dry bitter finish.
40	Ramsbury	Ramsbury Bitter	Ramsbury, Wiltshire	3.6	Amber coloured beer using Optic spring barley. Golding hops are used to give a smooth delicate aroma and flavour.
41	RCH	East Street Cream	Weston Super Mare, Somerset	5.0	Chestnut coloured ale with malty hoppy fruit, bitter with a sweet taste. Champion Strong Bitter of Britain 2002.
42	Red Squirrel	Colorado IPA	Hertford, Hertfordshire	5.4	Strong complex American style IPA with five malts and two hops. Floral/nettle hops balanced by sweet biscuity malt. Very bitter and hoppy.
43	Red Squirrel	New Mild	Hertford, Hertfordshire	3.6	Brown mild contains chocolate and dark crystal malt, lightly hopped with Goldings and Cascade. Festival debut.
44	Red Squirrel	RSB	Hertford, Hertfordshire	3.9	A light golden hoppy beer with a distant taste of fruity violets.
45	Saffron	Flying Serpent	Henham, Essex	4.5	Deep reddish brown ale. Rich velvety smooth beer with hints of roasted nuts and fruity floral aromas.
46	Saffron	Ramblers Tipple	Henham, Essex	0.0	Copper coloured bitter brewed with Crystal, Amber and Maris Otter malt, Sovereign and First Gold hops. Medium bitterness with toffee and caramel flavours.
47	Saffron	Saffron Blonde	Henham, Essex	4.3	Light golden ale. Delicate balance of citrus and smooth malty flavours with a crisp finish.
48	Salamandar	Mud Puppy	Bradford, West Yorkshire	4.2	Copper coloured bitter. Fruity, hoppy nose and a bitter finish.
49	Sarah Hughes	Dark Ruby Mild	Dudley, West Midlands	6.0	Dark ruby strong mild. Good balance of fruit and hops, with all kinds of red wine, port, plum flavours. You won’t like it. I wouldn’t bother if I was you.
50	Scattor Rock	Guzzler	Exeter, Devon	3.9	This year’s mystery beer. No notes available so you will just have to try it for yourself.
51	Thornbridge	Ashford	Bakewell, Derbyshire	4.2	Brown Ale, brewed with crystal malt, Cascade and Styrian Goldings hops. Floral hoppiness and a coffee finish.
52	Thornbridge	Jaipur IPA	Bakewell, Derbyshire	5.9	Soft and smooth but with huge hoppiness and a powerful bitter finish. You definitely won’t like this one. Champion Strong Bitter of Britain 2008.
53	Tring	Colleys Dog	Tring, Hertfordshire	5.2	Dark ruby coloured strong ale, a long dry finish with overtones of malt and walnuts.
54	Tring	Ridgeway Bitter	Tring, Hertfordshire	4.0	Proper brown bitter with a mix of hops and malt in the aroma and taste, leading to a dry flowery hop aftertaste.
55	Tring	Royal Poacher	Tring, Hertfordshire	4.1	Golden bitter with First Gold hops, giving fruity citrus taste, particularly orange.
56	Triple fff	Alton Pride	Alton, Hampshire	3.8	Golden -brown session beer, floral hop aromas, initial malty flavour leads to citric notes and hoppiness. Supreme Champion Beer of Britain 2008.
57	Triple fff	Pressed Rat and Warthog	Alton, Hampshire	3.8	Ruby mild, roast malt aroma with blackcurrant and chocolate, flavours of fruit and malt are balanced by hoppy bitterness. Champion Mild of Britain 2002.
58	Wickwar	Station Porter	Wickwar, Gloucestershire	6.1	Rich, smooth, dark ruby-brown ale. Roast malt, coffee, chocolate and dark fruit flavours develop into a complex spicy bittersweet taste. Doesn’t sound nice.
59	York	Guzzler	York, North Yorkshire	3.6	Refreshing golden ale with hop and fruit flavours.
60	Yorkshire Dales	Butter Tubs	Askrigg, North Yorkshire	3.8	Pale golden ale with dry bitterness complemented by strong citrus flavours and aroma.

Hitchin 2009 Beer & Cider Festival

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