This Is Camden
"I'll explain how the process works as I prepare your order" shouts Ahrash over the buzz of the crowds and the whirrrrr of the industrial food mixers. And donning a thick gauntlet, and dropping plastic safety glasses, he turns to the cannister containing nitrogen oxide and casually turns the latch, releasing a gushing of colder-than-ice-cold steam into the pureed ice cream mixture. This is Camden. This is England. Eating nitro ice cream in the 2010's and drinking ...
Build A Rocket Boys! by Elbow & Robinsons
Elbow are the kings of soaring melancholy, masters of poetic northern introspection. Let Elbow's albums flow over you and you can be mesmerised by their beauty alone. Put in the time to listen, to soak up the poignancy, the humour, the extraordinary manifestations of the ordinary and their albums become life affirming tributes to the everyday. Conversely, it's quite easy to stick an Elbow album on and realise thirty lethargic minutes later that time - and ...
The humble pint
So the pint is done with we're told! Well what would they say in Prague, where refreshing pilsners stand proud in tall half litre glasses, quenching thirsts almost with their looks and frothy gusto alone. Tell the football fans sinking a pint of bitter before the well trodden march to the ground that their beer will be served in flutes or tulips or whisky tumblers. "Like hell" they cry! The ugliness of a nonik pint glass aside (does ...
York Tap
It's a drinking hole essentially, underneath it all. For all the domed skylights and stained glass, people come here to let off steam, to pass the time, to forget the day. To drink. But to say that is to do York Tap a disservice as it stands resplendent next to the revived station complex. Like its Sheffield counterpart it was born in an old resting room, and the 104 year old building suits its new life ...
Meantime Union Vienna Style Lager
Deep in a basement bar not far from Bohemia, the cerny pilsners of the brewery up the road changed my perception of lager. Sweet and rich but surprisingly light, they distributed refreshment and nutrition as if feeding me and five thousand other thirsty drinkers. Meantime Union shares a similar contradiction. Broody and brown, this is is no pale bodied pushover. Lagered it is, and a tad metallic to boot, coupled with a dark caramel composition and ...
Roosters Pumpkin Beer
Roosters Brewery, whose beers are the staple diet of many a Yorkshire pub, marked this Hallowe'en with a pumpkin beer. No ordinary pumpkin beer though, a pumpkin beer served in nothing less than a giant pumpkin. A really, really giant pumpkin. Pumpkin 5 Spice Ale was tapped at North Bar in Leeds, in front of Calendar news and a small selection of excitable beer lovers. Arguably a more delicate task than tapping a cask, the job ...
Killer jerk chicken with killer ginger beer
Jerk chicken isn't just tasty to eat, it's a joy to make. The honey and coriander marinade is messy and sticky, the chicken succulent with a crispy skin - lots of kitchen mess and fun. Juices of bird and salad mean this a meal best served sans cutlery but with plenty of, well, Plenty. For a ginger beer Robinson's Ginger (brewed for M&S) is a dark and syrupy affair, quite different from a can of Barr's ...
House of the Trembling Madness
The goofy moose head gazes down aloofly from his lofty perch below the rafters, and we sit cradling a kriek and a pilsner in a building that has almost a millenniums worth of years on us. House of the Trembling Madness sits above the cobbled shopping street of Stonegate, York. The city walls skirt their circular path near here, the famous minster is but a Viking throw away. Students from the continent order coffee and thirds of ...
North By North Orval
Orval is the sort of beer spoken about with reverence. I like to think the same goes for North Bar. It should have been me and my friend Tom sat there, dissecting Leeds United's yo-yoing fortunes, laughing at the Howson Is Now blog and deliberating the creaminess of the Orval cheese whilst sat on the classroom chairs and the well leaned on tables. But it's my brother partnering this trip due to Tom's tight schedule as a relatively ...
Moorhouse's Pendle Witches Brew
From Pendle Hill you've more chance of seeing Ian Holloway celebrating at Bloomfield Road than coming across any broomsticks or clandestine hurlyburly. And that's on a cloudy day. The sandstone plateau does have a slightly spooky aura about it though. Standing proud from the undulating hillside you can imagine a cackling coven of witches peering over the landscape and plotting the demise of their rivals. Especially if you visit during thunder and lightning... Moorhouse's Pendle Witches Brew is inherently ...
Sainsbury's Great British Beer Hunt 2011
Over the last few months the Sainsbury's Great British Beer Hunt has been taking place providing a welcome opportunity to try some different beers from the familiar supermarket shelves. And in October Bad King John from Ridgeside Brewing was crowned winner of a six month national listing in 300 Sainsbury's stores. Bad King John beat beers from around the UK to the throne via four regional heats (120 beers), a three week stint in Sainsbury's stores (16 ...
M&S London Porter
Smoky as hell to smell and like a burnt caramel bar to taste, M&S's London Porter is a sweet beer to devour with masses of chocolate or marshmallows over a camp fire. If you don't fancy the great outdoors then no worries, the lingering smoky presence hangs around for a long time in your mouth and may invoke daydreams of sitting under the stars and gazing at the heavens. It's packed with malt variety: you can settle ...
Lakeland IPA
Tuesday night, two bottled bitters sunk and the quenches for thirst and flavour continue to itch away unabated. Cue Lakeland IPA, a beer that for one moment in time justifies the beatification of hops single-handedly. The perfect hiss released as metal hits glass and twists plastic; an aroma eager to reach a nose and knock on the door of the senses. Soft-fleshed fruit says hello - mangoes might not be typical of Cumbria unless visiting a certain kitchenware ...
Moor JJJ IPA
This not, I repeat NOT, an IPA. Punchy, citrus hops? Nil. Alcohol? Deep, stewed and sweet beyond believe. Apple skins & fruit pudding? Yes, yes, YES! None of which gives Moor JJJ IPA much credence as an IPA. But then again this isn't an IPA nor a double IPA. It's only a bleedin' triple IPA(!!!). This couldn't be further from Green King's bland and monotonous flagship brand of ale and is similar in nothing but colour. By their own admission Moor didn't ...-
January 17th, 2010Beer RecipesAs my housemate very kindly offer to cook me tea the other night I decided to repay the favour by making a big old chocolate sponge for us all to have after. The recipe is really simple and takes minutes but the results are fantastic although they do come with the warning that this is a really filling chocolate pudding, not a light ‘posh’ dessert.
Chocolate Pudding, Brilliant, Sweet, Cold Weather Stodge
Ingredients (My Nan gave me this recipe so it’s in oz – I make my apologies to the EU!)
6oz – Self-Raising Flour
2oz – Cocoa Powder
8oz – Butter
8oz – Castor Sugar
4 – Eggs
1 Packet Chocolate Chips
Method
The method really is easy, the first bit being the most labour intensive. Cube the butter and castor sugar together in a bowl with the back of a metal spoon. Crack the eggs into the bowl and stir in until the mixture is smooth then sieve the flour and cocoa into the bowl and stir that in too!! Finally chuck the chocolate chips into the mix and give it one final stir. The mixture should be smooth but not too runny and, although my Nan tells me off for doing it, should taste delicious if you put a finger in!!! Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Beer and Food, Chocolate Sponge, hoppy, Moosbacher, Pudding, Wheat Beer -
January 11th, 2010Beer Recipes, Beer and Food
Potted Cheese with Toast
Like me, you are probably more familiar with the phrases Potted Beef or Potted Shrimp than Potted Cheese. ‘Potting’ ingredients is a traditional way of stretching ingredients with butter while adding flavours and it can be done with a good cheese in the same way as it can with meat or fish. These days it is a great way of doing something different with your cheeseboard and also linking the beer you’re drinking to the food you’re eating.
Ingredients
350g Yorkshire Blue cheese (Stilton or any other strong, crumbly cheese can be used)
Tags: Beer Recipes, beer with food, Food, Orval, Potted Cheese, Yorkshire Blue
75g unsalted butter (at room temperature and cut into cubes)
½ teaspoon ground mace
3 tablespoons Beer Read the rest of this entry » -
December 5th, 2009Beer Recipes, Beer Reviews, Bitters
Old Hooky and Fruitcake
I have always said that Old Hooky, probably my favourite beer, reminds me of the fruitcake that my Nan bakes. The dried fruit flavours are noted by Zak Avery in his notes for the recently published top 50 beers as listed by The Independent newspaper. I am not going to regurgitate Zak’s comments but rather identify a food pairing which I have been dying to try for some time now.
In addition to the fruit flavours, which are deep and rich rather than sharp and citrusy, there is a mild spiciness that brings a little warmth to the back of your mouth when drinking. These are the reasons why it reminds me of the fruitcake that my Nan has been feeding me on Saturday afternoons for as long as I can remember.I have categorised this post under beer recipes because I think that this is a delicious beer/food pairing although I am not publishing the fruitcake recipe just now. Firstly because I need my Nan’s permission but also because it takes quite a bit of time to bake.
My recommendation would be to nip out to a good cake shop (there’s a great stand on Morley Market selling cakes and jams, presumably there’s one in Leeds City market too) and pick up a nice rich fruitcake. Buy a few bottles of Old Hooky and keep them somewhere cool but not cold (I leave my beers for the week ahead by our back door and they are always ready at the drop of a hat). You will then have a perfectly paired slice of cake and drop of ale to serve to any unexpected yuletide visitors.
Tags: Fruitcake, Fruity, Hook Norton, My Nan, Old Hooky, Rich, Spicy, Xmas, Zac Avery -
October 23rd, 2009Beer Recipes
As I was back down in Oxfordshire last week visiting my parents I decided to take a trip over to Hook Norton to pick up some ales. Tuesday was a crisp, sunny morning and I felt invigorated flying down the country roads with my sunglasses and coat on, the window open and the Kings of Leon blasting out of the Megane’s old stereo. I’m pretty sure I looked like a prick but I didn’t care.
Before I’d even arrived at the brewery I’d decided that I was going to spend the afternoon working on ‘Beer-ising’ a recipe that I’d had in mind for a couple of months. I knew the type of beer, well stout to be precise, that I needed and knew that Hooky Double Stout would be just the ticket.
Hook Norton Visitor's Museum
So, after picking up a few bottles and a quick tour of the museum (see picture…well worth a visit if you’re ever in the area), I headed home to the kitchen (well – my parents kitchen, and I already had this in mind for and excuse if it went wrong). The following is what I came up with…
Ingredients (Serves 2)
2 x Chicken Breast
4 x Bacon Rashers
A Generous handful of Grated Cheddar Cheese(For the BBQ sauce)
1 Tblsp Olive Oil
4 x Garlic Cloves (Crushed)
3 x Tblsp Tomato Puree
2 x Heaped Teaspoon of Mustard Powder
4 x Tblsp Soy Sauce
2 x Tblsp White Wine Vinegar
150g Molasses
Ground Black Pepper
Chilli Flakes
Worcester Sauce
Tobasco Sauce
¼ Pint Hook Norton Double StoutMethod
Heat the Olive Oil in a small saucepan and gently fry the crushed Garlic for a couple of minutes. Once the garlic is soft, add the tomato puree and mustard powder, stirring constantly to avoid the puree burning on the bottom of the pan. Next, one at a time, throw in the soy sauce, white wine vinegar and Molasses, You can slam them all in at once if you want but I find it easier to add each one, give it a good stir and move onto the next. The mixture should thicken with the Molasses and, when it returns to a good temperature, will bubble a bit like lava. Don’t have it too hot or it will go everywhere (as a guide I can usually dip my finger in mine to see how the flavour is coming along).
Next add the Worcester and Tobasco Sauces, Black Pepper and Chilli Flakes to taste. Obviously this will depend how spicy you want the sauce and I recommend that you add them a little at a time, employing some finger dipping to taste as you go and adding more if you think it’s required, don’t forget your Mum’s old saying…’you can add more, but you can’t take any out..’. Finally add the stout (again tastes will differ so add it a bit at a time, also the amount of stout will dictate how thick and sweet the sauce is so, if you don’t want it too runny, don’t add too much). You now have the Stout BBQ sauce that will form the basis of the dish and the hard bit is over.
In a shallow, heavy based pan cook the 2 chicken breasts, brushing them occasionally with the BBQ sauce. If you have had time beforehand you can marinate them in the fridge but this isn’t essential. Once the chicken has cooked through place it in a deep ovenproof dish, cover with the BBQ Sauce and stick in an over that’s been preheated to 180 degrees. In the same pan as you’ve cooked the chicken fry 4 rashers of bacon until they are quite crispy, place these over the top of the chicken and leave in the oven for a further 20 minutes. Finally remove from the oven, throw the grated cheese on top and place under a hot grill until the cheese has melted golden.
I served mine with homemade potato wedges and peas, I think it would go easily as well with salad and chips. Oh, and of course a bottle of Hooky Stout!!!
Tags: Beer Recipes, Double Stout, Hook Norton, Hunter's Chicken
Hooky Hunter's Chicken
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