Think of Kentish brewing and you might think typical English countryside: dappled light and ruddy-faced urchins diving around the hop poles as Ma and Pa Larkin bumble about with a haycart. It’s a comforting pastoral image a thousand miles away from the bleak, flat landscape of Thanet or the cut-to-the-bone North Sea wind that rips across Whitstable Bay in November. But some of the best brewing Kent has to offer goes on right in the heart of this unforgiving and extreme region of the country. Three breweries – Shepherd Neame, Gadds and Whitstable Brewery – all produce workmanlike ales that should be tried, even if you can’t get hold of their most interesting brews north of the Watford Gap.

Kentish Dogs Beware!

Late for the autumn sky...

Beers o'Kent for men o'Kent

Beer brewing in the UK has been enjoying a renaissance of late. At least that’s what we’re told by the enthusiasts: from bloggers, brewers and drinkers alike. There has never been a better time to enjoy good quality, locally-brewed and ethically-sourced beer.

Kent Beer Festival 2010

One of the best ways to put this cheery rhetoric to the test is that staple of the drinkers’ diary, the beer festival. One of the grandees of the scene is the CAMRA Kent Beer festival

Now into its 36th year and, judging by the amount of brewers in attendance (around 120, or so we were told), and the decent-sized crowds packing the bars, the UK beer industry must be in pretty decent shape. Kent beers were well-represented as you’d expect, ranging from the Mild, Star and Light ales of Goachers of Maidstone, through to the honest hoppy Gadd’s bitters of Ramsgate.

Once we’d negotiated the dusty pathways of Merton Farm, paid our £4 entrance, and collected our tokens from the CAMRA volunteers manning the glass station, we were off into the murk of the cowshed.

First up was a good half of British Bulldog (4.3% ABV) which had a good dark amber colour and long hoppy finish. Strong one that, and a couple too many could have seen us raiding the snacks before time. But we moved on through the crowds towards Goachers where a pint of Real Mild Ale (3.4% ABV) and a half of Gold Star (5.1% ABV) went down easier than a Portuguese centre-half. Good beers, enough malt in each to make them drinkable summer pints.

My companion was pining for the ‘Pink Girlie Bar’, an exclusive area dedicated to the first time real ale drinkers. The staff here were excellent and even though busy, were handing out tasters to the more ale-shy. A half of Little Sharpie (3.8% ABV) from Humpty Dumpty of Reedham was a flowery, hoppy treat while the Cascade Pale Ale (4.8% ABV) had enough bitter thump to satisfy even the most un-girly drinkers in attendance. Kent’s oldest brewer, Shepherd Neame of Faversham, were well-represented with five beers to try: pints of Master Brew (3.7% ABV) and my all time favourite Spitfire (4.5% ABV) took the evening to a sound finish.

Although the toilets remain questionable, as too the bands playing atop a dodgy rigging of scaffold, the true stars of the show were the micro-breweries. Millis Brewing Co of Gravesend and Swan of West Peckham were just two of the many small-scale brewers on display, and bucking the trend in this so-called age of austerity. Kent beer drinkers have never had it so good.

Does sexism still exist in the beer industry. Nah, surely not?!

Beer festival information:
Festival: Kent Beer Festival
Organiser: CAMRA
Dates: 22nd – 24th July
Country: Merton Farm, Canterbury, UK

It’s the first day of the year you could describe as hot. You hope that tiny but noticeable itch under your eyes doesn’t mean hayfever (although deep down you know it does). Skies are clear and vividly blue, not a cloud in sight (nor an aeroplane trail on this particular day).

The village nestles amongst the rolling hills of Kent. Winding lanes shaded with full-leaved trees are a pre-requisite for getting here and parking next to an ancient stone wall an added bonus. Hop farms litter the journey, tall wired supports waiting patiently for the climbing plants to emerge from unkempt soil. Read the rest of this entry »

Dubbed “The Local Hero”, Shepherd Neame’s Master Brew is a self-assured ale from “Britain’s Oldest Brewer” (which presumably is also Britain’s oldest brewery – or this self-assurance also extends to the life-expectancy of the particular person who brewed the beer). The blurb on the bottle proclaims the English origin of the drink in various languages,

Master Brew: Described as "the best selling cask ale brewed in Kent" by Shepherd Neame

suggesting not only does it aim to be a local hero, but it’s battling for admiration abroad.

Visually, the dark copper liquid conjures the image of polished mahogany, and this polish certainly rubbed off on the bottle designers, with embossed features on the glass and gold detailing on the label trying to differentiate this Kentish nectar from beers of lesser heritage.

The moment the bottle cap pops clear and the conditioned gases scream forth – sending an amorous aroma like a booty call to your brain for a threesome with your taste buds – you know you’re in for a treat. The mild acidity of the hoppy scent assaults the senses, reassuring you that this isn’t a common-or-garden hint-of-citrus ale, but an all-season classic.

It seems the one area those Southerners aren’t soft is in their cultivation of hops, as with each mouthful the subtle cinder-toffee tones of the crystal malt seem to be immediately quelled by the dominating bitterness of the Kentish hops. This is no bad thing, but the more complex flavours are left to cower in the corner of your palate, whimpering quietly in the hope of a look-in.

The bitterness gradually subsides to leave a faintly smoky aftertaste with a suggestion of oak, leaving the warm glow of an open log fire smouldering on the tongue, begging to be stoked by more of this amber ale.

At 4.0% ABV (bottled, cask is 3.7%), Shepherd’s Neame Master Brew Kentish Ale is a typical session bitter with distinctive but not offensive taste, demonstrating why this old brewer is still going strong in today’s growing beer market.

You might have heard of the guy who I managed to draw for the beer swap: Pencil & Spoon’s own New Media Writer of the Year 2009 Mark Dredge. This was a selection of ales to look forward to; a brief glance at his excellent blog shows his good taste and awareness of beers and I had no doubt he would have developed an encyclopaedic knowledge of the local market over the year or so of working on his blog.

Kent is his part of the country, and is somewhere I have never been, so it was almost guaranteed that most of these beers I would never have come across.

So here is what I received:

- Westerham Brewery’s Little Scotney IPA (4%)
- Harvey’s Star of Eastbourne East India Pale (6.5%)
- Hopdaemon Brewery’s Skrimshander IPA (4.5%)
- Whitstable Brewery’s Raspberry Wheat (5.2%) Read the rest of this entry »