h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Yes, I did.. .. my mother lectured in law there, so she was quite keen that I went, but I went to the university open day, and I liked the city and the course (I also knew someone on the course in the year above). I originally applied for philosophy/psychology joint hons., but they dropped the course after I'd applied, so I had to reapply (UCAS sent me much-photocopied form which I adjusted to psychology at the same place on), so that was what I ended up doing.

.. that sounds a little similar to what I'm doing. ..

Sorry, I feel that I must defend the hard work of good brewers all across this island I call the US. Microbreweries have the hardest time making a quality product, but they always seem to excell at it in the end. I have had any number of spectacular brews from all around teh country. I myself make beer, and it is quite good as well!

Oh and Nyss dear? Corona is Mexican beer after all (psst, I drink it too!).

While I rarely drink anything that comes from a major manufacturer of weasel piss, I do enjoy good small batch products from some bigger breweries. Or some of the regional brews that are quite common (Sam Adams, Pete's Wicked Ale, Anchorsteam etc.)

That said, I must say that Young's Double Chocolate Stout is among my alltime favourite libations. As is Guiness and Newcastle Brown Ale.

*nods*.. fair enough; it must be said that the only beer which I ever get to sample in this country is mainstream beer (and mostly brewed over here, as well). Miller and Bud brewed in Scotland just don't do it for me.

Even some wonderful beers like Newcastle Brown and Guinness sometimes taste quite odd when you drink them outside of their native area; I've had some disgusting pints of Newcastle Brown, but I love the stuff when I can get it. The same applies to guinness.

There are also too many microbreweries over here which have been bought out by large breweries and now market the same product, but made to a different recipe, 300 miles away from the original brewery; our local brewery had been using the same strain of yeast and the same brewing techniques since the 1600s, but sadly has now become a victim of the great commercialisation train. (Old Speckled Hen, which is quite famous as a result of a recent advertising campaign, used to be made 2 miles from where I'm sitting, and was the /best/ beer I've ever tasted, hands down. Note, was. The stuff they market is /horrible/)

Speckled Hen can still be pretty good in some places. I had a pint of fairly decent stuff only last night.

.. *pets VIP on the head*.. I have one pint of old speckled hen which is a relic from the days when it was brewed over here. I did have two, but I drank one (which somehow, had managed to go off. ).. once I've worked out how to build a replicator, I'll make copies of the thing and then you can taste /proper/ old speckled hen. Trust me, even the nicest ontap old speckled hen tastes icky nowadays. It doesn't travel, either.

There is a very simple reason why Old Speckled Hen these days is a pile of dingos p*ss, two little words in fact. Greene King. It could even be shortened to one word, begins with B ends in astards. There is even a shorter word beginning with C, but I'll leave that to your imagination.


I can't understand how campaigns like Camra can go on about how big business ruins the traditions of beer production, yada yada, and yet *stil* takes sponsership from and sings the praises of complete tosspots like the unscrupolous GK. They screwed up their own recipies, and now they're screwing everyone elses. Abbot Ale used to be an absolutely superb pint, it went down smoothly and was deceptively tasty, now I'd rather get intimate with a goat than drink a pint. So they buy up smaller breweries and increase their portfolio. But it's not always the beer brands they buy for, it's the pubs. They like a strangle hold on the local pubs where ever they set down. Oxford is a good example, buy Morrels, demolish the brewery, keep the pubs. Morrells beer is now brewed at Bury St.Edmunds, the town that is so happening, they named it for where some dead guy was buried. Speckled Hen, about the only Morland beer that's survived, but how many of their pubs made it through to be GK ones? And don't even try and buy a freehouse in Cambridge. GK have made it known that they'll try and buy any pub that goes onto the market there.


Decent American beer... there is a very good one, I'll have to dig out the name of the brewery.

Here it is...

http://www.allagash.com/

I can tell you three, in the heart of Mormon country Pastey...

Hoppers, a brew pub and resaurant.
Squaters, with local favourite bres St. Provo's Girl (Provo is a community that is something like 90% LDS) and Pologamy Porter.
Desert Edge brewery and restaurant.

Local small batch (500 gallons or less) breweries make the best beer.

*nods*.. Pastey's right, although it was brewed in Abingdon, rather than Oxford, and the building wasn't demolished, it's been turned into an 'attractive set of apartment developments', of which 'only two or three are remaining'.

*takes notes on american beers*

Morland was in Abingdon, Morrells was in Oxford. I watched them demolish the brewery.

Argh, Yes, sorry, I'm being horribly stupid. Bad day, sorry.

Did you ever try ruddle's beer? It used to be brewed in Leicester. I got my hands on some of the original Ruddle's once, and it was wonderful. Unfortunately, they're gone too.

Yeah, Ruddles were from Rutland, between Leicestershire and Cambridgeshire, about thirty miles from where I grew up. Morland bought them out, and then GK inherited them when they bought Morland out. I never found it anything to write home about, but that could well have been my personal tastes.

We want to call our next dog Ruddles...

Ah. Well, I liked the original stuff. .. but then, I'm a cider drinker, so what would I know?

Hello Vip!!!