Opinion
Topical articles and pieces from a personal point of view.
Open letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt, MP
Dear Chancellor, Britain’s pubs and breweries are in crisis. In 2022 554 pubs closed and it’s estimated that 21 are closing every week this year. Las...
Fury over bulldozed pub
The loss of any pub saddens me. The destruction of a successful pub makes me boil with rage. The Bree Louise in Cobourg Street, North London, was just...
Historic hotels, strip mall chic and expansive brewpubs downunder
The last time I went to Australia was in 2004. I was a twenty something backpacker getting as far as I could on as little money as possible and tryin...
Beer Style of the Year: Stout
At a time when sales of such beers as IPA and golden ale seemed unstoppable it looked at first that the return of dark beer was an aberration. But it...
Never been a better time to shout about beer
It’s a common refrain in beer writing that there’s “never been a better time to drink beer”. But if 2022 is anything to go by, we may have to stop usi...
Low alcohol treats
Like most people I look to kickstart a bit of a detox after the festive season. Who can forget all those epic Christmas ales with their punchy ABVs? S...
Searching for prized old ale
An American friend, Julie Johnson, once told me the difference between our two countries is that the US has a past but Britain has history. As she wri...
Combine try and dry this January
The Dry January campaign is 10 years old this year. The idea of abstaining from booze after a December of decadence gains more traction annually. The...
A green touch of glass
Did you know that recycling is so efficient that it can take up to 50 times less energy to make new glass from old bottles than to make it from sand?...
Stout tsunami
Can there be such a thing as a hidden trend? I think so. I think we have become engulfed by a wave of rich, heavily flavoured and deeply alcoholic dar...
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