Earlier this month, I trekked to the depths of west London in search of the elusive
Ealing Beer Festival; tucked away in Walpole Park nestled on the edge of town,
it was difficult to find without having to rely on my trusty map. Now in its
33rd iteration, beer festivals have been held in Ealing since 1987, when the
first one dubbed 'Beers on Broadway' was held at Ealing Town Hall, after a
brief detour to Acton in 1989, it came back to Ealing the following year, and
despite a few gaps in-between, a beer festival has been held on an annual basis
every Summer. Since 2008, the festival has been held at Walpole Park, following
the radical decision in the previous year to make it an outdoor event, the area
itself is held within an enclosed space within the park grounds surrounding the
central bar area, appropriately covered under a circus tent to avoid any risk
from potential adverse weather conditions. The tent space is neatly divided in
to four bars, along with separate mini-bars for low alcohol, cider & perry,
as well as a keg bar; the latter example is a rising feature at CAMRA beer
festivals, which I've encountered several times on my travels over the past few
years. Although this is a welcome development since a number of independent
breweries are now experimenting with keg beers, this is potentially controversial
issue as this flies in the face on what CAMRA stands for, giving support to the
perseverance and preservation to the UK's extensive cask ale producing
industry, so any move towards keg has understandably been met with
consternation from some of the membership. Another interesting feature to this was
the inclusion of the low alcohol bar, over the past decade low and no alcohol
beers have increased in popularity as people (especially the 18-24 age group)
has embraced lower ABV alternatives, which is perhaps a reflection on growing
health awareness and the decline in the pub drinking culture among the young,
as they eschew the time-honoured traditions of the older generations, who would
typically head down to the local boozer following a long day at the office.
The festival runs over four
days, typically in July and always before GBBF, though since the latter is
currently on hiatus this year, it means this festival has by default become the
highest profile Summer
beer festival to be held in London this year. The
festival primarily boasts beers from London and home counties, in particular
Sussex, Kent, Surrey and Berkshire, although examples from breweries based
further afield are also represented. Now, the expression, closing the barn-door
after the horse has bolted often follows me when I visit beer festivals as I
tend to visit them on the final day. This is somewhat ill-conceived and a
poison chalice as I often miss out on the more interesting beers on offer,
including the elusive limited edition festival specials of legend. So rather predictably
on the day I visited with my friend (and fellow real ale enthusiast) Andy, only
a quarter of the total beers were still available on tap, this severely put a
dent into our plans and we were left with the grim reality of having to
scavenge for the last remaining scraps in the barrel, if you pardon the pun.
Fortunately, there was just enough choice, to try beers from several different
beer styles, which I often aim to do when attending beer festivals. The first
beer I tried was Golding Bitter (4.1%) by Kent Brewery, it as
rather hoppy with a notable bitterness that hit the tastebuds at full throttle
upon first sip, it was complimented with a dry mouthfeel that was counteracted
by the distinctive malt forward background that helped extenuate the compelling
use of Goldings hops, which the brew is keen to celebrate, despite its low ABV
it's ingenious use of flavourings helped make it stronger than its official
strength would suggest. Moving on, I quickly noticed that the selection of
Stouts and Porters were in low supply, so after sampling a few that were
remaining I settled on Choco (5.8) by Stardust Brewery, a
chocolate stout by nature it was a veritable celebration of this iconic sweet
which would equally appeal to those with a sweet-tooth and fans of darker ales
alike. Fortunately, in this case, the beer didn't fall into the trap of those
overly flavoured and profoundly sickly pastry stouts that dominate the market
at the moment, in this instance the brewers have put out all the stops to make
this a memorable drink. Rather appropriately for a stout, it was strong, with
potent flavours of roasted malt, hints of chocolate, coffee and berry fruits,
with traces of butterscotch running through the palate. On the aroma front,
although I could detect a profound whiff of chocolate, there was intriguing
vanilla hint going on in the fringes. Moreover, the mouthfeel was heavy and
cloying, although it lacked creaminess which would have made the beer more luscious.
There was a profound sense of strength going on with brew, which is definitely
not the type to be drinking several in a session, unless you intend to get
absolutely smashed. For the third brew of the day, I headed 'oop North' to
sample Rocket (4.8%) by Manchester based brewery Marble. Named
the iconic steam locomotive that carried the first regular passenger rail service
(between Manchester - Liverpool) in 1830, as a train enthusiast I was keen to
try this. Unfortunately, in my case I encountered neither soot or smoke in the
brew, as it was a rather typical northern style best-bitter boasting an
amber-gold appearance with a gentle hoppiness, balanced by a sweet-malt
background. It was a rather easy-drinking beer despite its strength, although
the lack of head put a dent into detecting any excess flavourings that may have
been hiding in the barrel. It was far from impressive, as the flavours
seemed trundle along at a low speed without hitting the mark by the time it reached
it terminus.
My festival experience was
rather mixed, since we attended on the last day, the lack of beers that were
still available, severely put a dent on the proceedings, as I was keen to beers
from a variety of styles, in particular brown and red ales which had all but
run dry by this time. My waning, starch filled appetite was also increasingly
having an effect, and with each successive drink, I found it increasingly hard
to digest. So, if your new and inexperienced at the game of attending beer
festivals, I would advise you attend on the first or second day, as there will
be a wider array of beers available to choose from. I also advise against
having a big meal before the proceedings, and eat in moderation between drinks,
a trusty bag of crips or a protein filled snack is quite advisable, as it
doesn't affect the appetite and helps settle the stomach which is crucial if
you intend on sampling several drinks over the course of the day. As a location
it was bit difficult to get to, and its alfresco park-based setting is a
tad-orthodox, so if your seeking comfort I would advise you bring a blanket and
a foldable chair along, if you don't want your behind covered in grass and dirt.
As a festival I didn't really rate it, although attending on the last day severely
put a dent on my judgement with the lack of beers remaining, yet being ever the
intrepid explorer, it was a yet another festival to add to my growing bucket
list.
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