The Sunday Times says we are the No.1 'Proper Pub' in Britain. No, really.
An accolade this week. The Sunday Times’ Pete Brown has us at No.1 in his ‘UK’s Best Proper Pubs’. This one means a lot since Pete is someone we hugely respect as a writer on pub and beer history.
A few years back Pete wrote a marvellous book, Hops & Glory, documenting his efforts to brew a barrel of India Pale Ale (IPA) in Burton and then ship it to India by sail. This honoured the 19th century raison d’etre of the IPA style which was devised by Allsopp's as a stronger beer with more hops specifically to survive the salty, storm-tossed journey to India without going off - thereby supplying thirsty colonials with the ale they missed from Old Blighty. Pete’s aim, other than having a lovely jolly, was to determine what impact the journey itself has on the quality of the beer.
After a picaresque, long and somewhat calamitous journey featuring canal-boats, square-riggers and container ships, Pete and associates arrive at the Deputy High Commission in Calcutta with the battered barrel of IPA, by now known as Kevin. Amid much anticipation, it is tapped.
“The beer poured a rich, deep copper colour, slightly hazy from the sheer weight of the hops. The nose was an absolute delight: an initial sharp citrus tang, followed by a deeper tropical salad of mango and papaya. And when I tasted it, my tongue exploded with rich, ripe fruit, seasoned with a hint of pepper…the elements of the beer ran into each other, harmonising. The finish was smooth and dry, clean and tingling. And by God it was damned drinkable for its 7 per cent alcohol.”
(That's Pete in the photo above savouring the precious liquid in the Deputy High Commission, Calcutta)
The India Pale Ale style was originally devised in a teapot by my 7-times Great Grandfather, Samuel Allsopp in 1822 and became a cornerstone of the brewery’s success. The beer is available in cask, naturally fermented and hand-pumped to the glass - its very highest incarnation - on the bar at The Blue Stoops.
