It's A Pub Jim - But Not As We Know It...

...apologies to Star Trek for the adaptation of the famous old Dr Spock line.

A Saturday night in early December 2014 saw the OLD FARTS attending the opening night of the Poet and Hack pub shed in Hampshire.

The Poet and Hack decorated for the opening evening.

The Poet and Hack is named in honour of Sir John Betjeman, Poet Laureate and one of the finest English poets and champion and defender of our country's heritage.  ('A poet and hack' was how Sir John described himself in 'Who's Who').

This much anticipated, auspicious event was attended by a select capacity crowd (just the OFs actually) and a simple opening ceremony was held and the ribbon cut before the guests were invited into the snug bar.

The ribbon is cut at the opening ceremony

It was much to the landlord's relief that the invited guests all fitted into the confines of the 6ft x 6ft (external dimensions) pub as it was  bit cold for beers on the terrace.

OFs in the snug bar.

The Poet and Hack is a free house and this particular evening there were some fine guest ales from the Jennings and Wychwood breweries.  The following beers were sampled, in moderation, and thoroughly enjoyed by the OFs during the session:

Jennings:
1 Cumberland Ale
3 Cocker Hoop
1 Snecklifter

Wychwood:
3 Imperial Red
2 Black Wych
2 Dr Thirsty No.4

The OFs confirmed that the opening night at the Poet and Hack was a success and that they would be returning to this hostelry in the near future.

Get them in...

The Ringwood Brewery Trip

On a fine, but cold Saturday in late November 2014, the OLD FARTS visited the Ringwood Brewery which is in Ringwood, Hampshire (funnily enough).

Having arrived early we signed in and the staff kindly furnished us with halves of Ringwood Bitter from the bar to keep us occupied until the tour commenced.  An excellent welcome!

The tour was interesting and the 'L' word was only mentioned once by way of explaining how it does not compare with real ale which is full of nice things.  At the cask filling area we were told of a worker who they say is barely human and grunts - they call him 'the casker'.  This part of the presentation had distinct overtones of Top Gear so we assumed he was related to the Stig.

After an exhausting tour of the brewery (lasting just over an hour) we returned to the Brewery bar for some much needed sampling and refreshment as the photo below shows.  The full range of beers were on draft and free to sample as many times as you liked before time was called at the end of the tour.  The beers on draught were Best Bitter, Forty-niner, Boondoggle (a favourite with our lager drinker), Old Thumper and the winter special brew of XXXX Porter.

The OFs sampling in the Brewery bar.

In an unexpected turn, the Brewery staff called upon an OF to assist as temporary barman when one of the barrels needed changing, and after a momentary reluctance,  an OF rose to the challenge with relish (though in general the OFs prefer drinking the beer to serving it).

OF acting as temporary barman.

When the bar closed we were bid farewell with our complementary half pint sampling glasses and there was just enough time to return to the Brewery shop and stock up on our favourite tipples.  The OFs were seen to purchase beer glasses, jars of Old Thumper marmalade and beer relish,  and a variety of packs of beer including Marston's Owd Rodger (couldn't resist trying this 7%+ brew), XXXX Porter etc.

So a thoroughly enjoyable trip was had by all, rounded off by a visit to a local hostelry serving Ringwood beers (of course) together with filling (but slightly less than gourmet) burger and chips.

Get them in....

Introduction

The O.L.D. F.A.R.T.S. came about as a result of a chance meeting of 4 men in a Hampshire pub one Saturday tea-time in late Spring 2014.

This chance meeting developed over the following weeks and months into a more regular Saturday tea-time meet for a few drinks, a chat and a catch up.

It became apparent that 3 of the 4 enjoyed sampling real ales and while the other one was (is) a lager drinker, they did not hold that against him, and the One Lager Drinker and Fine Ales for the Remaining Three Society was born.

The O.L.D. F.A.R.T.S.  have therefore set out on their adventure;  to boldly go were no man (ok hardly any) has been before in the mission to sample (and enjoy in moderation) craft and real ales not to mention the occasional malt whisky when the opportunity arises.

Please note that this is not an official/expert beer tasting and reviewing blog.  It is just a record of the old fart's adventures, where they went, what they drank and whether it was nice!

Get them in.......