Aftermath....

....is most certainly an odd name for a post about the OFs latest meeting at the Poet & Hack.  

However there's no need to worry and there's nothing sinister here - it is simply a case of strong beers and a forgetful photographer.  Probably these two circumstances were linked and the net result was  a lack of any photographs of the evening in progress.  So the photographs in this post are of the aftermath of the evening.

The 4th meeting of the OFs on  Friday 29th May 2015, was (yet again) a pizza and pint evening and with Dominoes offering a blinding 50% off on internet pizza orders who could resist?  After another bit of shifty internet ordering by our silver surfer OF on his smart phone the pizzas arrived and where duly demolished.

Aftermath 1- the wreckage of the Dominoes pizzas.

Of course the pub shed meets are not about pizzas - but good conversation, good rock music, various literary diversions etc etc.  Oh yes not forgetting the sampling of fine ales!  On this night fine ales had arrived (in strength)  from all points of the compass with the main menu containing Flat Cap Ted (Cornwall or Wiltshire?), Williams Bros Midnight Sun (Scotland) and Ilkley Siberia (Yorkshire).  

Aftermath 2 - empty bottles from a successful tasting left outside the Poet & Hack

Of course these days no OF's meeting would be complete without the Brown Paper Bag Challenge and so, sitting on their park bench in shabby overcoats, belongings in a carrier bag and bottles concealed in brown paper bags, the OFs blind tasted the beers brought along by their fellow bench dwellers.  It is amazing what beers turn up in the park in brown paper bags, and this evening was no exception with UBU, Duvel, Mister Chubb and T.E.A.

Aftermath 3 - the brown paper bag beers exposed (not sure where the tin of pencils came from!)

In a brief interlude from the accompaniment of the Old Grey Whistle Test, we then appreciated  the OF's reading of a Wesleyan hymn courtesy of John Betjeman's radio talks from the Songs of Zion book.

Then onto a surprise guest ale in the form of the 'Old Farts' which was particularly fitting for the gathering and turned out to be a particularly robust ruby ale.  It was proposed that the Old Farts beer bottles should be retained by each of the OFs as a symbol of membership of the society, and so the OF's took their bottles home at the end of the evening, pondering how they would fit these 'membership cards' into their wallets.

Aftermath 4 - the OF's 'membership card'

Now it is customary for an OF's meeting to conclude with a sampling of a single malt whisky which has been kindly brought along by a member.  Tonight however there was a different kind of spirit, in the form of Calvados direct from an OF's visit to a domestic French producer.  This apple based spirit was every bit a strong as a single malt and very impressive.  

And so after an evening of pretty strong beers and a strong spirit, the OF's managed a quick midnight tour of the Furze Dale Brewery, and then wound their weary way home.  

One final word on the aftermath theme - as the landlord ( cleaner and chief bottle washer) of the Poet & Hack there is nothing quite like that morning after pub smell of slightly stale - but not at all unpleasant  - beer in the pub which brings back happy memories of the night before. Until smell-o-vision comes to Blogger here is a photo of the morning after in the Poet & Hack ...

Aftermath 5 - the morning after at the OF's table in the Poet & Hack

 Which just leaves the 'Untitled' title for the evening.....

'The beers were so strong I've forgotten what the title was'

Ok - I know that wasn't it - but it's true nevertheless.

Time gentlemen please...