Tick that Bucket

As we slide down the last bit of banister of 2009 and the "If not Now, When?" sign gets ever bigger, its heartening to see the Knights and Ladies out there ticking that Bucket.

Before my latest batch of travel I managed to tick a couple of my own last week.
A song that was a veritable sound track to the time i lived in America in the late 80's was "Letter From America" by the Proclaimers. The Scottish twins went on to have a raft of other fine singles too the sort that guys could get emotional too, and sing at the top of their voices, without appearing sappy, most notably "I'm gonna ( walk 500 miles )"

So it was with great sore throated pleasure i managed at last to see the guys at a sell out gig in Oxford, and you can bet my voice was the loudest when it came to the chorus's.



The next day, another event happened in the City that I had never gotten around to going to; The 12th Oxford Beer Festival. Over the years I had supped ale at all the outdoor local events, imbibing under the summer stars, but never entered the Oxford Town hall when one of these mammoth fests was all in one august room.

You buy your pint glass with your ticket and off you go into the Aladdin's cave of cask upon cask of British Ale from all over the Isle, not knowing where to start, and eventually not knowing when to finish.

They don't serve enough Mild ale in our pubs, and so i headed for the sweet dark tastes that i prefer and found Ruby Mild , by Rudgate Brewery of Tockwith, and Special Mild by Green Mill of Rochdale, Lancashire.

I have put the list below to show you just a small sample of the beers available in the UK, and that talk of the demise of the real ale industry is really just that. The guys i met here are serious beer fanatics, and it was good also to see the Hook Norton Crowd putting in a great Showing.

Brewer Beer ABV
Acorn (Barnsley) Spalt IPA 5.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Adkin (Wantage) Alfred's Honey Mild 3.2 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Adkin (Wantage) Alfred's Elswith's Ale 4.0
Adkin (Wantage) Alfred's Wantaig Ale 4.0
Allgates (Wigan) California 3.8
Allgates (Wigan) Pretoria 3.9
Arbor (Bristol) One Hop Motuweka 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Art Brew (Chideock) GHB 4.6 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Ascot (Camberley) Oktoberfest 4.8 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Ascot (Camberley) Anastasia's Imperial Stout 8.0
B & T (Shefford) Phantom Thirst 4.5 (+ Saturday duplicate)
B & T (Shefford) Bodysnatcher 4.5
Batemans (Wainfleet) Miss Germany 4.1
Beer Engine (Newton St Cyres) Silver Bullet 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Best Mates (Ardington) Vicar's Daughter 3.7
Best Mates (Ardington) Midsummer Madness 3.9
Best Mates (Ardington) Alfies 4.4
Blue Monkey (Ilkeston) Organ Grinder 4.6 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Bogart Park Ale 4.4 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Bottle Brook (Kilburn) Obsession 5.4
Bowman (Droxford) Elderado 3.5
Brakespears (Witney) Oxford Gold 4.0
Brakspears (Witney) Bitter 3.4 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Braydon (Chippenham) Gibbles 3.8
Brewdog (Fraserburgh) Bashah 8.6
Brewdog (Fraserburgh) 77 Lager 4.9 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Brewdog (Fraserburgh) 5am Saint 5.0
Buckle Street (Honeybourne) Dog in the Fog 4.2 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Cheddar (Cheddar) Goats Leap IPA 5.5
Clarks (Wakefield) Femme Fatale 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Crouch Vale (Chelmsford) Brewers Gold 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Cwmbran (Upper Cwmbran) Special 5.2 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Darby Old Winkle 5.0
Dare (Aberdare) Green Dragon 4.2
Dare (Aberdare) Falcon Flyer 5.2
Dark Star (Ansty) Hophead 3.8 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Dark Star (Ansty) Espresso Stout 4.2
Dark Star (Ansty) Oktoberfest 5.2
Devon Earth (Paignton) Devon Earth 4.2
Donnington (Stow) BB 3.6
Donnington (Stow) SBA 4.4
Dorset (Weymouth) Ammonite 3.8
Downton (Downton) German Pale Ale 4.2
Forge (Hartland) Porter 4.2
Forge (Hartland) IPA 4.5
Fremington (Yellstone) Puffin 3.7
Fremington (Yellstone) IPA 4.3
Glastonbury (Somerton) Thriller 7.0
Golden Valley (Kingstone) 4.10 4.1
Golden Valley (Kingstone) Hop, Stock & Barrel 4.6
Green Jack (Lowestoft) Lurcher Stout 4.8
Green Mill (Rochdale) Special Mild 5.1
Hambleton (Melmerby) Silver Spur 4.0
Hidden Agenda 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Hook Norton Bitter 3.6
Hook Norton Old Hooky 4.6
Hook Norton (Hook Norton) Hooky Dark 3.2 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Hook Norton (Hook Norton) Hooky Gold 4.1
Hook Norton (Hook Norton) Flagship 5.3 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Hopback (Downton) English Hop Medley 4.0
Hopback (Downton) Entire Stout 4.5
Hopstar (Darwen) Bojangled 4.1 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Hopstar (Darwen) Singing Mouse 4.0
Hornbeam (Denton) Dark & Devine 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Hunters (Ipplepon) Full Bore 8.0
Ilkley (Ilkley) Olicana Gold 3.9 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Ilkley (Ilkley) Olicana Best 4.0
Ilkley (Ilkley) Darwin Tipple 4.0
Isle of Avalon (Ashcott) Sunset 4.3
Isle of Avalon (Ashcott) Sunrise 5.0
Jollyboat (Bideford) Hart of Oak 4.4 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Leadmill (Denby) Autumn Goddess 4.2
Leeds (Leeds) Midnight Bell 4.8
Lees (Middleton Junction) Cock & Bull 4.5
Liverpool Organic (Liverpool) Founders Ale 3.7
Liverpool Organic (Liverpool) 24 Karat Gold 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Liverpool Organic (Liverpool) Shipwreck IPA 6.0
Loddon (Dunsden) Hoppit 3.5 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Loddon (Dunsden) Russet 4.5
Lymestone (Stone) Stone Faced 4.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Lytham (Lytham) Royale 4.4 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Lytham (Lytham) IPA 5.6
Mallinsons (Huddersfield) Amazon 3.8
Mallinsons (Huddersfield) Riva 3.9
Mallinsons (Huddersfield) Oatmeal Stout 4.3 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Matthews (Timsbury) Honey Mine 4.7
Monty's (Montgomery) Maple 3.8
Montys Moonrise 4.0
Moorview (Ilkley) Full Mashing 3.6
Mordue (North Shields) All Hallows Ale 4.4
Mordue (North Shields) The Ginger 4.6
Nook Brewhouse (Holmfirth) Nook Pale 3.8
Nook Brewhouse (Holmfirth) Nook Blonde 4.5
Nook Brewhouse (Holmfirth) Nook Light 4.6
North Yorkshire (Pinchinthorpe) Fools Gold 4.6
North Yorkshire (Pinchinthorpe) Lord Lee 4.7
Northern Chocolate and Chilli Stout 4.6 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Old Bog (Oxford) Dancing Morris 4.1
Old Bog (Oxford) Quarry Gold 4.1 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Old Bog (Oxford) Autumn Fayre 4.5
Old Bog (Oxford) Half Wit 5.5
Ossett (Ossett) Turning Leaves 4.5 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Panned Out Prospect 4.0
Pitstop (Grove) Star 3.8
Pitstop (Grove) Penelope 5.0
Pitstop (Grove) Monaco 5.5
Pitstop (Grove) Sump 6.0 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Plain Ales (Warminster) Innocence 4.0
Plain Ales (Warminster) Innspiration 4.0
RCH Steam Fair 4.5 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Rebellion (Marlow) Liquid Assets 4.3 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Roseland (Phillheigh) Cornish Shag 3.8
Roseland (Phillheigh) High as a Kite 4.8
Rudgate (Tockwith) Carouse 3.7
Rudgate (Tockwith) Ruby Mild 4.4 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Severn Vale (Cam) Pub Dog 5.2 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Steel City (Sheffield) Bez Sucheho Chmele - Jeden 4.8
Steel City (Sheffield) Hop Manifesto 4.8
Steel City (Sheffield) Life of Brian 4.8
Tigertops (Wakefield) Idle Weiss 4.1
Tigertops (Wakefield) Das Alt 4.8
Tintagel (Tintagel) Castle Gold 3.8
Tintagel (Tintagel) Gull Rock 4.4 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Tring (Tring) Phanton Monk 4.0
Triple fff (Four Marks) Alton Pride 3.8 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Two Bridges (Caversham) Golden Cygnet 4.9
Uley (Uley) Bitter 4.0
Uley (Uley) Old Spot 5.0
Waen (Caersws) Fuggle Hop Waen 4.3
Waen (Caersws) Landmark Waen 5.5
White Horse (Stanford) Bitter 3.7 (+ Saturday duplicate)
White Horse (Stanford) Village Idiot 4.1
White Horse (Stanford) Fibbertigibbet 4.3
Wild Walker (Derby) Foremost IPA 5.8
Williams Bros (Alloa) Ceildh Lager 4.7 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Wychwood (Witney) Hobgoblin 4.5
Yorkshire Dales (Askrigg) Skellgill Pils 3.9 (+ Saturday duplicate)
Yorkshire Dales (Askrigg) Dobble Fokker 6.0


So All Hail the Ale, Protect your Pint, and Tick that Bucket List.....
now, can you tell me where the Gents Toilet is please? Thankyou.

Sir Dayvd ( surviving all that is thrown at him ) of Oxford