A Sheffield bimble
The inner geek in me likes to organise my drinking time. Train timetables, optimal walking routes between pubs, gen on what beers and breweries can be found where and when. As I've said before: sometimes it's the thrill of the chase, sometimes it's for the kill.
Which is why sometimes it's fun to just kick back, relax and end up where your beer trousers take you.
To be honest, the day started at the Sheffield Tap as the result of gen. Their Twitter feed mentioned a new Thornbridge beer on keg being available - Mechelen, one of the last beers brewed by departing head brewer Stefano Cossi - so that seemed like a sensible place to start. Let's face it; a 7.4% Belgique blonde before noon has 'sensible' written all over it. Plenty of lemon curd versus a box that once held spiced Christmas biscuits.
What to do next? Drink more Thornbridge. Crux was an interesting one; light-chestnut brown, bright-white drumskin-tight head and Southern hemisphere hops - something earthier and spicier than the usual Sauvin suspects? I'll have to find out.
Then, an amble down to the Don. Past the magnificent Brutalist Park Hill flats, over Lady's Bridge, around what's left of the Tennant's Brewery. Along the river where there may be the iridescent flash of a kingfisher. And to the Harlequin.
I'll tell you why I really love this pub. It makes me feel... comfy. Top-notch beer from Brew Company as well as further-flung guests. Proper pub-cooked food. Cool music in the background. People enjoying themselves - be they curmudgeonly tickers, out-of-towners, raucous darts players... several pints of Summer Wine Covenant and Dark Star Smoked Porter and a cracking chat with Brew Company supremo Pete Roberts makes for a grand afternoon.
Uphill afterwards for Dada. As I hadn't been back since the opening night, I wanted to see how this art-bar was shaping up. Not too shabby is the answer. James Broad is an effusive host, looking forward to a Saturday night onslaught. Thornbridge Halcyon and Chiron were full of freshly kegged magnificence. And when you've got brewers like Thornbridge's Matt Clark and Magic Rock's Stuart Ross drinking there, you know the beers are more than all right.
No rushing around. No feeling I need to be everywhere. Just doing what I ought to do more of; bimble around and let the day develop. After all, good beer is where you find it.
Which is why sometimes it's fun to just kick back, relax and end up where your beer trousers take you.
To be honest, the day started at the Sheffield Tap as the result of gen. Their Twitter feed mentioned a new Thornbridge beer on keg being available - Mechelen, one of the last beers brewed by departing head brewer Stefano Cossi - so that seemed like a sensible place to start. Let's face it; a 7.4% Belgique blonde before noon has 'sensible' written all over it. Plenty of lemon curd versus a box that once held spiced Christmas biscuits.
What to do next? Drink more Thornbridge. Crux was an interesting one; light-chestnut brown, bright-white drumskin-tight head and Southern hemisphere hops - something earthier and spicier than the usual Sauvin suspects? I'll have to find out.
Then, an amble down to the Don. Past the magnificent Brutalist Park Hill flats, over Lady's Bridge, around what's left of the Tennant's Brewery. Along the river where there may be the iridescent flash of a kingfisher. And to the Harlequin.
I'll tell you why I really love this pub. It makes me feel... comfy. Top-notch beer from Brew Company as well as further-flung guests. Proper pub-cooked food. Cool music in the background. People enjoying themselves - be they curmudgeonly tickers, out-of-towners, raucous darts players... several pints of Summer Wine Covenant and Dark Star Smoked Porter and a cracking chat with Brew Company supremo Pete Roberts makes for a grand afternoon.
Uphill afterwards for Dada. As I hadn't been back since the opening night, I wanted to see how this art-bar was shaping up. Not too shabby is the answer. James Broad is an effusive host, looking forward to a Saturday night onslaught. Thornbridge Halcyon and Chiron were full of freshly kegged magnificence. And when you've got brewers like Thornbridge's Matt Clark and Magic Rock's Stuart Ross drinking there, you know the beers are more than all right.
No rushing around. No feeling I need to be everywhere. Just doing what I ought to do more of; bimble around and let the day develop. After all, good beer is where you find it.
your description of Mechelen is wonderful!
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