I went out drinking with Thomas Paine.....

To Earl’s court for the Great British Beer Festival with with some inevitability BLBW and delightfully SA.It’s a funny old thing the GBBF a small miracle in some ways as it’s run by volunteers and a testament to Camra’s long term (if idiosyncratic) campaign to save tasty beer from extinction.

Beer Fact: The number of breweries UK is incredible about 700 and there’s only 200 boroughs that means that you live near at least 3 breweries (oh and 2 cheese makers (blessed are the cheese makers).
Beers we liked: Odell’s Ipa (USA), Barnsley Gold from Acorn (God’s own country) (I know I’m biased but it was nice) oh and lager called Bernard from (Czech).

Beer of the Night: must be Tom Paine by Harvey’s mainly because it tasted good but also because Thomas Paine was a top bloke and also there’s the Billy song

Look Tom even had an aphorism about makings sure you look after your casks!

“Character is much easier kept than recovered.”

What else was good: Well apart from the company, the pies weren’t bad either!Only downside as ever is Earl’s court: there must some better place to open Britain’s biggest pub somewhere that doesn’t look like the basement car park of a derelict Polish nuclear power station (but not in good way) and also some better seating areas would be good. If you are not some sad “ticker” who “baggsies” a table as the doors open you have to sit on the floor.However it’s on for few more days and is very jolly indeed.