Category: Pubs, Clubs & Beer

Rain had fallen in the morning and the festival was being held at the less atmospheric Witton instead of the natural amphitheatre of Corpy Park. But there was a day out to be had and it was my girlfriend’s birthday.

After catching the Outer Circle bus to Green Lane, we called in the Station and Beehive to try their real ales before visiting the festival. A hog roast teacake apiece gave our stomachs a much-needed lining. Next door to the rotating pig was the beer tent. There was already a good crowd inside and outside the tent. We could see why – They were selling Darwen’s Hop Star beer.

I’ve met Barry Tyson, the brewery’s founder, on many occasions at CAMRA festivals. It’s good to see how well the brewery is flourishing with his daughter, Natalie, at the helm. What particularly impressed me today was how well the ale had been prepared for the event and its pristine condition. Outside festivals can sometimes lead to barrels being knocked about, leading to cloudy beer. But they got it right today.

A pint of Blonde got me going, while my girlfriend opened her account with the 7% cider. Sadly for Sylvia, it didn’t take long for the cider to sell out. This was probably down to lager not being on sale. But as a real ale drinker, I wasn’t going to shed any tears about this. The wine soon sold out too and it was looking like the real ale might go the same way.

It was tempting to not leave the beer tent, but we had come to a festival. We went for an ice cream and watched a few groups play. And then we found ourselves in the midst of the crowd dancing with the Indian drummers. After my head stopped jangling, it was time to go back to the beer tent and make it jangle again through a more pleasant imbibing process.

Natalie’s ale was too good to miss and their Lancashire Gold and Lush were put away, along with a Summer ale. It was a good afternoon’s indulgence, but time to make a sharp exit before the real ale ran out. No doubt others would have similar thoughts to mine, so our party of five headed for the aptly named Witton Inn. My foresight was rewarded with an excellent pint of Blackburn’s finest – Three B’s beer. It was Weaver’s Brew tonight.

Last stop before home was the Quarryman’s up the hill. Holt’s beer finished off a really good day out. Blackburn might be running out of pubs, but it’s certainly not running out of great beer. And a good time can still be had if you go looking for it.

I finally got to visit the land of my birth after half a century.

Larnaca is eight miles from my Dhekelia Sovereign Base Area birthplace.  It has a pub, not to be missed by serious beer drinkers, called the Barrel House.  Located centrally down a leafy street, between the American Academy and Metro Market, it looks and feels like a genuine British pub.  It was good to see the effort they are making in here and definitely worth your support and encouragement.

Panayiotis, behind the bar, certainly spoils you for choice of beers from all around the world and he was friendly, enthusiastic about beer and very helpful.  But tonight he was the support act.  Star of the show was Loizos, the man behind Cyprus’s Prime Microbrewery.

This family owned brewery is based near Aiya Napa and is the first microbrewery in Cyprus.  Loizos said he had enjoyed beers across Europe, including real ale in Britain.  Unfortunately the hot weather of Cyprus makes the process of producing cask ale very difficult.  But he said he is working on it and will get there.

“We only use natural ingredients because we believe that beer must be a 100% natural product. Chemical and additives are not and will never be part of our beer or brewing mentality”.

Prime source their hops from Britain and New Zealand.  Which is a nice connection for me, being a Cyprus-born Brit and my sister Carole, living in New Zealand.

The main event for Sylvia, my girlfriend, and I was sampling Prime’s beer.  First up for me was their Golden Ale.  At 4.5% it was the right strength for this kind of beer.  It tasted nice and managed to avoid any tanginess.  IPA followed, very good too and I was beginning to think I was back in a pub in breezy Blighty, rather than sunny Cyprus.  Sylvia had a wheat beer, which I moved on to next.  Other punters in the Barrel House hadn’t seen a pint like this before and questioned my sanity in drinking such a cloudy drink.  But this was the real deal and those of us who enjoy wheat beers know it is cloudy and you don’t drink with your eyes.

Unfortunately for Sylvia and me, this enjoyable tasting event in the Barrel House had to come to an end.  It was refreshing, in more ways than one, to see Larnaca has a great pub waiting to be discovered.  And now the island has its own great microbrewery with a nice selection of beers waiting to be discovered too.