This weekend I hooked up with a long standing aquaintance OLD BOB from the sadly now defunct Ridleys brewery. It brought back memories of beer at 35p a pint and the days when you ordered a half of bitter and a bottle of Old Bob and the bartender would give you 2/3 of a pint in a pint glass and a half pint bottle of Old Bob. Clearly drinking beer does not diminish the long term memory as a 35p pint would have been about 30+ years ago. It also brought back memories of under age drinking in the Old Lamb (sadly also gone and now 2 or more houses stand on that plot) in High Roding with the ex butcher who always looked miserable as a Landlord. People used to say it was a hard life being a butcher which is why he always looked miserable but I think he was worried about his daughter hooking up with one of his regulars. Ahh what memories, I guess that my interest in nostalgia means I am now middle aged.
The demise of small breweries and the loss of pubs is a sad fact of modern life and I can't say I call it progress. Ridleys at Hart end Felsted wa a delightful old brewery which was a bit like a museum when I last visited it a few years ago. They still had the old coppers, still hauled the hops up to the top floor by hand etc. but apparently they didn't make any money so they sold out the Greene King who make a few passable beers. I remember them buying Rayments in the 80's. Rayments used to supply the beer to our rugby club but the BBA soon became IPA and there is now no Rayments beer left as far as I know, so lets hope Ridleys is a stronger brand.
Any way Ridleys Old Bob is now available in 500ml bottles from most good supermarkets. It is a proper bitter without the sweet addition of some of my recent beers. I like the fact that it doesn't really have any head and in my opinion you could easily drink more than one of these in an evening. The clear bottle also lets you see exactly what you are getting.
Ridley's
Old Bob Strong Pale Ale
ABV 5.1% • Vol 500 ml • bottle •
________________________________________
Ridley's, brewing since 1842 till around 2005, was an Essex-based brewer of traditional English ales. Old Bob, a premium ale at the weaker end of the 'old ale' style, has a distinctive, delicate malty aroma with a touch of hop and a thick, persistent head out of the bottle. The attack is sharp and bitter-sweet. There is a lively, very rounded palate of rich, treacley, faintly caramelly malt, without being thick or cloying, and a clean, hoppy (Fuggles) bitterness fading into a bitter aftertaste, with maybe a trace of burnt malt, in the back of the throat. This tastes just how one imagines a beer should - rich, complex and bloody marvellous. Although quite sweet for a pale ale, the flavour is perfectly balanced by the Fuggles bitterness and the deeper roasted malt notes.
The demise of small breweries and the loss of pubs is a sad fact of modern life and I can't say I call it progress. Ridleys at Hart end Felsted wa a delightful old brewery which was a bit like a museum when I last visited it a few years ago. They still had the old coppers, still hauled the hops up to the top floor by hand etc. but apparently they didn't make any money so they sold out the Greene King who make a few passable beers. I remember them buying Rayments in the 80's. Rayments used to supply the beer to our rugby club but the BBA soon became IPA and there is now no Rayments beer left as far as I know, so lets hope Ridleys is a stronger brand.
Any way Ridleys Old Bob is now available in 500ml bottles from most good supermarkets. It is a proper bitter without the sweet addition of some of my recent beers. I like the fact that it doesn't really have any head and in my opinion you could easily drink more than one of these in an evening. The clear bottle also lets you see exactly what you are getting.
Ridley's
Old Bob Strong Pale Ale
ABV 5.1% • Vol 500 ml • bottle •
________________________________________
Ridley's, brewing since 1842 till around 2005, was an Essex-based brewer of traditional English ales. Old Bob, a premium ale at the weaker end of the 'old ale' style, has a distinctive, delicate malty aroma with a touch of hop and a thick, persistent head out of the bottle. The attack is sharp and bitter-sweet. There is a lively, very rounded palate of rich, treacley, faintly caramelly malt, without being thick or cloying, and a clean, hoppy (Fuggles) bitterness fading into a bitter aftertaste, with maybe a trace of burnt malt, in the back of the throat. This tastes just how one imagines a beer should - rich, complex and bloody marvellous. Although quite sweet for a pale ale, the flavour is perfectly balanced by the Fuggles bitterness and the deeper roasted malt notes.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment