Rochester

My exploration of the Garden of England continued last weekend with a visit to Rochester. This was the first time I'd visited this quaint town on the banks of the River Medway. I was meeting friends there and we managed to cram in a few tourist attractions including the cathedral for tea, a look around the castle and the Guildhall Museum, a free museum detailing the history of the town which was worthwhile. It was all very pleasant and with the sun shining, the lovely market town scenery and the castles and cathedrals I felt like I was on a actual holiday, even though I was only a half hour train ride away from my house.

I wasn't there just there to look at the tourist sights, pubs were also on the agenda. First up was The Eagle Tavern, located on the high street and near the main attractions. This is a live music venue and the furnishing reflected this - very basic so it won't be too expensive to replace should a old rocker get a bit too excited and start smashing up tables and chairs in wild abandon. The beer selection was basic, no craft ales here, but my pint of St Austell Tribute was in good condition and was very refreshing. There was a simple food menu and a plate of chips soon arrived on our table. Although the atmosphere was a little dead at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon, I can imagine this place would be good fun at night when the live music kicks off.

Next up was supposed to be a pub called the Britannia Bar Cafe, but I was warned by my friends that this pub was getting too close to Chatham for comfort, which apparently is a place best avoided by middle class wimps like myself who get nervous and cross the road when they see a young bloke in a hoodie heading towards them. Instead we went off the beaten track to a pub called The Good Intent. From the outside I did not have high hopes for this place - it looked like a generic council estate pub and not particularly appealing. If it wasn't in the Good Beer Guide I would have avoided it entirely. But with my sternest face I made my way in and was pleasantly surprised. A friendly bunch of locals were in and behind the bar were three gravity dropped casks of beer on offer. I went for the Skinners Spriggan Ale, which was a refreshing pale ale if a little light on flavour. I wouldn't make a special journey to this pub but it did exceed my expectations and for that I'm glad.

A pint and a game of pool done, we moved on to the final pub, the Man of Kent. I'd heard good things about this place. Walking in the place was packed, far busier than the previous two pubs we'd visited. A large number of handpumps were on display, all with beers from the Kent area. This is the CAMRA LocAle scheme taken to the extreme. Incidentally I really hate using the word LocAle - it just seems wrong to me and I just want to pronounce it as "Lock Ale."

First beer up from the wide selection on offer was a Goachers Extra Mild which wasn't the best example of a mild I'd had - it was a bit limp and the coffee flavour usually associated with a mild just wasn't coming through strong enough. It was definitely suppable, just not a knockout. The next beer, Golden Braid from Hopdaemon, was a disaster. Flat and lifeless, I had to choke this one down. Hopdaemon are usually very reliable so I don't know if it was supposed to taste like a muddy mess or if it was off. The pub itself was great - friendly service, comfy seating, jovial customers and even a dog. But I didn't particularly enjoy the beer I had there.

With the Man of Kent done and dusted it was back to sunny London for a visit to The Gowlett for a friends birthday. I haven't got much to say about this pub except that it's in the middle of nowhere nestled between East Dulwich and Peckham Rye, and that the beer selection was surprisingly boring considering the trendy area it's in. My pint of Moorhouse Black Cat and Harveys Best Bitter were fine but I was hoping for a bit more rather than the sub-Wetherspoons offering of ales. The pizza being served was magnificent though.

If all goes well I'll be writing about Maidstone pubs next Sunday, if not I'll be warbling on about some nonsense. See you soon.

Wetherspoons - London Victoria Station

A reader tweets:

“Dave y u alwayz at wetherspons victoria lolz”

Actually a reader didn't tweet that. But if somebody was to contact me from the internet I imagine that's what it would look like, if newspaper coverage is anything to go by. I love when newspapers decide to quote Twitter users in a story. Nothing destroys a credible piece faster. Twitter quotes usually crop up in stories about some poor 15 year old who has been stabbed in Arsehole Estates. After the serious comment from the police and experts, there's always a bit on the “flood of tributes on Twitter and Facebook.” This usually means the paper gets to quote gems along the lines of “U woz a dog m8 piece” - @HairyKnockers or “ur ded u mong Rip” - @BITCHESLEAVE. And so it goes. Social media is an amazing tool, bringing people and cultures from all over the world in one medium, allowing you to discover things you may never have learnt from TV or radio, or even a book. But sadly it's also highlighting just how many idiots there are out there.

The "glorious" Weatherspoons Victoria "Bar & Cafe." There's a barmaid who works here who  looks like Rhianna. I think it is her on her day off but others disagree.

But I digress. To answer the fictional readers original question, I'm often at the Wetherspoons Victoria as it's where I wait for The Lovely Jemma to be delivered from leafy South London (or Kent as it's more commonly known.) It's also where I go to cry into a pint when she has to take the train back. As I've mentioned in previous posts, the Wetherspoons Victoria isn't a bad place. The atmosphere is non existent but as it's a station pub it's unlikely anybody is going to have a session there. However the beer is well kept and there's plenty on. The Wetherspoons Ale & Cider Fesitval started on the 5^th October so there was a good selection on when I popped in on Saturday, and on Sunday for the aforementioned weeping.

The Wetherspoons festival has around 40 ales with five from our American cousins, highlighting the recent interest in American craft beers. I tried a pint of “Eclipse” from the Bend Brewery in Oregon. This was a tasty dark ale with a nice roasted chocolate taste. Probably a bit much for a session but it was certainly a pleasant ale. I also tried a pint of Belhaven “St Andrews Ale” a perfectly fine if a little dull copper ale with a hint of sweetness. Finally there was the St Austell “Proper Black.” According to its description in the festival guide this ale is designed to confound the senses. It certainly did but not in a good way. A black IPA, the aroma was very much of a light hoppy golden ale, with a strong citrus aroma. The initial taste was also very much of a light IPA, with a burst of fruity hops. This then made way for the taste of a mild – a mocha flavour that got stronger with the finish. To be honest the two very different flavours didn't blend particularly well. It wasn't undrinkable but it's not a pint I would go for again.

Nachos were ordered, always a gamble in a Wetherspoons. You can't be sure if they'll be fairly respectable, or a plate of stale Doritos which somebody has accidentally spilt some sour cream on to. Luckily they turned out to be OK. We also had a read through the Wetherspoons magazine, which is always worth a chuckle. Amongst the usual letters of old men complaining about the barstaff being too noisy putting glasses into the dishwasher, we came across this heartwarming article about an employee and his brave challenge for charity:

A mighty challenge indeed.

Sixty Babybels in two hours?! He'll never do it. That's an entire Babybel every two minutes!! And those Babybel wrappers can be so difficult to unwrap, just adding to the time! Oh who am I kidding this is the worst charity challenge I've ever seen. If he failed, and judging by the “attempted” in the headline I think he did, I hope he got fired for being supremely incompetent. I once ate ten Jaffa Cakes in a minute and no sick kids benefited from that debacle. Still he does look very pleased with himself in the photo with his tray of cheeses, and he did raise £130, so maybe I'm being a little harsh. But isn't being mean to people I don't know the whole point of the internet?

Until next time.