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(this newsletter can also be found in Ale Drinker in the Abercolwyn Branch area - website)
VoC Newsletter (March 2008)
ISLE OF MAN – PART TWO
Bushy's brewery (www.bushys.com), originally set up on a small scale in Douglas in 1986, has since gone from strength - to -strength and is largely responsible for the wider choice of real ale available on the island these days. The original mini brewery was in Bushy's bar which could be found near where the Bushy's tent is now situated during the annual TT fortnight. The merger of Okells and Castletown breweries created an opportunity to open up the free trade on the island and in 1990 a new operation was set up in Mount Murray. We were shown round by brewer Neil (Curly) Convery who explained the history of the brewery and its current operation. The Robert Morton brewing plant is based on the traditional tower principle and can brew either a 5 barrel or 10 barrel brew length. The original brew Old Bushy Tail (4.5%) is supplemented by Bushy's bitter, Ruby mild and a number of seasonal specials. With a small tied estate of four pubs and an extensive presence in the free trade on the island Bushy's beers can sometimes also be seen on the mainland via the Flying Firkin wholesaler and occasional beer swaps with English brewers. More exotic locations to sample Bushy's include far-away Gibraltar (bottled beer) and nearer to home on the Irish Sea (re-racked beer in plastic glasses available on the Steam Packet ferries). The nearest outlet to the brewery is the Hop Garden which normally sells Bushy's bitter but we found that it had just run out, so after collecting various souvenirs of our brewery visit we decided to move further a-field.
The next day we took a bus ride to Peel on the west of the island and the Whitehouse Hotel, situated close to the bus station and a must-visit for all real ale fans visiting the area. This unspoilt multi-roomed traditional pub is full of character and difficult to leave with eight cask ales available on the day of visit. Due to a longer stay than anticipated in the Whitehouse we were running out of time but still managed to try the Creek Inn, a seafront pub with two large rooms decorated on a maritime theme. The bar menu specialises in local seafood and the beer quality was found to be excellent with a guest beer (Spitting Feathers from Chester on day of visit) complementing the local IoM beers. Peel has a number of other pubs not visited due to time constraints so a return visit is planned for sometime in the future.
VALE OF CLWYD PUB NEWS
There have been some changes in ownership at other pubs in the branch area that have at some time over the years featured in the Good Beer Guide. The Red Lion, Llanasa has been taken over by Punch Taverns a major pub-owning group not well known for offering its licensees a wide choice of cask ales so little improvement is expected here. Thwaites brewery are the new owners of the Pwllgwyn, Afonwen on A541 whilst JW Lees brewery have bought the Drovers, Rhewl on A525. The Drovers was once the brewery tap for Bragdy Dyffryn Clwyd, the late lamented Denbigh brewery which briefly supplied the North Wales free trade with quality local real ales in the 1990s. True free-houses have always been hard to find in Denbighshire and Flintshire and whilst both Thwaites and JW Lees usually sell real ale in their tied estate these recent changes in pub ownership and wider long-term trends are unlikely to result in improved choice for the consumer and further opportunities for our local micro breweries.
Ian Ogden
16/03/2008
The views expressed in these pages are the views of the local
branch or the individual member(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Campaign
for Real Ale.
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