BLOG #77 - THE HOLE IN THE WALL, WATERLOO, LONDON SE1

Don't you just hate it when you're meeting close friends or family and you can't agree on a pub where to meet? Well The Hole in the Wall was thought by me to be a safe option when I arranged to meet my nephew recently - although I had not been in there for 37 years...

Little has changed with the pub in all honesty from that Saturday night I was there on the only other occasion I visited the HitW - the trains arriving and departing nearby Waterloo station still rumble overhead. Not so much a boozer, but an institution.

I was a teenager then and had moved to London the month previously. This was just 4 years after UK currency was decimalised and Thatcherism wasn't even thought of. But in those days drinking anything that even resembled a decent pint in London was a real challenge. There was a handful of free houses - and these were welcome oases in a beer desert - bereft of decent real ales. Breweries such as Young's (Wandsworth) and Fuller's (Fuller's Smith and Turner of Chiswick) kept faith in real ale production at a time when insipid keg alternatives such as Watney's Red Barrel and Ben Truman Export (truly dreadful) was pretty much the norm throughout London.

Both Young's and Fuller's pubs were centred in the immediate environs of their brewery locations - with a very few exceptions - so you had to go to south and west London in the main to sample their products. It really is difficult to believe now that there was such a dearth of decent watering holes in London in 1975.

The 1975 CAMRA Good Beer Guide described The Hole in the Wall as "a recently refurbished railway-arch pub" and beers on offer were Young's, Bass Worthington, Brakspear and Ruddles. It still resides under the railway arch, of course - but the recently refurbished bit? - nah! You've more chance of seeing Englebert Humperdinck on the Eurovision Song Contest than this place seeing a forthcoming lick of paint!

Other free houses of note at that time were the Lamb Tavern in Leadenhall Market, the Anglesea Arms in South Kensington and the George in Southwark.

The following year - 1976 - saw the emergence of real ales from brewers Charringtons, Whitbreads, Ind Coope and a few others in London - more choice, more localised and more of the same was to follow.


Interesting fact - at some stage each member of the Australian band Men at Work has been unemployed.

The Hole in the Wall

5 Mepham Street

WATERLOO

London, SE1 8SQ

Tel: 020 7928 6196  

BLOG #76 - BAR MAGENTA, MILAN

No doubt about it, the Italians love their football; they are justifiably proud of their football heritage with both their domestic and national teams. But when hopes are dashed from unexpected fronts - well Mamma mia!

The 1966 World Cup™ in England provided one of the biggest upsets in tournament history when the Italian national side were humbled by North Korea who beat Italy 1-0 at Middlesbrough’s Ayresome Park, and as a result finished above them. The result earned the Koreans qualification to the next round along with the USSR. This was the first time that a nation from outside Europe or the Americas had progressed from the first stage of a World Cup: the next would be Morocco in 1986.

For the Koreans, unknowns from a country enveloped in secrecy, they had provided the shock of the tournament against an Italian side who were one of the pre-tournament four seeds. Pak Doo Ik's goal shortly before half-time propelled them into the quarter-finals and sent their opponents home to a barrage of rotting fruit and tomatoes as their ‘bus was bombarded at the airport.

Dennis Barry from Middlesbrough, where the Korean’s played their group games, said his town was captivated with the style of football played by the plucky Asians. "They played good football - you know they were all small and that was a novelty in itself. It was like watching a team of jockeys playing," he said. "But they moved the ball around really well. I think they took people by surprise, and they were very positive in their approach - they played attacking football, there was nothing defensive about their game, and the crowd got behind them from the way that they saw them play."

In fact in Group 4, Italy needed only to draw to lowly North Korea in its last game to qualify for the quarter-finals and few expected the Koreans to provide much opposition to an Italian side featuring AC Milan star Gianni Rivera (a future European player of the year), Sandro Mazzola (son of Valentino Mazzola, the former Italian team captain) and Giacinto Facchetti (the Internazionale icon).
 

Pomodori marci – yuk! Still could have been worse – look what happened to Mussolini?

Bar Magenta

via Carducci 13
20121 MILAN 

Tel: +39 340 3893570

http://www.bar-magenta.it/

BLOG #75 - BIRRIFICIO LAMBRATE, MILAN

What is it about the Milanese and their obsession with graffiti?

It seems any unsullied shop façade, sottopasso or tube train in Milan is fair game for a good spray painting. Let's be clear about this graffiti is defacement and vandalism - the scale of the problem in many cities now goes way beyond the seemingly harmless "Kilroy was here!" tags of yesteryear.

If you stand still long enough for any length of time, perhaps gaining your bearings whilst consulting your tourist guide of Milan on one of the city's piazzas, then expect to be sprayed with a can of Rust-Oleum® for your troubles!

It's a sad state of affairs - but when the disaffected Italian youth of today feel the need to express themselves through the medium of graffiti, then you know the writing's on the wall!

Birrificio Lambrate
via Adelchi 5,

20131 MILAN

+ 0039 02 7063 8678

http://www.birrificiolambrate.com/

BLOG #74 – G W HORNERS, CHESTER-le-STREET, CO. DURHAM

Black toilet paper! What in Sam Hill is that all about? Surely not!

The news that a very well-known British TV producer, media mogul and personality insists on having black toilet paper in his multi-million dollar gaff came as a complete revelation to me. As I glanced at the headlines of the tuppenny dreadfuls on the newsstand earlier, and came across the front page blurb that said-celebrity spurns your common or garden Andrex in favour of a black alternative, I was intrigued to say the least. However at the same time, reading this stuff fair put me off my KitKat Chunky I can tell you - but we move on...

Totally oblivious to such a product, I had to do a Google, of course – and it was true! You can get a 6-roll black toilet paper pack from Amazon for just £8.40... No sh*t!

In my day I considered myself lucky, as a young lad, to get a copy of the Daily Sketch cut into squares and placed on a spike in the lav to use for my evacuations! Black toilet paper? I wouldn’t wipe my ar*e with it!

G W Horners

2 Front Street
CHESTER-le-STREET

County Durham
DH3 3BE

Tel: 0191 388 6913

BLOG #73 - THE PLIMSOLL LINE, REDCAR, NORTH YORKSHIRE (REVISTED)

Following on from BLOG #23 - http://abeerintheafternoon.blogspot.co.uk/2011/07/blog-23-plimsoll-line-redcar-north.html - which has become this blogs most read blog by a country mile – I felt it was time to revisit the phenomenon that is Redcar’s vertical pier – and a trip once more to the Plimmy.

Build it – but will they come?

Work is underway on the seafront and the vertical pier is steadily taking shape.

Cromer this ain’t! You would need a bloody long fishing rod and line to go crabbing off this pier! Full scale alpinism – it’s the only way forward (or should that be up!)

The Plimsoll Line

138-142 High Street East
REDCAR
North Yorkshire
TS10 3DH
Tel: 01642 495250

BLOG #72 – THE OLD COACH HOUSE, SOUTHWELL, NOTTINGHAMSHIRE

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2657196,

I went to the local library earlier today and asked if they had any reading matter on self-help groups - the girl at the desk said - "If I tell you that, it would defeat the object, surely!" Cheeky mare!  

Time on your hands? Thinking of taking up a hobby or pastime? Philately not your thing? Thanks to Middlesbrough Central Library - I may have found just the answer!

Look no further! Building your own coffin (or casket) can be a truly rewarding experience. Constructing your own coffin from salvaged materials can save money (in these cash-strapped times – something to think about) and will reduce the consumption of precious natural resources.

   

If you are interested in a green or natural burial, then designing and building your coffin can be possible without the use of metal fasteners, such as screws or nails.

 !A glued rib construction can provide a robust coffin suitable for natural burial cemeteries that require metal-free coffins. All you need is some solid pine lumber and 130 tubes of EVO-STIK™ weatherproof wood adhesive and you’re away (literally!). Must be weatherproof glue mind – for reasons I shouldn’t have to explain!

For handles use some thick cotton rope. Ideally the cotton rope should be 1” or 1¼” in diameter as it provides a soft comfortable grip and adds an attractive, but modest finish to your coffin.

And that’s it! What are you waiting for? Get the toolbox out and sharpen up that plane.

The Old Coach House

69 Easthorpe,

SOUTHWELL

Nottinghamshire, NG25 0HY

Tel: 01636 813289

BLOG #71 - MALT CROSS, NOTTINGHAM

In truth there is very little these days that gets my goat – other than lazy people and shopping in Tesco's in pyjamas – subjects covered in previous blogs. But there is another matter that has annoyed me recently and that is petty bureaucracy and so-called “jobs-worth”.

The owners of a Lancashire fish and chip shop have been forced to take down their Union Jack (Union Flag) sign, as it was described as "gaudy" and "too busy".

Husband and wife owners Peter and Lesley Salthouse have run the Naze Lane Chippy in Freckleton for almost 25 years and were told the sign was not in keeping with the village.
The sign has a simple, but prominent Union Flag in the middle, with two St George's flags on either side.

The couple lodged a planning applicaton after a single complaint spurred the council to take action, but it was denied. They then took their case to the planning inspectorate in Bristol, but they were again rejected.

Lesley, 53, was furious at the council’s decision and said: "We are an English fish and chip shop, yet we cannot even use our own flag to celebrate that”.

Mr and Mrs Salthouse outside their chippy

She added: “Everything else seems to be allowed from different backgrounds, cultures and nations and yet you try to fight for something English and British and it’s snubbed, as far as I’m concerned.”

In fact, Freckleton Parish Council approved the planning application, but it was Fylde Borough Council that denied it on the basis that the design was "oversized and gaudy with too many angles, triangles and colour".

Lesley added: "The council called the sign too busy and gaudy, and by saying that they are effectively insulting the national flag and our history".

Too many angles, colours and triangles? Do I need to take more water with my drink? The Union Flag has been in existence in this form – more or less – since 1606. The current version can be traced to 1801, following the Act of Union in 1800. What do you expect from the Union Flag design-wise, for Heaven’s sake? Flags have angles and triangles... Even an amateur vexillologist will tell you that!

And what are they putting in the hotpot up there in Fylde? Stupid pills? What next - barber's poles to be removed because they have too many stripes or maybe pawnbroker's signs should be changed because they have an excessive number of balls!

I would think twice if you’re considering celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in Lytham St Annes later this year – all bunting will be confiscated anyway and anything geometrically resembling a triangle, or has any other form of angle to it, will be seized the minute you leave Blackpool.

Beggars belief!

Local politicians and nappies have one thing in common. They should both be changed regularly, and for much the same reason.

Malt Cross

16 St James's Street,

NOTTINGHAM, NG1 6FG

Tel: 0115 941 1048

http://www.maltcross.com/

BLOG #70 - DAVY BYRNES, DUBLIN

CÉAD MILE FÁILTE!

Top of the morning to all friends from fair Erin’s Isle! If you’re Irish come into this parlour...

Happy St. Patrick’s Day one and all! Gave my shillelagh a good rub and polish before I got out of bed this morning – and much needed it was to!

Unlike a lot of people in the UK who will today claim to be Irish descendants of one kind or another – tracing their roots right back to when all Blarney had was a pebble - I can safely say that I’m 100% pure Anglo-Saxon – with perhaps just a dash of Viking thrown in for good measure! Not one drop of Irish blood in me! To be sure, to be certain!

But I have spent time in Dublin recently and if you find yourself in that lovely city - and don't take in a visit to Davy Byrnes whilst there - then you must have broken biscuits for brains! An open sandwich of Atlantic prawns and a pint of Irish red ale (an acquired taste, admittedly) in Davy Byrnes is the perfect way to while away an hour or two in the early afternoon.

A time to reflect on Dublin's rich heritage perhaps -  to think of notable Irish literary figures such as James Joyce, Brendan Behan and Samuel Beckett - somebody should tell him that Godot hasn't turned up yet, by the way! A truly friendly pub with a cracking atmosphere...

Remember this blog promotes sensible alcohol consumption...

Davy Byrnes

21 Duke St.

off Grafton St.

DUBLIN 2

Tel: 01 677-5217

http://www.davybyrnes.com

BLOG #69 – THE SANDPIPER INN, LEYBYURN, YORKSHIRE DALES

Last week I had chlamydia, diarrhoea and eczema – first time I’ve ever won a game of Scrabble...

It appears that my comments in the last blog relating to short beer measures have caused something of a stir. It seems it is only in the north that there is this fascination with a creamy beer head. The beer sparkler often used in providing the froth can be removed on request –

but this is usually greeted with bewilderment by bar staff who say things like “You’re not from round here are you? That’s how we drink it here!” That may be the case – but it’s not how I drink it, anywhere...

The beer sparkler is a little plastic device placed on the end of the pump and has lots of little holes, to create tiny gas bubbles as your pint is dispensed. You end up with a creamy head that takes ages to settle. It has nothing to do with the softness of the water and comments and comparisons about wet shaving in London and York have little to do with the creamy beer head on pints so treasured in the north.  

The joy of beer drinking is partly in the way the product is dispensed. I do not like flat beer by the way – and no self-respecting pub landlord would offer a beer that was as flat as a witch’s tit!

At the end of the day – it’s all about choice, I suppose – but there’s nothing more satisfying than a good quality beer.

The Sandpiper Inn
Market Place
LEYBURN
North Yorkshire
DL8 5AT

http://www.sandpiperinn.co.uk/
Tel:01969 622206

BLOG #68 – THE FOUNTAIN HOTEL, HAWES, YORKSHIRE DALES

"When you have lost your inns, drown your empty selves, for you will have lost the last of England"  Hillaire Belloc 1870 – 1953

When you are served 7/8ths of a pint of beer – you are faced with a dilemma... Do you ask for you beer to be topped up or hand over 7/8ths of the full pint price? 

I place lot of importance on beer heads: too much of a head is undesirable because it detracts from the mass of the drink but on the other hand, a beer drink is viewed as incomplete unless it has a head of some sort. Some view beer heads as important because they give off the aroma of the beer. Another opinion is that it is important for the aesthetic look of the beer. Under-filled pints is a widespread practice that costs drinkers as much as £500m a year.

A Sunday Mirror ­investigation last year found two thirds of UK pubs short-changed customers by up to 25p a pint. Their findings were raised with Consumer Affairs Minister Ed Davey by the GMB union, which claims hard-up landlords face financial pressure to under-fill glasses. The union says owners set sales targets that can only be achieved by serving customers less beer.

Industry leaders say the head is an essential part of the pint and customers can ask for a top-up if necessary. It’s worth adding that, in my view, as often as not short measures result simply from sloppy bar practice rather than from any deliberate intention to short-change the customer.

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) previously launched a petition calling on the government to end what it describes as a 'rip off'. It claims that one quarter of all pints served fall short of the required 95% liquid content and is costing beer, lager and cider drinkers £1.3m per day. It says its claims are backed up by several Trading Standards surveys carried out since 2004.

The crux of the argument is whether the head (the frothy top) constitutes part of the pint. The drinks trade says it does. In 2005, the last time legislation for a full pint was attempted, the Brewers and Licensed Trade Association argued it would add annual costs of £250m, which would be passed on to customers. CAMRA argues that from a measurement point of view, beer should not be treated differently from petrol or milk and a pint should be 100% liquid.

The thought occurs to me that you are paying well over a £1.00 in Excise Duty and VAT with each pint of beer – and I reckon I’ve paid enough tax in my working life to fund two Centurion tanks, an NHS maternity unit and at least one Royal wedding. When I ask for a pint of beer - that's what I expect - nothing more and certainly nothing less...

The Fountain Hotel

Market Place

HAWES

North Yorkshire DL8 3RD

Tel: 01969 667206

www.fountainhawes.co.uk 

BLOG #67 – FITZGERALD’S, SUNDERLAND, TYNE and WEAR

I don't understand people who say life is a mystery, because what is it they want to know?

There are few things in life in all honesty that really get on my goat, but laziness/lazy people is one of them... 

I was imbued with a strong work ethic; I realise that. Always prepared to do more than less than was expected of me. It’s part of my DNA; hard-wired into me.

I have never understood why people are lazy anyway? Working with a lazy co-worker who consistently does not pull their weight (which may be considerable) must be particularly frustrating. It’s usually the case isn’t it; give them one reason to do something worthwhile and they will give you twenty reasons why they shouldn’t. Thank heavens ergophobia is not contagious!

It strikes me if you have a lazy co-worker in your midst, wouldn’t it be better if they just sodded off – took their pipe of Pringles with them – get back to their comfy sofa in front of Jeremy Kyle or whatever – and give the job to someone more deserving who believes in a work ethic and can contribute as a member of a team.

If you are a lazy person - and the only two speed changes you possess are either painfully slow or stop - it’s not likely that you have any of the qualities that are going to make this world a better place, in all honesty.

You know it makes sense...

Fitzgerald’s 

10-12 Green Terrace
SUNDERLAND
Tyne and Wear
SR1 3PZ
Tel: 0191 567 0852

BLOG #66 - LA VITA (MULTI CAFE-BISTRO), MUNICH

When I read the match report later that night in the Bild am Sonntag I nearly choked on my pretzel and tipped over my Paulaner!

Bayern (football club) blew some warmth into the icy Munich air on Saturday... 69,000 braved the fierce -12ºC degree chill and flocked to the Allianz Arena etc...
 
-12ºC! For the hardy Müncheners, this maybe nothing out of the ordinary. But believe me, after snapping a poor daschund of a lampenposten earlier, it was off to the stadium to brave the elements and do my best. Unlike Capt. Oates I did not really want to go outside and be gone for some time... But it had to be done! Not sure where the icy Munich air was coming from by the way – but I know where it was going!

Googie Withers? Mine does when it's this bloody cold...

La Vita – aka Multi Cafe-Bistro on Arnulfstraße is a small cafe bar just north of the München Hauptbahnhof (Central Station). The bar is a very friendly local that seats about 30 around tables and another 10 or so at the bar. The multi part is due to the fact that adjoining the bar area it doubles up as a kebab house where you can take your drink and get a kebab for the trip home.

Post-match it was back to La Vita for my final night in Munich. Happy days...

La Vita – Multi Cafe-Bistro

Arnulfstraße 18
80335 MÜNCHEN
Telefon: (089) 598113