Introduce Yourself

[Sickmikey]

Just had a random thought, I wonder if CAMRA has an official forum and look they do. And haha there's absolutely no posts, maybe the board is new or CAMRA members simply arn't computer savvy .

Ehh anyway I'm Mike from Bradford, been researching the beer tax tonight and short of stating the obvious, i've reached the conclusion the government truly is clueless/simply dosn't care.

[AlexPresland]

Hi Mike. This forum is new and going to be launched soon as part of CAMRA's "Save Our Pubs" campaign.

[stanw]

Hi Mike / Alex

I live in Warrington the pubs are suffering here quite a few have closed or
are destined to close in the near future.
Mainly due to cheap beer from supermarkets,smoking ban and high prices
the local pub used to be the social centre of each area but not any more
its a shame

[Adam]

Hi all,

I'm Adam from Bedfordshire. Not noticed too much of an effect from the beer tax, but I certainly oppose it. My local pub is a real-ale-only pub and has a very loyal following, so hopefully it'll take more than a tax hike to change that!

[quigzy]

Hellllo! I'm Bill from Bromley. Am 25 and have only gotten into real ale in the last year or so. I am lucky that I live in a small village which has 50 people and 2 Pubs :-). The one I go in has 6 different ales on now as well, 2 of which are guest. I'm always trying new beers and thank god for the day I decided to switch from lager, it's just a shame more young people don't do it.

[wrrplodder]

Hi
I'm Mark also from Warrington. There has been quite a few pubs that have shut in the last couple of years but at the moment it's not looked so good for a few years. There's the smoking ban, which has made me go the pub more than ever, and the number of pubs selling quality real ale is increasing along with the number of beers they sell increasing too. By next month there will be 38 real ales in 4 different pubs and a micro brewery included in one of them too. The pubs may well be suffering but there have been some duff pubs amongst them. I only wish some of the town centre pubs would open their eyes and sell real ale instead of catering for the £3.50 for a small bottle of fizzy lager brigade.
There are some really anti pub policies this govt carries on with that Camra must campaign against as well as us the punters.

[Richard English]

My real name is the same as my nom-de-computer - Richard English - and I am a life member of CAMRA. I have been drinking beer for over 50 years and discovered the wonders of Real Ale back in the 1950s, when our country was being drowned in a sea a Chemical Fizz beers such as the awful Watney's Red Barrel, Ind Coope Double Diamond and Whitbread's Tankard. Although these foul concoctions have long gone, the battle to preserve our beer heritage goes on. Indeed, there are signs that the peril is worse now than it ever was, such is the power of the likes of SABMiller and Inbev - all of which compnaies would dearly love to get the world drinking their overpriced and undeflavoured concoctions.

But the batlle can be won if CAMRA (and more especially its members) keeps its guard up and promotes the cause of Real Ale at every opportunity.

Complain every time you go into a bar that does not sell Real Ale (hotel and theatre bars are the usual culprits). Ask for Real Ale in restaurants and, if it's not available, ask why they support foreign brewers (since most of the rubbbish they sell will be foreign). And, incidentally, when in a restuarant and considering wine, ask what English wines they have on their list - and wait for the lies about the quality of our prizewinning wines.

And when you're in a pub and you see a stranger eyeing the bar and possibly uncertain as to what to order (a common enough situation in major cities with foreign visitors) say something like, "The Pride's drinking well today" and watch the look on the stranger's face when he or she tries proper beer for maybe the first time.

I welcome this opportunity to share my thoughts with other connoiseurs and look forward to the development of this board

[Mr_P]

Hi, I'm Richard, I've enjoyed drinking real ales since the 1980's and have been a CAMRA member since 1991. My home town is Malvern in Worcestershire, which I still visit a lot as I still have family and many friends there. I help at a number of Beer Festivals , notably Beer on the Wye, Worcester and Chippenham (Wilts) where I now live.

I am a former chairman of Herefordshire branch and was involved in their first pub anti-closure campaign which concerned the Live and Let Live on Bringsty common, near Bromyard (http://www.liveandletlive-bringsty.co.uk/first.html ). After it closed in 1996 it was great to see it re-open in December 2007, since when it has gone from strength to strength.

[Bitter And Twisted]

Hi Guys,

Im Tom, Im 21 from Manchester.

Prefer drinking good solid ale rather than the tripe most people are drinking these days.

I like my beer festivals and ale crawls.

[y8c]

Hi everyone. I'm y8c and I'm 28. Been into real ale for about 4 years now.

Glad CAMRA have finally decided to add a forum, it is long overdue. Looking forward to seeing what people talk about on here.

Anyway, I live in Mansfield. Not the best area for real ale I feel. Luckily a trip over the M1 towards Derby gives the opportunity to visit loads of good pubs. There is a couple of good brewpubs within a few miles (Ashover, Amber Ales, Leadmill) too, so it aint too bad.

[sdg111]

Hi folks,

I'm Steve, 36 and from Aberdeen. I've been drinking real ale since I was 20. We've a pretty decent selection of places to choose from up here, but like elsewhere, the city centre establishments seem to cater for the young, hip (supposedly), and trendy crowd who appear to like the fizzy, chemically, expensive lagers. I'm sure many people really dislike it, but simply don't know any better.

I'm a real fan of Deuchars IPA, but also love Bombardier, Theakstons and all those lovely English bitters. You guys down south invented it so I bow to your superior knowledge. Every time I'm south of the border I really look forward to visiting the local pub and trying something new.

Not too many pub closures in Aberdeen, which I think is protected somewhat by all the oil money up here. Anyway, I love real ale and look forward to seeing what you guys have to say.

Cheers!

[welshbeerboy]

heya people

Im Alex, 19, S.Wales. Only got into real ale in the passed 6 months or so, i reguarly visit pubs in my local area to try real ales which i wouldnt see in the Wetherspoons i work in "The John Fielding" (Cwmbran), im a big fan of The Rev James, Adnams Broadside, and Badger beers.

Currently training for management within Wetherspoons, going back to college to do catering, hoping to run my own pub/restaraunt cooking food that uses high quality beer/spirits within it

[Pedro]

Hi all

I have been a CAMRA member since 1980 and was a founder member of Renfrewshire branch a year later. After many years of concentrating on work and family commitments I am again an active member of my local branch and Regional Membership Co-ordinator for Scotland and Northern Ireland.

One of my aims is to improve our recruitment of the younger generation and to encourage pubs, breweries and real ale drinkers to do all they can to combat the advertising budgets of the multi-nationals.

[Paddles O'Maddles]

Slainte !

I'm Paddy, a Corkman, who was raised in Essex and, after popping around the world a few times, has been settled in Ayr, sort of, for the last five years. I've been a member of CAMRA, on and off, since 1979 when I first joined at the GBBF at Alexandra Palace. Since then, although my given loony-juice is cider, I love my Real Ales and will always try anything new that I see in whatever establishment I happen to find myself supping.

Like Mr. English, whenever I see someone 'perusing the pumps', I will always have a little comment ready to try and help out. You meet a lot of good people that way.

Although a lot of folk may consider Scotland a bit of a Real Ale desert you couldn't be more wrong. Here in Ayrshire there are over forty pubs selling Real Ale and the local Ayrshire and Galloway branch of CAMRA has just produced an excellent Guide to over sixty local pubs selling Real Ale. A snip at £2.50 ! Next door to me, a local hotel, the Glen Park, are about to sell their own brewed ales. I can get real, proper, cider in the Harbour Bar at Troon. You want it, you can get it up here. It's just knowing where to look. And Pedro, you wouldn't happen to be a Kilmarnock supporter would you ? Only askin'.

[chazwicke]

I'm Chuck, I'm 51 and despite being from the USA I am a life member of CAMRA and a member of the only US branch of the Society for the Preservation of Beer from Wood (SPBW). I love real ale and visiting the U.K. seeking out your most valued product. I've been on the quest for good beer since 1976 having visited some 19 countries and 45 States in search of it. Despite America now having the most diversity in beer styles and probably the broadest range of offerings, I still favor the real ales of the U.K. I had a cask beer last night at one of our local brew pubs, Capitol City - Shirlington, and most US brewpubs and many bars are now trying to keep at least one real ale on offer. It is becoming more and more popular here and any self respecting beer geek will normally inquire when first entering a brew pub as to what's on cask. There are also a few pubs that style themselves after British pubs and those seem to be on the increase as well. I am aware of a couple that claim to have dismantled the interiors of shuttered pubs over there and have recreated them here from the parts. I have attended several CAMRA Fests and even the GBBF over the years and I can only wish that we had the range of real ale available that you have. I am forever envious of your fortune. My son and I are planning an ale drinking foray across the pond in March.

[Richard English]

Hello Chaswyke,

Good to see you here. This seems to be a lively forum already and I have already bookmarked it. Sadly the OBBD site seems very slow right now and so it's a good thing that CAMRA (as the world's leading beer-drinkers champion) has now set up a forum for UK drinkers (which is not to denigrate the US sites, of course - simply that a UK site makes sense for UK drinkers).

I am intending to drop a note to Kalleh (the most enthusiastic US lady cask-beer apologist I know) and see whether she would like to join us.

[mildchild]

I'm Steve, 26 from Nottingham. I've been a CAMRA member for 5 years now and my love of cask beers has grown with each year. I'm the current Young Members Co-ordinator for our branch so a lot of my time is spent trying to encourage other 18-30 year old real ale drinkers to join CAMRA or non-real ale drinkers of that age to try it.

I tend to be travelling around the country a lot visiting friends and seek out good beers and good pubs as I go. I am also volunteering this year to work at more and more festivals. Someone's got to work at them and I hope by seeing a younger face there, (and hopefully a word from me when my voice isn't going as it was this weekend at NWAF), the casual visitor may consider joining after realising you don't have to be a stereotype to be a member.

[Jowolvo]

Hi everyone,

I'm Jo from Wolverhampton-hence the name!

I'm 27 (almost said 26 I wish!) and been Camra member for a couple of years-into real ale for longer.

Camra has not only given me an amazing insight into real ale and created somewhat of an obsesson for me, I have also found so many amzing friends that I would never have met.

I'm Wolverhampton's current BYMC and also on the Young members commitee (What's Brewing),

My fave beer is Titanic Iceberg.

I think this forum is going to be really interesting and a great way for members to communicate in a more discussion/debate way than sites like Facebook.

[Mick at Brackley]

Hello I am Mick, a 60-61 year old, who lives in the wilds of South West Northamptonshire.
I am involved with the Public Transport Advisory Group, and also compile bus pub crawls.
I am also regarded as a scouper or ticker.
Although when visiting a BF will go for new breweries, as well as making up numbers with others.
First taste of real ale aged 18, in 1966, with Phipps beers, also with joining RAF sampled other regional real ales.
Did a keg stint, but gave me hangovers.
First heard about CAMRA in 70`s but did not bother, yet joined about 8 years or so.
Member of Norrthamptonhire CAMRA branch, one of the biggest as to geographical mmebership.
Feel something needs to be sorted as to postcode memberships, if you live in a county you belong to the branch in your area, not another countys branch ,because of the postcode.
Also think the NBSS scoring should play a large part in pub selection for the GBG, and in some cases scores ignored by branches when compiling the guide for its area.

[Mr_P]

Feel something needs to be sorted as to postcode memberships, if you live in a county you belong to the branch in your area, not another countys branch ,because of the postcode.

This issue about postcodes has been going on a long time. When I was membership secretary of Herefordshire we used to get lots of members from Worcestershire wrongly allocated because most of the WR6 and WR13 postal districts are in Herefordshire. I believe the system was going to be changed so that instead of just using the outward postcode ie the first 4 charactes of your post code, it would also use the postal district which is the first character of the second part; eg in my old postcode WR14 3SU the '3' indicates the postal district within the WR14 area.

[bluejon]

Hi i'm Jon,41 from stockport,love real ale/pubs etc.Hate fizzy weak lager (Carling,Fosters etc) But don't mind decent 'foreign' lager (Stella,Holstein etc) Not yet a member of CAMRA but will be doing ASAP!

[crazybabe]

Im Janette, from Rotherham and one of the rare female real ale drinkers from round here ;-)

[Richard English]

Im Janette, from Rotherham and one of the rare female real ale drinkers from round here ;-)

Remember that CAMRA's Chair is a lady...

[Mr_P]

and down in Wiltshire we have quite a few lady member, including the branch chairs of both N W Wilts and Swindon branches.

[woodyqpr]

I'm Neil from Chessington in SW London/surrey borders. Am 39 and although used to drink RA occasionally, have really come to appreciate it in the last 10 years or so to the point that it's all I will look to drink when I go out now.
Joined Camra last year and been attending the odd festival for 3 years or so.
Go to my local 1/2 a week and drink youngs there which is ok though not as good as it used to be since they moved to Bedford!