It would seem that Spring has finally arrived, the sun is shining, the blossom is blooming, I even left my coat at home this morning (although saying that, it will probably be raining tomorrow).
With the changing of the season, we encourage you to celebrate the fact that beer tax didn’t rise any higher than expected on Wednesday and make the most of the good weather; and what better way to do that than with our favourite drink?! (more…)
Yet another reason to celebrate the magnificence of beer, the majority of which is sold in the Great British pub. Beer is supporting the entire economy and keeping nearly a million people in employment.
The BBPA have unveiled a new website, www.beerandpubjobs.co.uk, that shows the economic and job importance of our great sector to every area in the country. This must be a wake-up call to politicians and the wider public about how important beer is to this country. With unemployment so high at the moment you can imagine what a mess we’d be in if the government continued policies that wipe out pubs and excellent beer!
We’ve got an excellent brewing industry that is admired around the world, let’s admire it, rather than destroy it!
David @ BG
Who was Saint Patrick?
Well, it is that time of year again when hordes of Irish, both in and outside the Emerald Isle, celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day by dressing in green and enjoy a glass or two of the Black Stuff!
But who was Saint Patrick? All that most people might know of him is the legend that he banished snakes from Ireland. Very little is known for certain but the bare facts are that he really did exist (some of his writings survive, the Confessio and the Letter to Coroticus), was kidnapped by Irish pirates and was a slave for six years before escaping. He then became a priest and returned to Ireland playing a major part in converting the Irish to Christianity. He is said to have used the shamrock as a means of explaining the Holy Trinity and to have died on March 17th which is now Saint Patricks Day. (more…)
It really is quite staggering to think how many beers there are available in the UK these days. Every time I seem to visit a pub, club, supermarket or specialist off-licence the range is enormous. The massive increase in small brewers and their inventiveness has swelled the number of British-brewed brands beyond all recognition. The curiosity of the modern beer drinkers has also led to a huge increase in the number of imported beers.
At Team BeerGenie we have been doing our sums to work out a definitive number of beers available and the answer we have come up with is, inconclusive. It’s likely to be somewhere between five and ten thousand, not a very scientific estimate! The SIBA Local Beer Report claims its members have around 2,500 permanent cask brands, plus 3,500 seasonal beers and occasional or one-off specials, plus 1,750 bottled brands. This combined with those owned and imported by the bigger brewers (around 2,000) puts the total a lot closer to the ten-thousand mark. (more…)