Once more, unto the breach dear friends

So here goes, my own blog, joining the thousands of others who need a bit of virtual space to express views that nobody really wants to hear. Its a bit of a spur of the moment thing. You wake up, last nights Sambucca pulsing through your veins, and decide it would be a great idea to start your own blog, so…….now what. Lets start of simple, here is an article I wrote for the Birmingham Student Paper for all to read, whilst I go off and think of something worthy to write to fill the vast expanse that is, my blog.

In a sea of recession, a truly British beverage is managing to stay happily afloat…….

William Shakespeare once said, “a quart of ale is a dish for a king”, and it seems consumers agree. Recent figures from SIBA (Society of Independent Brewers) show that Real Ale rose 8% alone in the first 6 months of last year, and trends suggest this growth is going to continue. Even Lager, the drink of choice for so many Brits over the years, has suffered from the rise with sales falling by 7.5% in 2008. Yet what is it that makes this quintessentially British beverage, the flavour of the moment?

Natural ingredients is certainly one of the factors that wets the taste buds of over 5.4 million ale drinkers nationwide, with Barley, Hops, Yeast and Water being the fantastic four that make up over 2.3 million barrels of ale per year. Mathew Batham, owner of Bathams Brewery in the West Midlands, feels that local ingredients are the reason for this sudden rise.

“People like to know what they are drinking, and if it’s from the local area, you know exactly what you are getting”

Mr Batham also added how the student population have been aiding the Real Ale revival.

“Our ales have always had a good following with students, ale is a sociable drink and people seem to have a great time whilst drinking it. It’s becoming the drink of Britain”

He is not alone in his views, with over a 3^rd of British people feeling that Ale is as synonymous with Britain, as Wine is to France. It seems that consumers are looking for local, natural ales, brewed with passion and intensity, something the big corporate breweries cannot provide. Or maybe the fact that it can be brewed by any Tom, Dick or Harry in a garage in Yorkshire gives it a subtle charm not found in the bland, flavourless lagers available in your local chain pubs. Charlie Jarman, a 3^rd year Geography student, feels that drinking locally brewed ales is the way forward.

“Its’ nice to be able to go a local pub, such as the Country Girl, and drink a pint which you know has travelled no further than a few miles from brewery to glass”

“Real Ale is definitely on the up, and it’s not surprising. I can get a pint of locally brewed ale for less than a pint of lager, and know it will be far more satisfying”

So even the student population have succumbed to the widespread popularity of Real Ale, choosing it over the more commercial lagers and it’s not hard to see why. With names such as Pickled Partridge, Country Bumpkin, and Santa’s Nuts to name but a few, Real Ale does not seem to take itself too seriously. Even the BBC have become subservient to the charm of Real Ale, with Top Gear’s James May and wine connoisseur Oz Clarke exploring the British Ale industry in their new programme “James and Oz’s Drink to Britain”.

It’s a drink for all people whether student, working, retired, man or woman, anyone can enjoy the simple pleasures a Real Ale can provide. Whatever the answer to Ale’s sudden popularity, it’s evident that there is something special that is drawing people to ale like moths to a flame, and that the stigma of an old drink for old men has been relinquished by the recent rise in sales. British Ale is here to stay, and I for one am relieved.