Beer on the Wye

 I went into Hereford on the bus on Saturday afternoon for Beer on the Wye.

I'd read that the marquee was going to be at 90 degrees to previous years, to fit on the site this year, but in fact it was the same layout as it's always been.

Usually, I try to pick a beer from each of the different categories (bitter, IPA, porter, mild etc.) but this year I saw several old favourites on the list, and went straight for them.

Here's my first half of Woodforde's Wherry, from Norfolk, with the Festival programme on my folding stool.  It was very useful - there are never enough seats!

Then I went for Jaipur from Thornbridge, a strong IPA which I think I first tried at a previous Beer on the Wye.

This was followed by a very fine vegan Cornish pasty from Loafers, one of the food vans on site.

Then I went for Batemans XB, another East coast beer, followed by Uley Pig's Ear, a pale ale which isn't often seen outside the small area around the brewery in Gloucestershire.

Number five was Elgood's Black Dog Mild - I do like a good mild, and I finished off the session with something I hadn't tried before - 8 Sail's Victorian porter, which was very tasty.

And that hit my limit, with two and two thirds pints.

There were 138 cask beers on offer, including 23 from local brewers, and 148 ciders and perries on the cider bar, 100 of those being from Herefordshire producers!  Hereford Beer House provided a variety of world beers, and there were a couple of low alcohol beers and ciders as well.  They even had a listing of gluten-free and vegan beers!

Towards the end of my afternoon, the live music was just starting on the stage with The Barcodes, three blokes in hats, with guitar, bass and electric drum kit, playing a variety of songs from the sixties onward.  I rather enjoyed them.

The charity this year was Hope Support Services.

Over the weekend, 130 volunteers served nearly 20,000 pints of beer, cider and perry to over 5,000 people.

The Champion Beer of the festival was Three Tuns Best from Three Tuns Brewery in Bishop's Castle.  They've been brewing since 1642, and their beer is now brewed in a miniature Victorian tower, which means the process starts at the top and moves by gravity down to the finished product at the bottom.

Herefordshire Beer of the Year was Rock the Hops from Ledbury Real Ales, and the West Midlands Champion Cider was also from Ledbury - Wilce's Dry Cider.