YOUR delicious.
Save our cask ale heritage!
STAR EMAIL
FROM: HARRIET ELEY
I’ve worked my whole adult life in the beer industry (from pot washer in pubs to marketing) so I feel I must comment on the description of cask ale in The Great Christmas Drinks refresh [Dec, p137].
I support experimentation. I’m a craft beer drinker and love what it has brought to Britain, so it was devastating to see the line “falling asleep over dull, brown, old-fashioned cask ales” in print.
Cask ale is Britain’s beer heritage. It has a rich history of regional diversity, of small producers, of generations of brewers learning their craft, and it has a huge variety of styles and flavours. It struggled to survive the 70s, 80s and 90s when bland, over-gassed ‘lagers’ reigned supreme.
The biggest danger to this wonderful product is the perception that cask ale is ‘flat, dull and warm’ and drunk by ‘old men’ – which discourages potential drinkers from even trying it, let alone visiting some of Britain’s oldest and best pubs, where fantastic ranges of expertly selected and cared-for ales shine.