Friday afternoon, an early finish, and another stolen crawl

God bless the Wellington for having an interactive beer board which lets you see what is on, in 'real time'.  It's a shame that there aren't more beers 'on', more frequently, which tantalise my tastebuds, but hey ho.  This afternoon though, they had an Allgates and Saltaire, so the chance of a double your money, Brucie bonus beckoned.  Not a roaring success though really:

i) the Allgates Winter Warmer, was slightly akin to licking an over-warmed, honey and rosehip lathered innertube; whilst

ii) the Saltaire Rye Pale Ale had a yawn of balanced, tasty hops, but didn't really turn up to the party wearing its party trousers. Shame.

But still.  Don't be downhearted brethren, for I skipped and gambolled across New Street and down to the Post Office Vaults, the lovely new venture, now occupying the old Royal Mail.  Yes, it smells of paint and yes there was a really annoying customer grilling each person who had the temerity to order a pint, but even so, it was a worthwhile [brief] visit.

I have now popped into the POV about 5 times since it opened in December and my emotions towards it vascillate up and down like a bride's nightie.  What am I on about?  Well I started off with massive expectations as someone mentioned that it would be a 'craft' beer venue :) >>> but then it turned out that they wouldn't be serving kegged ales :( >>> then I realised that it had a fantastic selection of Belgian beers - something Brum has been crying our for :) >>> then I had two horrible halves of Byatts beers (not sure whether this was due to beer quality or what really) :( >>> then I popped in today and had a Thornbridge McConnells Vanilla Stout :) >>> and realised that they are now stocking 2 x de Molen beers :) :) amongst other bottled treats. 

Phew! No wonder I'm exhausted.

On the whole, I think the POV may be on track to dislodge the Wellington in the hotly disputed contest to be the place that offers the best beer range in the City.  Certainly it's too early for them to get cocky (I'm sure they won't), but if you are looking for 6 reasonable ales and 100+ Belgian bottles, in a central Brum location, then you will struggle to find somewhere else called the Post Office Vaults, which is as good as this one.

Once home I had intended to sup a bottle of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale tonight also, but on reflection I'll have some chocolate biscuits and a cup of tea instead, because my Fantasy Football team won't choose itself.

Fridays are exciting aren't they?

Is it wrong to want to drink on your own?

We all know that pubs are sociable places and that, therefore an interest in good beer is a very healthy hobby for a growing boy.

But what if, for a variety of boring reasons you find yourself starved of suitable drinking partners?  What if wandering into a pub and striking up a conversation with the jolly locals fills you with a sense of creeping dread?

Surely there is room in this crazy old world for someone who likes pub crawls, nice boozers, quality beer produce and yet, oh and yet is not ready for either professional alcoholism or a flat cap and pint of brown ale supped sadly in the corner?

Since the onset of parenthood (and the accompanying reduced wallet thickness) I have fought to establish new beer drinking routines, but the one constant has been that planning in advance is very difficult.  This therefore discounts the chance to organise pub crawls and meet ups with chums in advance.  When I am able to get out, no one else is about, so this has seen the rise of a new phenomen - the stolen crawl.

What is the stolen crawl?  Well, when wife and daughter are out for the afternoon, then suddenly an opportunity has presented itself, so it's straight onto Google maps, cross referenced with the bus route finder and with a quick nose through Ratebeer places and beerinthevening, to find pubs which are both reasonable and reachable.  With a window of 2-3 hours (or even less) I have grown rather proficient at hitting lots of pubs, with a military mindset - Bus > pub > drink half > next pub > drink half > home (etc).

Now this is all rather positive, but I do have the persistent nagging feeling that I am completely missing the point: after all I don't talk to anyone during the crawl (save barstaff), so is the experience of the good beers I sample diminished?  I tend to think not, for I am anti-social at heart, but I worry how I am viewed by others.

What worries me more, is that I am actually growing to love drinking on my own.  I set the pace of my drinking, meaning that my legendarily low constitution is not exposed.  I also choose the route and speed of the crawl, satisfying my curiosity for new pubs, without dragging others in my wake.  I am also allowed to behave in a baffling manner, as and when I choose - i.e. leaving a wonderful pub, to go and sample horrible produce in a hovel; just so I can mark off another venue as 'done'. 

What would Morrissey think of it all?  I think I need to feel comfortable in my own drinking skin.