In the meantime
Apr. 6th, 2015 09:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
millionreasonsThe bloke (and he is a bloke: he comes off like a cross between Windsor Davies and Al Murray) who takes us 'round the brewery is A Character. Tells us about his life in Abbey Wood, his marriage, his epicurean tastes. He names one of the Northern Irish visitors "peanut" and makes jokes about the Italians. He's one step away from calling the women "sweets" and the men "geez". He takes the piss out of Tripadvisor review. He gives Dave and I a free additional glass when we own up to being vegetarian.
Usually on vineyard or brewery tours, you get the history, the marketing, the "why we're different", their method of alcohol production before the booze so your whistle is wet, your anticipation is high, you exit through the giftshop after the free drinks, but here we drink for an hour (London lager, pale ale, California pale ale - my orangey favourite - Yakima red and chocolatey stout) whilst smelling the different types of barley and hops (which look like hamster pellets) before hazily wandering around the stainless steel beer factory. It seems a bit of a health and safety risk to allow slightly pissed people near heavy machinery.
Afterwards, we fill up on school dinner stodge from Goddard's, and end up, away from the tourists and family groups, in the Yacht, watching the air go dark and the lights come on over the river.
Usually on vineyard or brewery tours, you get the history, the marketing, the "why we're different", their method of alcohol production before the booze so your whistle is wet, your anticipation is high, you exit through the giftshop after the free drinks, but here we drink for an hour (London lager, pale ale, California pale ale - my orangey favourite - Yakima red and chocolatey stout) whilst smelling the different types of barley and hops (which look like hamster pellets) before hazily wandering around the stainless steel beer factory. It seems a bit of a health and safety risk to allow slightly pissed people near heavy machinery.
Afterwards, we fill up on school dinner stodge from Goddard's, and end up, away from the tourists and family groups, in the Yacht, watching the air go dark and the lights come on over the river.
