31st May to 4th June 2005
Why is this year special?
2005 is a big year for Colchester & N E Essex CAMRA. Firstly, it's our 30th anniversary - the first-ever branch meeting was held on 19th June 1975, in the now sadly-lost House Without a Name, in Easthorpe. But perhaps more importantly, two of our Beer Festivals approach milestones - the 20th Colchester, and 10th Clacton-on-Sea Festivals.
Beer Festivals are vitally important to our branch and CAMRA nationally. To many people they are the public face of CAMRA, the only real contact they have with the branch and the breweries we support. We are fortunate in North Essex to have a number of pubs which offer guest ales from smaller breweries - but it's actually a pitifully small percentage of the 350 or so licensed premises in our region. The festival allows the drinking public to sample brews from all over the country, many of which are rarely seen outside their home patches. This also applies to local brewers. Did you know that there are over 25 commercial breweries in Essex and Suffolk? How many of their beers do you see in your local? The same 2 or 3 if you're lucky, and you can probably find them almost anywhere in the country!
But Festivals are equally important to us at local level. They act as a forum, enabling us to meet members who cannot, or choose not to, participate in other branch events. They are a major source of new members, many of whom sign up at the festivals to take advantage of the incentives we offer (a couple of free pints, discounts on books and products and, of course, free entry to festivals up and down the country), and some who will hopefully become active in the branch. It's also a good reminder for lapsed members to renew their membership. And, of course, it is by far our single biggest source of revenue. Whilst everyone working at the festival does so unpaid, there is a small staff at HQ who co-ordinate CAMRA's national campaigning and other activities from which we all benefit.
The 2005 Colchester Festival
Firstly a few facts. The festival will again take place at the Colchester Arts Centre.
For those who don't know, the Arts Centre is a beautiful deconsecrated church situated just off Head Street in the heart of the town centre. Apart from its historic connections (it played a major part in the Siege of Colchester, 1648, allegedly the source of the "Humpty Dumpty" nursery rhyme), it is in my view one of the best beer festival venues in the UK - and I've visited a few!
This Year's Features
We plan a couple of extra features this year. As a branch, we're fortunate that a number of younger members are becoming increasingly involved. To try to promote this further, we will have a separate bar this year, run by our younger colleagues. They have selected beers and ciders which they feel will appeal to the younger palate - lighter beers which will hopefully attract lager drinkers, stouts for the Guinness lovers, and a few in between. They promise, however, that the over 30's will still be served!
We are delighted to announce that Adnams of Southwold
have
kindly agreed to sponsor this year's festival. Their logo will appear
on our full-colour souvenir glasses, and we will be featuring a brand-new
beer from them (available at our festival the day before their official
national launch!)To celebrate our various anniversaries, we have commissioned a festival brew from the new Mersea Island Brewery. Named Twenty Thirsty, a refreshing golden ale around 5% abv, and unique to this festival.
Branch brewing guru Colin Miller (who created Mersea's "Skippers Bitter") has assisted with this, and also another Mersea Island beer "Mersea Monkeys". Monkeys was brewed by Colin, Trevor Johnson and our Chairman Nigel Mullender, the trio responsible for "Wise Monkeys" - last year's Champion beer of the Festival, brewed at Nethergate. Can they repeat the feat?
And for those planning to come to the Clacton festival in August, we're planning another festival special - this time a classic English IPA, strong (hopefully 6.5-7%), hoppy and bags of flavour. To commemorate all three milestones at one go, this will be named "Ten Twenty Thirsty". Clever, eh! More details on all this in the festival programme.
For the inside story, read the report of the 2004 festival.
Hope to see you all at the festival, whichever side of the bar you may be!
Cheers
Dave Nunn
Beer Festival Organiser
Beers
Obviously a key element of any beer festival!
This year we are aiming to provide over 90 different beers from brewers all over the UK, and including a good representation from East Anglia. The full range is listed below. Obviously not all beers can be "on" together, as some take longer than others to settle, but not even I can drink 90 beers in one session! We aim to feature several choices of each "classic" style every day. Bitter lovers will find everything from light refreshing "quaffing ales" to potent, full-bodied strong ales. Aficionados of dark beer will be in heaven with our range of milds, stouts and porters. And with "golden" ales increasing in popularity, we will offer an excellent selection at various strengths. Lager drinkers? We even look after you, with several beers brewed to lager recipes in traditional real ale style - all the flavour, with none of the fizz! And for the truly eclectic, we have beers flavoured with fruits, honey, elderflowers, ginger etc.
Last year's experiment with cooling was a tremendous success, and this year we hope to have all the beers professionally cooled. Apart from maintaining beer quality, this also allows us to open the blinds to show off the Arts Centre's fantastic stained glass windows in all their glory.
We know that not everyone at the festival likes real ale. If we can't convince you with the range above, we offer a wide selection of Belgian bottled beers, from standard Pils to fruit beers and sour Lambics. Beware, though - many of these are seriously strong!
In recent years, CAMRA has championed cider and perry, two of the most traditional styles of British drinks. This year we will be changing suppliers, and hope to offer around 15 ciders and perries, mainly from Essex, Kent and the South-West. Again, some of these should probably carry a health warning on the grounds of strength!
Finally, the ever-popular wines from the Mersea Island Vineyard will be on sale, and we also provide free soft drinks for drivers. Children are welcome during the afternoons and early evenings (accompanied by well-behaved adults!), but on no account will alcohol be served to anyone under the age of 18 - proof of ID may be requested.
Staying on the important subject of beer, we had a few complaints last year (and in 2003) that choice was limited on the final day of the festival - and indeed, we ran out of real ale at around 8.30pm on both Saturdays. Apologies to anyone who was unhappy, so this year we're taking the risk of a fairly substantial increase in our beer order. Obviously many beers will sell out quickly, but with music on Saturday night this year, we aim to have enough to keep everyone happy through till closing time.
| Brewery | Location | Beer | ABV | Tasting Notes |
| Abbey | Bath, Somerset | Bellringer | 4.2 | Clean, dry, hoppy session bitter |
| Adnams | Southwold, Suffolk | Explorer | 4.3 | Clean and light with a citrus tang |
| Adnams | Regatta | 4.3 | Light, crisp & refreshing summer beer | |
| Adnams | Flagship | 4.3 | Brand new, launched at this festival! | |
| Alcazar | Nottingham | New Dawn | 4.5 | Soft and lightly hopped - like a pale mild |
| Alcazar | Alhambra Evening | 6.1 | Dark, hoppy and strong "extra special bitter" | |
| Blanchfields | Rochford, Essex | IPA Twist | 3.7 | Brewed with a mystery spice - smooth, not bitter |
| Blanchfields | POTY Ale | 4.2 | Brewed with coriander for a spicy finish | |
| Breconshire | Brecon, Powys | Golden Valley | 4.2 | Single-hopped thirst quencher |
| Breconshire | Brecon County Ale | 3.7 | Beautifully hopped amber brown bitter | |
| Burton Bridge | Burton-on-Trent, Staffs | Pullmans Pride | 4.5 | Well balanced golden beer with lemony citrus tang |
| Burton Bridge | Damson Porter | 5.0 | Complex hops and fruit, faintly liquorice | |
| Cheriton | Cheriton, Hants | Village Elder | 3.8 | Award-winning session bitter with elderflowers |
| Bushy's | Braddan, Isle of Man | Ruby Mild | 3.5 | Award-winning easy drinking mild |
| Bushy's | Piston Brew | 4.5 | Red-brown ale brewed for the Isle of Man TT Series | |
| Cheriton | Diggers Gold | 4.6 | Full-bodied golden bitter with grapefruit notes | |
| Crouch Vale | S Woodham Ferrers, Essex | IPJ Mild | 3.7 | Smooth dark mild, bags of malt and fruit |
| Crouch Vale | Brewers Gold | 4.0 | Multi-award winning floral hop explosion | |
| Crouch Vale | Anchor Street Porter | 4.9 | Full flavoured dark ale with hop and roast malt notes | |
| Crouch Vale | Amarillo | 5.0 | Intense aroma and a spicy floral finish | |
| Dark Star | Haywards Heath, W Sussex | Espresso Stout | 4.2 | Full flavoured stout with real coffee beans! |
| Dark Star | Landlords Wit | 4.1 | Light golden lager-style wheat beer | |
| Dent | Dent, Cumbria | Rambrau Lager | 4.5 | German-style real ale lager |
| Dent | Aviator | 4.0 | Medium-bodied mid-brown ale with real flavour | |
| Felinfoel | Llanelli, Carmarthenshire | Cambrian Bitter | 3.9 | Light and hoppy quaffing ale |
| Felinfoel | Double Dragon | 4.2 | Malty, fruity, multi-award winning premium ale | |
| Felinfoel | Dragonheart | 4.3 | Well-balanced malt and hops, easy-drinking | |
| Felstar | Felsted, Essex | Crix Forest Mild | 4.0 | Full-bodied, malty dark mild |
| Felstar | Shalford Bitter | 4.0 | Traditional southern bitter, reddish & hoppy | |
| Garton | Driffield, East Yorks | Old Buffer Mild | 4.5 | Styled on a First World War recipe |
| Garton | Liquid Lobotomy Stout | 8.0 | Oh dear! 8% despite no added sugar or extracts | |
| Grand Union | Hayes, Middx | Kolsch | 4.8 | Award-winning Cologne-style lager |
| Grand Union | Fuggles | 4.5 | Clean, crisp, single hopped bitter | |
| Harviestoun | Dollar, Clackmannanshire | Navigator | 4.3 | Seasonal special with American Mount Hood hops |
| Harviestoun | Schiehallion Lager | 4.8 | Award-winning cask lager, very refreshing | |
| Iceni | Mundford, Norfolk | Raspberry Wheat | 5.0 | Straw coloured wheat beer with real fruit |
| Iceni | Ported Porter | 4.2 | Rich and full-bodied, with added port wine | |
| Itchen Valley | Alresford, Hants | Bishops Crest | 3.9 | Mid-brown hopy session bitter |
| Itchen Valley | Hampshire Rose | 4.3 | Golden amber ale with bags of hops and fruit | |
| Itchen Valley | HMS Warrior | 5.0 | Easy drinking and lightly hoppy premium ale | |
| Kelham Island | Sheffield, South Yorks | Bitter | 3.8 | Pale brown, clean & crisp with bitter dryness |
| Kelham Island | Fat Cat Mild | 3.6 | Traditional mild brewed for CAMRA's mild month | |
| Maldon Brewing Co | Maldon, Essex | Blue Boar Bitter | 4.0 | Flavoursome bitter with good malt/hops balance |
| Maldon Brewing Co | Pucks Folly | 4.2 | Highly quaffable golden ale. Light & refreshing | |
| Mauldons | Sudbury, Suffolk | Maybee | 3.9 | Soft, gentle flavours with a hint of local honey |
| Mauldons | Moletrap Bitter | 3.8 | Well-balanced session beer | |
| Mersea Island | East Mersea, Essex | Yo Boy | 3.8 | Golden, well-balanced session bitter |
| Mersea Island | Mersea Monkeys | 5.0 | Dark porter, brewed by branch members | |
| Mersea Island | Mersea Mud | 3.8 | Old-fashioned mild, lightly hopped and smooth | |
| Mersea Island | Skippers Bitter | 4.8 | Dark and full-flavoured premium ale | |
| Mersea Island | Twenty Thirsty | 5.0 | Zinging golden special - see programme feature | |
| Mighty Oak | Maldon, Essex | Oscar Wilde Mild | 3.7 | Smokey, gently-hopped and easy-drinking |
| Mighty Oak | Batsmans Bitter | 3.8 | Slightly spicy amber ale with hints of orange | |
| Mighty Oak | Burntwood Bitter | 4.0 | Tawney bitter with roast coffee notes | |
| Mighty Oak | May'd of Ale | 4.7 | Strong mild brewed for CAMRA's mild month | |
| Nelson | Chatham, Kent | Admiral's Bitter | 3.8 | Well-balanced quaffing ale |
| Nelson | Trafalgar | 4.1 | Lovely malt & hops mix, easy drinking | |
| Nethergate | Pentlow, Essex | IPA | 3.5 | Clean, crisp session bitter |
| Nethergate | Painted Lady | 4.2 | Seasonal special, hoppy with fruit notes | |
| Nethergate | Augustinian | 4.5 | Pale, refreshing but rich best bitter | |
| Oakham | Peterborough, Cambs | JHB | 3.8 | Multi-award winning classic quaffing ale |
| Oakham | Inferno | 4.2 | Complex fruit with a lingering dry finish | |
| Oakleaf | Gosport, Hants | Maypole Mild | 3.8 | Sweet, full-bodied with a hint of bitterness |
| Oakleaf | I Can't Believe It's Not Bitter | 4.9 | Because it's lager! Brewed as a real ale | |
| Orkney | Sandwick, Orkney | Red MacGregor | 4.0 | Beautifully balanced tawney ale |
| Orkney | Dragonhead Stout | 4.0 | Dark and malty with hints of chocolate | |
| Orkney | Skullsplitter | 8.5 | Dangerously smooth. Not for the faint hearted | |
| Oulton | Lowestoft, Suffolk | Bitter | 3.5 | Easy drinking, with a good malt-hops balance |
| Oulton | Sunrise | 4.0 | Light and summery, brewed with elderflowers | |
| Railway Tavern | Brightlingsea, Essex | Crab & Winkle Mild | 3.7 | Award-winning vegan mild, a festival favourite |
| Railway Tavern | Heritage Nettle Ale | 5.0 | Vegan bitter, back for a second year | |
| Ridleys | Hartford End, Essex | Tolley Original | 3.8 | Smooth, malty and slightly sweet |
| Ridleys | Old Bob | 5.0 | Full-bodied, fruity premium ale | |
| Ridleys | Pale Island | 5.2 | Contract-brewed version of Kelham Island's Pale Rider | |
| St Peters | Bungay, Suffolk | Honey Porter | 5.1 | Warming traditional English porter |
| St Peters | Lemon & Ginger | 4.7 | Spiced ale with ……… lemon and ginger in it! | |
| Stonehenge | Salisbury, Wilts | Sign of Spring | 4.6 | Smooth, well-balanced - and bright green! |
| Stonehenge | Danish Dynamite | 5.0 | Dry, slightly fruity, award-winning golden ale | |
| Titanic | Burslem, Staffs | Anchor Bitter | 4.1 | Fruity aroma, dry finish. With classic bitterness |
| Titanic | Stout | 4.5 | A true old fashioned stout, great malt/hops balance | |
| Vale | Haddenham, Bucks | Notley Bitter | 3.3 | Amazing malt and hops taste for it's strength |
| Vale | Black Beauty Porter | 4.3 | Wholesome porter with strong roast malt flavour | |
| Westerham | Edenbridge, Kent | Grasshopper | 3.8 | Dark session beer, superbly hopped |
| Westerham | British Bulldog | 4.3 | Full-bodied best bitter with big hop aroma | |
| Winters | Norwich, Norfolk | Mild | 3.6 | Light malt with sweet roast overtones |
| Winters | Golden | 4.1 | Refreshing bitter with citrus notes | |
| Wissey Valley | Stoke Ferry, Norfolk | Old Wobbly | 4.2 | Classic Old ale brewed with dark malt |
| Wissey Valley | Khaki Sergeant | 6.7 | Strong black stout, bags of flavour | |
| Wolf | Attleborough, Norfolk | Woild Moild | 4.8 | Rich, smokey, heavily roasted malt classic |
| Wolf | Granny Wouldn't Like It | 4.8 | Complex dark red fruity award-winning bitter | |
| Woodfordes | Woodbastwick, Norfolk | Wherry | 3.8 | Light, hoppy session bitter. Simply superb |
| Woodfordes | Great Eastern | 4.3 | Beautiful sweet-dry blend, easy drinking bitter | |
| York | York | Guzzler | 3.6 | Crisp, refreshing quaffing ale |
| York | Centurions Ghost | 5.4 | Dark ruby bitter, full bodied and mellow | |
| Perrys | ||||
| Broome Farm | Herefordshire | Single Variety Dry | 6.0 | |
| Gwatkins | Herefordshire | Single Variety Medium | 7.5 | |
| Hecks | Somerset | Single Variety Medium | 6.5 | |
| Little Red Rooster | East Sussex | Sweet Cider/Perry mix | 8.4 | |
| Ciders | ||||
| Biddenden | Kent | Dry Blend | 8.4 | |
| Chiddingstone | Kent | Medium Dry Blend | 7.5 | |
| Delvin End | Essex | Single Variety Dry & Dry Blend | 7.0 | |
| Ermie & Gerties | Somerset | Dry Whisky Casked Blend | 7.0 | |
| Gwatkins | Herefordshire | Single Variety Medium | 7.5 | |
| Gwynt Y Ddraig | Glamorgan | Single Variety Medium Dry | 6.5 | |
| Hecks | Somerset | Single Variety Medium Dry | 7.5 | |
| Hecks | Single Variety Medium Sweet | 6.5 | ||
| Moles | Wiltshire | Medium Dry (Black Rat) | 6.0 | |
| Winkleigh | Devon | Medium Blend | 6.0 | |
| Winkleigh | Medium Dry Scrumpy | 7.5 | ||
| List updated 20th May 2005 |
Please also note that CAMRA supports anti drink-drive campaigns, so free soft drinks will be available at our festival, to all patrons who would like them.
Opening Times
Monday 30th May (Special members-only preview night) - 7.30pm-10pm
Tuesday 31st May - 6pm to 11pm
Wednesday 1st June - 12 midday to 11pm
Thursday 2nd June - 12 midday to 11pm
Friday 3rd June - 12 midday to 11pm
Saturday 4th June - 12 midday to 11pm
Finding Us
The Beer Festival will be held at the Colchester Arts Centre, just off Colchester High Street. The best way to find us is to look for 'Jumbo' the water tower!
Entry Fees
Entry costs into this years Beer Festival will be as follows :-
Tuesday - £2 (evening only)
Wednesday to Saturday - £1 before 6.30pm, £2 after 6.30pm
FREE ADMISSION to card carrying CAMRA members at all sessions (and your entry fee refunded if you become a member at the festival)
Food
One other complaint last year was the lack of hot food. In our defense, we were let down at the last minute, so had to make do in an emergency with filled rolls. So new caterers this year - quality filled baguettes for the afternoon sessions, and a choice of hot food every evening and all day Friday and Saturday.
There will also be crisps, pork scratchings and a selection of other snacks available from behind the bar.
Music
Some people say that the staff provide enough entertainment. Most of the staff say the same thing about the customers! We understand that not everyone likes music so we have three "quiet nights", but for the rest, we have two bands appearing this year, both kicking off at around 8.30pm:
Tuesday 31st May - Thud & Blunder.
Ever-popular, and returning for the ?th year, local musicians Keith & Nell will provide their lively mix of rock, 60s/70's pop, Irish folk and humorous covers, ranging from The Kinks and T-Rex to the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band. Great for a singalong.
Saturday 4th June - Buckshee.
You may have seen Mick and Mo playing as a duo in pubs and clubs around Colchester. We are fortunate to have them as a three-piece this year, joined by their daughter Grace. Talented multi-instrumentalists, their style ranges from traditional and modern folk to swing, Cajun, reggae and rock. Perfect for a beer festival, guaranteed to get your feet tapping - or maybe even get up and dance.
An Appeal to all Members
Festivals do not run themselves. Months of planning and admin are needed, and we rely on volunteers for this, and to staff the festival itself.
The real work starts early on the morning of Bank Holiday Monday, 30th May, when everything gets delivered. There's a fair amount of heavy work here - setting up the bars, stillage and beers, putting up banners etc - but we also need more help for the lighter tasks.
The same applies on Sunday 5th June, when everything comes down and we attempt to leave the hall as we found it. If you want to see a grown man cry, this is the time to come along - if we've got the beer order wrong, we have to pour the surplus away!
And, of course, we rely on our members' help during festival opening times. The main need here is for people to work behind the bar. All this work is done by unpaid volunteers, but all agree that the camaraderie - and heavily subsidised beer - makes it worthwhile.
If you can help, even for a couple of hours, and especially during the quieter weekday afternoon/early evening sessions, please complete this Staffing Form and return it to Dave Nunn