Let us start by unravelling a few myths about beer. And when we say beer we don’t mean that gold stuff which comes in fancy glasses and makes a lovely shandy. We’re talking about real beer. Tarry black stuff in a tankard. With bits in it. A meal in a glass, as my husband likes to refer to it. 

 

Beer isn’t just for old men who have their own stool at the bar and a pewter tankard with their initials carved in to it. Beer is actually enjoying something of a renaissance with advertising aimed at women, beer lists telling you what to drink with your meal and packaging getting funked up to appeal to a younger market.     
     
Sometimes called the biggest pub in the world the Great British Beer Festival at Earls Court is a chance to sample everything the beer industry has to offer with almost 500 real ales on offer to visitors. Even the hardened enthusiast will find something new to discover while those of us unsteady around anything more exotic than a pint of Fosters will find something to tickle our tastebuds.

The Great British Beer Festival isn’t just about getting drunk on cheap booze though. There are tasting tutorials which will help you to attune your palate to a variety of beers, there are bars dedicated to specific breweries and entertainment which, we have to admit, errs on the side of the stilton, with Whitesnake and Bootleg Abba among those topping the bill this year.

www.camra.org.uk