Evenin' all, just a quick note to say that the new Good Beer Guide 2021 finally reached York this morning, so I have started the arduous task of the yearly cross-ticking.
As a result, I'm prioritising it over my Hants blogs so like the best cliff-hanger ever, you'll just have to wait to see what I REALLY thought about Andover.
The new GBG is out 'officially' on 29th Oct, so for these next 10 days, I'm under CAMRA's embargo not to reveal details of what is contained within. So any pubs I do check in on Twitter in this period, I'm asking you to believe me when I say I'm doing them either because (a) they were in the 2020 GBG or (b) they are preemptive tip-offs someone has told me about.
We are not amused. Or are we? Just like the year of Queen Vic's death, I've 'declared' on 1901 pubs for the 2020 Guide, and that means, I need to lose less than 158 to stop myself from going backwards (1743 was the number I declared at in 2019). Fat chance of that, but at least we can blame that March-July period where no ticks were done.
Still, at the time of writing, I'm up to Cornwall and I've only lost 11 (6 in Berks, 4 in Cheshire, 1 in Cornwall). I've somehow broken even in Beds, Bucks and Cambs despite hardly any visits to those counties in the last calendar year.
What else can I quickly tell you without breaking embargo? I like the green, clashes with my green Stabilo & Colin, but I like it. If the 2020 edition looked like a Wisden Cricketers Almanac, this is more like a dictionary of herbs from a market garden Tasteful.
I quickly noticed it didn't feel as heavy as usual. The number of pages has been increasing year on year, 1,060 last time but only 912 this time (lowest since 2012!), feels like they've made the effort. So I am too, and not gonna use my Stanley knife to extract the brewery section. It's manageable, you see. After all, even with the help of my work colleagues and parents, it was a right botched job last year, back cover fell of, and a laminated Isle of Man suddenly meant I wouldn't be able to 'green off' any pubs there, long before Covid became a thing.
So all in all, optimism bounds. Shame this week I have to work. Shame I'm having to train a guy remotely whilst Working From Home. He's pretty chilled though, so if I said "let's just take half an hour whilst I cross tick Notts & Oxon" I don't think he'd mind.
Back to the ticking (Cumbria next up, always fun!), see you in a week or two.
Si
God speed you, Green ticker.
ReplyDeleteAnd same to you, pink ticker. Glad we got our declarations done in record breaking time. Just read your 'drinking pints' blog, made me chuckle, definitely gonna behave myself re embargo, don't want the 'Discoursers' getting upset do we? :)
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DeleteWe are amused...
ReplyDeleteGlad you are quill, it's the only way to be :)
DeleteBlimey, I coulda read this one yesterday as it's:
ReplyDelete- short, and;
- doesn't have much to comment on.*
*Except for this:
"Shame I'm having to train a guy remotely whilst Working From Home."
Just make sure you don't 'pull' a Toobin** during the remote training. ;)
Cheers
** - https://news.yahoo.com/column-price-jeffrey-toobin-pay-213547456.html
And funnily enough Russ, in a bit of training down time ..... (you're worried what I'm going to say now aren't you?) .... my trainee told me this very story! 'Pulling a Toobin' is gonna become an actual phrase isn't it? :D
Delete(guffaw)!
DeleteIndeed. :)
Yes - the 2021 GBG is smaller. Just weighed that and the 2020 Guide:
ReplyDelete2020 - 1.155kg
2021 - 0.86kg
Look upon this as a public service.
Top work John, knew I could rely on you for a good weigh in. Thanks!
Delete~10 ounces in old money - not nothing, if you're toting it round the country.
ReplyDeleteTrue Clive. The brewery section still accounts for a huge portion of the GBG, probably about a third! Will I live to regret keeping it in as I'm trekking round outer Launceston next summer? We'll see!
DeleteRemember that GBG 2021 does not include any opening times - totalled over 4500 pubs this probably accounts for the fewer number of pages.
ReplyDeleteThat is a good point, I was wondering where the shortfall was .... also seem to be fewer 'articles' at the beginning. I don't mind the lack of opening times, I sort of feel more in control!
DeleteI should read your posts more often (rather than just staring at the pics, laughing, and trying to post as myself).
ReplyDeleteYou're right about the reduced size, so nice of Mr Clarke to weigh it. I was hoping the smaller size was due to the death of all those silly homebrewers with their Archers like one-off beers but I doubt it.
Well done on such a lightning declaration, given you "work" and don't have interns to do the cross-checking for you.