Sep 1994 - Started work in London, previously my drinking had been confined to Tolly Cobbold pubs in Ipswich, or, bars when on holiday with the lads. Now I had access to more lagers in more pubs costing me more money, this strangely enough did not make me feel sad.....
August 2001 - Joined Camra during my first visit to the Great British Beer Festival at Olympia......non lager drinks were starting to creep into my pub life, what was going on? I was changing.....
March 2011 - Started the work beer tasting club (which is still going strong), with beery beardy pal Clayton. Jeff Evans hosted the first evening, it was the night I discovered Thornbridge Jaipur. Who knew beer could taste like this? What's that I see in the distance? A rabbit-hole and I seem to have started a march in that very direction.....
May 2013 - My first BeerBods beer was consumed and subsequently checked in on Untappd, got a badge, this made me happy.....
Feb 2015 - SXBottleShare inaugural event kicks off at The Ale House in Chelmsford, thanks in no small part to Steve Bentall and Clayton Chisholm. The first Tuesday of the month is a permanent fixture in the diary with all efforts made not to miss it. These people are my friends......
August 2015 - I decided to post a blog, apparently it wasn't rubbish, so, I wrote some more words and put them into sentences, I am still doing this.....
August 2016 - Aforementioned Steve asks me to co host his new podcast Hopinions, following on from the very successful Beer O'Clock Show that had run for 4 years with Mark, he said there would be drinking of beer involved, I said yes.....
These are merely the milestones I can remember, for example, sometime between Sep 1987 and Sep 1994, I started drinking Tetley's on cask (and what a pint of beer it once was) while I was a member of a pub quiz team, but, I don't remember exactly when. So, you see, as well as the milestones, there have been incremental changes to my beery life such as the regular trips to continental Europe with my brothers, where more eye opening moments have ensued - different beers in different glasses, who knew?
So, here I am, down the rabbit hole, not sure how far down, or how much further to the bottom, but, I am enjoying the journey. It seems that the more I find out, the more I learn and the more beers I try, that I realise there is so much more out there to discover. This is a good time to have an interest in beer (to put into context - 300 or so breweries in 1987 versus 1,700 now), long may it continue.
The beer, the places and the people have all enhanced my life to this point and some lifelong friendships have definitely been forged - life in beer is good, cheers guys!
Before I sign off, thank you Michelle for not only supporting and encouraging me on my beer journey but, for joining me on it, here's to many more years in love and beer.
Some further information relating to my milestones can be found by clicking on the following links:
Camra
Great British Beer Festival
Hopinions
SXBottleShare
Beer Bods
Untappd
Jeff Evans
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