What luck. Down in deepest Kent for a meeting with the great guys at Sensible Wine Services as we begin preparations for Imbibe’s next Sommelier Wine Awards, and we decide to repair to the pub to have our meeting to save time – honest! Hence our arrival at The Stile Bridge in Marden.
First decision: what to drink – great good fortune – there’s one of Kent’s green hop beers in the shape of Hop Fuzz Brewery’s The Gardener. Readers will know I’ve been on the trail of this revived style, where freshly picked hops join the brewing process undried and within 24 hours of harvesting.
The result? A different sort of flavour profile, since none of the essential oils have been driven off by the drying process. I haven’t tried enough yet to pronounce on specific characteristics, but some who have include writer Mark Dredge and beer sommelier Sophie Atherton, author of a fascinating article in the Autumn edition of CAMRA’s Beer magazine, Anyone for Beerjolais, and the PR behind Kent’s first Green Hop Beer Fortnight.
But back to our lunch-time meeting in The Stile Bridge.
It’s only as we head into the back bar, with its better table space to balance notebooks, glasses and food, that the full extent of The Stile Bridge’s passion for beer becomes apparent. both shelves and full-length fridges are crammed with different beers, hailing from all corners of the globe.
Add that to the fine array of cask ales out front, and it’s no wonder landlord Marc Hoffman won his local CAMRA Pub of the Year Award for 2012. Nor that he’s had visitors from as far afield as Australia.
Sadly neither time nor occasion allowed me to make my way through his many beers, but he did allow me to take away his craft beer and cider list. And this 48-strong list has grown from just 6 in less than a year. No wonder existing locals are bringing in their mates and his beer turnover has bucked the trend, increasing significantly.
Marc has many ideas for the future, including a Beer Club and possibly a Home Brew Club – we’ll keep you posted.
And the reason we went there originally? Lunch. Verdict: very tasty. Certainly “write-home-about-able”.
Next time, I’ll report on my next Green Hop stop, but if you want to find your own green hop beer, Kent’s Green Hop Beer Festival continues until 12 October, and its beers have spread into London too – check out the pubs tab on its website. Elsewhere around the country brewers may well be creating their own green hop beers. Do ask next time you are in a pub.