BEERWOLF - Wolverhampton Campaign for Real Ale

Real cider and perry are
becoming very popular
additions in many pubs
around the region, showcased
recently by the award winning
Salopian Bar in Shrewsbury, which held not
one, but two real cider and perry festivals this
summer. So to tempt your taste buds to try
real cider and perry this autumn, read on for
my experience as I recently developed a bit of
a thirst for the fruity drink.
Oliver Parry at the Cider Stillage
in Salopian Bar
Normally, I tend to verge on the real ale side
of the bar but from trying the variety of real
cider and perry at our many CAMRA Beer
festivals this summer, I have become a bit of
a convert!
Oliver Parry from the Salopian Bar tempted
us to his fi rst real cider and perry festival of
the summer in early July and never one to
turn down a trip the glorious Shrewsbury, I
was there by opening time of the second day
with my fi ance (and BEERWOLF editor) John
in tow. We were surprised that one cider had
already been drunk dry- those thirsty lot in
Shrewsbury had beaten us to the strongest
one! John was gutted! With 19 others to try
An apple a day...
common sense prevailed and, with a long
day ahead of us, we opted for more moderate
choices of Gwynt y Ddraig Two Trees Perry
and Broadoak Bristol Port at 4.5% and 6%
abv respectively. Real cider and perry often
have a much stronger abv than real ale so the
cautious approach is defi nitely best! I tend to
prefer perry rather than cider and Two Trees
was a perfect choice. John found his own cider
heaven with Renshaws Red Eye, a particularly
dry variety weighing in at “approximately”
8%! At the time of going to print Salopian
Bar’s next cider festival is just around the
corner but rest assured, we were there!
I have enjoyed many new real ciders and
perries in the last few months and found
exciting stockists including the Old Fire House
in Exeter where I was so impressed I made a
return visit- this pub is highly recommended,
being recognised as among the best real
cider outlets in the country and is the place
where I have found my favourite perry, Mr
Whitehead’s Midnight Special.
Just like ale, there are different styles of cider
and having John with me on these occasions
was useful as he tends to enjoy the drier ciders
that I don’t have the palate for. Whatever your
particular tastes are, you’ll fi nd a real cider or
perry to suit. CAMRA is celebrating all things
APPLE in October so if you know of a pub
that stocks real cider and perry, please let us
know and if they don’t already do so, ask your
local to stock it!
Jo Keeley, Wolverhampton CAMRA
Beer wolf Autumn 2011 33