Beer guide to England
They like it "warm" and flat in Blighty
UK Beers: When we think of "British beer" thoughts of ruddy-cheeked locals sipping draught ales outside thatched pubs come to mind. There's no shortage of pubs around the United Kingdom, but it's harder to find draught ales in cities such as London as lager takes the lion's share of the market.
Four major UK-based breweries dominate the UK market, three of which are foreign owned. These breweries include Scottish and Newcastle (which produce Foster's and Kronenbourg), Coors (from the US), Anheuser-Busch InBev (which produces Stella Artois) and Carlsberg of Denmark, proably the best ... etc etc.
In response, provincial breweries began to fill the demand for traditional brews and even smaller craft beer breweries have emerged. While on-tap ales available at airports such as Heathrow or Gatwick are likely to be mass produced, but it’s always worth asking if the bar sells a local ale, draught or bottled.
The UK has 400 breweries producing more than 750 different bottled ale labels not including the Irish beers - Guinness and Murphy’s Stout. So, to help beer lovers, we’re highlighting the local brews that are most likely to be available at regional airport bars. At any UK airport, beer lovers should look for a Pub-style bar as these are most likely to carry a range of bottled ales as well as draught beer.
Brews to look out for
London Area
Heathrow,Gatwick, and London City are the main international airports. Stansted and Luton, to the north of London, mainly serve holiday destinations.
Heathrow: The Harlequin Alehouse & Eatery in Heathrow’s Terminal 1 (post security) or the 5 Tuns in Terminal 5 (pre security) should stock a range of ales including Old Nick containing 7.2 per cent alcohol or Vintage Ale 2007 at 8.5 per cent alcohol. Also, try asking for Spitfire ale produced by family-owned brewer Shepherd Neame and contains 4.5 per cent ABV.
Gatwick: Pub-style bars can be found in the North Terminal, namely the Globe, Lloyds No.1 Bar and The Red Lion (Wetherspoons). The South Terminal has The Bridge Bar and the Flying Horse (Wetherspoons), which are located after security, and The Village (Wetherspoons), located before security. All claim to serve draught and bottled beers most of which will be similar to those found at Heathrow.
Stansted:Wetherspoons, Est Bar Est, and the worldwide Irish bar chain O’Neill’s all make an appearance at STN. The region’s best known brewery is Greene & King at Bury St Edmunds, which produces a range of ten bottled beers including Abbot Ale at 5 per cent ABV and the 6 per cent Abbot Reserve. Ruddles is another Bury-area brewery, which produces Ruddles Organic containing 5.1 per cent alcohol and is likely to be available at this airport.
London’s Luton airport doesn’t offer any pub-style bars and is unlikely to serve any local brews.
Southampton airport: The airport’s neighbouring Hampshire Breweries, which boasts 26 different ales is most famous for the 6 per cent ABV 1066. Another likely brew to be available at this airport is Old Thumper containing 5.6 per cent ABV, made by the Ringwood Brewery, another local producer. The Blandford (Dorset) based family-owned Badger Brewery markets its product strongly in the region and you may find one of its 17 brews such as the 5.7 per cent Poachers Choice or 3.8 per cent Badgers Original at the airport.
Bristol and Exeter airports: Most likely to stock Badger beers as well as the 4.5 per cent Barnstormer produced by Bath Ales.
Birmingham airport: Brewers in this part of the country include The Highgate Brewery in Walsall, which offers two strong ales 5.3 per cent Old Ale and 6.5 per cent Old Ember, or the Worcester-based Springhead Brewery, which produces 5.7 per cent Roaring Meg and 6.2 per cent Cromwell’s Head. The nearby area of Burton-on-Trent is synonymous with dark stouts; Burton Bridge Brewery produces a stout and a porter of 4.5 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively, plus a wonderfully named ale - Tickle Brain - at 8 per cent ABV. Marstons Brewery in the same town produces 15 labels, from stouts to pale ales, so it's worth asking for its 5.7 per cent Old Empire.
Manchester and Leeds airports: Serving Lancashire and Yorkshire, both shires are famous for their brewing traditions. A Yorkshire label to look out for is the Black Sheep Brewery, which produces six beers in Masham including the 5.7 per cent Riggwelter Ale. Masham’s other brewery, Theakston, has managed to carve out a national brand image with its Cool Cask, XB and Paradise Ale, all 4 per cent plus beers.
Harrogate, north of Leeds airport, is home to Daleside Brewery, which produces seven beers including 5.5 per cent Crack Shot and 5.3 per cent Monkey Wrench. Another regional producer is Thirsk’s Hambledon Ales brewery that might appear behind the bar; lookout for GFB, GFA, Stud or Taylor’s Tipple, all around 5 per cent ABV.
One of the North Yorkshire Brewery’s nine brands may also find its way to the airport, particularly the 4.7 per cent Flying Herbert. In the ancient City of York, the York Brewery’s 5.2 per cent Centurion’s Ghost Ale and 4.2 per cent York Minster are definitely worth trying. A Yorkshire brewer, Samuel Smith, produces stouts and ales and also its own lager. The 5 per cent Taddy Porter and 6 per cent Winter Welcome Ale are two names that stand out from Samuel Smith’s line-up.
Manchester Airport may provide Dragonheart, Christmas Ale or Raisin Beer, all 5 per cent beers from Cains Brewery (based in Liverpool). Manchester’s own J.W.Lees produces 5 per cent John Willies, 11.5 per cent Harvest 2000, and 4.2 per cent Coronation Street – named after the much-loved long-running TV soap opera. The other local Joseph Holt brewery adds the 3.5 per cent Hum Dinger and the 4.7 per cent Maplemoon to look out for.
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Updated November 2011