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Nottingham was my first stop in the Midlands. This is an old city: the first recorded settlement was in 868, and in medieval times it was the gateway to the north.  Today Nottingham is a wonderful beer destination. The enthusiasm here for good beer and good, creative food from local ingredients in my opinion matches any place in the UK. 

The beer community in Nottingham is keen on a variation of the locavore movement, and loca-beers (beers brewed within 20 miles) are proudly promoted. There is a surprising range of local breweries to both encourage and support this movement.

One series of events that fueled this loca movement was the purchase of a local brewer, Hardy and Hansons, by Greene King, one of the giant ‘New National’ breweries. The New Nationals (others are Wells and Youngs, and Marstons) are strong supporters of cask ale, but also tend to consolidate breweries for efficiency and cut corners in the interest of cost reduction. Once Greene king acquired Hardy and Hansons they quickly closed the brewery, moved production to their other facilities, and put Greene King beers into their chain of pubs around Nottingham.

Outrage at the H&H closure seems to have fueled the growth of local brewers. Castle Rock Brewery began in 1998 with a brewery in central Nottingham, and now produces about 100 barrels a week. They own a string of local pubs in Nottingham, and dominate the Good Beer Guide listings in the central city. This trip I enjoyed three: The Kean’s Head (excellent food, clean, great location in The Lace Market neighborhood), The Salvation (a historic old building, well cared for beers), and the Vat and Fiddle (The Castle Rock brewery tap, a full range of beers in great condition).

The Castle Rock beers are well made and good representatives of Midlands brewing. Their flagship is the Harvest Pale (3.8%). It is yellow straw in color, clean and crisp, lightly hopped with a bit of citrus in the flavor. It is a very accessible brew; two different bartenders mentioned that it was useful in training lager drinkers…  A heavier beer is the Preservation (4.4%) a stronger taste and more of a copper color, but maintaining a smooth, light mouthfeel.

My favorite pub in Nottingham this visit had to be the Vat and Fiddle. While I was chatting with the barmaid the assistant brewer came in to get glasses for their production tasting. He was busy, but when he found I was an American interested in Cask ale he stopped to chat about the beers. Later on I mentioned to the bar maid that I had tasted one of the Castle Rock seasonals (Snowhite) and didn’t think it differed too much from the Harvest Pale. She immediately put samples of both on the bar, said Harvest Pale drinkers think the Pale is much hoppier. Well, it was, but not by that much..  Later, I commented that I hadn’t seen a Castle Rock dark beer. The bar maid said ‘just a minute’ and disappeared down the cellar stairs. She came back with a quarter pint sample of their next seasonal brew, the Blackbird Porter (4.4%) a wonderfully smokey, malty brew. If you go, don’t miss this place, it’s right near the train station.