Saturday 9 May 2020

POPPIES FIRST BEER FESTIVAL


 It seems like a lifetime has passed, another world, a different time. 11 years ago, this weekend we held the first ever Poppies Beer Festival, 7th – 10th May 2009. The Tinhat would be heaving, live bands, marquees outside, 3 double rows of barrels, 41 different ales, 3  lagers and 2 ciders across the 3 bars. Food was being served by the Poppies Pantry, hundreds of people sitting everywhere. Live bands every night with 4 on Saturday. It was a new venture, we didn’t really know what we were doing, but what the hell. Sadly we had just recently lost Poppies stalwart Bernard Bennett, Bernard would have loved a beer festival on his own patch, sadly..  The ales were £2.20 a pint, the total bar take that weekend was just over £6,200. Cleary, we like a drink. Phipps brewery had just started brewing again, albeit at the Grainstore brewery in Oakham, and we were the first place in Kettering to sell both Phipp’s IPA and NBC Red Star, we even had a Phipps banner in the bar. The beer list consisted of the following, we even got lager in for Dazza, he didn’t like the warm gnat’s piss.


CASTLE ROCK BREWERY BLACK GOLD
B&T BREWERY DRAGON SLAYER
CROUCH VALE BREWERY BREWERS GOLD
GRAINSTORE BREWERY RUTLAND PANTHER
PHIPPS (GRAINSTORE BREWERY) PHIPPS IPA

NBC RED STAR BITTER
TYDD STEAM BREWERY IRON BREW
TYDD STEAM BREWERY PISTON BOB
POTBELLY BREWERY SWEET FA
POTBELLY BREWERY CHAMPIONS ALE
MAULDON’S BREWERY BLACK ADDER
NETHERGATE BREWERY OLD GROWLER
UFFORD ALES NIRVANA
SILVERSTONE BREWERY PITSTOP
HUMPTY DUMPTY BREWERY SWALLOWTAIL
FROG ISLAND BREWERY FIRE BELLIED TOAD
WHITE HORSE BREWERY VILLAGE IDIOT
WHITE HORSE BREWERY WAYLAND SMITHY
TITANIC BREWERY ICEBERG
TITANIC BREWERY WHITE STAR
GREAT OAKLEY BREWERY WAGTAIL
NORFOLK SQUARE PI
NORFOLK SQUARE STILETTO
SPECTRUM WIZZARD
ICENI BREWERY FINE SOFT DAY
GREEN JACK ORANGE WHEAT
SALOPIAN BREWERY HOP TWISTER
DOW BRIDGE BREWERY BONUM MILD
LANGTON BREWERY INCLINED PLANE
OAKHAM ALES INFERNO
ELGOODS POPPIES GO FOURTH
ELGOODS DOUBLE SWAN
ELGOODS BLACK DOG
ELGOODS GREYHOUND
CONCRETE COW BREWERY COCK N BULL
NOBBY’S BREWERY 1872
BUNTINGFORD BREWERY GOLDEN PLOVER
JULIAN CHURCH MARTYR
BARROWDEN BREWERY BEVAN
THREE CASTLES, PEWSEY KNIGHTS PORTER
RINGWOOD  OLD THUMPER
CRONE’S CIDERS  USER FRIENDLY
CRONE’S CIDERS  SPECIAL RESERVE
WARSTEINER
ERDINGER WEISSBIER
STAROPRAMEN

We had 3 bars, the main bar, another along the same wall as the main bar up to the double fire doors. Then a L shaped bar from the other side of the fire doors, turned right and along the wall that looked out onto the pitch.


Through the double fire doors was the large marquee 12m x 6 m, full of bench tables. Up the steps to the raised area by the canteen were more bench tables and parasols.

Nearby were the toilets and further along was Poppies Pantry, serving all sorts of beer festival snaffle.




The entertainment wasn’t bad, naturally Dr Busker was on the schedule, as were regulars the Seven Sinners, most of the band were Poppies supporters, Mo still come along to Latimer Park.


It was a good beer festival, we all got very, very drunk indeed. The first of many, back then we had 2 beer festivals a year, with the second always around Halloween. We’ve had a festival every year since, finger crossed we’ll get one this year.
Cheers
Up the Poppies