tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post6875323848964009580..comments2024-03-29T07:17:26.082+00:00Comments on Tandleman's Beer Blog: Wetherspoons. Good or Shite?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-36817917584039057362022-05-14T01:04:56.242+01:002022-05-14T01:04:56.242+01:00'Spoons are very democratic places where a wid...'Spoons are very democratic places where a wide range of people comfortably mix. This is something that until the advent of this chain you would rarely see elsewhere. On the matter of cask ale, the quality is good and there is normally available a wide range of styles. Obviously some people took offence at Tim Martin's vocal support to leave the EU but unless one is overly sensitive about the issue it is not difficult to ignore the beer mats and house magazines trumpeting his political views. iannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-29787929630406061042022-05-03T12:46:48.707+01:002022-05-03T12:46:48.707+01:00My local Spoons is the High Main, Byker, which sel...My local Spoons is the High Main, Byker, which sells very good cask and I'd go in a lot more but for the fact that Spoons stopped letting dogs in, so I wander past to the rather more expensive delights of Ouseburn where dogs are welcomed everywhere. electricpicshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09144970068645280352noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-86435840882804925582022-05-01T12:51:31.836+01:002022-05-01T12:51:31.836+01:00Here's my sevenpen'th.
First, a few pros....Here's my sevenpen'th.<br /><br />First, a few pros.<br />The beer is cheap and usually in good condition.<br />No muusic.<br />In some places, the only real ale in town.<br />Marvellous use of old buildings.<br />Opening hours.<br /><br />Now, the cons<br />Tim Martin pushing his politics.<br />Service can be sparce - "Who's next?"<br />Lack of 'pub' atmosphere.<br /><br />I do find that there can be a big difference between different outlets. Some are excellent. Ones I use are the one on St Pancras station and the one at Potters Bar. One or two are/were hopeless - I will not name them because they may well have changed since my last visit.John-Mightycathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17637875846758773323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-7508575905386112272022-04-29T15:55:20.626+01:002022-04-29T15:55:20.626+01:00What's up, fella?What's up, fella?Cooking Lagerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02830924433230427226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-58689869709834448232022-04-29T08:12:35.752+01:002022-04-29T08:12:35.752+01:00Cookie?Cookie?Tandlemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06804499573827044693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-31349270943323601232022-04-29T07:00:40.108+01:002022-04-29T07:00:40.108+01:00Why is beer snob a perjoritive?
I'm a beer sn...Why is beer snob a perjoritive?<br /><br />I'm a beer snob and proud of it. I'd no more drink in Mr Wetherspoons than I'd get my groceries from a food bank or travel by public transport. Just because a lot of the uneducated masses like something it doesn't mean it's good. I don't care what the price of beer is and would not wish to rub shoulders with those that do.<br /><br />If Mr Wetherspoon serves one function, it is to keep the scum out of the CAMRA Micro Tap and ensure our ale discerning appreciation is not ruined by the presence of those just throwing it down their neck.<br />Beer snobnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-61083738247226768332022-04-27T19:08:58.809+01:002022-04-27T19:08:58.809+01:00Absolutely. Which is kind of my point. Absolutely. Which is kind of my point. Tandlemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06804499573827044693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-74219966954173394062022-04-27T18:31:35.952+01:002022-04-27T18:31:35.952+01:00We need a cookienomics blog please. ✔️We need a cookienomics blog please. ✔️Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-1720369929114732992022-04-27T17:29:14.491+01:002022-04-27T17:29:14.491+01:00I should probably say I sell beer to JDW outlets a...I should probably say I sell beer to JDW outlets and some of the UKs most revered cask ale sites. I've never got the thing about "it's end of date beer", we sell all of our beer within six weeks of racking and that includes to JDW sites (really wish that myth would die).<br /><br />Also, they're not terrible, they're just OK pubs. Some are better than others for sure and I wouldn't try and make some false argument that they can even compete with a well run independent as a a kind of "reverse snobbery" that some commentators here have but they are what they are at the end of the day.<br /><br />Like supermarkets they are part of the system, there are much worse pub chains and operators in the UK. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-46151840551249579982022-04-27T14:55:12.756+01:002022-04-27T14:55:12.756+01:00Cookie and Cookie? 🙄👏Cookie and Cookie? 🙄👏Tandlemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06804499573827044693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-4439949179742467442022-04-27T14:26:08.008+01:002022-04-27T14:26:08.008+01:00Wetherspoons is my go to space but I can't tel...Wetherspoons is my go to space but I can't tell my liberal mates or my father who is a Church of England vicar. I'm also a CAMRA member and use the 50p tokens which I know is frowned on. I just can't help it. I often slope off there when my flat mates are away at weekends. I also think Tim Martin is a cool dude. I would hate this to be know in the village.<br /><br />IT'S MY DIRTY SECRETAbbie (not her real name)noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-6813430033805131002022-04-27T13:28:16.421+01:002022-04-27T13:28:16.421+01:00Whilst we detest wetherspoons and the dreadful peo...Whilst we detest wetherspoons and the dreadful people that drink in there, we take take exception to being called snobs. We have constructed and expressed reasons why we don't like wetherspoons for reasons other than snobbery and turning our nose up at the horrible people it attracts. People that go to the trouble of articulating well considered arguments for why wetherspoons is dreadful that make no reference to the dreadful people that drink in them should not be considered snobs. We would go further and encourage others to make no reference to wetherspoons dreadful customers when criticising wetherspoons.<br />Hinge and Bracketnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-3718058802228942622022-04-27T12:38:06.781+01:002022-04-27T12:38:06.781+01:00Fair points from you, Ed and Colston.Fair points from you, Ed and Colston.Tandlemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06804499573827044693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-18052113089346850742022-04-27T12:26:02.166+01:002022-04-27T12:26:02.166+01:00On Colston's point, actually being open is an ...On Colston's point, actually being open is an underrated attribute in a pub.<br /><br />I visited Kendal recently on a Tuesday lunchtime and NONE of the six GBG pubs were open (a few opened at 4, a few not till Thursday). The Spoons was open and full.retiredmartinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15429804437739227082noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-87293936421932253092022-04-27T11:53:40.549+01:002022-04-27T11:53:40.549+01:00You’re right, there are good and bad Spoons just a...You’re right, there are good and bad Spoons just as there are good and bad pubs in most chains (and good and bad independents) and we all have varying views about what constitutes good and bad. <br />There are one or two horrible Spoons in my area that I wouldn’t go into; in a couple of others I’ve had exemplary, going the extra mile service. <br />I’ve been in towns (Dumfries, Doncaster for two) where I needed a meal at a time when only Spoons were open. I’ve stayed in a couple of their clean, comfortable, bargain-price hotels: the one in Thirsk is excellent. <br />A point not often covered… in several places they have rescued and enhanced buildings that would otherwise have been derelict. Sometimes the thought and detail of the history on the wall displays makes them little short of a mini-museum (the new build one in Stapleford, Notts a classic example). <br />In Northern Ireland they provide cask outlets where often no others exist. <br />I’m not a fan of Tim, I don’t think CAMRA should have got into bed with them to the extent they have and I think they should do more about the anti-social customers in some outlets and the cleanliness and service in some others. <br /><br />But, overall, more good than bad, I think Colston Crawfordnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-45664620899077691062022-04-27T11:25:15.689+01:002022-04-27T11:25:15.689+01:00In my time involved with my local CAMRA branch the...In my time involved with my local CAMRA branch the only pub person who ever contacted us asking to come to a meeting and talk about beer with us was the manager of our local Wetherspoon. <br /><br />A fairly local brewery has also supplied beer to Wetherspoon "beer festivals", and has won awards for their beer. They don't need to rely on Wetherspoon for trade, but if the company was really awful they wouldn't bother at all.<br /><br />I don't go in my local Wetherspoon much. I don't hate it, I just prefer other nearby pubs. But what I would say is that while I have had to return bad pints there, it's always been met with an apology and a no questions replacement, which is not something you get everywhere. So they're a mixed bag.Ed Quoththeravennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-82242672849854897892022-04-27T11:21:04.637+01:002022-04-27T11:21:04.637+01:00That you Cookie?That you Cookie?Tandlemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06804499573827044693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-28301812326185722992022-04-27T11:17:19.877+01:002022-04-27T11:17:19.877+01:00Wetherspoons are awful pubs populated by awful peo...Wetherspoons are awful pubs populated by awful people. CAMRA ought to sever their relationship with them and all pub companies. I ritually burn my CAMRA tokens every year. <br /><br />My local CAMRA branch has an annual event outside the local Obscure Ales Tap, we congregate over our responsible and sustainable £4+ beer and burn the evil tokens for cheap £2 ale. Some even dance around the fire and sing songs denouncing Tim Martin and holding their flagons of ale aloft. All branches should do this, and I am disappointed that yours doesn’t.<br /><br />I refuse to pay less than £4 a pint and anyone that buys Wetherspoons beer is a selfish fool that is killing the rich and diverse cask beer ecosystem CAMRA have lovingly built over 40 years. Hang your heads in shame. You will reap what you sow. A world of cheap pisswater served to you in a tatty barn in the company of dirty unwashed scrotes spending their job seekers allowance.<br /><br />I recommend keeping abreast of twitter, the great and good will inform you when the £4 floor limit increases.<br /> <br />CAMRA Chairperson, Fingringhoenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-55795776274889692572022-04-27T10:47:16.839+01:002022-04-27T10:47:16.839+01:00The pile it high, sell it cheap business model was...The pile it high, sell it cheap business model was 1st discovered by the Quakers that founded the countries main confectionary brands. For moral reasons they cut margins, considering high margins to be immoral. They discovered this increased volume and shifted their confectionary from a product enjoyed by the upper classes to one enjoyed by the middle classes. Their profitability increased, something that wasn't their expectation.<br /><br />This was considered a problem that required them to use that profit for the public good, hence the civic buildings, hospitals, schools they built and donated.<br /><br />Don't believe stories it started in America and came here via woolworths.Cookienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-34809579012934929962022-04-27T10:34:59.714+01:002022-04-27T10:34:59.714+01:00I think the unpubbiness is designed to drawn in cu...I think the unpubbiness is designed to drawn in customers who wouldn't usually go to a pub, which is one of their strengths: they attract a wider clientele.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-78691339716670549532022-04-27T10:04:38.868+01:002022-04-27T10:04:38.868+01:00When Wetherspoon started in 1979 the pub world was...When Wetherspoon started in 1979 the pub world was a quite different place. Many outlets were behind frosted glass and of a small square footage etc. The large format, non threatening, more female friendly layout is part of the success, often replicated by other pub operators.<br /><br />A lot of people forget this and only look at things from the beer enthusiast perspective. For the man, or woman, in the street Wetherspoon are Pubs. Wetherspoons have enlarged the pub/pub food market. For many families it is the obvious place to have a meal in a strange town. When four people can have a decent modest meal for £35-£45 with a drink what's not to like.<br /><br />Wetherspoon are Top<br />Mostly non slopp<br />Snobs should remove their mask<br />Then drink the fresh caskRegnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-7454772997337132512022-04-27T09:31:37.061+01:002022-04-27T09:31:37.061+01:00One more thing I'd add. JDW started mainly in ...One more thing I'd add. JDW started mainly in north-west London and what had been Middlesex. Due to the rapid suburban housing expansion in 1930s and 1950s, it had become an area with a large population but not many pubs - even on the main high streets, in some cases. So JDW filled a need for pubs, let alone cheap beer. <br /><br />Oh, and always worth pointing out to people that using "buying power to keep prices down" was a business strategy pioneered by the Cooperative Wholesale Societies before any supermarket chain or PubCo. Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02193961453522415377noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-46861087334190447592022-04-27T09:30:03.571+01:002022-04-27T09:30:03.571+01:00Of course layout and "pubbiness" isn'...Of course layout and "pubbiness" isn't particularly endearing in many, though some of their modern designs are far better. The older versions remind me of a more carpeted Yates Wine Lodge of yore. <br /><br />Your last para seems unlikely. It is probably more of a practical issue. Big pubs, unless split into distinct areas or rooms, rarely feel as good as smaller ones.Tandlemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06804499573827044693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-87218302618407570602022-04-27T09:22:12.639+01:002022-04-27T09:22:12.639+01:00@Citra - I have a lot of respect for Spoons' b...@Citra - I have a lot of respect for Spoons' business nous, but like you I find their pubs largely devoid of atmosphere and not places I feel at home. While they may occupy some impressive buildings, the actual layout is often more like a works canteen.<br /><br />I've heard it said that they are deliberately made "unpubby" to minimise customer dwell time. Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8629758183547510158.post-70045856254622511752022-04-27T09:18:34.664+01:002022-04-27T09:18:34.664+01:00@stono - I think the dislike of Spoons is mainly t...@stono - I think the dislike of Spoons is mainly the same kind of snobbery directed at any mass-market chain offering keen prices to ordinary people, rather like McDonalds and Greggs. Revulsion at Timbo's politics is only the icing on the cake. <br /><br />And I'd agree with the point that if Spoons didn't offer cask beer, or only offered Doom Bar and Wainwright, they would largely fly under the radar of beer enthusiasts. But from their point of view the cask offer has a huge halo effect for their public image. Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.com