First Pint is the Sweetest

I've been suffering from dental problems which are ongoing and likely to continue expensively for some time. It looks like the many years of neglect by the Scottish Schools Dentistry Service   - I made that up - I went to the normal dentist as a child and as with almost all children of my time, I ended up with unstraightened teeth and a mouth full of amalgam. I don't recall eating that many sweets, but I suppose I did. Or maybe it was the various flavoured soft drinks of the time. I suppose it is too late to sue Garvies, McDougall's and of course AG Barr* for all the sugar in liquid form that they forced down my innocent neck.

As a result, the week before my trip abroad I went to the dentist with toothache. I was given those antibiotics that you can't drink with, so a week before I was alcohol free. I wasn't that bothered about it , but when we went to London en route to our Eurostar train A whole day in London without a pub visit was unthinkable.  Has anyone ever tried Erdinger Alcohol free wheat beer? Well, if you have you'll likely never want to repeat the experience. At the buzzy Commercial - an expensive non real ale favourite of ours - it was only the people watching that made the experience remotely bearable and I commend it to you on that basis. The stuff tastes like off unfermented wort.  It is simply disgusting. 

A walk back to another favourite, the Culpepper and Nirvana Pilsner. A whopping £6.60 for this.  It started off well then collapsed into a thin, vaguely worty tasting nothingness with a touch of citrus.  Again, just don't. Frankly I'd rather drink soft drinks. At least they are what they purport to be.

So, Monday lunchtime was freedom day for me. Our Eurostar sped through Kent and into France. I was thinking that our journey to Cologne allowed an hour and quarter in a local bar.  Fab.  We arrived in Brussels on time and I knew where to go. I was soon sitting in weak sunshine with 500ml of Hoegaarden.  It was nectar even at nearly 8 euros a pop.  Given the proximity of our train it was even rather leisurely. In fact I added another 330ml to my glass.

So, my advice if you can't have beer, don't bother with the alcohol free stuff. It is pretty grim.  And why can't we get soft drinks in pubs in decent measures? I had 0.25 of ginger beer in the Commercial. That's just a mixer. Ludicrous.  Actually, one thing I loved in Australia was the availability of ginger beer in both  alcoholic and no alcohol form. We could do with more of that here though I think bottled boozy stuff is sometimes available.

* All soft drinks purveyors of my childhood. 

My tooth has since been removed. It wasn't an abscess as they thought.  Just plain old beyond saving.  I had a lot of toothache on my hols, but I was very brave.