It’s weird. While pubs are dying left right and centre, the proliferation of micro breweries around the UK is unstoppable and there is now real hope that people will increasingly drink local beers instead of the tasteless fizzy beer-like liquids that people still drink. Kudos to our local Co-op grocery store who features loads of local produce and even some of the local breweries.

Local breweries? In Mid – Essex?

Indeed. On our little peninsula with its rural hamlets and tiny villages, I already know of two excellent brewers: the brillant Crouch Vale brewery in South Woodham-Ferrers and the amazing Wibblers brewery in Mayland. Just a few kilometers away in the Pant Valley there’s Shalford brewery, and just across the river there’s Mersea Island brewery, again producing beer of outstanding quality. I only recently discovered Shalford and Wibblers and bought one of each of their range of beers and was immensely impressed. I wouldn’t hesitate to offer any of these to guests (though I prefer to keep them for myself). Have a look at their websites and ask the landlord of your local freehouse to get some as a guest ale.

Cheers!

The Shalford range. Note attractive branded pintglass. Available with gift set.

Three Wibblers and a Mersea Island beer. Yum!