Simon Barratt

What´s in my fridge

Boddingtons
Ahh, the cream of Manchester.  It was inevitable that this beer land in my fridge.

A tribute to the beer I class as my second choice beer (more about my first choice another time).

You pay a premium to drink this in the USA, but it is definitely worth it.  The state of American beer (Micro Breweries and Brew Pubs) is a lot better than you expect, but there is still nothing available domestically that comes close to a Boddingtons.

This beer has been around for a long time (>200 years) and has always been brewed in Strangeways, Manchester.  But recent acquisitions (by Whitbread/Interbrew UK) have ultimately resulted in the Manchester brewery being closed down, and the beer being brewed in various locations across the UK.  As you could imagine, there was a lot of local effort to try to keep the brewery operational, but ultimately the big businesses win out.  So, what is known as the "Cream of Manchester" is not even brewed in Manchester any more!

And. what's more, it appears that their web site, which was always a good place to check out, and watch some of the classic TV ads, has been shut down too!  It was the hilarious TV ads that drove the popularity of this beer, beyond the regional borders of Lancashire and Cheshire, so this is a real blow.  Maybe someone back in the UK can explain what is going on!

As for the beer, it is golden in colour, with a very rich, creamy head (hence it's nick name) with a bittery smooth taste.  Very easy to drink and enjoy.  I think Boddies, were one of the first beers to ship with the "widget", up until then this beer wasn't worth drinking in a tin (I think, our thanks go to Air Products for that), now it tastes great the world over.

My next door neighbour (Light beers only!) is not impressed by this.  To quote - "Don't I have any regular beer?", on the other hand, his wife likes it!