Beard lover brews craft beer

Cardiff pub landlord turns brewer


A Cardiff pub manager has swapped pulling pints for brewing pints after spending a day in Brains’ craft brewery.

Chris Rowlands, award-winning manager, beardwrangler and piemaster general of the Goat Major – one of Cardiff’s best loved real ale pubs – turned brewer after Brains invited him to brew his own beer in their craft brewery.
Chris, a lifelong real ale fan, along with a team from the pub, chose to brew a milk stout, he said:

“The day was fantastic! I've always considered myself a bit of a beer nerd but when I went down there I realised just how little I really knew of the process of making beer I'd so often taken for granted.
We named the beer ‘Beardface’, my wife's nickname for me, loosely based off the fact that I look like a lumberjack stuffed into a waistcoat. “

A milk stout is basically a standard stout brew with sugar from milk or cream added, the science behind this being that brewers' yeast cannot ferment lactose sugars so the natural sweetness and richness remains and provides a nourishing, potent counterbalance to the bitterness of a roasted malt. Brains used 5 different malts and a roasted barley to give the beer a layered depth of flavour and a truly nourishingly rich and resplendent pint of stout.

Blending Pale Ale, Munich, Crystal, Brown and Chocolate Malts with Roasted Barley, Beardface is a dark beer with a rich depth. Flavours of caramel, burnt toffee and roast coffee are balanced by the sweetness from lactose sugars, creating a sweet milk stout.
Bill Dobson, head brewer at Brains, added:
“Last year the Goat Major was named ‘Brains Cask Ale Pub of the Year’ at our annual awards ceremony, so we were keen to get Chris and the team in to brew with us. They’re knowledgeable and passionate about beer, and they pass on that passion to their customers.”
The beer will be sold in 30 Brains pubs and launched at the Goat Major pub on Wednesday 20th March at 1700hrs.

Brew Wales Awards 2012

The Brew Wales Awards 2012 think of it as the Golden Pints with added extras


The Brew Wales editorial team, which consists of, well myself, have sat down with a few beers to decide on these awards for 2012.

Pub of the Year (Wales)
City Arms, Cardiff. For the beer range and quality and helping to make Cardiff a City for beer.

Pub of the Year (rest of UK)

Robert Raikes’ House, Gloucester. A stunning pub development by Sam Smiths, completed in 2009 but I only visited it in 2012. Rumoured to have cost upwards of £4.5 million this sympathetic reconstruction is well worth a visit.
Most Improved Pub of the Year
Four Elms, Roath, JD Bassett pub company have transformed this long-neglected pub.
Runner up: Navigation, Abercynon

Food Pub of the Year
Goat Major, Cardiff. Yes, I like pies!
Welsh Brewery of the Year
Brains Craft Brewery – yes I’ve enjoyed searching for the Craft beers around the pubs of Cardiff and the range of beers we have seen in 2012 has been great, looking forward to what 2013 brings.

Runners up: Tiny Rebel, Neath, Otley
Brewery of the Year (Rest of UK)

Fullers. Yes I know they are a regional brewer but I’m still partial to a gallon or two of ESB when I see it on sale. Added to that their bottles beers are fantastic and they really get bottle-conditioning, something a lot of brewers need to understand

Best Newcomer of the Year
Tiny Rebel of Course!

Best Food Pairing
Tiny Rebel Chocoholic and Gruyerre Cheese
Beer of the Year
Tiny Rebel Urban IPA

Runners up: Otley Odessa, Sam Smiths Chocolate, Neath Ales Black Falls Hopjam, Brains Craft Brewery Colonel Williams IPA

Worst Beer of the Year
Hall & Woodhouse Badger Collector’s Edition Ale 2012

How this beer ever came to be made, let alone released by a brewery is a mystery, it tasted like stale Tanglefoot which had been put in a soda stream, a truly dreadful beer, still available at only £58/bottle from the brewery.

Runnners Up: Innis & Gun Melville’s Fruit beer – dreadful alcopop pretending to be beer, definitely one for the kiddies as its so sweet.




Cider of the Year
Ciderfect Vilberie, a new maker on the Servern Estuary.

Runner up: Gwatkin Foxwhelp, Gwynt Black Dragon
Worst Cider of the Year
Blind Granny. Truly dreadful that they are still knocking out their mouse-infected cider to the public. Take the loss and pour it away, you are not doing Welsh cidermakers or your company any favours by selling infected cider. The excuse you gave to customers at Abergavenny Food Festival when they returned your cider that “It must have been a bad batch” is really contemptible, especially as you have been aware of your problems for over a year!

Perry of the Year
Did not drink enough of them!
Off-license of the Year
The Bottle Shop, Cardiff

Runner up: Tesco, yes Tesco may be the big supermarket but they have the best beer range of all the big supermarkets.
Festival of the Year
The CAMRA Great Welsh Beer & Cider Festival – well you could hardly expect anything else from me?

Runners up: Swansea Bay Festival (Moves to April in 2013), Gwatkin Cider Down on the Farm

Brewery Website of the Year:
SA Brain
As befitting the largest real ale brewer in Wales, SA Brain have a large and informative website. Easily accessible with quick navigation the site also features an RSS news feed and downloadable SatNav info for their pubs. Links to individual pub websites, Facebook pages and Twitter feeds, where applicable are also on the site.
Runner up: Tiny Rebel
Pub Website of the Year
Blue Bell, Halkyn
An informative site that is updated on a daily basis with the beers and ciders available that day. The pub has also embraced, Twitter, Foursquare and Facebook and uses these social networks to inform customers of what beers are on and of events occurring. Full tasting notes of the beers and ciders on and coming on are on the site as well as

Worst Pub of the Year
Has to be JD Chaverspoons for the Gatekeeper in Cardiff - piss poor beer and indifferent staff!

Brew Wales Awards 2010

The Brew Wales Awards 2010

The Brew Wales editorial team, which consists of, well myself, have sat down with a few beers to decide on these awards for 2010.

Pub of the Year (Wales)

Red Lion, Penderyn.

Criminally neglected by the local CAMRA branch as to inclusion in the Good Beer Guide due to a feud that has lasted for 15 years, this fantastic freehouse offers real ales and ciders in one of the most picturesque settings in Wales. No pub website but I have covered the pub previously here.

Runners up: Kilverts,Hay on Wye; Bunch of Grapes Pontypridd; King's Arms Abergavenny; Clytha Arms; Blue Bell, Halkyn

Pub of the Year (rest of UK)

The Rake, Borough Market.

What a pub, what a beer range. If only we all could be this spoilt for choice and quality in a pub in every city in the UK.

Local Pub of the UK

Ye Olde Murenger House,Newport

It may only serve Sam Smiths Old Brewery Bitter as its only real ale but its my favourite pub in Newport. Plenty of American golf fans enjoyed the pub during the 2010 Ryder Cup, especially the £1.99 a pint price tag.

Runner up: Winchester,Merthyr Tydfil

Most Improved Pub of the Year

City Arms, Cardiff

SA Brain have completely turned this pub around by changing it into a beer emporium and installing a manager whose enthusiasm really shows through with the quality and selection of beers available at this City centre venue.

Runner up: HanburyArms, Caerleon (SA Brain)

Food Pub of the Year

GoatMajor, Cardiff, SA Brain

May come as a bit of surprise to readers but the pie and chips menu is really something special. Having won “Pie of the Year 2010” for their Wye Valley Pie, made with chicken, asparagus and Tintern Abbey cheese, the pub is an another example of what can be done when the manager is allowed some freedom to do something unique.

Runners up: Clytha Arms; Kings Arms, Abergavenny; Bunch of Grapes, Pontypridd

Welsh Brewery of the Year

Otley Brewery, Pontypridd

Innovative and willing to experiment, the Otley boys once again proved they are the best brewers in Wales by winning the CAMRA Champion Beer of Wales award 2010/11.

Runners up: Tomos Watkin, Brains, Swansea, Neath Ales, Breconshire, Kingstone, Tudor, Conwy and all the others I have enjoyed throughout the year.

Brewery of the Year (Rest of UK)

Brewdog

From their marketing stunts to producing innovative and interesting beers, Brewdog are certainly one of the most talked about breweries in the world today. Added to that their beer is very good as well.

Runners up: Fullers, Thornbridge, Dark Star

Best Newcomer of the Year

Neath Ales

The Green Bullet brewed by this brewery was simply stunning. One of the best beers I have ever tried. Brewer Jay Thomas is a real hop head who likes flavoursome beers, an enthusiast who has taken the big step of developing his hobby into his business. One to watch in 2011.

Beer of the Year

Neath Ales Green Bullet

A simply stunning beer, both in bottle and on draught, the citrus flavour of the New Zealand Green Bullet hops was carefully matched by the biscuity sweetness of the Maris Otter malt.

Runners up: Otley Columbo, Brewdog Punk IPA

Cider of the Year

GwyntY Ddraig Black Dragon

Well it won international cider of the year in 2010 and was a well-deserved winner at that.

Runner up Gwatkin Foxwhelp

Perry of the Year

Llanblethian Orchards

A bit biased here as this award-winning perry was actually made by myself, Alex and John, to a recipe of my own invention using a blend of Hendre Huffcap and Potato pears. The recipe was concocted by eating the perry pears in the orchard and deciding a blend should balance out the harsh acids in the Huffcap pear. It worked and we won an award for it.

Off-license of the Year

Discount Supermarket, 97-99 Whitchurch Road, Cardiff

What appears from the outside as just another street corner shop houses the best range of bottled beers in South Wales. Featuring breweries such as Black Sheep, Sam Smiths, St Peter's, Robinsons etc as well as ciders this shop is a must-visit destination for any beer lover.

Runner up: Tesco

Festival of the Year

Abergavenny Food Festival

Although some may feel this is becoming too commercial a festival, it is still a very good event.

Runners up: Swansea Beer Festival, Great Welsh Beer & Cider Festival, Cardiff Bay International Food Festival, Great British Cheese Festival, Gwynt open day

Pub Festival of the Year

Bunchof Grapes, Pontypridd

The IPA Festival hosted by the Bunch was a sell-out success proving that there is a demand for tasty , hoppy beers in South Wales, despite what brewers of boring beers from West Wales may say.

Brewery Website of the Year

SA Brain

As befitting the largest real ale brewer in Wales, SA Brain have a large and informative website. Easily accessible with quick navigation the site also features an RSS news feed and downloadable SatNav info for their pubs. Links to individual pub websites, Facebook pages and Twitter feeds, where applicable are also on the site.

Runner up: Artisan Brewery, Cardiff

Pub Website of the Year

Blue Bell, Halkyn 

An informative site that is updated on a daily basis with the beers and ciders available that day. The pub has also embraced, Twitter, Foursquare and Facebook and uses these social networks to inform customers of what beers are on and of events occurring. Full tasting notes of the beers and ciders on and coming on are on the site as well.  

Worst Pub Website of the Year

Warning: Turn down gamma on monitor, put on sunglasses and prepare to be dazzled.

Tafarn John Y Gwas, Drefach-Felindre, Carmarthenshire

Worst Pub of the Year

A multiple award for JD Chaverspoons. Having avoided them for most of the year, just before Christmas experienced the Gatekeeper with some friends and multiple beers were returned as they tasted off. Staff refused to taste the beers or take them off sale. Well the manager would have to explain to head office why bad beers were taken off so its easier for the off beers to be sold to the public. And people wonder why I am willing to pay £3/pint for excellent beer at the nearby City Arms?

Beery Moment of the Year

Winning a year's subscription to My Brewery Tap 52 week beer club. Packed with old favourites and some new breweries I had never come across before.

Runner up: Deep fried beer , invented by Mark Zable for the Texas State Fair. Beer is put into a dough pocket and deep fried, the dough forms a crust leaving the beer inside! Not tried it yet though.

Cidery Moment of the Year

Winning a Gold Medal at the Welsh Cider & Perry Championships for a perry made from my recipe.

Non-beery moment of the year

Being quoted in the Daily Mail for heckling the expense-fiddling then Members of Parliament, Morley, Chaytor and Devine, as they came out of Westminster Magistrates Court. Along with Old Holborn and the Taxpayers Alliance, together with Sir Olly Cromwell who was penned across the road, the troughers were greeted with “Oink oink” as they left court to face a row of press and protesters. As the troughing trinity climbed into their taxi I shouted “Is the taxi on expenses?”, much to the amusement of onlookers and was quoted later in the Daily Mail. Video below of the event.