On the face of it, starting Cask Ale Week this Thursday has become a tough call. But maybe it’s actually a great time to celebrate our national drink.
Fancy a pint? Photograph: Matt Curtis
Cask ale matures in the pub or bar cellar. It’s a drinking experience which can’t be replicated at home, with beer from a supermarket, and it displays a brewer’s skills at their height.
It helps to keep our pubs and bars vibrant, and encourages people to visit them — in whatever way is safe and the regulations allow.
Paul Nunny, of Cask Marque, which is behind the event, said: “Breweries, pubs and pub groups have responded brilliantly to Cask Ale Week this year. Considering the circumstances, they’ve managed to pull some fantastic activity together. And it’s still not too late for pubs or breweries to get involved.”
Running from Thursday, 24th September, to Sunday, 4th October, the event sees activities across the country, from special offers and new beers, to competitions and beer quizzes.
Paul urges pubs to, at the very minimum, use the week to educate their staff about their unique selling point — cask ale. He said: “All members of the team should know how it’s different from other beers; how it should look, smell, and taste; how they should serve it; and how they should talk about it. Beyond that, there’s loads that publicans can do to get customers excited about cask ale, and to get the word out that their venue is participating in the week.”
He says that the new strapline, Fresh Pub Beer, has been widely welcomed, and that it can be used well beyond Cask Ale Week itself. “For too long there have been too many messages about cask ale, not all of which resonate with pub-goers. These three simple words get the message across clearly and powerfully, the more they are used, the greater the impact will be.”
Several brewers have new brews for the week, but in any case, you don’t have to travel far to find something different to sip and savour. Publicans and bar staff can play a key role in encouraging people to be adventurous with their beer, in the same way as they are with food.
Paul said: “The range of cask beers on offer, in terms of colour, strength, style, flavour, and aroma, means there’s something for everyone — even those who didn’t know they liked beer.”
» What’s on during Cask Ale Week?
