Drinks

Beer: Apart from a period in the early 18th century when gin was very cheap, and until tea
became the staple drink of Victorian Britons, beer was the most popular British beverage.
The ingredients – water and grain – were always plentiful and as early as the 12th century,
towns on clean rivers were known for their beer. By the 16th century even the most modest
peasant family was brewing its own supply. The basic technique of brewing is simple. Grains
of barley or wheat are soaked in water until they begin to sprout, or ’malt’, and are then
roasted. The longer the roasting, the darker and richer the beer will be. The roasted malt is
fermented in water with yeast, turning the sugar in the grain to alcohol. The longer the
fermentation, the stronger the beer will be. Hops are added during fermenting as a
preservative and to give the drink a distinctive, bitter flavour. In the 15th century, an
unhopped beer would have been known as an ale, while the use of hops would make it a
beer.

Styles of beer:
Bitter : well-hopped pale ale, from pale gold to dark mahogany in colour.
Mild ale: dark brown in colour, due to the use of well-roasted malts or barley it is less hopped
than bitters and often has a chocolatety character with nutty and burnt flavours.

Old ale is a term applied to dark, malty beers.

Porter is a historically significant style, popular from the 18th century, which had almost
disappeared by the mid-20th century. It is the ancestor of stout, a style which is now
considered typically Irish, despite its origins in London Porter. Some kind of stout, usually
from Guinness, Beamish or Murphy's is sold in almost every English pub. For almost 150
years, Guinness has been the dominant stout in Britain. The black beer with its roasted flavour
and distinctive white head, was first brewed in Dublin in 1690.
Lager: Despite the traditional English beer being ale, more than half of the current English
market is now lager in the Pilsener and Export styles. These lighter coloured, bottom
fermented beers first started gaining real popularity in England in the latter part of the 20th
Century.

Cider is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of apples. It is one of the
most popular beverage in the UK of low alcoholic content and appears in many different
variations, from sweet to dry, from very fizzy to still. The traditional brands are usually
darker and stronger than mass-produced versions (e.g. Strongbow), which usually go at more
affordable prices. The fermentation of apple juice to produce an alcoholic beverage dates
back at least 2000 years, and cider is recorded as a common drink during the Roman
invasion of England in 55 BC.
Perry is similar to cider, it is made of fermented pear juice and often has a similar alcoholic
content.

Whisky / Whiskey
The distillation of fermented grains can be tracked back at least as far as the 15th century
in the British Isles. Whisky, names after the Gaelic for ’water of life’ (uisge beatha in the
Scots variant, usque baugh in the Irish) became the staple spirit in a climate too cool for
making grape wine for distilling into brandy.
The unique flavour of Scotch whisky is a combination of malted barley, yeast, the peat that
is burnt in the drying kilns and spring water a simple formula that cannot be replicated
elsewhere. Single malts are especially prized. They are the unblended products of individual
distilleries, many aged in casks for more than a decade. Most whisky – 90 % of sales – is
blended.
The Irish version, also made with barley and almost entirely blended, is spelt ’whiskey’.
Most Irish whiskey is distilled three times while Scotch is distilled twice. Peat is rarely
used in the malting process, so that Irish whiskey has a smoother finish as opposed to the
smokey, earthy overtones common to some Scotches.

Baileys Irish Cream is an Irish whiskey and cream based liqueur.

Irish coffee is a cocktail consisting of hot coffee, Irish whiskey and brown sugar, stirred,
and topped with thick cream.

Coffee is now as popular in Britain as tea is. People either drink it with milk (latte,
cappuccino) or have it black (espresso). While the three main cafe chains (Starbucks, Caffe
Nero, Costa) are serving millions of Brits every week, tiny independent coffee shops are just
as popular (Flat White, Milk Bar).
 Pubs
Pubs are an important part of British social life. People talk, eat, drink, meet their friends
and relax there. The name comes from public house. There are over 60,000 pubs in the UK.
One of the oldest pubs, Fighting Cocks in St. Albans, is located in a building that dates back
to the eleventh century.
Pubs often have two bars, one usually quieter than the other, many have a garden where
people can sit in the summer. Children can go in pub gardens with their parents. Groups of
friends normally buy 'rounds'of drinks, where the person whose turn it is will buy drinks
for all the members of the group. You must go to the bar to order drinks and food and pay for
your purchase immediately, there is no table service. Staff is called landlord/landlady (the
owner), barmaids and barmen, they do not expect frequent tipping. To tip a landlord or
barmaid, it is customary to tell him to "would you like a drink yourself?"
Most pubs belong to a brewery but sell many different kinds of beer, some on tap and
some in bottles. Beers are served in "pints" for a large glass and "halves" for a smaller
one. British pubs are required to have a licence, which is difficult to obtain, and allows the
pub to operate for up to 24 hours. Most pubs are open from 11 to 11.
Nearly all pubs sell pub lunches and pub grub is big business now. Even as late as the
1960s, the hungry drinker was lucky to be offered more than a sandwich or a ploughman's
lunch. Now most pubs serve excellent food and it is enjoyed by many people who prefer the
idea of eating out informally.

Pubs have traditional names which date back over 600 years. Some typical names are The
Rose, The White Swan, The Crown, The King's Arms, The Red Lion, The Royal Oak and
The White Horse. Names with heraldic connections are common, often the symbols of
former heroes. Royalty in general is a rich source, but there are many other themes for pub
names, including occupations, historic events and people, field sports, nautical, food and
drink, transport, literature and show-business. There is usually a sign outside the pub
showing the pub's name with a picture.
Various games, especially darts, billiards and dominoes are common features of pubs and
many of the old country pubs continue to promote traditional games as well (dice, card and
board games, coin pushing and throwing games). It is a rare pub that does not have a dart
board in the corner and a set of arrows available. It is often the subject of fiercely
competitive league play. Increasingly, more modern games such as video games and slot
machines are provided. Many pubs also hold special events, from tournaments of the
aforementioned games to karaoke nights to pub quizzes.

Sport pubs are very popular today, you can find football, rugby or cricket pubs and bars to
see live matches in a pub atmosphere on big screens. Most pubs attract a range of supporters,
although if you happen to be drinking in a pub in Tottenham you would be well advised not to
start jumping up and down and cheering Arsenal on.
Pubs are popular music venues, they have a long tradition of live music, from country rock
to hard rock, from blues to folk music. The list of names to have graced the stages over the
past 25 years is very impressive, from U2 to The Police. You can also listen to wonderful
Irish music all over the Emerald Isle and in Irish theme pubs in many British towns.