Food Week:
The Farmers' Bar in Aylesbury
Over the years a lot of us have become reasonably adept at identifying different wine grapes and knowing, for example, that we like Merlot or Chardonnay and having a good idea what many of the other grape varieties taste like. We may also have a preference for the country of origin and region or provenance, preferring a new world Chilean wine possibly to a French or an Italian one.
Beer Menu
At the wonderfully snug Farmers’ Bar in the delightful Kings Head Inn at the top of the Market Square in Aylesbury George Jenkinson and his staff are working hard to bring innovation and fun to the world of ales with a Beer Menu that hopes to educate us in the same way. I didn’t know learning could be so enjoyable! Throughout January and February you can sample the old and historic beer styles of Porters and Stouts from breweries large and small throughout England. So, what’s the difference between Stout and Porter? Well, why don’t you come into The Farmers’ Bar and find out? Don’t let me spoil the fun for you!
Conqueror 1075
There are some fantastic names in this celebration of beers, with both Ram Tam and Conqueror 1075 featuring. Each beer is hand-picked for its quality and provenance and there is only one cask of each beer, with only one cask tapped at a time. The Farmers’ Bar can also claim a world first during this period according to George Jenkinson. “As a special one off we have arranged for London’s Kernel Brewery to rack the first and only cask of their famous bottled beer Export India Porter” he tells me.
Beer Matching
In addition to these guest beers there is the usual range of mouth watering offerings from The Chiltern Brewery including their seasonal and limited edition beers such as 300’s Old Ale. There is always a good selection of fine wines too, including some from the Waddesdon Estate. The Farmers’ Bar is also a great place to catch up on the growing trend of beer and food matching. The lovely lunch menu at The Farmers’ Bar suggests beers to have with your food, including the desserts. Why not experiment and see if you agree with the choices?
Finally, I couldn’t finish without mentioning another great innovation at The Farmers’ Bar. This is the re-introduction, for the first time in about 30 years apparently, of hand-made wooden casks from which the draught winter seasonal 300’s Old Ale is served. The wood from the casks comes from old Scottish whisky barrels and infuses the beer with warm extra subtle flavours.
These are exciting and ground breaking times for both The Farmers’ Bar and The Chiltern Brewery, so why not join in with the celebrations?
You can follow The Farmers’ Bar on Twitter @kings_head to find out exactly which ales are on tap when.
Did You Know?
The name ‘Porter’ actually derives from the beer’s popularity with street and river porters in 18th century London.
