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beer in fiction / tv

New Tricks: an episode for beer geeks

Amanda Redman and Dennis Waterman in New Tricks
Amanda Redman and Dennis Waterman in New Tricks

Last Monday’s edition of New Tricks focused on beer and breweries. The story was ludicrous even by the usual standards of this programme (which we kind of like…). It had the team investigating the 10-year-old case of the death of a promising young brewer in a fermentation vessel at a traditional family brewery. However daft the plot, which features a secret beer recipe, arguments over the provenance of the malt, and brewing dynasticism, there’s plenty for the beer geek to enjoy:

  • trying to guess which brewery they used for filming;
  • pondering which industrial brewers would really be using open fermentation vessels in this day and age;
  • product placement for Fullers, Theakstons and possibly Special Brew (although has that become a generic term for super-strength crap lager now?);
  • wondering whether they filmed the beer festival scene at a real festival or just got CAMRA to help with posters etc;
  • lazy stereotypes about gastro pubs vs traditional boozers (Eg gastro = female friendly and crap beer); and
  • old codgers complaining that the beer doesn’t taste as good as it used to.

You can enjoy it for yourself through BBC I-player. But you’ve only got until 21:00 on Monday 11th.

7 replies on “New Tricks: an episode for beer geeks”

I’m not sure my geek credentials need enhancing however, Theakstons use some open fermenters including a couple of Yorkshire squares.

Didn’t think of that. Though May promised me on camera a case of the bitter he brewed. Then he and his minions disappeared into the night without taking contact details. I’m hoping they’ll be sent care of the Bull & Castle or else The Sun will be hearing all about it…

Yup, the brewery was Fuller’s – the scene nine minutes in where “Sir Freddie” offers the lads a drink is in the Hock Cellar at the Griffin brewery, and the “gastropub” they go into, which may be the George & Devonshire, has a huge reproduction on one wall of a famous old picture of Fuller’s brewery workers from the end of the 19th century.

Who remembers the edition of Inspector Morse which featured scenes shot at Brakpear’s Henley brewery and McMullen’s?

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