Jessica McFarland

Oh, Newcastle Brown Ale.

I didn’t appreciate it when I lived in America. It’s so easy to come by there. Not only is it readily available in the supermarket (unless you live in certain Southern counties and it’s a Sunday), but I even used to work at a bar that had it on tap!

On tap! I’ve never seen it on tap here. I’ve never drank it at a public place. I’ve only ever enjoyed it at home. When I lived in America, and it was everywhere, I never tried it. It was too dark, and I’m a girl, so it scared me. Now that I’ve realised how delicious it is, and I’m much, much closer to Newcastle, it’s only there if you look for it. (It’s the Narnia of ale).

A classic case of not appreciating what you have until it’s gone.

And what about Bass Ale? It also is supposed to be from England. Once I saw a red triangle above a pub. Other than that, it doesn’t seem to exist. I did drink that in America. And now that I’m in England, I sort of miss it.

Maybe it’s a bit like the English muffin. Haven’t seen one of those here, though I hear they have them at McDonald’s. And Altoid mints. They’re supposed to be English, but no one here has ever heard of them. I saw some at a Waitrose in Chelsea once, and I bought them for the novelty of it. (And I think those were imported from Germany.) At least they have English breakfast tea here, though it’s just called “tea”.

But then, Outback Steakhouse isn’t from Australia, and I think I only drank a Foster’s in Australia once (and many, many times in the UK, but only because it was cheap).

But Newcastle Brown Ale is from Newcastle, Newcastle England. So I am slightly annoyed that it seems to be more common in the US. Though really, I can’t be that annoyed. Because I’ve just had one.

And it was soooooo good.