RE: A Shirt on Sunday: Campaign for Real Ale - 1990s
Well, who would have thought you were a beer fan? ;) I have never joined CAMRA, but maybe I should. Some of my current colleagues are members and I have been to a few !BEER festivals with them. I like to try a few new varieties. I have done my bit to support local pubs with my music sessions. Our current venue (The Cricketers in Ickleford) always has a couple of good guest beers on tap.
There has probably never been a better time to get into beer with the sheer variety available, but pubs are really struggling. Some around here may only get a half dozen customers in an evening and that does not cover costs. I really wonder how they keep going. Others seem to have more regulars. When we moved to Arlesey there were nine pubs and now there are four plus the social club and the football cub bar.
That's exactly what makes CAMRA still a relevant organisation. I was in Chester earlier in the week and it was full of pubs, most of them with lots of punters and very good beer (We used the Good Beer Guide as our map).
Music does bring people to pubs, and I'll be down the Cabbage Patch this evening for TwickFolk, but it's hard to persuade people that leaving the house is a good idea.
Thanks for the beer. Cheers!