CAMPAIGN FOR REAL ALE

Q: So, what inspired you to write the book?

Ben: “The fact that people were criminally unaware of the joys of American beer. Michael Jackson, [the late and great ‘Beer Hunter'] had wanted to write a similar book but never managed to get round to it. Some have suggested that escaping a miserable London in January for the sun-kissed allure of California had something to do with it too, but we pay no attention to such rumour and hearsay.”

Tom: “It was an opportunity to prove that Americans really do make great beer. I'm not sure why I wanted to fight their corner - maybe it was simply because it's too easy to dismiss things without actually trying them. Hopefully the book will encourage beer fans to look beyond the parameters of their own pub walls. Added to this, two months driving around the West Coast drinking beer? Seriously. . .”

Ben: “Fun, fanatical, cutting edge, joyful, often outrageous and bridled in envelope-pushing zeal - America is ‘beervana', it's ‘brewtopia', it's beer-drinking heaven. And the West Coast is the King Prawn on American beer's BBQ. The cities of Portland, Seattle and San Francisco offer a diversity of beer styles far greater than any European city, San Diego (the new kid on the brewing block) and Los Angeles (home to some well-hidden gems) are not far behind while, lest we forget, Hawaii, Las Vegas and Alaska all hail the ale with unabashed gusto, too. In short, buy the book!”

Tom: “Any beer fan worth his/her salt should be aware of every international pocket of beer excellence and the West Coast currently boasts some of the most innovative and enthusiastic brewers in the world. The book is a guide to the very best of them and adds to this with comprehensive coverage of the phenomenally successful brewpub scene and the very best beer bars up and down the coast. The West Coast is a hugely popular tourist destination and what better book to accompany a trip to any of the major cities than one that recommends the best beers and bars. Until now, there wasn't one.”

Q: Why is the book different?

Ben: “Written with humour, accuracy and an eye for beer-drinking capers, the book blows the whistle on a quite incredible beer scene that, one suspects, our sneaky American friends were trying to keep all for themselves. While Good Beer Guide West Coast USA is united with other CAMRA Good Beer guides in its championing of great breweries, top-notch beers and great places to drink them, this book differs hugely in style and approach, with a greater emphasis on the quirkiness, characters and quality quaff that's ripe for discovery in this part of the world.”

Tom: “The West Coast beer scene has never been covered in such depth before and the scale of it is vast. California on its own could justify a book, but the Good Beer Guide West Coast USA encompasses the best beer in an incredible six states. It's also written in an amusing and informative style with a lot of character by two young and enthusiastic drinks journalists who not only know a lot about beer but also how to have a good time. The beer industry is crying out for younger fans and here is a book written by two such people.”

Q: What's your favourite beer?

Ben: “Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. A spectacular beer that's consistent, environmentally friendly and one that formed the bedrock of the American craft brewing revolution. A dry, deliciously hoppy classic that others have tried to mimic but never mastered.”

Tom: “That's impossible, but if I had to have one beer this evening I'd go with Lagunitas IPA. I'm drinking a lot of that as a default choice right now.”

Q: What's your favourite bar?

Ben: “Like Tom, I loved Liar's Club in San Diego. Lucky 13 in San Francisco had a Labrador that ordered beer at the bar, while Brouwer's Café in Seattle was a Belgium beer-drinker's dream. But, best of all, was Edgefield - a veritable kingdom of beer-drinking fun set in a rural Oregon wonderland with a brewery, golf course, fine-dining restaurant, winery, distillery, a luxury spa, cinema and a labyrinth of sheds, bunkers and snugs in which to hunker down and drink great beer. It even has an on-site glass blower and pottery maker. Mental but flipping marvellous.”

Tom: “One that offers plenty of choice. As long as a bar operator respects that there's diverse set of customers and offers them as much diversity in the drinks, then there should be decent mix of people and a good atmosphere most nights of the week. In terms of the bars in the book, I'll go for the Liars Club in San Diego: great tuna melt, great beer, great bar staff and great times.”

Q: What would you say is your favourite brewery?

Ben: “My favourite British brewery is probably Hook Norton. It looks like something out of Psycho and the steam engine at the bottom is brilliant. As for the States, the Russian River brewery is pretty special, where brewer Vinnie Cilurzo keeps his Brettanomyces yeast entertained by playing anything from jazz to hard rock. It serves great pizza, too, and Vinnie is a proper, stand-up kinda guy.”

Tom: “I'm West London born and bred so I should say Fuller's. I love Meantime beers though and, further afield, I'm a big fan of what the Brewdog boys are doing - great to see a British brewer thinking about younger beer drinkers when it comes to style and marketing. On the West Coast, I'd happily drink with the San Francisco brewers in any of their brewpubs.”

Q: What is your most memorable beer event?

Ben: “Watching the ‘Polynesian Powerhouse', a 20-stone bartender working at the Liar's Club, sink four pints of Imperial Stout (9%) in ten seconds. Remarkable. While it was memorable for us, one doubts he has much of a recollection. Nutter.”

Tom: “The Oregon brewers festival, when we realised that pretty girls thought a book about beer was cool and wanted their pictures taken by us.”

Q: Who would be a good person to front a campaign to promote real ale and beer in general?

Ben: “Ant & Dec. Their unisex, cheeky-chappy appeal should coax the ladies into drinking beer while not alienating hardcore hop heads. Everyone loves Ant & Dec, but no-one more so than Tom. He's got a picture of them on his wall. And in his wallet.”

Tom: “Scarlett Johansson. I'd drink sewage waste if she endorsed it.”