Courage Directors Bitter

Back in UK again! I enjoyed this pint of Courage Directors (4.8% abv) from a pub near St Pauls cathedral called "The Cockpit" whilst on a mini crawl with my mate Chris. The beer falls into the ESB beers style and is hardly a good example of the style, but is noteworthy none the less. The beer is a deep amber colour and has a slightly dryer taste than say Fullers ESB and a flavour profile that is quite nutty, leaning almost towards a Newcastle Brown style.

A comical event that occured on the evening is the size of my mate Chris's head. its huge and in almost toddler proportions. If you don't really believe me - see the picture below!

Courage Best Bitter

After the pewter splendour of the Fox and Anchor, Rich and I headed to a seedy little boozer up behind the markets called The Hand and Shears. I sincerely doubt that much has gone on in this pub since the war, it was that genuine. Unfortunately the beer selection was a little boring with their best offering being Courage Best Bitter. Now I am not knocking Courage Best however it is a rather bland beer that in my experience is usually served in pubs that do not really keep their beer that well. This pint on the other hand was actually in decent condition and didn’t feel out of place in the Hand and Shears.
Some of the locals were a little scary looking so we decided to move on. After leaving the pub we walked past the lovely old St Bartholomew’s Church.