These are the results of my poll on CAMRA and keg beers. As you can see, the voting is far from conclusive, with a pretty much even split between those supporting and opposing some kind of embrace of keg. I’ve already extensively discussed this issue here, but feel free to comment further...
It’s been claimed in some quarters that CAMRA has now officially accepted keg-conditioned beers as “real ale”, but I don’t see that things have gone anywhere near that far. What has been done is to give CAMRA-run beer festivals sanction to serve keg-conditioned keykeg beers if they so choose. I think the Technical Committee has still to make a definitive pronouncement.
And to fully accept it as real ale would need quite a few more steps to be taken, such as (in no particular order):
- Allow the inclusion of keg-conditioned beers (KCBs, maybe?) in pub listings in the Good Beer Guide and on What Pub?
- List permanent KCBs in the brewery section of the Good Beer Guide
- Allow pubs serving only KCBs and no cask to be included in the Good Beer Guide
- Provide a distinctive dispense symbol for KCBs – K, maybe?
- Agree with the industry a clear method of indicating at the point of sale that a keg beer is a KCB
- Encourage the industry to develop a unique form of bar mounting to identify KCBs
FWIW I have seen a paper label saying "CAMRA says this is real ale" on a keg font dispensing a KK beer. It looked home-made and very temporary, and I wondered if they would remember to take it off when they put an ordinary keg beer on that font. But at least they had the idea.
ReplyDeleteWill that make any difference to any potential purchaser, though?
DeleteAs far as I know the Technical Committee have said that key-kegs are an acceptable container for the dispense of real ale. In fact they said this about 5 years ago, I believe. That being so then the various items in your first 3 bullets should follow automatically. the fifth and sixth bullets were (sort of) covered by a motion passed at the AGM in Nottingham last year.
ReplyDeleteI don't think this has been reflected in either national or local branch practice, though...
DeleteYou may be right but the door is now clearly open.
ReplyDeleteCAMRA must not stray from the true path. Adopting the keg filth will be the end of it. Rather than expand its appeal it will render the campaign pointless.
ReplyDeleteCAMRA needs to rid itself of those that let the keg filth pass their lips