Black Country Ale Tasters visit the 24,000 th pub, The Elephant & Castle.

Express & Star

What are the Black Country Ale Tasters and have they really visited 24,000 pubs? we travel to the Black Country Museum to find out more.

Transcript

00:00So we're here at the Black Country Museum, the Elephant and Castle, and Black Country

00:04I'll taste us, how you doing lads? Well, I'm taste us, yes, doing well. And Pete, I haven't seen you for a few years.

00:10I've been about. You've clocked up 1,000 pubs last time, I've seen you. What are we on now?

00:1424,000. This is the 24,000? Oh, it is. And what a way to do it. It's your birthday as well.

00:20Oh, you can't beat this place, can you? So you've got a special little plaque.

00:23Oh, there it is. I mean, no expense spared.

00:26Every pub gets a card. Cool. And Callum's here to represent the pub.

00:33Absolutely, yes, the Elephant and Castle pub at the Black Country Museum.

00:36Nice warm day, you can't beat it, can you mate? What's a good point you'd recommend then?

00:40Oh, Golden Glove. Oh mate, everyone in the Black Country loves the Golden Glove.

00:44You'll second that with you lads.

00:50Well, go on then Pete, you're going to do the honours and present it.

00:52I shall now present him with a plaque of 24,000. And we am on Instagram, by the way, Black Country Helltaster.

00:59Here you go. Thanks very much. How about that?

01:02Cool. Alan, I can see a tear coming from the corner of Callum's eye, the emotions get...

01:06Cheers lads, thank you. Well Pete, just fill us in. What are the Black Country Helltasters, for people who don't know?

01:12A group of lads who love Earl Earl, to be fair, and a nice time, and going to tour around Great Britain for 41 years, that's who I am.

01:2041 years?

01:21Oh, 41 years I've been giving now.

01:23No way.

01:24Oh.

01:27Pete, how you doing?

01:28I'm so young.

01:30Is it your birthday as well?

01:31It is, I'm 69 today.

01:33Today? What a way to celebrate, eh? The elephant and cattle. Black Country Helltaster is here.

01:37Yeah, I've been here to you.

01:38So what's your tip, or what you had there then?

01:41Especially, got on for us today, fixed-wheel chain reaction.

01:45Okay, where's the fixed-wheel brewery?

01:47Blacky.

01:48Blacky, cool.

01:49I'm going to do the, er, shell corner.

01:52He got you.

01:53Oh yeah, I got you. And he said, can you vouch for that one then? Is it a good one?

01:57It's brilliant.

01:59Superb.

01:59Most of them I have, I want to drink.

02:01So what's the plan then? Just a bit of socialising, a bit of drinking, and what's this special buffet you've got?

02:09Special what?

02:10What's this buffet you've got? What were you offering me when I come in?

02:13Oh, I've got Gorgonzola cheese.

02:14Yeah.

02:15And we've got Oxford Pix-Pinning.

02:18Mmm.

02:20And pickled, pickled onion.

02:25Yeah, I might pass on that, Pete.

02:27Stick a candle in here, I'm sure the lads will.

02:29Take everybody away from me.

02:31It's lit, and it is 24,000 pubs, isn't it?

02:34That's it, I've had a beer in every one.

02:37It's mad, isn't it?

02:38Yeah, I'm just dashing and dashing out.

02:40Well, yeah, because I remember from back over yonder when we'd done jobs, there's like, you do a little record, didn't you?

02:45You know, write it down, a few little references about the pub.

02:48A few little references?

02:49Yeah.

02:50I've got my 300-liver ice files and 100,000 photos.

02:53Have you?

02:53Yeah, no way, no way.

02:56So you keep going then?

02:57There's no end?

02:58Oh, I'm off to North Yorkshire, Thursday.

03:01Yeah?

03:01The four days up there.

03:02Yeah, yeah.

03:03Whitby, Scarborough, and all around the area.

03:06Yeah.

03:06It's one of them things that's just developed.

03:08Yeah, yeah.

03:09Well, uh...

03:10But I'm at a scale model, as you know, and the...

03:13Oh, my God.

03:14Yeah!

03:15Happy birthday to you!

03:20Happy birthday to you!

03:25Happy birthday, dear Brita!

03:30Happy birthday to you!

03:35Yeah!

03:38Blimey!

03:38Now, obviously, it's been over 41 years.

03:56Some of them pubs will have come and gone, and some of the breweries.

03:58Loads are.

03:59But if I said to you...

04:00Yeah, well, yeah.

04:01Oh, there you go.

04:02What a disaster.

04:03So, if I says to you, from memory, pick us your best three pints that you like, what's

04:09your best three pints you've had, then, you would say?

04:11Well, now Banks has gone, I've got to mention them.

04:14So, they would have been in there, but yeah, well...

04:16I did like the Sunbeam, but they ain't doing it now more, so...

04:19Yeah, yeah.

04:19I'm on the Holcomb Citrus, I know, the Fixed Wheel, the Chain Reaction.

04:23Yeah.

04:23And I like the Abidal Moonshine and Osage Silver King, you know.

04:27Okay.

04:27Them are the main brews I enjoy.

04:30And do you ever dabble with a cider?

04:32No.

04:34No, I don't.

04:35No, it's all real hell, to be fair.

04:36Whether they're stouts, porters, moils.

04:39Well, we won't keep you away from your birthday celebrations and your pickled onions in there.

04:42Get back in and get Callum working behind that bar again.

04:45Have a pinch pudding and the Gorgonzola cheese.

04:48We're going to do really well today.

04:50Cool.

04:50Nice one.

04:51Crack on then, sir.

04:52I won't disturb you any more.

04:53Cheers, lads.

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