Isle of Wight Trip – Day 0 (Cowes – Cowes Ale House)

The Cowes Ale House, the sister pub of the Newport Ale House, which has a marvellous concept of a welcoming environment, bar snacks, no jukebox and a community feel. A few years ago this was a clothes shop and the conversion is a positive move, this trend of bringing shops back into use as small pubs is one I’d like to see even more of. The staff member at the bar was helpful and warm, so the environment was welcoming.

The Good Beer Guide said to expect the occasional mild and porter. So I did. And they didn’t have any. The nearest to a dark beer they had was the Robinsons Trooper, which is linked to Bruce Dickinson from Iron Maiden. The beer was well kept and at the appropriate temperature, which was good as it was in a cooling jacket and these are sometimes more effective than others.

The beer tasted a bit bland to me, no real strong flavours or depths of taste and I couldn’t get the subtle hint of lemon.

Some of the pump clips from past beers, and there are some interesting past selections, not least the Ernie’s Milk Stout. The prices of the beer were reasonable, mainly coming in at just under £4 per pint.

The pub wasn’t particularly busy when we went in on a Saturday afternoon, but there was a welcoming and comfortable feel to the pub. I do really like the whole concept of this pub and the environment feels just right for a relaxed drink. Unfortunately for me and this visit the beer selection didn’t have anything to interest me.