Browsing Newcastle Real Ale Listings before I pop over there at the weekend I came across a beer name that made me wince.
It didn't just make me wince, it made think of the film "Falling Down" – with me in it.
As I don't know where to get any guns or explosives, I thought I've got to do something a bit creative.
I've had an idea lurking for some time – a collaborative blog dedicated to improving cask ale's brand image by collecting images of dismal pumclips and the like. Hopefully we would knock some sense into the brewers thusly named and shamed.
Here it is.
BTW The beer name that pushed me over the edge was "Dognobbler" by Wylam Brewery. Don't get me wrong, I'm not criticising the beer, just the name. I regularly enjoy Wylam beers when I'm in the NE and John Boyle is a jolly decent chap but...
8 comments:
Jeff
good idea, but I reckon you’ve got a bit of an Everest to climb given that there’s always been an element of Viz in the beer community — have you ever heard them ululating their Alamo-style battle-cry of ‘remember Dogs Bollocks’?
I did stumble across, with horror, the other day, the name "Bucking Fastard" from Northumberland.
Bit of a NE theme here,though clearly not exclusively.
Blimey. Look at the Northumberland site for a few nasties.
Just had a look — Cupid Stunt anyone? Don’t forget Viz started in the NE.
Am I too innocent to get what's so bad about Dognobbler? Something to do with greyhound racing isn't it?
I do love the new blog, it's well overdue.
Jeff,
Having taken part (without success) in the competition held at the Boathouse, Wylam to name this beer. I’m confident that the winner was referring to what is actually written on the pump clip:
"The Tyne at Wylam famous for the quality of its game fishing. The Dognobbler fly lure is a favourite among local fisherman".
And as this is beneath a photo of anglers fishing on the Tyne and the fly itself I can see nothing at all for Wylam brewery to be ashamed of and certainly nothing to make anyone wince.
Unless you are a trout hooked by a Dognobbler I suppose?
Cheers,
John Holland.
John,
You were correct in thinking in thinking I don't know what a Dognobbler is. I shall be asking my fly-fishing friends about them later this week. Fair enough.
Unfortunately the syllables therein cause strange and unpleasant images to flash through my brain whilst attempting to address the question simple question "what does that mean?"
Perhaps it's just me but I'm not keen on dogs and (k)nobs occurring in the same thought. Whether dog's knobs, bestiality with dogs or injurious sabotage of dogs, it's not something I care to bring to mind.
Perhaps it's just my fertile imagination.
At least I have an imagination.
JP
Please don't tar all NE beers with the brush that Northumberland Brewery deserve for their abysmal beers and stupid names! As JH says, Dognobbler is not portrayed to be anything other than the fishing fly, although I suspect it may lure a few people to try it for other connotations. Is that such a bad thing, though?
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