As I remember, it's only a few decades since beers such as Mackeson were said to be a nourishing addition to the diet of young mothers and those recuperating from certain illnesses.
Even if the physical effect was purely mythical, I suspect it did some good and was surely a less harmful myth than the anti-alcohol propaganda we are expected to swallow today. Next time I'm ill I must remember to try it out of sheer perversity. Although I prefer a pint of bitter.
I became fond of the other 'stout', Guinness, because, back in the day, you could not rely on a decent pint of bitter in a strange pub.
ReplyDeleteThe irony is that Guinness themselves launched a longstanding campaign teaching landlords how to handle beer (with the threat of removing their brand if badly served) which was so successful that I don't need to order Guinness these days!
Mackeson! That brings back some memories, er, if only I could remember them. My beer of choice, back in the day, mainly because it was sweeter than Guinness. Then I grew up and became sophisticated and turned to pints of 'Black & Tan', Guinness and Bitter mixed. As fine a way to oblivion as any other!
ReplyDeletebanned - yes, I sometimes used to order a Guinness if the bitter was doubtful. As you say, it's not really a problem now.
ReplyDeleteDavid - I remember Black & Tan too, although I began with Double Diamond which was probably dire, but it looked like real beer.
Try a good bottle of stout half and half with bitter.
ReplyDeleteDemetrius - I shall!
ReplyDelete