Herbie Awards _Best Urban Mooring result plus a winning beer.

Today, we announce not one, but two Herbie Awards.

I liked all of our urban mooring shortlist, but there was one that we all agreed on.  Whenever we arrive there and there’s room to moor we’re always delighted.  So the winner of the

Herbie Award for Best Urban Mooring 2016

is

Great Linford Visitor Mooring

A well deserved and popular win.  Handy for the city, but quiet and scenic and plenty of room to sit out.  The only downside is that, taking only two boats, you sometimes can’t get in.  We love it.  Yesterday’s pictures showed the environs.  Here’s the actual mooring.

  

Now we draw near to our first intermission because tomorrow and Friday we’re up and back to Lancashire to retrieve Jacob from college for his Christmas hols.  But in case you get thirsty during the interval, how about a cracking pint of beer?

Being out in the sticks a lot this year, we haven’t tried as many beers, but one was so outstanding that we revisited to pub three times in a week to sample some more. We had some other nice beers during our 2016 travels, notably in the Riser at Berko, but this one was in the Reine Deer in Banbury, but don’t all rush over there to try some, for it was a seasonal beer for August and September and we have no hesitation in declaring it this years winner of the

Herbie Award for Best Pint of Beer 2016

Hook Norton Summer Haze

As you might just guess from the name, its a slightly hazy beer brewed with 42% wheat and 58% barley malt. It has none of the sourness that some wheat beers have, in fact it’s a bit on the sweet side, but I can promise you we’ll be down to Banbury next September to get some more.  Of course, we have to give full marks to the Reine Deer for keeping and serving it so well. 

Have a pleasant intermission and come back at the weekend for nominations for Best Pub Meal on our 2016 travels.