Beer Festival: Raising a Glass to St George

To mark St George’s Day on April 23, Brentwood Brewing Company is holding its first beer festival of the year on Saturday April 22 from 10am to 5.30pm at Brentwood Brewery.

“We like to be patriotic and do something different around each April 23rd to mark the occasion because we feel St George doesn’t always get the recognition he deserves.

“We’d really love it if the day could be made into an extra Bank Holiday for everyone to enjoy. But in the meantime, we’ll continue to do our bit to make sure St George is remembered.

“In previous years we’ve organised ale trails across the town, played traditional pub games and gone in for some general tomfoolery at the brewery.

“This year, we’re going all out and are holding a beer festival in the hope that beer fans, near and far, will come along and join us to raise a glass to St George,” said Roland Kannor, MD of Brentwood Brewing Company.

With at least ten different draught, craft beers on the bar, brewed at Brentwood Brewery, hundreds of beer fans are expected attend the event and raise a glass to the honour of England’s Patron Saint. Perhaps the most fitting of them all would be a pint of George and the Dragon 3.8% ABV, brewed precisely for the purpose. It’s a courageous, thirst quenching, golden, traditional bitter – the beer of choice for dragon slayers everywhere. Entrance to the beer festival is free and all beer will be at the discounted price of £2 per pint.

Entertainments are planned throughout the day-long festival, including a local ukulele band, usually based at Barleylands Farm in Billericay, which will be performing in the afternoon, playing some well known, upbeat tunes.

Food served from the brewery’s Beer Grylls snack van will also be available.

Brentwood Brewery is next to Calcott Hall Farm Shop, off Ongar Road in Pilgrims Hatch. Parking is available.

For further information, contact Brentwood Brewery on 01277 200 483.

St George

• St George was a soldier in the Roman army. He was martyred when he was executed for his Christian belief on 23rd April 303 AD. Prior to that, legend has it that he slayed a dragon guarding a village well, saved a princess who was being offered as a human sacrifice and forever freed the village from the dragon’s tyranny.
• Although associated with England, St George is celebrated as patron saint of 16 other countries throughout the world.
• When Edward III founded the Knights of the Garter (a new order of chivalry) in 1348, he not only made St George the patron of the Order but declared him to be the Patron Saint of England. Until the end of the 1700s, St George’s Day was as widely celebrated as Christmas in England.
• St George was not the first patron saint of England. It was 9th Century martyred King of East Anglia, St Edmund. St Edmund’s time as patron saint started to slide once King Richard I won a great victory after visiting the tomb of St George on the eve of a big battle. St George was then adopted as the King’s personal patron and protector of the army.
• The English army continued to carry battle banners bearing the white dragon of St Edmund but by the reign of Edward I, the red cross of St George had joined them.
• In the last decade at least two petitions to get St Edmund reinstated as Paton Saint of England have been rejected by the Government. An online petition about four years ago was backed by Bury St Edmunds based brewer, Greene King.

Hurrah for St George!

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