Back to Beer Home / Back to Home Page / Back to Andrew

Welcome to Andrew's Beer Page

This page is still currently under construction - but if you would like to visit the 2018 Robin Hood Beer Festival and Nottingham CAMRA web-sites please use the links.

A little bit of silliness that cannot go unremarked on (that was in 2012 now visit my PC page, as Elsie Mo gets her 'cover up' orders, for more!) :

Elsie Mo 'from Siren to Pilot'

'MP's Sexist Beer Ban' scream the headlines

- Top Totty ale outlawed in the Commons bar
- Labour's equalities spokesman Kate Green claims beer is offensive and 'demeans women'
- Ale's family-run Staffordshire brewery said outcry had seen its orders double

By Daniel Martin - Last updated at 7:56 AM on 3rd February 2012

Like many real ales, its quirky name helps it to stand out from the crowd. Unfortunately for a brew branded 'Top Totty', it stood out a little too much for one female Labour MP who has managed to have it banned from a House of Commons bar.

Kate Green, the party's equalities spokesman, said she found the beer** – which has a pump plate with a cartoon picture of a bikini-clad bunny girl – offensive, adding later that it 'demeans women'.

Two examples of the 'offensive' pump clips - both are illustrations and not images of actual women.

**Despite never having even seen the pump in question – and the bar not receiving a single complaint – Miss Green yesterday stood up in the Commons chamber to demand it be removed from sale. Last night, however, her stance provoked a backlash from men and women alike who branded her 'humourless' and criticised her 'knee-jerk puritanism'. Slater's Ales, meanwhile, the ale's family-run Staffordshire brewery, said the outcry had seen its orders double.

The £2.70-a-pint beer was banned from the Strangers' Bar, where MPs can take guests, within an hour of Miss Green's complaint. Leader of the House Sir George Young intervened to rid Parliament of what he called 'offensive pictures'. Miss Green, MP for Stretford and Urmston in Greater Manchester, brought up the issue at business questions in the Commons, where she called for a debate in the House on 'dignity at work in Parliament'.

** - Just an observation - is the syntax of the reporter appalling or did Kate Green really think the beer was offensive - and if so, in what way? Did it taste bad, smell bad - what? And why on earth is she making comments about something that she hasn't even, on her own admission, seen with her own eyes? There is an expression for this 'sight unseen.' And we are now expected to believe that this 'fairness' is what 'equalities' is all about is it? That explains a lot about our previous employer!

From London Spin (and thanks for the great artwork guys):

Grumpy Labour Chief Scraps Saucy Top Totty Ale

SPOILSPORT Labour Chief Kate Green has sensationally forced through a BAN on a beer brand called Top Totty, London Spin can reveal. The news sent shockwaves through the Westminster community and sparked a furious fight back from political leaders who claimed the Slater’s manufactured beer was being taken too seriously.
Tory MP Andrew Griffiths – a strong supporter of the British brewing and pub industry - hit back at the brand’s detractors via social networking site Twitter. “Last night I enjoyed a magnificent pint of Slaters Top Totty in the bar in parliament. Those complaining need to get a sense of humour!,” he said.
The Slater’s website describes the ale as, “A stunning blonde beer full bodied with a voluptuous hop aroma.”

Back to Top

Page refreshed : 11th April 2018 (G)