The Tuesday Stat Attack: 5 The Channel Islands

Regional Forums United Kingdom and Ireland
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Ratebeer has two of the Channel Islands listed as countries in their own right (Jersey and Guernsey); I’ve joined them together (sorry @Jerseyislandbeer), so most of us can say at least a little a bit about them.

Lovely set of islands, 7 (or 8 depending on which website you believe) are inhabited, only two have breweries.

It’s not difficult to get onto the rating leader boards for either Jersey or Guernsey with just four to appear on Jersey and a measly two beers required for Guernsey. Top of the shop for Jersey is @Jerseyislandbeer on an impressive 50 rates, he has been pushed into second place by @Erzengel on Guernsey (15 and 13 rates respectively).

Place reviewing wise we have @Jerseyislandbeer miles out in front on Jersey with 25, followed by @Sigmund on 9. Guernsey has three joint leaders on 5, @Grumbo, @Scopey and @Travlr: I am 4th with 4 places visited.

Over to you lot, let’s have some interesting stats and stories from the sunny islands in the English Channel.

<*))))))><

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This is not right. I quote wikipedia: " Although the bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey are often referred to collectively as the Channel Islands, the “Channel Islands” are not a constitutional or political unit. Jersey has a separate relationship to the Crown from the other Crown dependencies of Guernsey and the Isle of Man, although all are held by the monarch of the United Kingdom.".

In other words , “The Channel Islands” is not one country. It makes as much sense as merging all countries of the EU as only “EU”.

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Sorry, I thought you had merged Jersey and Guernsey on the countries list. I see now that they are still listed separately. Apparently you have just “merged” them for the purpose of this forum thread.

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Calm down @Sigmund, I am not trying to start a range war, just attempting to keep a dying Tuesday Stat Forum Post alive.

<*))))))><

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It’s a very inglorious zero rates for me I’m afraid, and not really sure I’ve ever had the opportunity to get one as Jersey or Guernsey beers are not something I ever remember seeing. I have visited Jersey once, back in the late 70s, when I was knee-high to a grasshopper, we had a family holiday there, and I recall beaches, castles, cream teas and cows! Was my first experience of flying, and going abroad as we had a day trip to France on the hydrofoil. Only other experience is enjoying John Nettles as Jim Bergerac back in the 80s, now there was a detective!

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0 for me as well I’m afraid.

Just wanted to point out that Sark also has a brewery: https://www.ratebeer.com/brewers/isle-of-sark-brewing-company/30449/
Interestingly neither of the raters are located in the UK.

I was surprised Alderney doesn’t have one though, as it’s the 3rd largest island. But apparently it did back in the late 1800s

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My CI rates are so low as to not really be worth mentioning. 2 from Jersey and one from Guernsey.

I’ve always wanted to go to the Channel Islands, was planning a trip but all sorts of stuff, not least of all COVID, got in the way. @Jerseyislandbeer seems to have created a fairly comprehensive beer guide for Jersey, and it looks like there are a fair few places worth checking out these days. Guernsey seems less beery but still might be worth checking out.

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@LazyPyro I really must do more research before I post these ‘Stats’. Thanks for pointing out my failings for me.

Also thanks for your excellent website for Online Bottleshops: https://bottleshops.online/

<*))))))><

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Nil.

I did enjoy Lily James in a movie about Guernsey and potatoes. Does that count for anything?

Also I just looked the Islands up in Google Maps discovered that they are in fact SOUTH of England and not EAST which is what I would have guessed.

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@jercraigs they are so close to France you can walk over at low tide (well almost).

<*))))))><

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@jercraigs The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. Great film.

Never been over there, and with both islands having affordable flights from the UK I’ve never really had an excuse. Nicely cyclable and some interesting cider on both islands as well.

My Jersey rates are below. A meagre 3 beers, two of which were chance spots in Wetherspoons, the bottle kindly gifted by @blackhaddock at one of our beer shares. Average trad fayre really.

My Rating Avg Entered Updated
Liberation Colney Hatch 3.1 3.08 10/16/2019
Liberation IPA (Cask) 3 3.14 10/15/2018
Liberation IPA (Bottle) 2.8 2.96 10/1/2019

Guernsey sees an even more pathetic 1 rating but it is a 4 for a fantastic cider picked up from the National Brewery Centre in Buxton.

My Rating Avg Entered Updated
Rocquette XC Exceptional Cider (Bottle) 4 3.23 5/26/2019

Wish I had more interesting things to say, but I’ll have to leave that to others. Any tips on picking up Jersey or Guernsey beer / cider would be most welcome!

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I have never been to any of the Channel Islands apart from half a day in Guernsey’s capital, St Peter Port. We were taken in and out by tender, our cruise ship being to large to dock. Managed four place ratings and a few beers, but my overall totals for both Jersey and Guernsey are pretty shabby, plus I can’t remember any bridges crossed while on Guernsey!

My four Guernsey beer ratings put me in equal 17th place on the leader board with some well know others, 8 of them in fact. I am also equal 17th on Jersey’s hall of fame, this time eight beer rates, along with 5 other raters, again all well known. I was going to name them, but after doing so I got blocked and told I can only name 10 users per post, how shit is that!

We liked our brief stop in Guernsey, but half a day was enough for a beer hunt, fancy an elongated Jersey visit, however it’s a long way down my list of beery priorities at the moment.

<*))))))><

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Well thanks @BlackHaddock for another Stat Attack, however this is the only time you will see Jersey & Guernsey together in any entity, as there is a very strong rivalry between the 2 islands!
There are 7 Channel Islands of any decent size in the French ‘Bay of Saint Malo’, The ‘Bailiwick of Jersey’ (45 sq miles of main island + off shore reefs, some with seasonal fishman huts)
The ‘Bailiwick of Guernsey’ (25 sq miles of main island) also consists of the smaller Channel Islands of Alderney (5sq miles), Sark (3sq miles) & Herm (1 1/2 sq miles) plus the privately owned Jethou & Breqhou islands.

Beer wise - Jersey has 3 breweries, Liberation Brewery celebrating it’s 150 anniversary this year, and the fairly recently formed Stinky Bay & Bliss. The 3 breweries are working together for a much awaited Christmas collaboration!

Guernsey also has a long established brewery, Randalls, plus it did have a smaller brewery called White Rock which sadly closed last year. There is a newly established microbrewery called Little Big Brew Co.
As @LazyPyro stated Sark does (or did) have a small micro brewery

Jersey beers top 3 - Bliss Intergalactose & Bliss Cream both with 4.0 ratings, Liberation 145 Double IPA with 3.8 rating

I really can’t comment much on Guernsey beers (or places for that matter) as while I’ve been 5 times I’ve not been there (unless enroute to Sark or Herm) since 2010.
Funny enough knowing I’m overdue a visit, I just looked last night to take the very short flight (10 min) to Guernsey, prices are 1/3rd more expensive than for me to fly to London (1hr)!!

What Guernsey beers I’ve had was from that 2010 trip or the odd bottle / pint in a Jersey supermarket / pub since then. I nearly got my hands on the Sark beers, my wife was going to the brewery for me on a visit to the island in 2019, but then alas the ferry was cancelled for bad weather.

Jersey places - 1 stand out for me - JB’s Brewhouse which is where Bliss Brewery are based, besides the great Bliss beers they have a strong line up on tap & can. They also do immense smoked meat if your into that.
The other place really worthy of visiting regular for me is Krafty J’s, a small crafty micro pub on a town square with DJ tunes in the evening.
Jersey’s got plenty of traditional pubs, some such as the Lamplighter & Prince of Wales Tavern in St Helier with half decent UK Cask ales, a number of the islands pubs are owned by Liberation Brewery which will have a decent range of there beers, then there are almost a equal number of Randall’s (Guernsey based) pubs, (which I try to avoid) with if your lucky 1 UK mainstream cask ale (never for some reason having the Randall’s beers brewed in Guernsey).

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Just the one rate for me - Rocquette Traditional Cider (Bottle) at 3.4

Only 1 active cidery on Guernsey:
Rocquette Cider Co.
Castel, Guernsey

And 2 active cideries for Jersey:
La Mare Vineyards
St. Mary

La Robeline Cider Company
St Ouen

If anyone has any access to Jersey ciders let me know!

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Yeah, looking at the map where I think Paris should be in my head is actually where Brussels is.

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Not much to report for me.

I’ve rated 5 beers from Jersey; all from Liberation and all at 'Spoons beerfests on the mainland (back in the days when 'Spoons beerfests were actually good). My highest rated one was Liberation American Brown Ale at 3.4.

For Guernsey I’ve rated just one - White Rock Wonky Donkey which I snagged at Reading BF and scored 3.5.

I’ve not been to any of the islands since I’ve been on Ratebeer. However, we did go to Guernsey in the early 2000’s, and thought it was a lovely place - right up to the point a huge Atlantic storm rolled in whilst we were out cycling around the far end of the island (we sheltered in a prehistoric tomb for an hour before fighting our way back to the hotel, and were then stranded on the island for 3 days as all planes & boats off were cancelled!).

The highlights of Guernsey for me were:

  • The amazing Little Chapel; a tiny place covered inside & out with colourful broken crockery (it was demolished & rebuilt in 1923 after the lardy Bishop of Portsmouth failed to fit through the door!).
  • The giant sundial in St Peter’s Port where, on the anniversary of the island’s liberation at the end of WWII, the shadow traces a timeline through the events of that day.

From Guernsey we went to three other populated islands: Herm (peaceful, gorgeous white shell beaches); Sark (strange place, rough crossing, spectacular La Coupée causeway); and Lihou (tidal island, slippery rocks, smelly seaweed).

I’d love to go back to the Channel Islands; we have talked about a trip to Jersey but I’m not sure when or if that will happen (having read a lot of Gerald Durrell’s books when I was young, I’d quite like to see the zoo he set up on Jersey).

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One from each. Never visited, despite having a cousin on Jersey where he looks after tax exiles’ money (well, someone has to!).
I have always assumed that they are the last remnants of the Angevin Empire that once included England. And one of the two beers was a Liberation ale produced as part of the WWII liberation commemoration. The other from the now defunct White Rock was the better beer!
I wonder if the Scilly Isles have a brewery?

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Went on a weekend trip from London to Jersey in 2007, including a day trip to Guernsey, but in my infinite wisdom didn’t rate/purchase a single beer during the visit :man_facepalming: .

Finally got my single rate from each in 2014/2015…

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Never had a chance to visit, and like most people a bare minimum of ticks for me, just 2 from each.

Mixture of 3 cask at either GBBF/Spoons and 1 Bottle (cider) at a bottle share…

  • Jersey
My Rating Avg Entered Updated
Liberation Colney Hatch 3.1 3.08 12/31/2019
Liberation Herm Island Gold 2.8 2.8 12/25/2018
  • Guernsey
My Rating Avg Entered Updated
Rocquette Traditional Cider (Bottle) 3.4 3.03 9/13/2014
White Rock Pushang 3.2 3.2 12/25/2018
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Four from each. 2 of the Guernsey beers and 3 of the Jersey beers were brought back by my sister-in-law who is a ringer in the Guernsey Symphony Orchestra (she’s also featured for Rwanda and Rushmoor amongst others)

All 4 Jersey were from Liberation and scored between 2.2 and 2.9. Gotta be one of my poorest scoring breweries. Guernsey got to 3.1 so win.

If anyone is after a Guernsey tick keep an eye out for Rocquette cider. Although I can’t remember where I saw a lot of bottles on display. A local garden centre?

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