5 October 2013

Alton Towers: Oblivion Beer and Alton Towers Resort (@AltonTowers) [By @SpectreUK]


Cinabar and I decided to get the families together for a weekend away in one of our favourite places; Alton Towers. I asked my family along, which consists of my Mom and Dad, my sister and her two children. Cinabar asked her family along, which consists of her Mom, brother, sister in law, two children, Dad and new Wife. We booked a date in late September when everyone was available and Cinabar organised the masses.

On arriving late Saturday morning, Cinabar, her Mom and I had breakfast wraps in the bar in the Alton Towers Hotel with a rather early beer for me. The beer was Oblivion beer that represents my favourite rollercoaster ride at Alton Towers. Cinabar is terrified of Oblivion (the ride, not the beer) and I have to literally drag her on it every year. The amber cloudy beer was 5.8% in volume, served in a 500ml bottle, brewed by Alton Peakstone’s Rock Brewery and bottled by Leak Brewery. There was a heavy smell of wheat to the bear with a bite of hops to the nostrils. On tasting there was a strong taste of wheat to the beer with a bitter bite from the hops that ran through into the aftertaste. I could certainly taste the alcoholic strength to the beer. There was some yeast sediment in the bottom of my glass, but nothing to cry about. I thought this beer was very nice indeed and would have it again. There was also a Nemesis Beer on the shelf behind the bar, which I’ll have to try at some other point.


After breakfast, Cinabar’s Mom went off for Spa treatment for the rest of the day. Cinabar and I met her brother and his wife and two kids in the Water Park around lunchtime, they then went off to have fun on the roller coasters and we stayed in the Water Park. About half an hour later we bumped into my sister and her two kids and spent a couple of hours or so with them on the slides and in the rapids. They went off to relax, whilst we ran around on the slides some more with Cinabar’s dad, whilst his new wife watched from the Jacuzzi. The meal in the Secret Garden restaurant on the evening was slow, which saw my Dad complain on the poor service, and I have to admit I wasn’t far behind him as he beat me to chasing the starters that we’d waited an hour for! Afterwards we all ended up in the bar for a while chatting and listening to the end of the singers. Cinabar and I with her Dad and his new Wife were the last ones standing just after midnight.


I had my super bacon sandwich for breakfast on the Sunday, which consisted of roughly ten rashers of bacon, some tomato sauce and two fried eggs. We then took the monorail into the park and played on the big roller coasters and some of the smaller rides for the youngsters. The classic surreal moment before the end of the day, and one I will not forget, was trying to get from one side of the park to the other running next to my sister (who’s three years older than me) to make the Spinball Wizard roller coaster in five minutes before the queue closed at 5pm. We were trying to keep up with Cinabar’s brother’s long distance running daughter who at one moment left us for dust and was a little speck in the distance, and then ran all the way back again to hurry us up! It was mad and we were pretty out of breath, but we made the ride and it was well worth the run.


We all had a much better meal on the evening at the buffet style Flambos restaurant, as the food was all there so we didn’t have to wait. My Dad even braved the Caribbean Goat Curry, though exclaimed it wasn’t as hot as they had made out. We all had an excellent time and are talking about making it an annual event!
By Spectre

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