Episode 1

Watch:

Synopsis

Oz Clarke and James May travel through Britain and Ireland to discover the amazing array of drinks on offer for the delectation of a wine ponce and an incorrigible scruffbag. They start their journey on top of the magnificent and enigmatic White Cliffs and travel north to Yorkshire in a 1982 Rolls Royce Corniche.

Their first pint of the trip is in the Tan Hill Inn in Yorkshire, where James discovers, to his dismay, that Oz knows as much about British beer as he does about wine. Their journey then takes them to the centuries-old Fawcett Maltings in Castleford, and Thornbridge Brewery, a successful micro-brewery in Derbyshire, where they discover exactly what goes into a pint of beer.

Oz is unable to keep away from wine and tracks down one of the most northerly commercial vineyards in the country, where he discovers, to his surprise, that wine has been made in Yorkshire since Roman times.

For the final part of the first leg of their trip, Oz and James leave the car behind and take to the rails, enjoying the beers in a string of real ale pubs located on station platforms. Their tasting notes become as unreliable as the train timetable as the evening proceeds, but despite a spell of beer-fuelled bickering, the evening ends peacefully.

Credits

Presenter

Oz Clarke

Presenter

James May

Broadcasts

1. Tue 6 Jan 2009
   20:00
   BBC Two
2. Thu 22 Jan 2009
   19:00
   BBC Two (England, Wales, Wales (Analogue) only)
3. Thu 5 Mar 2009
   03:00
   BBC One
4. Sun 21 Jun 2009
   19:30
   BBC Two (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland only)