A well kept Cains Bitter was amongst the best beers I've ever had.
The Dispensary in Liverpool City Centre always sold the most prefect pint you'd ever taste.
I remember taking a mate from Yorkshire there and he became such a fan of Cains bitter, that he persuaded the licencee of his local on the Yorkshire Wolds to stock it.
RIP Cains.
Before cask and 'artisan' beers became nouveau and trendy, Cains was pivotal to the supply of good ales to the City. Loved drinking in the Tap!
And as you rightly mention, I think people now understate how good Cains bitter was for such a long time before the brothers butchered it.
Their FA was also a bloody dream of a pint, although it did naughty things to your legs and more importantly your brain after more than five or so.
Yet, the last few years tarred the company's reputation as the beer became absolutely woeful wholly down to the brothers and their meddling.
Not sure if I've mentioned it before, but I remember sitting in the Tap and the chief brewer came in, bought a pint of bitter and then bemoaned it.
Buying good hops and not paying the bills... buying different hops of inferior quality and not paying the bills... buying even more inferior hops...
And then not paying that bill! So eventually they had to get it from anywhere and hence why the brew became rank and changing by the day.
Before you knew it the supermarkets that were a key part of their bottling supply realised their
greed and they quickly binned them off.
