Blood and peace

My friends and I took my 5 and 7 year old to a bar for afternoon imbibing yesterday. Yes we sat inside on our bar stools while the spring sun shone down. The children chatted with the bar man and ordered their drinks from him at the bar. By the way they both had half pints. Indeed, they both probably got a bit high too. We chatted with the other bar inhabitants - two Muslim gentlemen with their half pints too.

Have you ever heard of the Temperance Movement of many a year or even centuries ago? Yes of course you have. Well we were in Fitzpatrick's Temperance Bar and Emporium, the very last of its kind, in Rawtenstall in Lancashire where they sell a range of weird and very wonderful cordials. It was grand. Between the five of us we had half pints of rhubarb and rosehip, elderflower and apple, ginger and lemon, blackcurrant and liquorice and my very favourite Blood Tonic ( a delicious combination of raspberry, rosehips and nettles). Lots and lots of cordial was tested and tasted, each of us sampling the others' drinks....with many an ooh and a few ahhhs and it has to be said one or two errs from the younger members of our party (the liquorice wasn't popular with C). Our two Muslim fellows tucked into dandelion and burdock and a warm sarsaparilla.



C shifts a few bottles of Peace Truth and Love
at 88

People in the Temperance Movement of the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries took against the heresy of alcoholic drink and pledged never to drink it, trying to persuade a few others about its evils too. A few temperance bars were opened mainly in Lancashire to serve non-alcoholic herbal concoctions - a happy development which led us to Rawtenstall this sunny March day.

Away we came from our delightful half hour with smiles on our faces. I staggered out (fell over 5 year old as she ran in front of me) clasping my newly purchased bottle of black beer and raisin (non-alcoholic of course) with a grin of happy contentment on my face. On the bottle's label it reads 'Purity, Truth, Love' not bad sentiments at all....even if H and C were just a tad high ......on herbs and sugar.