What are my favourite beers like? They tend to have a full, almost chewy body with an underlying but not overpower sweetness, wreathed in what could be described as floral notes and followed up by a gentle, palette freshening hoppy bitterness. Yesterday’s serendipitous discovery, after another visit to Wallingford’s excellent tea shop, was that I can create a non-alcoholic analogue of these tastes by blending Ceylon and Earl Grey tea!

That doesn’t mean I will now be eschewing beer. In fact, my April Shilling brew has hit its target gravity and may be ready for bottling later today. However, when I want to savour those flavours without the side effects of the alcohol (regarded as stimulating creative thinking in small doses but easily overdone), I might have hit on what could be described as a tea-total solution!