News, nuggets and longreads 8 August 2026: Gold Coast

Every Saturday we round up the best writing about beer from the past week. This time, we’ve got Hanoi lager, warm ale and Belfast oysters. First, news from London of possible changes to a unique (?) drinking culture: Westminster Council is running a consultation on whether to limit the amount of people allowed to stand around outside pubs on summer evenings. Helena Horton broke the story at The Guardian on Thursday and the original headline described it as a ‘ban’; it’s been updated online after a grumpy response from the Council and statements in defence of ‘vertical drinking’ from people like Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London. The BBC has a follow-up frequently-asked-questions piece with more detail. (And we’ll be waxing nostalgic about standing around outside Westminster pubs in the footnotes on Patreon.) Cốc beer glasses. SOURCE: Parni Ray/The Sunday Long Read For The Sunday Long Read Parni Ray has written about the cốc, the distinctive handblown recycled glass beer vessel that…