September 2026. Royal Tunbridge Wells. Arriving late in Tunbridge Wells we’d booked a Travelodge rather than stay at the in-laws (do any children like sleeping in their parents’ house ?). Sunday night brings £30 rooms at the old Wellington Hotel, with free parking opposite and the decent Mount Edgecumbe pub overlooking the common. It looked… Continue reading Dégustation of Tunbridge Wells
THE SUNDAY ROAST IN CORBY GLEN
September 2026. Corby Glen. Lincolnshire. I really have nothing to complain about in life, but last weekend was an example of the stresses and tensions of a typical week. Getting “home” on Saturday from a the weekly 6 hour visit to see Dad in his Waterbeach care home, Mrs RM was deep into conversations with… Continue reading THE SUNDAY ROAST IN CORBY GLEN
TICKING THE DRONE VALLEY
September 2026. Unstone. Derbyshire. A gorgeous Saturday afternoon in Dronfield, though my plans to bring you pictures of St John the Baptist’s stained glass were halted by the arrival of the wedding car. Some similarly impressive vehicles awaited me on my return to Drone Valley Brewery in the hamlet of Unstone. My third brewery tap… Continue reading TICKING THE DRONE VALLEY
KILLING TIME IN DRONFIELD
September 2026. Dronfield. There’s a large number of new Beer Guide entries that only open at weekends, including one 10 minutes away on the train to Dronfield. Actually, 10 minutes on a train that’s delayed 19 minutes and then a 20 minute walk along the road to Unstone. where the Drone Valley tap awaits. Well,… Continue reading KILLING TIME IN DRONFIELD
A NEW SPOONS FOR NORTH HYKEHAM
September 2026. North Hykeham. Lincolnshire. You left me in Poachers Brewery Tap at North Hykeham in the suburbs of Lincoln, showing no ill effects from the handful of Devil’s nuts foisted on me by the locals after securing the “tricky” tick in GBG27. Parked up in my campervan in the industrial estate on the junction… Continue reading A NEW SPOONS FOR NORTH HYKEHAM
THE BEER GUIDE PUB OPEN FIVE (5) HOURS A WEEK
September 2026. North Hykeham. Lincolnshire. Friday was a perfect day, and not in a corny Lou Reed charity single way. I drove down to see Dad, who despite advancing dementia was as chatty as he’s been for many months, was eating well, and had somehow acquired the Russian resident’s hat. I stayed a couple of… Continue reading THE BEER GUIDE PUB OPEN FIVE (5) HOURS A WEEK
A WHISTLE STOP IN GRANTHAM
September 2026. Grantham. A few new Beer Guide entries to break up the interminable slog up and down the A1, and a characteristically eclectic bag of Lincolnshire debutants in GBG27. The one place I didn’t expect a newbie is Grantham, a town I thought I’d done to death over the years, even stayed over in… Continue reading A WHISTLE STOP IN GRANTHAM
Do pork scratchings REALLY improve a pint ?
September 2026. Sheffield. There’s some great Proper Pubs™ just above West Street in Sheffield studentland (also home to its best Asian restaurants). Some, like the Grapes and Perch and Fagans flit in and out of the Beer Guide; the Dog & Partridge and Red Deer the perennnial entries. Until recently, when the Red Deer seemed… Continue reading Do pork scratchings REALLY improve a pint ?
FRESHERS WEEK
September 2026. Sheffield. The first few weeks after the publication of the annual Good Beer Guide are invariably a whirl of travel to the nearest towns to mop up the easy wins (ugh), the low hanging fruit (ugh, ugh) and get the closest counties pinked in. But then you come up against limiting factors like… Continue reading FRESHERS WEEK
ADMIRING PUB AI IN SOUTH ANSTON
September 2026. South Anston. South Yorkshire. Obviously I’m not actually aiming to complete the Beer Guide again; not sure I could afford all those helicopter flights and ferries in the final year anymore, never mind the stress. But I’m still visiting as many new Guide pubs as I can, and a bit more conscientous about… Continue reading ADMIRING PUB AI IN SOUTH ANSTON
