A good month pub wise, with 37 new Beer Guide pubs in 15 counties (more if you’re using proper county definition), and finishing off the West Midlands, West Yorkshire, Warwicks chapters of the GBG. I didn’t get to the Anchor in Anchor or the Isle of Wight, but an impromptu trip to Thanet compensated for that. As Erlangen… Continue reading APRIL STOCKTAKE
Month: April 2016
WATERBEACH SUN’S BEER FESTIVAL
It’s a rare day I stay at home, but I promised Mrs RM I’d go with her to our local pub’s Beer Festival, just to be unusually sociable. The Sun is the drinkers pub in a village of about 5,000, recently reduced by the closure of the RAF base. It’s the first pub I went… Continue reading WATERBEACH SUN’S BEER FESTIVAL
SANDY -BIRD SONG,PALE ALE & CLANGERS
Thursday is Bedfordshire day. Words to strike fear into the heart of any traveller except the estimable Simon Everitt, probably the only other person to have walked the county ticking off the largely dull Beer Guide pubs. I do like to give places a second chance though, and Simon had formed a better impression of… Continue reading SANDY -BIRD SONG,PALE ALE & CLANGERS
SURBITON IN THE SNOW
I didn’t actually realise Surbiton was a place until I started visiting the Beer Guide pubs in SW London. I’d always thought it was a borough name like Elmbridge or Merton. The geography around the Kingston/Surrey borders takes some getting used to. I’m still not quite sure what distinguishes it from Long Ditton and Kingston, but I guess… Continue reading SURBITON IN THE SNOW
SNARGATE’S CLASSIC, BASIC AND UNSPOILT PUB
My sympathies are with the family and friends of the late Doris Jemison, the quite wonderful landlady of the Red Lion in Snargate. Doris’s was on my list for a revisit for many years, so I will now have to treasure the one visit I made in 2000, when the pub made a significant impression… Continue reading SNARGATE’S CLASSIC, BASIC AND UNSPOILT PUB
CONTRASTS IN EAST MOLESEY
As I come towards the end of this years new Beer Guide entries for “Greater” London, I’m starting to get full value out my Travelcard by crossing the dangerous border into Surrey when I can. On Tuesday that meant the train to the furthest extremity of Zone 6 at Hampton Court, crossing the road to… Continue reading CONTRASTS IN EAST MOLESEY
THE RESTING HARE, EUSTON
Not sure the strong beers in Waterloo Tap were a good way to warm up for the powerboat trip along the Thames, but our stomachs just about survived. Only (!) 35mph along the Thames, but incredibly bumpy and more fun than much of Thorpe Park. The hail and lightning added to the theatre. Tourist sights… Continue reading THE RESTING HARE, EUSTON
WATERLOO TAP
Mrs RM and I are in London for a powerboat trip down the Thames I kindly received as a retirement present. The trip to Cropton brewery later this year feels safer. Later we intend to do justice to Jeff Bell’s new venture in Euston, but for our pre-trip lunch we’re testing the cuisine at it’s… Continue reading WATERLOO TAP
SAM SMITHS IN SELBY
In contrast to St Helens, I can’t claim to have been looking forward to my necessary trip to Selby, despite my recent acclaim for small shipbuilding towns in the east. I doubt Selby sees Goole as competition for the tourist dollar though. Pub Curmudgeon did recently highlight the appeal of the Abbey and at least one… Continue reading SAM SMITHS IN SELBY
LEGENDS AT CASK, MANCHESTER
A fairly perfect Manchester weekender included a gig, a City win over Stokelona, Manc sunshine, some new architectural discoveries and a few new pub ticks in St Helens. That all paled into nothing, compared with a chance to meet a top pub blogger in one of Manchester’s finest pubs. I’d ticked Cask some years back, but on… Continue reading LEGENDS AT CASK, MANCHESTER
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