On my last overnighter in Dereham I wrote;
If I’d known the “unspoilt” Cherry Tree was as basic as Paul Bailey advises me now, I’d have started there.
Finally, on a fourth trip to the capital of “that indefinable bit between King’s Lynn and Norwich” we did the Tree.
Perhaps we’d just needed Mrs RM with us for courage. Curry Charles wasn’t keen, but then he’s a genteel Scot.
In Stockport, this would have been Winter’s, in Cambridge it would be the Ship. The place the CAMRA branch find an excuse for leaving off the Christmas crawl.
According to WhatPub the Cherry Tree has NEVER been surveyed. Now I’ve got a free November I’ll send them my update.
Almost disappointingly, it was fine.
A bit better than fine, if I’m honest. Who wants that ?
Clean, welcoming and safe, with a lovely young barmaid greeting us warmly, like they always do in the places you think you’ll be intruding on a private conversation. The rumble of “Kashmir” couldn’t disturb the buzz of banter,
Mainly solo drinkers, perhaps surprisingly. The front bar only had one table free, an ideal one, but I still walked past it to survey the pumps.
One pump, Wolf Sirius Dog Star, an ideal choice.
Mrs RM, already 2 pints up on us, decided to ask the barmaid for an artisan beer menu.
“We’ve got Fosters, Amstel, Gui…“.
“Oh, I’ll have what they’re having“
For all I know those 2.5 pints of cask were the ONLY pints of cask served all day (though I doubt it), but they were pretty good. Cool, rich, tasty, NBSS 3. In any town in Scotland it would get the Cherry Tree in the GBG, easy.
Led Zep gave way to Deep Purple, we talked about auditing and curry, which is 90% of life, and I went for a little wander to the Gents via the games room.
The one-way system meant it took about 7 minutes to find my way out the back door, round the front, and back to the copper plated table where our work was done.
Just remember when you’re sitting with your can of DIPA next week, WE were saving the pubs the CAMRAs wouldn’t touch.
The dancing drunks in Winters were always the highlight of our Christmas crawl 😉
I know Norfolk was still in Tier 1, but under Tier 2 only solo drinkers were allowed.
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Yes, Stockport CAMRA are the exemplar as regards visiting and rewarding unfussy pubs, but Winters was the comparator that came to mind !
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Yes, it seems fine.
We’ve all been in a few “unspoilt by progress” pubs, where “progress” would include such things as the Rule Of Law, and the Enlightenment on the other hand.
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Progress often means pointless.
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I’ve spent fourteen nights in Norfolk but none in the last 7½ years.
If I ever get there again I shall try to get to that Cherry Tree as it reminds me of a Craft Union pub two miles from me, a friendly really Proper Pub with lovely 6X at £2 a pint but maybe “basic” so that it’s a “You don’t go in there do you ?” from those I suspect of only voting for pubs with at six cask beers on.
No, I won’t be buying the 2021 GBG.
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Is the 2021 GBG worth buying just for the smaller size? Do the micros dominate the new guide?
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Yes, the reduced size due to omission of those dreadful tasting notes makes it worth the price. Perhaps next year they’ll scrap the breweries all together.
There ARE plenty of micropubs, particularly in Leicestershire and Lancashire. But plenty of unexpected plain pubs too, as you’ll see. 👍
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The smaller size kind of changed my mind on not purchasing it. It is nice to have a smaller book to carry.
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And reduced size partly due to omission of those opening hours ?
One way to solve the 24 hour clock or not dilemma !
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GBG 22 should be even smaller, with only 17 pubs left in the UK.
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Each with 331 handpumps.
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Each one of which will dispense Bass.
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Your write-up on the Cherry Tree was well worth the wait Martin, although you don’t’ say whether your friend appreciated the pub as much as you obviously did. (I’m assuming here that Mrs RM also enjoyed the pub, despite the lack of artisan beer!)
I’d been tentatively working on plans for a trip to Dereham, or thereabouts, in order to say hello to my father through the window of his care home, but with hotels being closed to all but essential workers/travellers during the impending shutdown, those plans have been scuppered.
Anyway, I enjoyed reading about the pub and seeing the photos, although I can’t see what was so special about the shelving behind the bar, that warranted its inclusion on CAMRA’s National Inventory.
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Charles was surprised the beer was so good, though he preferred the next pub. I think we were more focused on our own chat than the pub if I’m honest.
As you note, I couldn’t see anything to warrant National Inventory listing though I have to admit I’m often more fussed about people than fittings. In Shifnal the two came together in the Wheatsheaf, despite the lack of “exciting” beers !
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“Charles was surprised the beer was so good” but “one beer is plenty” ALWAYS bodes well.
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The leaving by the back door to get back to youe pint is likely to become a bit wearysome in the midst of a blizzard, isn’t it? (assuming anywhere is open before springtime)
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My quick look at new entries in Derbyshire leads me to think that the Dog Star would get any micro in the GBG. Do those CAMRA’s get out to other pubs? I’m particularly impressed with one local entry in the GBG where the description has hardly changed despite a change of hands well before their selection. It’s tough in the back of beyond…
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“Perhaps we’d just needed Mrs RM with us for courage. ”
I think she prefers beers stronger than the Courage* range. 😉
(does not include the Imperial Russian Stout, of course)
“but I still walked past it to survey the pumps.”
Good move.
“Oh, I’ll have what they’re having“
🙂
“and I went for a little wander to the Gents via the games room.”
You’re getting good at being slyly surreptitious. 😉
“The one-way system meant it took about 7 minutes to find my way out the back door, round the front, and back to the copper plated table where our work was done.”
Blimey.
“Just remember when you’re sitting with your can of DIPA next week, WE were saving the pubs the CAMRAs wouldn’t touch.”
Sad to say, the one brewpub in town is a bit… frou frou. 🙂
Cheers
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