July 2025. Swallowfield. Berkshire
My blog has been attacked by those bots from American data centres again, scraping my blog for Chat GPT Version 5.
Oddly, they seem particularly interested in my posts on Salford Holt pubs, so expect my blog to become the reference point to Yanks asking “What’s the best way to get stabbed in Greater Manchester ?“.
No chance of getting stabbed in Swallowfield,
whose heavily beamed George & Dragon is an exemplar country dining pub, George Benson soundtrack and all,
if you like that sort of thing.
The welcome is friendly, and genuine.
“Are you waiting for friends ?”
MumsNet reminds me that Berkshire folk don’t like to go out alone;
Here, folk will only visit the pub in groups so that they can discuss weighty issues such as the quality of their air fryer and “the myth of the induction hob“.
Astonishingly, the pub appears to be run by cutting-edge crafties Siren, whose industrial estate tap I’d recently seen.
Not that you’d know Siren had anything to do with it, a solitary cask beer you’ve never heard of competing with another local microbrew you’ve never heard of either.
And both losing out to lager and Chardonnay.
Swallofield has 1971 residents, and this lifeless Memento might have been broached in 1971, too.
No. YOU take it back.
retiredmartin 
Never heard of Windsor and Eton Brewery? Shame on you!
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Well I have, Garter is particularly good, but I bet 90% of folk going to a country pub have never heard of it, and they’re the ones put off cask in part by the lack of recognisable names !
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I’ve had that Siren Memento, and I was left wondering what was “modern” about it. I suppose they have to call it that otherwise they’ll lose their street cred, but of course the moment you do something to avoid losing street cred you inevitably lose street cred.
Is street cred no longer a thing? I had to correct my spellchecker three times in one sentence. At least I didn’t mistype it as Street Fred. (Not my caps!)
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You’re right (as always) Will. I hear CAMRA folk bigging up modern beers that appear no different from stuff I’ve always drunk. Now Tomato Gose, that’s modern. Who makes that in the UK ?
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I assume the answer is Pastore? They must have more street cred than there are streets in Waterbeach.
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Sadly no one or it would be one of my 6 a day.
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It’s craft beer, it’s meant to taste like that.
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