July 2025. Farnham. An 8 pub day out, artisanally (?) curated by Citra Mick who cruelly denied us the delights of Doom Bar in his home town. Farnham had much for the Pub Man who likes beer he’s heard of; Fullers, Youngs, Tim Taylor. But it didn’t always have a lot of custom, whether for… Continue reading FARNHAM 3 of 5. THE NELSON ARMS

July 2025. Farnham. While Kentish Paul waited for his Club Ciabatta in Farnham Pub No.1, I nipped out and bought my own lunch, a rather less artisanal affair from Poundland. Those packs have been a quid for near on 20 years now, which raises some questions I’d rather not be answered. My escort of Paul… Continue reading FARNHAM 2 of 5 – THE HOP BLOSSOM

July 2025. Farnham Mick aka Citra, definitely not a codger, had put together a superb day out, all the better for ensuring all five Farnham pubs were almost literally next door to each other. When you’re approaching middle age you really don’t want to be wasting valuable drinking time admiring ancient Surrey market towns. Unless… Continue reading FARNHAM 1 of 5. THE QUEEN’S HEAD

July 2025. Alton. Hampshire. Our big Southern day out in mid July was a 2 stage affair, 3 pubs in Alton and a nap hand   12 minutes by rail over the border in Farnham. Both unexplored territory for pub crawls, let alone curated surveys. That train journey starts yards from the station at Alton’s best… Continue reading Top pub signs No. 1. The Railway Arms, Alton.

July 2025. Alton. Hampshire. Last time in Alton I’d shown the in-laws the parish church, admired the simplicity of the Eight Bells, but declared the Railway Arms the town’s essential stop. Well, that was wrong, as the Eight Bells is clearly your reason to divert from Jane Austen’s birthplace. But time your visit, as this… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – THE EIGHT BELLS, ALTON

July 2025. Alton & Sheffield. You might thing this blog is cobbled together haphazardly in breaks between pubs and waits for Chinese takeaways, but you’d be right. You might also assume that as it’s a diary (or dairy as I wrote at 8, I also spelled Wales with an “h”), it’s strictly chronological. And broadly,… Continue reading A CLEAR HEAD

July 2025. Alton. Hampshire. The Beer & Pubs Forum offer Old Codger-approved “pub crawls”, but once the invite gets extended to CAMRA Discourse members the ante is upped. Whatever an ante is. It becomes a “curated pub exploration”, participants are required to sign an NDA, and strict timetables with new CAMRA logo are produced on… Continue reading ALTON’S CULTURAL DIVERSIONS

July 2025. Wolverton. Milton Keynes. A rare post-GBG completion venture in bucolic but boring Bucks, and a first central Milton Keynes mission since (astonishingly) 2018. An Ember Inn then, and a Brewhouse & Kitchen and Spoons before that. Chains in the centre, brewery taps and craft bars in the villages. Wolverton, like New Bradwell next… Continue reading TRYING TO FIND MILTON KEYNES BIERGARTEN ? GOOD LUCK MATE

July 2025. Northampton. Apart from the market square, Rifle Drum, county cricket and All Saints Church, Northampton also has some subtly gorgeous architecture, some pleasing hotels from its time as a commercial centre, and even a bit of Charles Rennie Mackintosh. But it’s shoes it’s most famous for, just as Stockport is best known for… Continue reading COBBLERS ! NORTHANTS HAS FALLEN