I set off for the launch of the CAMRA Heritage Pubs guide in Preston this morning, but got no further than Grantham. My chosen hotel (not I hope a euphemism) had been trashed last night, and Preston seems to be full tonight (at least for tightwads like me). So I recovered over four cups of coffee… Continue reading THE 9 O’CLOCK RUSH IN GRANTHAM
IN PRAISE OF THE GOOD BEER GUIDE
Well the new Beer Guide arrived on Monday, only a week after folk in Wimbledon and Essex were tweeting about their local pub being in it. Unlike the Southerners, I won’t be breaking the embargo by revealing entries before 15 September. Whatever my irritation with the postal system, the Guide is a wonderful thing, and… Continue reading IN PRAISE OF THE GOOD BEER GUIDE
AN UNSPOILT GEM IN BRAUGHING
A random* walk in the gorgeous east Hertfordshire countryside just off the A10 is the best way to welcome Autumn to England. The only more autumnal place would be the Chequered Skipper in Ashton (Northants), home of the world conker championships. Leaves are already falling on the many footpaths in this commuter village known only… Continue reading AN UNSPOILT GEM IN BRAUGHING
MID-WEEK WINCHESTER
Stopping at Winchester‘s caravan park on the way to End of the Road made a change, we normally stay in Salisbury, which gives me plenty of time to whinge about warm Hop Back beers in their otherwise very lively pubs The absence of the Beer Guide when we left home (surely the subject of a future… Continue reading MID-WEEK WINCHESTER
SORTED FOR BAHN MI AND BLACK IPAs – END OF THE ROAD 2016
My four days in Cranborne Chase at this year’s End of the Road (EotR) were a bit different to 2015. Mrs RM came along, which meant the home comforts of a campervan rather than the tiny solo tent of a year ago. The queue of campers for the showers made us feel very bourgeois every… Continue reading SORTED FOR BAHN MI AND BLACK IPAs – END OF THE ROAD 2016
BEAVERTOWN @ END OF THE ROAD
Just back from the End of the Road Festival to find the Beer Guide still not delivered. I am surprisingly calm, considering. The return to a world of internet is quite a shock, as was the arrival of “Craft” at End of the Road, a music festival that eschews an excess of modernity. On my… Continue reading BEAVERTOWN @ END OF THE ROAD
TOP 100 PUBS – WYKEHAM ARMS, WINCHESTER
Looking back at previous Top 100 pubs, there’s not many upmarket examples in there (this one apart of course). So I’m glad to be able to add a Proper Posh Pub to my list. It’s good to know there are places to drop in to overhear conversations about Danish gilt rates and castle breaks in Liechtenstein. On… Continue reading TOP 100 PUBS – WYKEHAM ARMS, WINCHESTER
GOOD BEER GUIDE PROGRESS CHECK
We’re on the way to Cranborne Chase for the End of the Road Festival, famous for music you’ve never heard and its lack of internet. So I’ve no idea what I’ll be posting till Monday, when hopefully I’ll return to the new Beer Guide. Don’t be surprised if I don’t respond to your… Continue reading GOOD BEER GUIDE PROGRESS CHECK
AUGUST STOCKTAKE
August is the cruellest month. I expected the new Beer Guide last Friday, but I now won’t see it till I get back from End of the Road festival next Monday. Simon will have completed it by then. Helped by a blitz of the Welsh coast in our campervan, 51 new Guide pubs were visited… Continue reading AUGUST STOCKTAKE
PETROL GIRLS & ST. RADEGUND
You’ll have noticed I’ve spent the last few days in Cambridgeshire. This isn’t because of any Damascene conversion to the beauty of the Fens, but because I’m sitting by the door waiting for the new Beer Guide. In torment. This is my emergency supply for stressful situations; To take my mind of the fact that… Continue reading PETROL GIRLS & ST. RADEGUND
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