BAE 162 by Peterborough CAMRA

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Issue 162 | December 2011 - January 2012

SAVE THE PLOUGHMAN!

Peterborough & District Branch of CAMRA | www.peterborough-camra.org.uk

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Chairman’s Corner

Chairman’s Corner | 3

o here we are again approaching the end of another year. It would be nice to say that things within the pub and beer industry have improved since last year but regrettably that is not the case. Pub closures continue at an alarming rate with nine tied pubs closing every week compared to five free of tie pubs. National pubcos have failed miserably to implement self- regulation and reform of the relationship with their lessees. A damming report by MPs has branded the pub industry ‘wanting’ in its efforts to deliver reform and its trade body impotent. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) says self regulation had failed to deliver meaningful reform. This is just one of so many reports that have appeared over the last seven years and yet nothing has been done to change the unfair practices by the pubcos. They were given an ultimatum in 2010 to deliver within 18 months showing that they were working successfully within the voluntary code. It is blatantly clear that they are not. The government is expected to respond by the (yawn) end of the year. Which one! On a lighter note we sent out to all our local members in October a form and letter inviting them to submit any pubs that we should consider as entries to the 2013 GBG. The pubs that receive the most submissions are then surveyed by our team of adjudicators to check they are complying with the entry conditions and are then put forward as our entries. Also in the letter is the list of the four pubs that are contenders for the Pub of the Year (POTY), and a form to apply for tickets for this years Xmas party. Please make an effort to visit the pubs and cast your votes. When applying for party tickets make sure you enclose a stamped addressed envelope to receive them. Our AGM is being held on Tuesday 6th December at The Brewery Tap, 8-30pm start. All members are welcome but ensure you bring your membership card. Anyone who wishes to

become a more ‘active’ member should get in touch with me before the AGM. I still at time of writing have some 2012 GBG’s available for a considerable discount.

Finally I wish to convey my thanks to all our members who over the last twelve months have helped us in so many ways, whether it be distributing this newsletter, helping at the PBF, or in supporting our social events. I wish you all the compliments of the coming season and a happy and healthy New Year. Cheers David Murray - Branch Chairman.

A CAMR rd a w A Gold b Pu A CAMR Year the f o b Pu alist

2012

F in

e We’r in it!

Chapel Rd, Weldon NN17 3HP

Tel: 01536 266453

6 Real Ales on handpump changing daily Serving evening meals and Sunday roast Open noon to midnight 6 days a week (closed Wednesday) Happy Hour Monday - Friday 5- 7pm All Day Sunday

Peterborough Branch Website |www.real-ale.org.uk

Photo by Mick Slaughter

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Letter B and Railway feature in latest HOP awards HOP Awards| 5

Photo by Mick Slaughter

The Railway at Ramsey was the destination for the first award. The nomination was originally received by CAMRA member Keith Pilkington who forwarded the pub for consideration due to: “…the landlord’s commitment to continuously serving a selection of real ales in top condition, and for the warm, friendly environment in which drinkers can enjoy good beer.”

After a short speech by Peterborough branch chairman David Murray, the licensee Keith Golightly, was presented with the award. As a real-ale fan it was clear that Keith has a strong appreciation of what makes a good beer and importantly how to serve it in the right condition to the customer. Peterborough CAMRA hopes that many more drinkers both in and outside of Ramsey find the time to sample the beers on offer at this quiet, friendly local. The Letter B at Whittlesey was the second pub

of the evening to receive a CAMRA award. A staunch favourite with drinkers from both inside and outside the town, the Letter B has built up an enviable reputation and earned a Gold award in previous years. Photo by Mick Slaughter

wo well loved community pubs in Whittlesey and Ramsey have recently received HOP awards - official recognition from Peterborough CAMRA for maintaining high standards of product and service in public houses outside of the city centre area. A large group of committee members and supporters ventured to both pubs to view the presentations and to congratulate the licensees on the receipt of the awards.

The nomination for the award was put forward by John Hunt, local CAMRA social secretary, for “…for continuously serving a wide selection of real ales and traditional ciders in top condition.” He explained that as well as being a first rate pub for real ales the Letter B was almost unique in the area for its offering of the range of real ciders too. Landlord Bruce Roan was then presented with his award in front of the many familiar faces who visit the Letter B, culminating in the photo’s during which in his own words he even “smiled for the camera”! Behind the sharp wit and wisdom of Whittlesey’s foremost pub landlord however is a dedication to maintaining an excellent pint. As recipients of “Merit Awards” both pubs will now be eligible to go forward into the Pub of the Year voting. If you are a CAMRA member please don’t forget to cast your vote by 7th January 2012 using the voting forms that you will have received in October. If you haven’t received yours then please email or telephone your branch contact. Details are on the website at www.realale.org.uk. Karl Simpson - Press and Public Affairs Officer www.real-ale.org.uk

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The Ploughman and Tesco 6 | Campaigning

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he news that Tesco have brought forward their demolition date for the Ploughman in Werrington has not gone down well with the regulars and local residents. Tesco are intent on having the new superstore open by November next year and work needs to start in this financial year. It’s likely that the pub could be demolished before April next year. Unless……

We change Tesco’s mind. At the moment the pub is leased to Andy Simmonds on a very short lease and he was always aware that his time at the pub was going to be limited. But recent amendments to the plans have shown that Tesco want to retain the petrol station next to the pub. This being the case, perhaps they can be convinced to amend the plans further and incorporate the pub into the new scheme without running a bulldozer through it. An impossible task? Maybe, but there’s one thing in our favour… We don’t think that Tesco are aware that the pub is a successful community pub. We think they have assumed it’s still the hell hole it was two years ago when Andy and Stuart took over. Essentially a run down dive with massive problems and a blight on the local community landscape. Things have changed and we need to www.real-ale.org.uk

Besides, if another pub is built it will be a ‘food led identikit pub’ leased to a National company with little or no community affiliation. No thanks.

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used by many of the groups that use the sports centre following the closure of the Fox Covert bar. Without the Ploughman there is no place to meet socially. It has already been indicated that should the pub stay then there may be finance available from a local brewery to refurbish the pub at no cost to Tesco. This is a win win situation for the group. They get an upgraded pub that doesn’t cost them a bean and they don’t need to go to all the expense of knocking the pub down. The suggestion that another pub will be built nearby has not been confirmed so this part of Werrington could in theory have no pub at all! Besides, if another pub is built it will be a ‘food led identikit pub’ leased to a National company with little or no community affiliation. No thanks.

Photos by John Rice

let Tesco know about it. We need to show that there is a huge groundswell of support for the Ploughman and especially the Simmonds brothers who have achieved the impossible in less than two years. The pub has won a Gold Award from us, achieved Pub of the Year 2011 and raised literally thousands for good causes. The introduction of real ale to the pub has attracted drinkers from all over the country and the pub hosts live music, charity events and poker evenings as well as the annual beer festival which raises even more money for charity. Add to all this the fact that the pub now has four darts teams, a crib team, a pool team and is

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What can YOU do to help? We need you to write a letter to Andy and Stuart in support. Tell them that you think the pub should stay. Tell them that they have your support. Sign the petition at the pub (180 signatures were collected in 48 hours!) Visit the website www.savetheploughman.com and register, leave comments in the guestbook, sign the online petition. Get others to do the same and spread the word. These letters and the petition will then form part of the campaign to convince Tesco that they need to retain the pub. This is one fight I really think we can win. It may seem like impossible odds against us but with enough support it’s just possible we can change their minds. After all, Tesco do like to do their bit for the local community and the company is an Investor in People. Perhaps they could invest in Andy & Stuart and do their bit for this local community.

All our food is locally sourced including all beef, lamb and pork coming from Lincolnshire. We have used the same butcher from the beginning which demonstrates their understanding in our beliefs of only using the best meat.

Our Entertainment coming up On a regular basis we also have a live band and always ensure the bands we have are both well known and truly professional. coming soon are:

Porky Pig on 25th Nov Burlesque rock band on Jan 27th Our Christmas We are offering a Pre-Christmas Party Menu £23.75 a person Available from Thursday 1st December - Friday 23rd December - please see our web site for the full menu

Ye Olde Dun Cow Inn

Barrier Bank, Cowbit, Spalding, Lincs 01406 380543 www.yeoldeduncow.com

Photos by John Rice

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South Holland Overall Winner ‘Food and Drinks Award 2011 for the best Public House & Restaurant’. Our Food

Andy and Stuart with one of the awards presented to them from Peterborough CAMRA for The Ploughman. Photo courtesy John Rice www.real-ale.org.uk

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visit our website for further details Town Bridge, Peterborough PE1 1FP Tel: 01733 315700 For further information please visit www.oakhamales.com

Lincolnshire CAMRA Pub of the Year 2009 Peterborough & District CAMRA Pub of the Year 2009

• 5 real ales • plus Ciders and Perries. Over 30 Malt Whiskies

• Food served daily • 12-3pm Monday - Sunday 6-9pm Friday & Saturday • Sky HD and 3D showing Football and Rugby •

t. 01780 755141 w. jollybrewer.com www.real-ale.org.uk

Foundry Road, Stamford, Lincolnshire PE9 2PP

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Pub News

Openings, closings and changings After what seems like an age, the George in March is now under new management, or more correctly old management. The man in charge is Nigel Marsh whose temporary departure caused some confusion amongst drinkers in the fenland town back in April. Without going into too many details the affable Mr Marsh was removed from his premises by police (with the assistance of pepper spray) and council officials under suspicion of trading without a licence. It’s taken over six months to sort out the alleged transgression and on the day of the court case the judge dismissed the case almost immediately. The whole sorry mess is the now subject to an internal police enquiry! Mr Marsh is now back in his pub, trading and looking forward to a problem free future. On my recent visit Nigel gave me the full tour and showed off his Cider and Ale Shed which will be dispensing a varied range of goodies in the near future. The pub also sports a stylish coffee tavern which will no doubt attract those wanting something less intoxicating. Add to this the two beer gardens and we have a pub with massive potential. George’s as it is now called is located on the High Street and is now ready to attract a wide audience. We wish Nigel and his team all the best. See www.georges-march.co.uk for more details The Marquis of Granby in Bourne is now closed and it looks like its future will not be as a pub but as a beauty parlour and fitness centre. A real shame but part of a growing trend. The White Hart in Fletton is a pub no more. In the last issue I gave a clue to its new purpose, that of a funeral parlour. The pub now has its new black livery as befits its new role and now looks like being in mourning, perhaps as a mark of respect for all the other pubs that have closed in the city. Thanks to our ineffective planning laws

Pub News| 9

Fletton now has no pub to serve the community. Refreshments can be had at the Golden Lion in Stanground about 500 yards away or in the Woodston pub about a mile in the opposite direction. A sorry state of affairs. I am truly appalled.

Time to lift the mood a little A couple of pub openings have surprised me over the last few years. The first was the reopening of the Decoy at Milking Nook near Newborough and the second is the Dog in a Doublet on North Bank (follow the Nene towards Wisbech or head north from Whittlesey or south from Thorney - can’t miss it). The new owner John McGinn is now in the process of reopening the pub following a massive refurb. John currently runs the Anchor in Wimblingon and the opportunity to buy the Dog in a Doublet was too good a chance to miss. There will be three ales on, one will be Pedigree and the other two will be local ales depending on what sells and what the customers fancy. Food will be on offer in the pub and a ‘country kitchen’ is being installed as I write. The opening times will be extensive and John has told me he’s quite likely to open early in the morning to catch the breakfast trade (think of all those hungry fishermen just gagging for a bacon butty!). Quite simply this is the best news I could have hoped for. Once again it shows that there are people out there who believe that pubs are worth opening, even ones we thought had had their day. Thanks John, you’ve made my day. The projected opening date is the 1st December. See www.doginad.co.uk nearer the time for details. The long awaited refurbishment of the London Inn in Stamford has now finally been completed. The first customers crossed the threshold on Friday 28th of October and they appear to be impressed. The pub operates on three floors and has five handpumps offering Hobgoblin, London Continued Overleaf

www.real-ale.org.uk

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Pride and Doombar, plus two ciders, Weston’s Traditional Cider and Old Rosie. It’s good to see Matt and Emma getting settled in at the Five Horseshoes in Barholm. Both of them have quite a bit of past experience under their collective belts with Emma working regularly in the pub and Matt taking over at the Blue Bell

in Maxey to fill in for the holidays. They tell me that their first priority is to get the beer quality consistently spot on, and being real ale drinkers I’m sure they’ ll do it. There are six ales on, four of which are rotated. The two permanent ones are Adnams and Oakham JHB. In the past they’ve had ales from Hopshackle, Oldershaws and Abbeydale as well as some of the more usual ones such as London Pride, Bass and Pedigree. You’ ll also find three ciders available at anytime any time. Matt and Emma are keen to introduce some darker beers which they feel is an area that has been neglected in the past and they plan to have at least one beer festival during the year. The pub doesn’t do food but they can arrange buffets if required. Most pubs support a charity of some sort and the Five Horsehoes have has adopted the MacMillan Nurses as theirs with fundraising events being planned. May they have continued good luck. We’ ll see you soon. A couple of miles down the road the Hare and Hounds at Greatford has reopened offering five real ales. Home cooked food should be available from December Out and About It was a warm and sunny Sunday back in www.real-ale.org.uk

October when I coaxed Mrs Pubs Officer away from Bingo Blitz and Strictly Come Dancing and onto her bike with the sole intention of visiting a couple of suitable hostelries. A quick blast of air in the tyres, bike clips fitted and we were off in the direction of Milking Nook and the Decoy. Within half an hour we were propped up at the bar with a pint of Tydd Steam Barn Ale for me and a fruit based drink for the lady. Trade can be a bit brisk in the Decoy, especially on the Sunday we chose with lunches appearing thick and fast. There were even a couple of people waiting for a table which is always a good sign. There are three handpumps on the bar and at least one of them will have a local beer on. The pub has a beer garden which will be much used in the warmer months of the year. If you’re having trouble finding Milking Nook on the map the Decoy is directly between Newborough and Peakirk. A ride in the direction of Werrington was called for and first on the list was the Dragon. Now part of the ‘Simmospoons chain’ it is being run by the Simmonds Brothers as an addition to the award winning Ploughman just around the corner. Six handpumps are in use in the Dragon most of which are Charles Wells although they do have a couple free of tie offering something non Bedford based. One of the reasons for visiting the Dragon apart from the nice beer was to have a chat with Chris the landlord who is taking part in a charity event. Somehow he and his brothers have roped me into this evening of ‘do gooding’ as well, but more of this later. A short ride south brings us to old Werrington and the Cock Inn. The pub has had a bit of a chequered past but is now on very firm ground and thriving. The pub provides good food and a choice of real ales although the beers tend to be standard choices but very good all the same. Our little jaunt took us quite predictably to the Hand & Heart in Millfield as it’s on a route back home. Here we find Bram and Sue milling about with their usual energy and verve. Ales by the bucket load in here with an excellent choice available. We take advantage of the beer garden and soak up a few more rays and a few more beers. Oh how we suffer!

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Our last port of call was the new look Elm Tree Tavern once known as the Comet. Money has been well spent here and the place is fresh and bright. The pub is run by Amanda on behalf of the leaseholders and she does a superb job. A new chef has been installed and our meals were excellent and as I’d eaten all my vegetables I was allowed a pudding. There is one or sometimes two real ales available which have always been in tip top condition on our visits. So, if you haven’t been to the Elm Tree for the food and beer go now. A quizzical time for all In my youth Tuesday was always band night. Nowadays weekdays tend to be more quiz orientated. Maybe it’s cheaper to read a few questions and give away a gallon of beer as a prize that booking a band for a dozen customers. So, where can you go to lock antlers with fellow drinkers and argue over what is the capital of France? On Monday you can go to the Bluebell in Werrington or the Black Swan in Farcet, Tuesday to the Bluebell in Dogsthorpe, on Wednesday it’s a choice of the Drapers, Elm Tree or the Ostrich and Charters, the Grapevine and the Golden Lion in Stanground will look after you on a Thursday. Nick at the Rose offers a quiz on the first Thursday of the month. So, there are no excuses for staying in during the week. The capital of France is F. More beer in Werrington The Three Horseshoes in Werrington has now installed their third handpump. The beers which are on permanently are Adnams and Thwaite’s Wainright with the third coming from the SIBA list. Dawn the landlady intends adding a fourth handpump soon which will be completely free of tie. My local pub spy informs me that the beers are superb in quality and condition. Woodston, the home of scotch eggs The Coalheaver’s Arms in Woodston held a beer festival recently and as predicted sold out by Sunday. When there isn’t a beer festival on you can still have a wide range to choose from including most if not all of the Milton Brewery range. A speciality of the house is the humble

scotch egg! Tom the landlord was kept disturbingly busy during the festival up in his lair creating them by the hundred. No ordinary scotch eggs these... black pudding, green thai curry, tikka and even spam... you name it and he’s probably created it. Still in Woodston but less eggy Had a quick look in the Swiss Cottage just a stone's throw from the Coalheaver's just recently. They just happened to be holding their beer festival. Was this pure chance or had I read it in this magazine and forgotten about it? Anyway, a good choice of ales was on offer and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. The ‘Swiss’ as far as I’m concerned is always buzzing with activity so they must be getting something right. Food but not as we know it My thanks to Jonathon Groves of the Punchbowl in Stamford for introducing me to the delights of oysters! That may sound like a contradiction but I thought I’d give it a go. We’d settled ourselves near the bar on a quiet afternoon and before long we were chatting away to the regulars. As the afternoon wore on mine host suggested that an oyster or two might take the day in a different direction. Never having partaken in such a thing before I put myself forward to receive the oyster with some doubt and trepidation. It was nice to be reassured by a lady at the bar who seemed to know her way around a mollusc, it was she who gave me the oyster eating crash course (or would that be a squish course?). Some chew, some force it between the roof of the mouth and the tongue and others just swallow and hope for the best! My experience was a combination of all three as I remember. They say that the perfect accompaniment to oysters is champagne or stout but I found Summer Lightning to be an equally pleasant choice. Cheers to the Punchbowl for taking me to dark and uncertain territory. Falcon Stout and Captain Backwash As I’m always looking for an excuse to visit the Continued Overleaf

www.real-ale.org.uk

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Straw, bells and bear wrestling It’s annual, it’s popular and it’s got straw all over it. Yes, January means it’s time for the Straw Bear Festival in Whittlesey. 14th of January to be precise. This is a perfect antidote to the Winter Blues which will probably have kicked in by this time. If you haven’t been before think of morris dancers, beer, folk music, more beer, pubs full to bursting and more morris dancing. Love it or hate it, it's here and it takes over the town. Many pubs like to put on beer festivals and the justifiably popular Letter B usually does us proud with a choice of ales. In the past we’ve also had beer fests in the Bricklayer’s Arms and the New Crown. Quite what will be on offer in January 2012 is anyone’s guess but it’ll be worth a visit. Have a look at the Straw Bear website for more details at www.strawbear.org.uk. www.real-ale.org.uk

It’s a charity thing Just occasionally I’m tempted like so many others to do something stupid for charity. There are so many choices out there aren’t there? Should it be a fun run, sponsored walk, a toboggan ride down Ben Nevis or a bungee jump? Well, as I don’t like the idea of running a marathon dressed as a panda, walking seems too pedestrian, I don’t care much for heights and I don’t think they make elastic strong enough for my ample frame it’ ll have to be something else. On a cool October evening I was unfortunate enough to run into Andy Simmonds, landlord of the Ploughman pub in Werrington Centre who suggested an alternative. Why not join us in a Firewalk at the nearby Dragon pub he said. Well, it was slightly chilly that evening and the thought of warming my feet up just sounded too good to be true. For those not familiar with this activity it essentially means that I have to walk across 15 ft of hot coals without so much as a corn plaster for protection. A walk in the park as they say! So, I have now put my name forward and I am now on my way to rounding up sponsors who are only too happy to see me singe my socks in the name of a good cause. The money raised will be for the Lee Groome Fund which raises money locally for various worthwhile purposes including specially adapted wheelchairs, hearing aids and prosthetic limbs. The whole evening will be one of live music, food, beer and smouldering feet. Cheers for now, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year Steve Williams Pubs Officer

pub I’m indebted to Duncan of Castor Ales and Bram of the Hand & Heart for providing me with one a few weeks ago. The creation of a special beer by Castor Ales to celebrate Bram’s birthday was a nice idea I thought, much better than getting socks and hankies. The beer was a chocolate stout and was 5.3% which was an indicator of Bram’s age I believe. The beer appeared at the Peterborough Beer Festival and at a few local pubs, Prince of Wales Feathers in Castor being one of them. The beer also made it to the Melton Mowbray beer festival where it won a Silver Award in the Beer of the Festival category. Well, if it won an award we’d better have a ceremony and presentation (which proved to be my suitable excuse for visiting the pub). Representatives were on hand from Melton Mowbray and the local branch with Steve Saldana and Bram also waiting in the wings as they helped out with the brewing of the beer and subsequent mopping up and hoovering. To say a good night was had by all would be correct and it proved a perfect chance to try another of Castor’s offerings, the Imperial Palace Ale which was showcased in the pub. Musical diversions were provided by Captain Backwash & The Barley Boy and Girl Rafter Raisers who have been resident in the pub on the third Thursday in the month for a while now. That sounds like another excuse to visit the pub….

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Burghley Square Club re-opens

Pub News | 13

By the time you are reading this the Burghley Square Club will have opened its doors for the first time since 2008. It has had a sympathetic refit to create a warm and welcoming environment for all real ale buffs to enjoy. This is a members club five minutes walk from the bustling town centre and is an ideal meeting place before you hit the nightlife, or to stay and enjoy the many real ales on offer, there are quite a few! Beers from Rockingham Ales, Hopshackle, RCH and Church End breweries to name a few, plus ciders, lagers, Guinness, wines and many specialised bottled beers. The club also offers a function room upstairs with its own bar which can be hired by members for parties, weddings, meetings or even your Xmas do. So if you haven’t already joined ring 01733 561541 it’s free to CAMRA members and former members. It is good to see real ale pub opening with so many closing around us, so call in and see Joss, Nick and Harv at 7 Burghley Road, Peterborough.

N O OW PE N

Cheers!

HARE & HOUNDS AT GREATFORD

A genuine FREE HOUSE

FIVE Real Ales, real fires and a warm welcome! This traditional English pub has just reopened after a complete refurbishment. We now offer a wide range of Real Ales including:- Oakham JHB, Woodfordes Wherry, Adnams Broadside, Draught Bass and one guest beer OPEN ALL DAY (11am -11pm) and late at weekends Home cooked food available soon – please call Alex on 07719 440760 for bookings or check our website:

www.thehareandhoundsgreatford.co.uk The Hare and Hounds, Village St, Greatford, Stamford PE9 4QA

SIBA Competition and Beer Festival Wednesday 21st September saw the SIBA East Region Beer Competition 2011 take place in a marquee at Elgoods Brewery. 140 beers were entered in the competition and the Champion Beers were:Gold- Grain Brewery Redwood 4.8% Silver- Oakham Ales Green Devil IPA 6.0% Bronze- B&T Brewery Fruit Bat 4.5% The biggest winner was Wolf Brewery with 2 Golds, 1 Silver and 3 Bronze Awards. The whole event was presided over by SIBA`s Chief Executive Julian Grocock. Next day the Beer Festival was opened at 12.00 with Local MP Steven Barclay pulling the first pint. Around 1,500 punters attended over the 3 days. Thanks must go to all those who came and tasted the beers on the Wednesday and to Elgoods Management and staff for the Festival itself. John Rice, BLO.

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St George’s Day Y

es yes, I know it's a long way off but we CAMRA types take a while to get around to things!

In the last issue I mentioned that we don’t seem to celebrate our patron saint particularly well. The Irish make a decent fist of St Patrick’s Day if you like the idea of green dyed Guinness, the French take to the streets on Bastille Day and the Americans like to make it known in a fairly big way that they are independent from this side of the Atlantic with Independence Day (available on DVD and Blueray). So, what are we going to do about it? Well, for starters I don’t think CAMRA should do all the work here. We do after all have a wealth of public houses quite capable of doing something ’themed’ for the big day (April 23rd in case you didn’t know or use the whole week with a weekend at either end). We’ ll be able to give the pubs a platform on which to promote their activities with space on our website to promote individual pubs who are doing something special. We’ve also decided that a downloadable guide to What’s On during the week long celebrations should be produced. We also have this magazine which can be used to further promote the fun and frolics to the discerning readers out there. What we need now are pubs to come up with a few ideas and plant them firmly in the calendar in the next few months. If you want something including in Beer Around 'Ere which will be out in time for St George's Day you will need to be letting me know about it by LATE JANUARY AT THE LATEST. After this day you’ ll only be able to have something included in the download and on the website. We already have two local pubs who’ve let me know that they'll be holding beer festivals during this time. The Coalheaver’s Arms in Woodston

and the Hand & Heart in Millfield are the two pubs in question, which makes a nice start. We’ve also got a couple of local brewers who’ ll be producing a St George’s Day beer. It might be a nice idea to preview the beers at a suitable pub somewhere? We will of course organise something to celebrate St George and we’ve decided it will be a bus trip. The tour will take place on Sunday 22nd of April and it will visit some pubs called, not surprisingly, The George. The end of the tour will inevitably be the Dragon in Werrington! All subject to change as usual but if we can get a red double decker bus to do the honours for us I think it’ ll be a good day out. Book your place now if you like! All welcome, not just CAMRA members. Ideas for pubs to try..... Traditional English food and beer night. Traditional Pub Games evening. English Cheese evening. Wash it down with a few choice English ales. “My Mother-in-Law isn’t a dragon lunch”. Bring her along for a meal and get a discount. Combine the activities with a charity event and raise some cash for good causes. Whatever you choose to do the important thing is to let me know about it. We can’t do anything to help unless we’re in the loop. Make use of us, it’s what we’re here for. Steve Williams www.real-ale.org.uk

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Beer and foodâ&#x20AC;Ś A match made in heaven!

hile many of us beer drinkers regularly find ourselves supping a pint or two down at our locals, how often do we think about doing this while having our meals? I think that it might be fairly commonplace to go down to the local curry house and have a pint of whatever is on to help wash down our favorite phal, but would we consider doing the same at a fine dining restaurant? Would we bother to take the time to carefully consider what we are eating and try to match a beer to our chosen food? Would we even be able to find a place to do this, or are we stuck with a limited range of off putting lagers at our eating establishments? For me, pairing food with beer is as natural as pairing my socks; and it might be just as difficult as well (all you out there with mismatched socks on right now know exactly what I mean). I would like to think that someone who is willing to take the time to drink a proper real ale on a day to day basis, would also be just as demanding on their food choices. So why not bring the two together. Perhaps this is easier said than done.

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My first real experience with food and beer pairing occurred earlier in the year when I was fortunate enough to attend a beer and food pairing hosted by Brewdog down in London (issue #158 BAE). It was a good event, but I was not entirely sold on the idea. Fortunately, a few months later when I was back in Texas, I attended an event with a brewery call Ranger Creek (see issue #160). They did an amazing job pairing their ales with cart food. After this event, I was hooked on the idea. I had finally been wowed by a beer and food pairing and I had an idea of what could be achieved. And thus was born the idea of bringing food and beer pairings to Peterborough. My first mission was to find a partner in crime, as I tend to drink extreme beers that may not be suited for the masses. I somehow managed to wrangle in the services of one Steve Williams to help me set everything up. He has a keen sense

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of taste, and is very opinionated...for better or for worse. I knew he would not shy away from being awkward and that he would allow for nothing but the best. Next, we needed to find an eating establishment that would be willing to let two strange “beer snobs” take over for the night. I had originally thought that this was going to be the difficult part, but Nick at the Rose was very accommodating and let us run with our ideas. And the final part was to find a brewery that would pair up well with the style of food being served. Again, we were fortunate that our first choice worked. Nigel at Hopshackle agreed to let us serve his beers for this dinner (it would be the only place in Peterborough to find his beer). The dinner itself took place on the 15th of September, with 16 people in attendance. Nick’s incredible cooking paired with the nectar that is Hopshackle beer was a match made in heaven. The evening consisted of five courses paired with four beers. Out of the four beers that were paired with food, only one was a miss. It was not a miss because the beer was wrong, or even because the food was wrong, but rather because I was wrong. I had miscalculated the flavor profiles and so the pairing was a mismatch. I guess you live and learn. Overall, the evening was a huge success. Everyone went home full of food and beer, and with smiles on their faces. The evening went so well that there is a second beer and food pairing in the works now hopefully to take place in the New Year. So the question remains, how do you go about pairing your beer with food? You could go about it like we did, and go with trial and error, or you could take the time to do research to see what “experts” say, although because this is a relatively new thing here in England, you will more than likely find pairings for Belgium ales or American ales. Or, you could stay tuned to BAE and try some of the pairings that will be featured here from time to time. To get you started, you could try the following: my take on a pairing that was served at the Rose and Hopshackle beer pairing evening.

Jambalaya (serves 4-6 people)

Ingredients: 1 large onion (diced) 1 small carrot (diced) 3 garlic cloves (diced or 1 tblsp garlic paste) 1 bell pepper (diced) 1 to 2 Hot Chilies (diced) link chorizo (cut into small rounds or diced) 6 chicken wings 1 tin chopped tomatoes 1 cup rice (long grain) 2 cups mixed seafood (fresh or frozen) should include shrimp, mussels, squid, etc. 3 cups good stock (fish is preferable but chicken or vegetable will do) Salt and Pepper In a deep pot or wok (my preferred way) add a little oil and brown the chicken wings over a medium high heat. Once the wings are browned on both sides, remove them from the pan, but leave the oil in the pan. Add the onions, carrots, and bell pepper to the oil and reduce the heat to medium low. Cover. After 5 minutes, add the chorizo the garlic and the chilies to the mix. Cook until the vegetables are soft and the chorizo has released it’s grease. Stir occasionally to ensure that the mixture does not stick to the bottom. Turn the heat back up to medium high. Uncover the pot and add the chicken wings and the tomatoes. Cook this mixture uncovered for 1 minute, then add the rice. Mix the rice in thoroughly, ensuring that all the grains are covered. Add the stock and the seafood, mix well and simmer for 20 minutes or until the rice is cooked. You may have to add stock or water if the mixture seems to be drying out. In a perfect world, this would be served up with jalapeño corn bread and a bottle of Tabasco sauce. The beer that I would recommend to go with this dish would be Hopshackle’s Double Momentum. It is a 7% hopmonster that seems to go very well with this dish. Steve Saldana

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Local Brewery Update Elgoods Indian Summer, 4.8%, is now available in bottles. Warrior, 5.5%, which is only available in bottles, won Gold in its class and Gold in champion bottled beer of the Eastern Region at the SIBA competition in September. Greyhound, 5.2%, won Silver in the strong beer class at the same festival. Three beers will be available in December Feelgood Festive, 3.7%, Snickalmas, 5.0%, and Wenceslas (Winter Warmer), 7.5%. Nene Valley Brewery Rupert Farnsworth, the brewer, and two others, one of whom is a chemist, are partners in the Nene Valley Brewery. As reported in the previous edition of BAE, the initial equipment was sourced from the now redundant Cherwell Valley Brewery. The 2.5 barrel plant, along with two 2.5 barrel fermentation vessels, was installed in July 2011, and since then a further two 2.5 barrel fermenting vessels have been added. They are now able to brew four times per week and, at the time of writing, are about to commence their 25th brew. With help from those who were involved with Cherwell Valley Brewery they initially produced NVB (Nene Valley Bitter), a 4.1% chestnutcoloured beer, which has gone down well. Now available in selected pubs is their second beer, now on its third brew, BSA (Blonde Session Ale). This is a 3.8% offering. Rupert's aim is to eventually produce a traditional IPA Oakham Ales It was March 1996 when John Bryan went interstellar with his new creation White Dwarf. A classic English wheat beer so dry in its finish it almost had its own climate control. It won numerous awards in a niche market & sales remained buoyant for years but for some reason the beer didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t seem to like the move to the new brewery and, after numerous problems, the wheat content was dramatically dropped and the beer was re-launched as an English Bitter. Take up

since has been slow, so sadly for those of us that loved it, after the present brew the end is nigh & it will be no more. A requiem mass will be said in its memory at the church of San Carmen, La Carihuela, Torremolinos, in Southern Spain. It will be replaced in the permanent range in January 2012 by Scarlet Macaw at 4.4% abv, a beer you may already be familiar with. So from the new year the permanent range of five beers will be J.H.B. 3.8%, Inferno 4.0%, Citra 4.2%, Scarlet Macaw 4.4% & Bishops Farewell 4.6%. Brewing by numbers me thinks! Some top awards have been won recently with Dreamcatcher, originally brewed for the Peterborough Beer Festival, winning Champion Beer at the recent St. Albans beer festival. At the SIBA awards held at Elgoods Brewery, Black Hole Porter & Green Devil I.P.A. won gold in their categories with Green Devil going on to win overall Silver Medal. Any chance of this beer being available a bit more please chaps? Well done to all with the awards. For more info. about Oakham Ales extensive beer range visit the web site oakhamales.com. Melbourn Brothers Melbourn is still producing three fruit beers only which are sent up to Sam Smith's for bottling and sale. The brewer comes down from York when he is needed and there are no plans to change the current arrangements. Ufford Ales It has been confirmed that the Brewery will no longer be moving to Stamford. However, details of an alternative location are unavailable at present.

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Ascot Beer Festival Trip

Ascot Beer Festival | 21

e had a jolly boys and girls outing on Saturday to the 5th Ascot Beer Festival, which was run over two days, 30th September and 1st October. The cost of this delight was £8.50 for CAMRA members and £14 for non- members and that is the entrance into one of the greatest race courses in the world and the beer festival which is held in the stands. They had over 200 beers on sale and 28 Ciders and Perry. I but must add here that due to the very nice weather they had sold out of some, but to give them credit had held back some just for the Saturday meeting. All beers where priced at £1.50 for half a pint and £3 for a pint. As all sales were ticket only, no cash needed to change hands. You can book your beer tickets on-line at the same time as booking your entrance tickets, and all are waiting for you to collect, very efficient. They publish a wonderful Tasting Notes booklet and this gives the beer virgins great notes and information in the booklet as to “How to read the Tasting Notes” just as you read the form in the race card. They have a picture of the brewery and name and the brewery location, with the town and county. Beer name, style of beer, alcohol volume (ABV), bar location, description of the beer and appearance and last but not least colour coded styles, with reference to the colour code on page 11 of the guide. The colour code is a great help with 8 colours, Fullers had their own bar, and whilst there on the Saturday they had their heavy horses on show in their dray finery. Concrete Cow of Milton Keynes had 4 beers and a lot of people went to try and buy and the

beers were very good, with ordinary bitter, best bitter and golden ales, 3.8% to 4.5%, good quaffing ales for the weather. We went to try the Ascot Ales, from Camberley in Surrey, and were not disappointed in any of them other than we could not get a taste of their Coconut Crocodile, it was not ready when we arrived Saturday and by the time we went back it had gone, there’s always next year. One that we girlies liked a lot, was Itchen Valley’s Godfather, at 3.8% a good drink and its notes say, “A citrus hop character with a malty taste and a light body, leading to an increasingly dry, bitter finish. Pale brown in colour, and it was only available on the Saturday. The beers started at 3.5% and went to a 7.0%, which was Betjeman Brewery of Wantage, and Sebastopol, a strong Russian-style stout. So as well as the drinking we were able to watch and enjoy the wonderful racing that was going on and just to add to the day we had a few winners, so a good day all round. After the races finished they had music, Friday they had The Ceilidh Allstars, and Saturday Adrian Edmondson and The Bad Sheppards. If you want a good day out, with drinking and entertainment we would all say “Go to Ascot” Many thanks to all who came on the trip with us and hope you can join us again next year, 49 seats will be booked. Roz and Robert Fountain www.real-ale.org.uk

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Strolling in Sherwood Country

ell maybe not strictly true as the stroll was actually in Nottingham city. With the guidance of two of Nottingham branches prominent members, who accompanied us around some of the less frequented pubs we set off from the Castle Rock brewery. First we had the experience of riding on one of the city trams from just above the Railway station to our first port of call. The Lion is perched on a hillside opposite the tram stop in the Basford area. A fair selection of ales was on offer. The unique attraction of this pub is the cellar which can be viewed through glass covers over what appears to be an old well. With a twenty foot drop it may have explained the drop in beer temperature at the hand pumps. A ten minute walk from here found us admiring the now defunct Star Brewery building of exbrewer Shipstons. A well known landmark still standing with the large star motive on display. On the Radford Road stands the Horse and Groom pub serving several beers from mainly micro brewers. Although small the pub has several distinct areas on two levels. The pub is a currant GBG entry.

Next on the trek was another GBG entry the Lincolnshire Poacher where a welcome food break was required. At least ten hand pumps were dispensing a range of micro brewed beers ranging from a mild to a strong stout. Another ride on the tram took us to one of Nottingham’s newest pubs The Organ Grinder, the brewery tap for local brewery Blue Monkey. As you would expect the range of the brewery beers were on offer alongside guest ales. Our final pub we just had time to visit was The Canalside to sample some more Castle Rock beers, as some had only tried the beer in the earlier brewery visit – well they were free! With our scheduled train times approaching we thanked our two Nottingham ‘guides’ Ray Kirby and Colin Camidge for their valuable directives. Another visit would be most welcome from the Peterborough contingent. DM

Visit to Nottingham City | 23

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4 Cask Marque accredited real ales that includes 2 regularly changing guests Food served - Monday to Saturday 12pm to 9pm. Sunday Carvery served 12pm to 5pm

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NEW YEARS EVE Duane & Pete – Acoustic Duo – commences 9pm to see in the New Year!

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Coalies Go Mad(Ness) In York

very couple of months or so a group of 15 to 20 regulars from The Coalheavers have an away day somewhere and the latest trip was to York. Now York can be quite expensive to get to but if you book 12 weeks in advance and book for a group of 3 to 9, you can make huge savings. We got our tickets for just £18 for reserved seats on Eastcoast Trains. The only downside here is that you are on specific trains and if you miss it, tough! When we go on these trips it is always a good idea to start the day with breakfast in Drapers Arms, where for £4 you can get a filling breakfast and coffee. Fuelled up we were ready to go. Accompanying us, as always on these trips, is our bear mascot Bomber who has been in far more pubs than your average bear, and we have all his photos in the pub to prove it. My main concern for the day is making sure

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everyone gets the train, and if you knew some of the people on these trips you would understand my concerns. Getting there is usually okay but the return trip can sometimes be very perilous after a few beers. Everyone managed to get on the 10.15 so half of my concern was put to rest and 75 minutes later we were in York. Our first stop of the day was The Maltings, just 5 minutes walk from the station. We got there at 11.45 and it was packed. Being the nearest pub to the station, everyone goes there first. There was even a doorman on duty but he was just there to deter any unruly stag or hen parties. They had 5 or 6 different ales on including beers from Osset, Great Heck, Black Sheep and Thornbridge, all of which were good. It’s a good sized pub with a nice atmosphere when it’s not too busy and is full of interesting little curios on the walls. A perfect first stop.

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Our 2nd stop was a wonderful place that I was told about recently with an equally wonderful name “The House of The Trembling Madness”. If you ever go to York you must visit this place. It takes its name from the Belgian beer “Delirium Tremens” and the beers on offer are in a similar vein with draught beers from Belgium, Germany and USA and Marble best bitter on hand pump and a great selection of bottled beers from the likes of Flying Dog, Brewdog and Magic Rock. For the real hardcore drinkers they also stock the silly strength Brewdog beers Tactical Nuclear Penguin, Sink The Bismarck and at a mere 60%, Start the Future. Needless to say, several of our party did indulge. It was only 12.15! This is a great bar that also does very good food. Though most of the beers are quite strong, the prices are not too bad. The only slightly unnerving thing about the place was the stuffed animal heads on the walls including a lion and a pair of moles and they are really badly done. The bar is actually upstairs above an off license which itself has some weird

and wonderful beers from all around the world. Well worth a look, you may want to take a rucksack. As this place was so unique we stayed for a second beer here, something we don’t usually do. The great thing about York is that there are so many pubs and all very close together, you can fall out of one and straight into another, and so we did! The Yorkshire Terrier was about 30 yards away. It’s a very small pub with a very

small doorway and very easy to miss. Look for the pub sign. It may be small but it has a great atmosphere and features the full York brewery range. The Centurions Ghost was very good. There were also a couple of Osset beers. With 18 of us in there it soon filled up so we didn‘t stay too long as another large group came in. One of the great things about this pub is the hog roast shop next door, a perfect stop for dinner.

(

For the real hardcore drinkers they also stock the silly strength Brewdog beers Tactical Nuclear Penguin, Sink The Bismarck and at a mere 60%, Start the Future.

)

A 2 minute walk round the corner and we were at another York brewery pub, The 3 Legged Mare. A bit bigger than The Terrier, with a similar beer range. It was very busy so we decided to sit outside on the terrace. It may have been mid October, but the weather was great. Once again the beer was on top form, especially the house beer, Wonky Donkey. Next stop was about 50 yards away this time, to The Guy Fawkes, allegedly the house where Guy Fawkes was born. Once again a very nice pub with a busy, small bar and a large room to the side offering great views of the Minster (if you like that sort of thing). The beers were from Osset, York, Castle Rock and their own house beer, Guy Fawkes from Great Heck. After leaving here we had a 10 minute walk to The Ackhorne, or Acorn. This is a very difficult pub to find as it is down a small pedestrian cobbled alleyway, but well worth looking for. It looks quite small from the outside but when you go in it is really quite big and, again, had a good range of beers on including beers from Continued Overleaf

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Hopping Mad, Hopback, Dent and Copper Dragon. This pub also had an outside area and we decided to make the most of the great weather. Our last pub for the day was another 30 yards away on Micklegate called The Brigantes and is the current York CAMRA pub of the year, and you can easily see why. There were 8 beers on from York brewery, Black Sheep, Great Heck, Leeds and Thornbridge. This is quite a big pub and seemed very popular with CAMRA types, two of which recognised us from PBF and The Coalies – Hello to you if you’re reading this and sorry I can’t remember your names but it had been a long day! There are hundreds of pump clips on the ceiling showing just how many beers they get through. Another ‘must visit’ pub, but saying that, they all are really.

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When we go on our away days we have a fines system where anyone can incur a £1 fine for various offences such as drinking halves or drinking lager, being late, spilling beer, ogling or even telling groan-worthy bad jokes and many more. It’s a good earner and this trip raised over £20. With 20 minutes before the train was to leave I started herding everyone together ready to leave when we noticed Steve had joined a very long queue in the chip shop. He had already been fined for being late and now looked set to be fined for missing the train, not to mention having to pay full fare to get home, but I was worrying too much and everybody was grateful for his chips, they were lovely. After a brisk five minute walk we made it to the station - I counted them all out and I counted them all back on to the train. We had made it with no casualties! All in all, a great day and we will revisit York very soon and could easily do 6 or 7 totally different pubs. In November the York Tap should be open in an old tea room in the station, and is owned by the same company who run the Sheffield Tap and The Euston Tap. Should be good! Dave Botton

London Street, Whittlesey PE7 1BH Tel: 01733 351001 www.real-ale.org.uk

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:38 Page 28 28 | Castor Ales

Falcon flies south via Melton Mowbray

aul Brammer, landlord of the Hand And Heart, Highbury Street, Peterborough, is fortunate to have a birthday that coincides with the Peterborough Beer Festival. Not only does he get to celebrate with a huge range of ale, and fellow ale lovers, he also manages to coerce a local brewer to brew a ‘festival special’ aka ‘Bram’s birthday special’ for the occasion. This year it was the turn of Castor Ales. Bram approached brewer and owner, Duncan Vessey and a few nights were spent over a pint or two discussing style, malt ratios, and hop varieties! Bram and Duncan decided to brew a stout, and as an ex-train driver Bram wanted to name the beer Falcon Stout, after the locomotive ‘Falcon’, a British Rail assigned Class 53. The Falcon was in service from 1959 until 1975. To commemorate the train, they aimed for an ABV of 5.3%. Bram was 53 on his birthday and Duncan is also 53!

Brew day in July: Duncan was accompanied by Bram and Steve Saldana, (Membership Secretary) and the malt ratios were duly mashed in. Along with maris otter, the other malts included roasted barley, crystal malt, chocolate and black malt roasted to a coffee grain appearance, and a dollop of organic oats! Steve and Bram racked the previous week’s brew: Roman Gold, whilst Duncan ‘ran off’ the wort from the mash tun to the copper. Duncan said, ‘ The aromas at this stage were fascinating; malty coffee tones infused with liqourice and dark chocolate and a rich dark colour.’ And so on to the boil, and in the meantime Bram measured out the hops, and Steve dug out the mash tun, an unequal division of labour it would seem! The hops used were Phoenix and Cascade.Duncan said, ‘It was certainly a challenge brewing a stout and I’d like to thank Simon Raines of Ufford Ales and Mark Watch of Moonshine Brewery for helping me fine tune the malt ratios’. Bram said, ‘Steve and I had a great day with Duncan and we were pleased to be able to help brew the Falcon Stout. The wort was as black as the brewery dog: Maude the black Labrador.’

The beer was ready for Peterborough Beer Festival, and in the same week appeared in the Hand and Heart, and the Prince of Wales Feathers. An extra few weeks of maturation in the cask and the remaining two casks went to the Melton Mowbray and Falmouth beer festivals. At Melton Mowbray the Falcon Stout won the silver award in the Beer of the Festival competition. Festival organiser John Arthur, said, ‘Falcon Stout won the silver award in a blind tasting session and beat off stiff competition,’ Congratulations to Duncan, and to pick up this recognition is a true indication of his brewing expertise, made more pleasing for me personally as I come from Peterborough so it's great that a brewer from my hometown won one of our awards. A few weeks later and Castor Ales along with other local brewers from the Eastern region was represented at the Falmouth Beer Festival, one of the biggest in the South West. In the Best Bitter category Old Scarlett, won a bronze. Elgood’s Pageant won the silver. Duncan said, ‘I’m very grateful to the people of Falmouth and Cornwall, every brewer appreciates awards and I’m very fortunate to receive two in such a short space of time. I’d like to thank Peterborough and District CAMRA for their support, and the help and assistance I receive from other brewers in the district and the pubs in area that sell Castor Ales.’

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BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:38 Page 30

Competition

30 | Anagram competition sponsored by the Hand & Heart

ach of the phrases is an anagram of a well-known brewery and one of their ales. All beers can be regularly found on the pumps in Peterborough area pubs as well as being listed in the current CAMRA Good Beer Guide 2012. The first drawn answer sheet with all 20 breweries & beers correctly identified wins a gallon of beer to be drank in the Hand & Heart. Please send all entries to janeflew@gmail.com.

1. KEEPING IN RAGE 2. A FAKE NON-ISLAM HERO 3. CHOKE PIGEON, SCORN JEN 4. ONE PARTRIDGE MESS 5. LADIES, NAME ONE HOBBY? 6. BEER ? SHREWD TEASHOP! 7. CARL EVERT LACKS HOP TEAS 8. SO, REAL POCKET LINED THUS? 9. BOLD GROWLER’S HADES ALE 10. SUP-ALONG TIMES 11. MADDIE’S SAD BARON 12. LEN’S DOORPULL FRIEND 13. SEE A SORRY TOKEN 14. BANAL MASTER TEDDY 15. ALERT AS OLD GROOMS CAN 16. JOCK’S NEARLY GREAT BREW 17. BERATE POSTMAN’S REALM 18. SHOULD I DANCE IN CAP AREA? 19. I DESERVE SALFORD MADE SORROW 20. BEN THERE! LATE ALE MUG?

Hand & Heart: CAMRA Cambridgeshire POTY 2010 CAMRA Gold Award Winner 2010 Up to 6 ever-changing real ales, plus traditional cider & perry Spacious Beer Garden with 3 festivals each year Occasional Live Music (inside & out) www.real-ale.org.uk

An Oriental Experience from Chairman Mu Greetings from the lands of dongs, clongs, hongs and thongs! Yes I’m reporting from the Far East of our planet. On a recent trip to China, Cambodia and Thailand I made a concerted effort to discover the delights (or not) of what the local brews were like. Now anyone who has been over this neck of the woods will realise that you are not going to find a pint of best ‘crudgies’ bitter to slake your raging thirst from trailing around in 35 degrees temperatures. So first stop China in Shanghai and Xi’an. After much hunting Pauliner wheat beer was found, albeit in the hotel bar in Xi’an. The population of Xi’an is a mere 8 million, whereas Shanghai is 26 million. So it’s a miracle we found anywhere to drink at all. (The ratio of bars to population is nothing to our country). The next stop was Cambodia and the capital, Phnom Penh, a compact city of around 2 million. When you have the luxury of a brother in residence within the city it can be a great advantage. So on our first night heading downtown by the local preferred form of transport – the tuk-tuk, and arriving at Paddy Rice’s’ I was a bit sceptical as to what the brews on offer were to be. Surprisingly the first one I tried was a fairly recent new brewery beer named Kingdom. Without going into great detail some of the other beers were as you would expect in this part of the world. Angkor and Anchor lagers were the most popular but not the same beers. Tiger another well-known Far East brew was in evidence. A visit to a bar called the Pickled Parrot came up with world renowned ale Coopers Sparkling Ale from Aussie land. Two other surprises were discovered. Lao Dark, a brew from neighbouring Laos. This was a 6% dark beer with a fairly sweet taste. ABC stout came out at a hefty 8%! At the time of bashing this out I’ve not probably discovered all the local brews but, have I think discovered the most recognised ones. As it’s now reaching the ‘happy gong’ hour I’m off to see if there are any other secrets ‘tuked’ away in this crazy city. Ha So from Chairman Mu.

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:38 Page 31 Please support our advertisers | 31

Blue B~ oEyear~ Selection of Real Ales including Oakham Ales

Sky Sports • Pool Table • Darts Home cooked Sunday Lunches Small conference room available (Weddings,Christenings and business facilities)

Christmas Menu available throughout December, please book in advance

Christmas Parties Welcome! FREE 46 High Street, Eye, Peterborough PE6 7UY Tel: 01733 222234

The Prince of Wales Feathers

Castor, Peterborough Tel: 01733 380222

Award winning village local in historic Castor. Close to the Nene Valley Railway & Ferry Meadows.

Serves 5 guest ales & real cider. Walker & dog friendly.

Home cooked food every lunchtime and NOW available midweek evenings too!!

BREWERY TAP OF CASTOR ALES details at: www.princeofwalesfeathers.co.uk

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:38 Page 32 32 | Please support our advertisers

www.real-ale.org.uk

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:39 Page 33

Rythym and Booze

Gig Listings | 33

132 Great Whyte, Ramsey PE26 1HS

Keith and Jenny offer a warm welcome to all old and new customers. Serving a selection of Real Ales: Abbot Ale, Lancaster Bomber, Woodfordes Wherry and one ever-changing guest ale. Open All Day Every Day! (12 Noon – 11pm )

We’re in it!

Live Music • Free WiFi Large Beer Garden

01487 812597

Three Horseshoes Church Street, Werrington Village

3 Real Ales Christmas Opening Christmas Eve 11am to 12pm Christmas Day 11.30am to 2pm Boxing Day 12 - 11pm

New Years Eve 11 til Late No Entry Fee - Just Fun & Frolics

New Years Day Open all Day 12 - 11pm Check out the Rhythm & Booze column for our live music dates!

25th Nov Porky Pig, Dun Cow, Cowbit 25th Nov One Eyed Cats, Brewery Tap, Peterborough 26th Nov The Elvis experience, Prince of Wales, Castor 26th Nov The Fleeting Minds, Mama Liz, Stamford 26th Nov Shake Hands Eric, Charters, Peterborough 27th Nov Adrian Duffy, Charters, Peterborough 1st Dec Voodoo Unplugged, Mama Liz, Stamford 2nd Dec Wholesome Fish, Mama Liz, Stamford 3rd Dec Lee Major, Charters, Peterborough 3rd Dec 101 Proof, Prince of Wales Feathers, Castor 3rd Dec Soulweaver, Three Horseshoes,Werrington 4th Dec Pennyless, Mama Liz, Stamford 4th Dec Steve Bean, Charters, Peterborough 9th Dec Gypsies, Charters, Peterborough 10th Dec One Eyed Cats, Prince of Wales, Castor 10th Dec Shakedown Blues presents ROBERT PENN (vocal/guitarist), The Village Hall, Castor. Tickets £15.00. www.shakedownblues.co.uk 10th Dec Kickback, Three Horseshoes, Werrington 10th Dec The Countries (Country and Blues), Woolpack, Stanground 11th Dec Steve Bean on Classical Guitar, Mama Liz, Stamford 17th Dec Motown Night - Three Horseshoes, Werrington 17th Dec Redemption, Charters, Peterborough 18th Dec 3pm - Steve Bean plays Classical Guitar, Woolpack, Stanground 18th Dec Wavelength Roxxt - Three Horseshoes, Werrington 22nd Dec New Orleans Jazz Mama Liz, Stamford 23rd Dec Children of the Revolution, Prince of Wales, Castor 21st Jan Pulse, Three Horseshoes, Werrington 27th Jan Burlesque, Dun Cow, Cowbit 28th Jan Karaoke, Three Horseshoes, Werrington Brewery Tap The Brewery Tap situated in Westgate, Peterborough, recently launched its first open mic night which will now take place on the first Sunday of every month. Please send any details for February / March gigs to dan@tamoko-design.co.uk before 10th January. www.real-ale.org.uk

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:39 Page 34 34 | Please support our advertisers

Established in 1796 as one of the ORIGINAL Stamford Ale Houses with a large beer garden, providing accommodation with free WI-FI.

Serving eight real ales and six real ciders.

We also host two annual beer festivals in April and September. Live Music events please call for more information 29 Scotgate, Stamford www.real-ale.org.uk

Tel: 01780 753 598

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Diary Dates DECEMBER Sat 3rd - 7:00pm. Christmas Party, At the Rugby Club. Ticket only. Contact Dave Murray. Tue 6th - 8:30pm. Branch AGM, At the Brewery Tap, PE1 2AA. All members welcome but please bring your membership card. Sat 10th. Festive Pie & Pint Crawl to Melton Mowbray, We will be travelling by train to Melton Mowbray to sample some festive beers and local Melton Pork Pies. Meet at Peterborough Station at 10.30 for the 10.52 train. Off peak return for the day is £14.00. Please let Social Secretary John Hunt know if you intend to come along on the trip. JANUARY Thursday 12 sees the return of our Campaigning Crawls with a midweek evening visit to March. Depart the Brewery Tap at 6.45pm and return by 11pm Cost £7.00 Monday 16 – Committee Meeting, Location TBC Sat 28 - Sunderland by train with a stop at Hartlepool Station for one of the new breed of ‘micro pubs’. Contact Mick Slaughter ASAP for details. FEBRUARY Monday 6 Pie Night at the Plough Greetham. Depart the Brewery Tap at 7pm and return by 11pm. Cost to include meal is £16.00

Selected Beer Festivals

JANUARY 19th – 21st January 16th Cambridge Winter Ale Festival, University Social Club, Mill Lane 25th – 30th January Pig n Falcon, St Neots Winter Beer Festival. 20 Ales and Ciders.

Diary Dates | 35

Peterborough CAMRA Cricket

Following a mixed summer season the indoor has started with two losses, one to Bretton and one to Orton Park. Full fixtures for the season are: Sunday 4th December 2011 - 18.30 Hampton CC Sunday 8th January 2012 - 16.30 Castor CC Sunday 22nd January 2012 - 19.30 Kashmir CC Sunday 29th January 2012 - 20.30 Shiek 11 Sunday 5th February 2012 - 20.30 Cabline CC Sunday 26th February 2012 - 18.30 Thomas Cook A small number of the team undertook a Stamford pubs crawl in October so we could have informed opinion on which to include in the branch nominations for Good Beer Guide entries. Although not a comprehensive tour we still managed the Jolly Brewer, the Green Man, the Periwig, Mama Liz’s, the Lord Burghley and the Tobie Norris. To conclude a fine Saturday, once back in Peterborough we hit Royal Spice curry house before finishing at The Ostrich listening to a live band and drinking a few pints of Castor’s IPA. Highlights of the day were the short appearance of “Angry Al” the cricket team’s answer to Rab C Nesbit in the Lord Burghley, and a local birthday boy named Matt in Mama Liz’s, who invited us to eat an Orleans style buffet as he had over ordered…..top man!!! If you want to join us for a game or social event please contact me on 07809629241 or email mattmace@hotmail.com. Matt Mace - Cricket Club Secretary

www.real-ale.org.uk

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:39 Page 36 36 | Please support our advertisers Graham, Debbie and staff welcome you to

THE GOAT Frognall, Deeping St. James, Peterborough, Lincs Good food served lunch times and evenings and Now open ALL DAY Saturday and Sunday serving food.

Fine selection of real ales from around the Country, five guest beers on at one time. Extensive range of foreign bottled beers 70 single malt whiskies Real Cider Beer Gardens We cater for functions and large parties, please call us to discuss your requirements

01778 347629 www.thegoatfrognall.com

www.real-ale.org.uk

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:39 Page 37

Pub of the Year 2012 Nominations

Pub of the Year 2012 | 37

Here are the four nominees for the Peterborough and District CAMRA Pub of the Year 2012 Award. All CAMRA members are eligable to vote and should have received a voting form in the post in October. If you havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t received your form then please email or telephone your branch contact. Details are on the website at www.realale.org.uk. Please get your votes to us by January 7th.

Letter B Whittlesey

Railway Ramsey

Shoulder of Mutton Weldon

The Goat Frognall

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:39 Page 38 38 | Contact Details

Branch Committee

Beer Around ’Ere

Secretary: Harry Morten 49 St Margarets Road, Peterborough PE2 9EA 01733 764296 07900 056940 08707 620848 (fax) info@real-ale.org.uk

Editor: Jane Flew bae-editor@real-ale.org.uk

Chairman: David Murray 01733 560453 chairman@real-ale.org.uk Treasurer: Paul Beecham 01733 311981 07710 008693 treasurer@real-ale.org.uk Minutes Sec: Dickie Bird 01733 574226 dickeybird@ntlworld.com

Distribution: David Murray (See Chairman on the left) Advertising: Chris Shilling 01778 421550, 07736 635916 chris@shillingmedia.co.uk Magazine & Advertising Production: Dan Speed 0845 838 7581 dan@tamoko-design.co.uk Postal Distr: Daryl Ling 01733 235881

Festival Org: Mike Lane 07850 334203 festival-organiser@realale.org.uk LocAle Officer: John Rice 07759 342702 locale@real-ale.org.uk

Please contact Chris Shilling 01778 421550 Mobile: 07736 635 916 or Jane Michelson 01778 420888 Mobile: 07732 393621 jane@shillingmedia.co.uk for all of your advertising needs.

Brewery Liaison Officers

Blue Bell: John Hunt 07923 489917 Castor Ales: Mike Lane Vice Chair: John Hunt 07850 334203 07923 489917 Digfield: Dave Waller vice-chair@real-ale.org.uk 01733 348760 Social Sec: John Hunt Elgoods: John Rice 07923 489917 07759 342702 social-sec@real-ale.org.uk Hopshackle: Noel Ryland Pubs Officer: Steve Williams 07944 869656 07756 066503 Melbourn: Lew Clayton pubs-officer@real-ale.org.uk 01780 765063 Oakham Ales: Dave Allett Press Officer: Karl Simpson 07966 344417 07737 297072 Tydd Steam: John Hunt press-officer@real-ale.org.uk 07923 489917 Young Members: Alix Botton Ufford Ales: Matt Mace 07806 625574 07809 629241 young-members@realale.org.uk Trading Standards Membership: Steve Saldana 07988 067260 membership@real-ale.org.uk

The next issue of BAE will be available on: 26th January We must have your stories, news and advertisements by: 6th January Late copy cannot be guaranteed entry.

Steve Williams steve.williams@beeraroundere. org.uk or 0775 6066 503 is always looking for pub news. Please send stories and other copy to bae-editor@real-ale.org.uk Beer Around ‘Ere is published by Peterborough & District Branch of CAMRA Copyright © 2011, The Campaign for Real Ale Ltd.

S H L

K Mig

Jo The

Views or comments expressed in this publication may not necessarily be those of the Editor or of CAMRA.

08545 040506 www.consumerdirect.gov.uk Check out our website at: www.real-ale.org.uk

TH Sta

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:39 Page 39

011 CAMRA Pub of the Year 2

www.savetheploughman.com Sky Sports Happy Hour Mon - Fri, 5-7pm Live Entertainment Weekly Karaoke every Sunday with Mighty Mouth Trev Join our Facebook group The Ploughman

Christmas Party FRIDAY 23rd DEC

New Years Eve

with the ONE EYED CATS!

with the NUGGETS (£10 TICKET)

Sister pub to the Dragon, Werrington

Awar d R winning

eal A l from £2.0 es 0!

THE PLOUGHMAN Staniland Way, Werrington centre PE4 6NA Tel: 01733 327696

BAE 162 Prog_Layout 1 18/11/2011 13:39 Page 40

Big kfasot 11am rB eSaat 8 t ! 95 ry

ree At Least Th

, ry ve r r ca o e at f h e t m can o r f u lf se s yo r e u a ev lp yo uch e H as m

Real Ales!

. 5 £ y onl

More than just a Carvery! A

great welcome awaits you at The Farmers, Yaxley. We are famous for our fresh vegetables and great carvery meats, succulent and served with all the trimmings, then finished off with a tantalising hot or cold dessert! Check out our new lunch time grill menu’s and our ever changing specials boards. Put it all together with three fine cask ales and you have the perfect place to enjoy dinner with friends or a family celebration. We have a self contained function suite which is ideal for parties, weddings and all of life’s celebrations.

Last few tables available

for Christmas & New Years Eve!

So if you’ve not been before give us a try and you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

200 Broadway, Yaxley Tel: 01733 244885 Email: thefarmers@btconnect.com www.thefarmersyaxley.co.uk