CAMRA Angle - Issue 27 - Summer 2012 by Capital Media

The magazine from the Slough, Windsor & Maidenhead branch of The Campaign for Real Ale

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Issue 27 - Summer 2012 | www.swmcamra.org.uk

Pl take one

Inside... 3rd Windsor Beer Festival

In this special re-launch issue, we’ll be taking a look at what’s happening at the 3rd annual Windsor Beer Festival. It’s on from Friday 20th - Sunday 22nd July, 2012 at The Windsor Farm Shop, Old Windsor. Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire & South Buckinghamshire www.swmcamra.org.uk

Over 45 real ales & ciders. Free admission.

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WELCOME

The first choice for pub news in East Berks & South Bucks

EDITOR Allan Willoughby editor@camraangle.com ADVERTISING Capital Media Group Tel: 01628 203 203 advertising@camraangle.com CONTRIBUTORS Allan Molloy, Allan Willoughby, Mike Stevens, Kevin Phillips, Greg Davies, Delia Allott, Simon Smith, Steve Goodall, Alasdair Donaldson, Keith Smith IMPORTANT CONTACTS Campaign for Real Ale Ltd. 230 Hatfield Road St. Albans Hertfordshire, AL1 4LW Tel: 01727 867 201 Email: camra@camra.org.uk www.camra.org.uk Trading Standards www.tradingstandards.co.uk or ask at your local council ADVERTISING RATES Full Page: £225.00+vat Half page: £125.00+vat Quarter page: £65.00+vat Book all four editions and receive a further 10% discount. Free design. Call today on 01628 203 203 to book CIRCULATION Circulation: 4,500 copies Estimated Readership: 6,000 Distributed to pubs and other outlets in Slough, Windsor & Maidenhead. Published quarterly Printed on a 135gsm silk FSC stock PUBLISHED BY Capital Media Midlands Ltd. Aura Business Centre, Manners Road Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, NG24 1BS Tel: 01628 203 203 Email: camraangle@thisiscapital.com www.thisiscapital.com © Copyright 2012 Capital Media Midlands Ltd and CAMRA Slough, Windsor & Maidenhead. All Rights Reserved. CAMRA Angle is published by Capital Media on behalf of the Slough, Windsor & Maidenhead Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale. The views expressed in this publication are those of individual contributors, and not necessarily those of the publisher, the Editor, the branch or of the Campaign for Real Ale or Capital Media. The stocking and supply of and advertising in CAMRA Angle does not imply CAMRA approval of the outlet concerned. Printed using FSC recycled stock by Capital Media Group. Please recycle.

> FROM THE EDITOR A big welcome from the new look CAMRA Angle. Our new partners, Capital Media, now produce your quarterly magazine ensuring a more professional product. Summer 2012 is exceptional with the Olympics,The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and the 3rd Windsor Beer Festival at The Windsor Farm Shop, Datchet Road, Old Windsor. More than 45 beers will be selected from local breweries as well as at least 10 mostly local Ciders and Perry. If you have not been before, the Farm Shop is around a 20 minute walk from Datchet Station, or you can catch the No. 71 bus from Windsor. There is ample parking and admission is free throughout From Friday 20th to Sunday 22nd July, opening from 11am to 5.30pm. There is a free ½ pint token for all CAMRA card carrying members as well as commemorative glasses for £3, refundable. Focusing on the positive the variety of information for publishing now being received is a credit to each contributor, making it such a difficult task to choose what to include in this issue. Please keep the articles coming – anything to do with real ale and your pubs! The pub is the hub of many communities and will remain so and, despite an unacceptable number of pub closures, I remain confident that well run pubs will continue to thrive. For CAMRA members our Annual General Meeting is being held at Maidenhead Conservative Club on Saturday 9th June 2012 at 2pm Finally, I would ask you to take just a few minutes to sign the beer duty e-petition, details on page 22, to force the government to think again about the duty escalator. Beer duty will increase by inflation plus 10% which equates to around a 10p rise on top of your pint. If the e-petition exceeds 100,000 (less than the CAMRA membership) the Campaign can work to force a high profile debate in the House of Commons about beer duty. I hope you find our regular articles of interest and hope to see you at the Windsor Beer Festival, a whole bunch of volunteers will be working hard to guarantee its success.

Allan Willoughby Editor

Crown Lane • Farnham Royal • SL2 3SQ 01753 647714 • www.crowninnpub.co.uk

Crown THE

INN

FA R N H A M R O YA L

John and Tracy are pleased to announce that they have now fully taken over after 2 ½ years of Managing The Crown Inn. Come and enjoy the great fresh food, fine ales and wines, huge garden with play area, feeding our chickens, or just relaxing in a good old traditional pub. Food available all day every day, and great deals to be had. See our website at www.crowninnpub.co.uk for more details. Just minutes from Burnham Beeches, Slough Industrial estate, The M4 and M40.

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> THE SEARCH FOR THE PERFECT PUB A timely encounter as pubs are disappearing > In the Evening Standard on 9th February 1946 George Orwell wrote about his favourite pub the Moon Under Water. ‘It is only two minutes from a bus stop, but on a side street, and drunks and rowdies never seem to find their way there, even on a Saturday night. Its clientele, though fairly large, consists mostly of regulars who occupy the same chair every evening and go there for conversation as much as for the beer’. Later in the article, Orwell goes on to reveal that the pub only exists in his imagination and is his idea of a fantasy pub. This is the inspiration for Paul Moody and Robin Turner’s new book ‘The Search for the Perfect Pub’ and follows on from their earlier book ‘The Rough Pub Guide’ which looked at their favourite unreconstructed and unique pubs. Does the Perfect Pub exist or is it just a flight of fantasy? To answer this, Moody and Turner, through a series of essays take us on an interesting journey across Britain exploring their search for pub perfection. They also interview many of the great and good of pub culture including Tim Martin (Wetherspoon’s boss) and Pete Brown (‘The King of Beer’) plus a variety of micro-brewers, bloggers, saloon bar sages and even Orwell’s old landlady. Their search is a timely one as pubs are disappearing at the rate of sixteen a week and among them are many gems which can never be replaced and may well have been on someone’s perfect pubs list. Pubs are being hit by a perfect storm of high and increasing beer duty, below cost alcohol sales by supermarket chains and crippling rents imposed by pubcos. The choice and variety, once a feature of our pub heritage, is fast disappearing. The book is a timely reminder of what we need to save unless future generations are to be left with just books on pubs rather than the real thing. My favourite part of the book, as you would probably expect, is the descriptions of the pubs themselves and the interviews with their landlords. I really liked the sound of the Butchers Arms in Herne, Kent which consists of one 14ftx12ft room; no lager; six real ales served straight from the cask; a choice of beer based on customer preferences; no music and

a jar of pickled eggs behind the bar. I also liked the Marisco Tavern on Lundy Island off the coast of Devon. Getting there (and back) by boat is dependent on the weather but once there it is probably the most peaceful pint in Britain. This is broken every day however by a loud klaxon sounding the last boat to the mainland. A further favourite of mine which I have visited on a number of occasions is the Vulcan in Cardiff which is once again under threat of permanent closure. It is a gem of a basic pub, in a real time warp, reflecting the working class maritime history of the city. It stands proud and isolated beside a public car park and a busy main road, awaiting its uncertain fate in the hands of urban planners. Overall the essays in the book are well written in a good atmospheric style, although the lack of a linking narrative gives the book a bitty feel and some repetition creeps in. A few of the chapters also feel a bit like padding and ramble on more than necessary. An index would also be helpful. In terms of its strengths, the book is particularly good on the links of pubs to the music business and their role in the development of now well known bands. This is one aspect of pub life with which I am relatively unfamiliar, and it is worth bearing in mind that for some people a pub cannot get anywhere near perfect without some sort of music input. So where does that leave us in the book’s search for the perfect pub? As you would expect with picking the favourite of anything, tastes vary hugely and even with individuals this varies over time. It is the search itself that is important and this is the key to the book’s entertainment. The search, as they say, goes on but how much longer we will have a sufficient stock of pubs to search? If you read this book and conclude that we need to do something about preserving pubs, then the book’s search will not have been in vain. ___________________________________________________ ‘The Search for the Perfect Pub’ by Paul Moody and Robin Turner is published by Orion Books at £14.99

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> PECULIAR PUBS The Crooked House, Himley nr Dudley, Staffordshire > This pub was built as a farmhouse in 1765 and was called the Siden Arms when it became a public house, siden being a Black Country word for crooked. The pub was badly affected by subsidence in the 1800s due to coal mining and one side is now 4 feet lower than the other! In the 1940s the building was condemned as unsafe, being named the Glynne Arms after the family on whose land it stood. Wolverhapmpton & Dudley brewery rescued the pub and shored it up with girders and buttresses. Optical illusions can be seen, even before having a pint or two, where marbles appear to roll uphill and the curtains hang away from the window frames. This is due to the fact that the floors are level and the walls are crooked. Apart from Bank’s Bitter, Bank’s Mild and Wychwood Hobgoblin, the pub stocks a guest ale.

The Nutshell, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk > The Nutshell is the smallest pub in Britain, measuring only 15ft x 7ft 6in on the ground floor. Formerly a Museum of Art & Curiosities, this Greene King ale house now has a few curiosities of its own, including a mummified cat on the ceiling! The ornaments are never dusted, which is in keeping with a tradition started by its first publican, Mr Stebbings. Of course, being a timber framed Grade II listed building; it comes with the usual array of resident ghosts! On 10th March 1984, the pub was filled with 102 people and a dog named Bob. This beat their previous record by one. However, their usual crowd of 20 punters is the norm.

Your friendly, traditional local pub. The Guardsman's Inn is a traditional pub and B&B, conveniently located just a short walk from the town centre and 5 minutes from the River Thames and its scenic paths. Landlord Doug is a former Irish Guardsman and the pub is decorated with memorabilia depicting the Brigade of Guards both past and present for all to enjoy. Extensive menu of home cooked food including: CAMRA card holding members

£3 a pint

Don't forget your card

Express lunchtime menu, snacks, sandwiches, old favourites, pies, steaks, Sunday lunch and daily specials

Cask Marque winner with eight real ales on at all time including Windsor & Eton and Rebellion

• Open all day • Room available to hire for private functions • Bed and Breakfast, 8 en-suite rooms with breakfast

22 Oldfield Road, Maidenhead, SL6 1TW • 01628 620705 • www.theguardsmansinn.co.uk

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Stunning Food • Excellent Ales • Live Music

The King’s Arms Regular Meet the Brewer Evening Quiz Night every Thursday 16th Century Pub Doombar, Rebellion & 2 Guest Ales Fresh Food Served All Day Coffees & Breakfast from 10am Private Room available for celebrations or meetings Large beer garden with covered heated area Private parking in the heart of historic Cookham High Street, Cookham SL6 9SJ Tel: 01628 530667

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> A VISIT TO THE HOP BACK BREWERY CAMRA’s investment pays off handsomely with this amazing brewery > Have you ever wished that you owned part of a brewery; well a good few years ago I joined the CAMRA Investment Club to fulfil that desire. By using the Club you invest in a range of real ale breweries a bit like a unit trust. Of course a lot of breweries are small private companies and the Club can only invest in publicly quoted companies of which it has invested in 15. The Club has been investing in breweries since 1989. They have approx. 4,000 members and at the end of March 2012 the fund value stood at approximately £10.9 million. Well one of the perks of being a member is that the Club organises breweries trips and on the 11th of May I caught a train to Salisbury to meet the group who were going to visit the Hop Back Brewery where the Club now owns approximately 10% of the shares. We were met by the Owner and MD of Hop Back – John Gilbert – which is where the initials for GFB come from. (Gilberts Fine Beer) The brewery was started in 1986 at the back of the Wyndham Arms in Salisbury which John had bought freehold, wise fellow. With lots of CAMRA beer festivals awards in his pocket John purchased a second pub in 1991 in Southampton. With the success of these pubs Hop Back beers started to be sold direct to wholesalers, free houses and tied houses as guest beers. This in turn caused the requirement to move the brewing out of the Wyndham Arms to an industrial unit in Downton, approx. 6 miles South of Salisbury. Brewing started there in 1992 and in August of that year Summer Lighting won “Best Strong Beer” at CAMRA’s Great British Beer Festival at Olympia and the rest is history as they say. Hop Back now have 10 pubs with approx. one third of production being drunk there. Our nearest is the Hopleaf in Reading, 163-165 Southampton St. Well back to the brewery which now occupies all 5 units in the block and houses two brew plants (20 & 50 barrel). They are direct fired gas boilers and look dangerous as the flames lick the bottom of the boiler. It all looks a bit chaotic as the plant has grown over the years, which is probably why they do not do brewery tours – we had a special! The two boilers give

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flexibility in the amount they can brew, so the day after our visit they were brewing 70 barrels of Summer Lighting. John said they can do two 70 barrel brews in a day during the Summer months when there is a high demand for Summer Lighting. 1.5 tons of pale malt is required to produce 50 barrels of Summer Lighting with the hops going in 50% at boil and 50% late hop, after the boiler is turned off. To cope with this level of brewing they have 2 x 130 plus 2 x 80 and several 40 barrel fermenters. After fermenting the beer they condition the beer in the same fermenter as it saves moving it. Finally the beer is racked and they have one hell of a stack of casks of Hop Back (see photo). The free beer on offer was Summer Lighting, Crop Circle & GFB, all great as you would expect.

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> CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS From the 2nd Windsor CAMRA LocAle Beer Festival 2012 >

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The Carpenter’s Arms Founded in 1518

Beautifully refurbished interior to traditional style Eight Hand-pumps, with London Pride & Doombar permanent plus 6 rotating ales Our own Nicholsons Pale Ale - Available Now 4 Market Street, Windsor, Berkshire, SL4 1PB Tel: 01753 863739

www.nicholonpubs.co.uk/thecarpentersarmswindsor

• Serving traditional ales and classic, English home-cooked food • Common Lane, Littleworth Common Burnham Beeches, Burnham SL1 8PP Tel: 01753 645672

www.theblackwoodarms.net

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> BRITAIN’S GOING DUTCH Marston’s run out of Lord’s Cricket Ground for Heineken Olympic sponsorship > I could not believe the news when I heard that Heineken have got the sole pouring rights at the Olympic Games this summer. This means that only beer, lager and cider from its portfolio of brands will be available at the venues around the country. No Point of Sale materials will be seen for any brands except Heineken. Brands such as Fosters, Strongbow, Bulmers, John Smiths and Kronenburg 1664 will sit alongside the Heineken pumps, but will just be badged as “British Bitter” and Cider. Heineken are described by the London 2012 website as “Britain’s leading brewer”. For a beer that originated in the Netherlands, that is a strange description. The only British beer in their portfolio is John Smiths, which is now regularly sold in kegs with added gas for that extra smooth, extra bland (and extra cold if you like) flavour. British ale has had a long association with sport in this country.

St Austell’s Tribute is now “The Official Beer of South West Rugby”. Brains sponsor Welsh Rugby Union. Thwaites Wainwright sponsors Lancashire County Cricket Club. Marston’s, which has the beer concession at Lord’s Cricket Ground to sell Pedigree Bitter and is the official sponsor of the England cricket team, will have its handpumps removed while the archery competition takes place during the Olympics. Even portraits of cricketer Matthew Hoggard, Marston’s ‘beer ambassador’, will be covered up during the event. The London 2012 Organising Committee won’t reveal the sums of money involved, but it’s understood that Heineken is a ‘tier three’ sponsor, costing the Dutch firm £10M. Visitors to the world famous cricket ground, with its long tradition of ale drinking, will be offered Dutch lager and anonymous keg beer and cider. But cask Pedigree will be available in the Lord’s Tavern, the bar and restaurant complex alongside the main entrance to the ground. Mike Benner, chief executive of the Campaign for Real Ale, said: “As a grand spectacle showcasing everything that is great about Great Britain, it is hugely disappointing that attendees inside Olympic venues won’t have access to a range of British real ale. Such a move represents a major missed opportunity to show off one of Britain’s historic industries.” With Hydes Brewery being so close to Old Trafford for the football, Dorset Brewing company near Weymouth Bay for the Sailing, any number of London breweries close to the Olympic Park in the City and our very own Windsor & Eton Brewery close to the rowing lake at Dorney, why on Earth did the committee see fit to have such a large corporation with foreign offering on board? Of course, it is fairly obvious why. The deal is said to be worth £10m, which is a sum an awful lot of British brewers would dream of as their annual turnover. I would suggest popping down to your local pub and watching the Olympics on the television with a decent pint of British in your hand.

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The Vansittart Arms Windsor

A fantastic little Fuller’s pub in Windsor Large beer garden with covered area Good home cooked food served 7 days a week with weekend breakfasts Full Sky sports package covering all major events A warm welcome awaits you, please contact Peter or Helen for bookings

105, Vansittart Road, Windsor, Berks SL4 5DD 01753 865988

THE WALNUT TREE BOURNE END

• G R E E N E K I N G I PA & 2 S U P E R B CASK CONDITIONED ALES A L W A Y S AV A I L A B L E • E X T E N S I V E LY R E F U R B I S H E D • FRESH HOME-COOKED FOOD A L L DAY F RO M 12 P M U N T I L 10 P M • LARGE GARDEN WITH PLAY AREA • F R E E C A R PA R K I N G • L I V E M U S I C E V E RY T H U R S DAY 9 P M

w w w. w a l n u t t r e e . c o

H E D S O R ROA D • B O U R N E E N D • S L 8 5 D N B O O K A T A B L E T O DA Y O N 016 2 8 5 3 2 417

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At this time those looking for pubs stocking cider and perry and in our area of Berk s & Bucks may well find some at the followin g venues:

The White horse in Hedgerley The Bell in Waltham St Lawrenc e The Jolly Farmer in Cookham Dean The Royal Standard in Wooburn Common The Stag & Hounds in Pinkneys Green The Bird In Hand in Knowl Hill And in Slough at the followin g establishments: The Rising Sun The Rose & Crown The Wheatsheaf The Moon & Spoon

> CIDER’S EARLY YEARS After a struggle the Cider industry is in great health >

Cider and Perry have been made in Britain since before Roman times but it was in the 18th century that they really came to mass popularity. Early fruit varieties used for making cider may have been descendants of the indigenous crab apple, but these produced little juice so they were often mixed with honey and spring water to make Cyser, a strong drink related to mead. When the Romans invaded Britain they brought with them new varieties of apples which were crossed with our crab apples and produced hybrids which were bigger and had more juice and natural sugars and helped to create cider as we know it today. Modern fruit varieties used to make cider can be traced back to the pioneering work of Viscount Scudamore of Holme Lacy in Herefordshire in the 17th Century. He was ambassador to the court of Louis XIII during Charles II’s reign and he returned from France with a collection of cider fruit from Normandy. These new varieties were crossed with our fruit to improve our varieties creating such classics as the Herefordshire Redstreak, which became very popular and were widely planted across England. Despite the excellent ciders being created across the country, fewer than a hundred years later cider production was almost wiped out and many of the wonderful varieties were lost forever. The reason for this decline was due to the imposition of the Cider Tax in 1763 brought in to pay for the Seven Years War. Excise men had the right of entry to farms to search for dutiable goods and this met with fierce resistance from the farmers and eventually the tax was repealed in 1766, but by this time many of the farmers had abandoned cider production for other crops. Further problems for cider in the 18th Century which added to its demise were “Devon Colic” which was causing many people in the West Country poisoning due to the widespread use of lead in cider machinery and drinking vessels. Another great problem at this time was that many of the wine merchants would buy up cider straight from the presses of the farmers at a low price and then adding water to it before fermenting to produce a low quality cider which they then sold at a great profit to cider houses around Britain. This problem has a very familiar ring to it some two hundred odd years later! All of these factors added together

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had the effect of eroding the culture and the profitability of cider making in England and coincided with the rise of the bigger commercial beer brewers across the country which led to a rise in beer drinking which replaced cider in many cases. A revival of cider’s fortunes occurred due to the good work of Thomas Andrew Knight who took on the challenge of restoring and improving the nation’s orchards and he had his book Treatise On Cider published in 1797 following his survey of Herefordshire for the government which was seeking to raise taxes, this time for the Napoleonic wars. Knight found that many of the orchards were suffering from neglect and were being poorly managed. In his book he described all aspects of cider making and in his 1811 follow up book Pomona Herefordiensis illustrated and described all of the locally grown cider and perry fruit. He also began grafting and breeding fruit trees, building a collection of over 20,000 seedlings, alas few of these survive today! Inspired by his efforts farmers and the public became interested in cider once again and coupled with improvements in production efficiency brought about by steam power, cider enjoyed a short lived boom. By the 1880’s Britain’s rural economy was under attack from cheap foreign imports of food and farmers were urged to compete with the USA and to produce more dessert apples rather than planting cider varieties, so once again cider making went into decline and it would be more than a century before cider making would recover and once again become a major part of the rural economy. My own Salt Hill Cider, made from 100% Berkshire apples with no additives, will be widely available around the local area at pubs and beer festivals including a great event at Windsor Racecourse on June 18th. Their 3rd Cider Festival will provide an evening of top horse racing and the chance to try some good ciders from Berkshire and further afield. Last year was a very busy one which meant that the cider sold out by late summer and so this year production has been increased and hopefully there will be enough to last all through 2012. News and information on all things cider throughout the year will be on the CAMRA branch website and on my salthillcider.wordpress.com

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ROYAL STANDARD

at Wooburn Common Wooburn Common Road, Wooburn Common, High Wycombe, Bucks. HP10 0JS Telephone: 01628 521121 www.theroyalstandard.biz

Kirsten, Mark and Darren welcome you to the Royal Standard at Wooburn Common Ten beers, including permanents Summer Lightning, Tribute and a Dark Star Ale

For further details check out our website

www.theroyalstandard.biz where you can also access us on Facebook and Twitter!

Open all day every day

Dot, Janet & Kevin welcome you to

THE WHITE HORSE Hedgerley Village, Bucks A Family-Run Freehouse

• Slough, Windsor & Maidenhead Pub of the Year 2011 • Eight Real Ales - seven constantly changing, mostly from small breweries • Belgian Beer & Real Ciders available

Village Lane, Hedgerley, Bucks SL2 3UY Tel: 01753 643225

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> MEET THE PUBLICAN The Blackwood Arms, Burnham Beeches > To be totally honest I think this is my 10th Meet the Publican and sometimes finding that cutting edge description of the pub, landlord, etc can be a challenge – not here! Firstly, you have to find it, cleverly, on the website it states...’You’d have to be lost to find us’...is it in Littleworth Common, Dropmore, Burnham Beeches? The answer is no. It’s in an idyllic spot, yet a couple of miles from Slough. The pub is steeped in history - 171 year’s worth - but then so are most country establishments so let’s move on, as, more importantly, this pub has a bright future ahead. The Blackwood Arms has always been a real ale pub and has been in the Guinness Book of Records for serving the most different real ales in one year...1003 different ales to be specific! Sean and Ness arrived at the pub 16 months ago, sadly the owners, Brakspear, had closed the pub for about a year presumably deeming it unviable. The prospective Landlords-inwaiting had extensive experience of turning pubs around and winning a host of awards in the making, mostly in the London area. They would have arrived here earlier but the pub was used as a set for the filming of ‘My week with Marilyn’, you can even watch a trailer of the film for free on their website. So, the couple arrived in December 2010 and were immediately snowed in for a couple of weeks. Since then trade has steadily increased, Sean runs the kitchen

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and Ness manages the front end. Beers have gone from two to four handpumps with one out-of-tie, with the hope of getting a second one under their control. Contrary to current opinion of pubcos, the couple say Brakspears have been brilliant in supporting them throughout their tenure. It’s certainly a proper pub with more than 70% of sales being wet. Food is down to earth, have a look at the photo of the Pork Pie ‘n’ Pickle, it’ll make you feel peckish! The pub has just held its first beer festival, celebrating St George’s Day. The poor weather didn’t help them but it’s put the pub back on the map. Sean and Ness love the pub and are glad to leave the posh pubs and hotels of London behind them. You get the impression that the locals are in charge of the pub, and every variant of animal is welcome. Have a look at www.theblackwoodarms.net, it works well, you can find them on Facebook and there is free Wi-Fi in the pub. So, in summary, The Blackwood Arms is firmly back on track and is a favourite pub for all things CAMRA....good ale... traditional English food....beautiful walks and, last but not least....a genuine friendly welcome. Try it, if you can find it!

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> BREWERY NEWS Binghams Brewery Update > After the success of Hot Dog Chilli Stout, which has been making its way around various festivals throughout the country, Binghams have now added a 5% Stout infused with Thyme to their portfolio. Back In Thyme, is so called as over 3,000 years ago the Egyptians were known to add herbs to their beer, such as Rosemary and Thyme. The idea came about from a visit to Bruges, where a dark beer brewed with Thyme was enjoyed by the three directors on an Easter trip there. To celebrate further success, Binghams have brewed a Mild, both to celebrate Mild month in May and also the return of Reading F C to the Premiership. The Royals sealed their uplift, as they beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 at Madejski Stadium in late April and Binghams have brewed the ale to honour this occasion. Earlier in April, Binghams went to the Far From the Madding Crown in Oxford to pick up the first place award for LocAle Champion of the Festival at Oxford Beer

Festival for Vanilla Stout. Chris Bingham said of the award, “We at Binghams are thrilled that Vanilla Stout came first in the blind tasting at Oxford Beer Festival”. For anyone who missed out on the cask, there is an opportunity to purchase the bottle conditioned variety in the brewery shop or online. Binghams have now contacted a variety of wholesalers, who distribute ales throughout the UK, so expect to see their ales not only in local pubs, but also further afield. So if you are reading Angle in a pub outside of Reading and fancy something a bit different, tell your local publican that Binghams can now get beer to pubs and festivals from Lands End to John O’Groats! STOP PRESS – Bingham’s Hot Dog Chilli Stout has won Silver in the Speciality Beers Category of the LocAle competition at the Reading Beer Festival....well done guys.

Windsor and Eton Brewery News > Since the report of the launch of Tree Tops in early February (Spring Edition of Angle) the brewery has been busy fulfilling the orders of this successful beer and planning for the launch of their second Jubilee beer called “Kohinoor”. “Kohinoor” is named after the large diamond in Queen Elizabeth’s Coronation Crown and that brilliance in the diamond is echoed in the quality of this beer! It was launched at the brewery on May 1st with about 200 supporters coming along to an Open Evening. Kohinoor and the other Jubilee beers are all inspired by Commonwealth ingredients. The beer is a classic India Pale Ale (IPA), using Imperial Malt, Chinook, Simcoe and Pacific Jade hops, it has a light, dry bitter taste with jaggery sugar, jasmine petals, cardamon and coriander balancing the lemony hop character. After trying about 300 pints of Kohinoor (and a few of the other beers for comparison purposes!) the consensus was it was ‘Another great Webrew beer’. Some of the other comments were: ‘Great beer for summer drinking’, ‘Easy drinking Ale’ and ‘Great balance - a well-rounded beer’. The brewery has continued its work in supporting our troops and recently when the Coldstream Guards were presented with new colours (flag!) by Her Majesty the Queen, every Guardsman received a specially labelled bottle of GUARDSMAN to mark the occasion. The WeBrew team went along to the reception afterwards to make sure none of the 1500 soldiers and guests went thirsty. Bob even got to pour Prince Philip a glass of GUARDSMAN to enjoy with his meal. Other news this quarter relates to awards won by Windsor & Eton Brewery. The Reading Beer Festival has just ended and out of approx. 250 LocAles, WeBrew won 3rd in the Standard Bitter category with Windsor Knot – a great achievement. In addition Conqueror has won Gold in the Speciality category in the CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain (CBOB) judging for London & the South East. This annual competition

sees the winner from each of the regions battling it out at the Great British Beer Festival in August at Olympia, this year. Good luck to WeBrew.

Webrew has just launched their “Knight Club” which offers special events, discounts and unique merchandise to members. Meetings will be held on the third Tuesday every other month from 7.00pm to 9.00pm. As well as enjoying our beers and chatting, you will be able to learn more about the brewery and tell us your ideas. We will also have occasional guest speakers and guest ales. Our inaugural meeting will be Tuesday 17th July. Membership will include: 1. One meeting a year for members only 2. Two regular meetings with two free guests each 3. 10% discount on all personal shop purchases 4. Annual members polo shirt 5. Initial pack of six free beers and other gifts Membership will initially be limited to 120 members. To find out more about the Webrew Knight Club you can either email knightclub@webrew.co.uk to request a leaflet or download one from their website.

> Page 16 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

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Stacey and Rodger give a warm welcome to

Britannia THE

Marlow

£1 off

all alcoholic drinks Mon to Sat, 12pm till 2pm

Locally-brewed Real Ales from Rebellion ellion Brewery Live Sports, Live Music with DJs Food Served Mon-Thurs 12-3pm, 6-9pm Fri & Sat 12-3pm Free Juke Box – Mon & Wed Nights 8-10pm Free Pool – Tues & Thurs Nights 7-9pm Open from 12pm to 12am Sun-Thurs & 12pm to 1am Fri & Sat

Little Marlow Road, Marlow, SL7 1HL For further information, call us on 01628 483852

www.swmcamra.org.uk

Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire | Page 17 <

> BREWERY NEWS Cont. Vale Brewery Go For Gold > At Vale Brewery of Brill in Buckinghamshire we have responded to the call from publicans & customers to provide a lower ABV beer, by launching Brill Gold (3.5%). This crisp, flavoursome, hoppy and refreshing golden bitter is proving popular with all. In addition to our usual core range of eight beers, we have monthly specials and beers for special occasions. From mid May onwards we have Diamond Reign (4.4%) a sparking golden ale to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

To kick-off the European Championships in June our monthly special will be Two Halves (4.0%) straw coloured ale. Our supporters for this summer of sport will continue with Decathlon (4.3%), a golden beer brewed with ten UK hops available mid July and Sail Away (4.2%), a bronze summer ale. Vale Brewery are on Facebook & follow us on Twitter @ValeBrewery

Aylesbury Brewhouse News > Vale Brewery’s sister brewery Aylesbury Brewhouse, based at the Hop Pole in Aylesbury, has just celebrated its first award with H202 Bonde (4.1%) winning the LocAle Best Bitter Category at this years Reading Beer Festival, so to celebrate this success and to allow more of our customers to enjoy this limited edition, sharp and sassy blonde beer, we are brewing it again. We continue to tickle the tastebuds of our customers with the following limited edition beers.

In July we have, Not Euro Fizz (4.1%) a pilsner style beer, Sunspot (4.9%) Summer Rye, a fruity pale ale brewed using rye malt and Channel Surfing (5.0%) a high definition stout. Finally with a great sporting summer ahead we are cheering on team Great Britain & Northern Ireland with Swifter, Higher & Stronger available in July and August - Swifter (3.8%) Bronze Bitter, Higher (4.2%) Hoppy Pale Ale and Stronger (4.9%) Golden Bitter. Follow Aylesbury Brewhouse on Twitter @AylesburyBrewCo

Both the Vale Brewery and the Aylesbury Brewhouse have shops which stock Vale bottle conditioned beer and a large selection of foreign imported beers as well as wines and brewery merchandise.

The Moon and Spoon

For the biggest selection of beers in Slough

UP TO 6 GUEST ALES & 2 REAL CIDERS DAILY 20% DISCOUNT FOR CAMRA MEMBERS ON MAIN MEALS AND BREAKFAST. GUEST BREWERY'S INCLUDE: ADNAMS, REBELLION ITCHEN VALLEY.

J.D. WETHERSPOON. 86 HIGH STREET, SLOUGH, SL1 1EL. Tel: 01753 531 650. www.jdwrealale.co.uk Open: 8am—midnight. Food served 8am—10pm

> Page 18 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

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> OXFORD PUB CRAWL A great day out with Oxford branch membersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; >

As part of the social events organised by Slough, Windsor and Maidenhead branch of CAMRA we hold occasional pub crawls in locations slightly further afield. One such pub crawl was arranged around some of the finest pubs in the city of dreaming spires. Organised by Social Secretary Tony Aslett we also met up with some members of the Oxford branch to gather a bit of local knowledge. The meeting point and first port of call was The Crown in Cornmarket. This is a recently refurbished Nicholsons pub, run by Dave Crook, the former publican of the Carpenters Arms in Windsor. The beer sampling got off to a good start with an excellent range of six real ales including Ringwood Boondoggle and Vale Black Beauty Porter. Then a short walk to the Far From the Madding Crowd in Friars Entry, down an alley way off Magdalen Street. This is a large free house converted from a row of shops. A former winner of local Pub of the Year it occasionally holds beer festivals as it was on the day of our visit. With additional beers on gravity as well as the usual six on hand pump included ales from the Rudgate and Saltaire breweries. Next on the itinerary was the White Horse in Broad Street. Down a short flight of steps between two entrances to a book shop this is reputed to be the smallest pub in Oxford. It would be a familiar pub to viewers of the Inspector Morse and Lewis TV programmes. A busy pub with six hand pumps to choose from including beers from Vale, Sharps and St. Austell. Next up was the Kings Arms, a short walk along Broad Street to the corner of Holywell Street. This large multi room 17th Century pub is owned by nearby Wadham College. Again a busy pub with up to seven real ales available. After a pint of Nethergate Essex Border we moved on to another pub familiar to Morse and Lewis. The Turf Tavern, situated down an alley from Holywell Street, is an Oxford institution and is very popular with students and tourists alike. With up to eleven real ales available including my beer of the day, Milestone Mild, this pub is a real favourite when visiting Oxford. The next pub on the walk was a recommendation from the members of the local CAMRA branch. We moved on to

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Chequers, another Nicholsons pub with a good range of real ales available including Harviestoun Americana IPA. While in Chequers we bumped into a group from the Shakespeare CAMRA branch who had the same idea as we did and were on a tour of some of the best pubs in Oxford. The pub crawl concluded with a stop at the Royal Blenheim in St. Ebbeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Street. This is the brewery tap for the White Horse brewery and had a range of their beers available including Wayland Smithy and Village Idiot along with a couple of guests. All in all a highly enjoyable day out with good company visiting some of the best pubs the centre of Oxford has to offer. Future social events are planned and all members are more than welcome to join us for a pint or two.

Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire | Page 19 <

The Rose & Crown

THE

CHESTNUTS LANGLEY

FREEHOUSE 312 High Street Slough SL1 1NB Tel: 01753 521114

Jackie & Paul look forward to welcoming you to the Rose & Crown. Highly acclaimed for stocking an ever-changing selection of fine ales from breweries all over England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

to be featured in the Good Beer Guide for the past 13-years

Winner of multiple CAMRA Awards from Slough, Windsor and Maidenhead Branch, including Pub of the Year, The David Howell Award and the Vic Powell Award.

Come and visit us, we’d love to see you.

Large, covered beer garden • Pool Table • Darts 6 large TV screens • Sky 3D • Sky Sports • ESPN

The Oldest, Smallest and Friendliest Pub on Slough High Street

Town centre facilities in a village atmosphere - Courage Best and Guest Beers - Olympics & UEFA Euro 2012 Coverage - Darts & Pool Leagues -

Open 11am to Midnight everyday.

St. Mary’s Road • Langley Berkshire • SL3 7EL 01753 541226

JUBILEE WEEKEND Beer Festival all weekend & Hog Roast on the Sunday With 16 Beers & Ciders

A warm welcome from Andy & Wendy awaits you at...

THE BULL

WHEATSHEAF

7 High Street, Iver, Bucks SL0 9ND Tel: 01753 651115

STEAK NIGHT - MONDAY 6.30 TO 9PM FREE POOL ON TUESDAY FROM 7PM REGULAR LIVE MUSIC EVENTS GUEST BEERS BEER GARDEN OPEN ALL YEAR

The Real Ale Lovers’ Pub

A choice of three resident Ales

6X, Brakspears Bitter & London Pride

Frequent rotation of Guest Ales Good selection of Lager, Cider, Wines & Spirits Quiz Night (alternate Sundays), Pool & Darts Traditional Food Served, Lunchtimes & Evenings Monday-Saturday: Noon-2.00pm & 6.00-8.15pm Bar Times: Noon-12.00am Mon-Thurs, Noon-01.00am Fri & Sat, Noon - 10.30pm Sun

THE

15 ALBERT STREET, SLOUGH SL1 2BE TEL: 01753 518 378

Find us on Facebook www.facebook.com/thewheatsheafsl

Cask Marque Accredited

> Page 20 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

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> SLOUGH PUB HISTORIES - THE COACHMAKERS ARMS Number nine in a series of Slough pubs, past and present >

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Directory (11) the pub was being run by a Mr John Chapple. In 1881the pub changed hands once again, the new publicans being James Cash and his wife Lynda from Highpark, London. (12) The many changes of publicans since then are far too numerous to mention. However, there seems to have been no evidence of any scandal worth reporting in the local press. The building has undoubtedly experienced many changes and alterations over the years and underwent substantial rebuilding in the 1920s. Sadly like so many pubs today; The Coachmakers Arms is an empty property awaiting redevelopment. Let’s hope it becomes a project that continues to benefit our local community and visitors alike, as it has in the past. Mike Stevens, local artist and pub historian. References: 1. The Great Domesday Book, (1089), Ref: E31/2/1. The National Archives, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU. 2. Change in Local Government Act (1974) The Boundary Commission Review Board 3. ‘The Times’ London, 2 June, (1838). 4. The General Enclosure Act (1808), Standing Enclosure Commission. (Private act). 48 George III. Cop 45. (Not printed). 5. An act of enclosing land in the parish of Upton Come Chalvey, on behalf of the Lord of the Manor, William Bonsey and Thomas William Champers, (Vicar of this parish), appointed to allocate all open & common Fields, Allotments, Meadows & Pastures. 6. Population Returns, Enumerators Schedules for Upton cum Chalvey: 1851. HO/107/1718. 7. Kelly’s 1854, Post Office Directory, page 386.

The Coachmakers Arms Public House at Slough is a relatively new addition to the ancient parish of Upton cum Chalvey, referred to as “Opetone cum Chalvey” in the Great Doomsday Book. (1) The parish was once situated in the county of Buckinghamshire until the Boundary Changes Act of 1974, when it was transferred to the county of Berkshire. (2) Traditionally Slough acted as a staging post for coaches along the London to Bath Road, but, with the arrival of The Great Western Railway in 1838, (3) Slough ceased to be a small thoroughfare village and rapidly become the focal point for commercial development and expansion. The Enclosures Act of 1808, (4) enclosing land within the parish resulted in the eventual sale of common land, pasture and meadows. (5) Known as the Hencroft Fields before 1830 this prime site which lay between the High Street and Albert Street, was quickly earmarked for change and rapidly became a focal point for commercial ventures to service and accommodate Slough’s rapidly growing population. The Coachmakers Arms is situated in Church Street, about 30 meters south of Slough High Street. The area was not properly developed until the 1830s, when the new parish church of St Mary’s was built in 1837. However, valuation maps and records of the pub present difficulties when relating to this particular building, (which was probably built during the 1840s). The British Population Census of 1851 (6) only mentions one other house situated on the corner of the High Street and Church Street. Well before it became a pub, the building is described as an isolated detached house and garden occupied by an Architect /Stone Mason. Directly opposite was a row of cottages known as Hencroft Place, the last remnants of which were demolished in 1974. Further on down the street and next to the church stood the original Mechanics Institute, which is now an Undertaker/ Funeral Directors. Listed in Kelly’s Post Office Directory for 1854 (7) is Alexander Smith, of Church Street, Slough, who is recorded as a Beer Retailer, but in the following year a full Beer House licence was also granted. There was no Coachmakers listed in Church Street until the Population Census of 1861 (8) when William Smith a 50 year old Coach builder and his wife Ann are recorded. Like today, it was not uncommon for publicans to have other occupations. The Valuation List for 1866/67 (9) states that William Smith was the owner /occupier of the house and premises and paid the following rates: Estimated Extent at 14 pence, Gross Estimated, Rated at £20, and a Rateable Value of £17 = Total: of £37 pounds and 14 pence per year. In 1872 the Public House Returns (10) confirms that a licence was first granted in 1855, and that William Smith is the owner /occupier of The Coachmakers Arms at Slough. Perhaps because William was also a “Coach maker,” they decided to adopt that name for the pub! By 1867, according to Kelly’s

8. Population Returns, Enumerators Schedules for Upton cum Chalvey: 1861. RG/9/853. 9. Eton Union, Valuation List for Upton cum Chalvey 1866-1867, Part 1, Vol 5, Page88, No. 576. 10. Extracts from: Return of Public and Beer Houses and Grocers with out-door Licences, in Buckingham South Division, 1872. Centre for Bucks Studies, County Hall, Aylesbury. (On open shelves, Box 24). 11. Kelly’s 1876, Post Office Directory, page 219. 12. Population Returns, Enumerators Schedules for Upton cum Chalvey: 1881.RG/11/4159.57.

Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire | Page 21 <

> BUDGET BUSTING BEERS, DO THEY MEASURE UP? In last years Budget the Chancellor George Osborne continued the use of the crippling beer duty “escalator” formula of Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation plus 2%. But he also announced new upper and lower rates, to take effect from October 1 2011, with the level of duty rising by 25% on stronger beers above 7.5% ABV but falling by 50% on low alcohol beers of between 1.2% and 2.8% ABV. But this lower rate is not applicable to breweries receiving Small Brewer’s Duty Relief, that is those brewers producing no more than 60,000 hectolitres of beer in a calendar year, therefore only the major brewers can benefit from producing these low ABV beers, commonly referred to as “mid strength’. Ironically for the craft beer industry it is the rise in the High Strength Beer Duty for beers above 7.5% that is financing the reduced duty rate and it is generally the craft brewers who are recipients of Small Brewer’s Duty Relief that produces the most interesing beers above the 7.5% threshold. The major brewers have spent millions developing low strength beers, and with recent research showing that 14% of consumers are now drinking less than they used to for health reasons and nearly a third (29%) saying they would be interested in seeing a wider range of non-alcoholic and lower strength beer and wine, these mid strength beers are allegedly positioned to appeal to lunchtime and after work drinkers, and also to dedicated real ale fans looking to cut down on their alcohol intake.

Pouring this gently carbonated copper-orange beer shows a fine white head and a good beery aroma. The taste is surprisingly pleasant with floral and orange notes over a slightly sweet, digestive biscuit malt base with a good long finish. John Bexon, Greene King’s head brewer, began developing this new beer 18 months before the duty change and I’m pleased to say he’s produced a great tasting beer for its strength, as a brewer myself I know how difficult it is to produce low ABV beers that don’t just become malty or hoppy water. A great beer for the strength. As if only the stronger GK beers could be this well constructed. The major niggle with these beers is that they tend to retail at around £1.50, and seeing you can buy “full strength’ beers by the same brewers for around £2 in the supermarkets, it is difficult to see why you would buy these beers to drink at home. So my advice, if you want a low ABV beery drink, make yourself a shandy (remember it must be made with flat full fat lemonade and not of your diet rubbish)...Sorted!

So how do they measure up, in bottle?

Fuller’s Mighty Atom 2.8% beer was developed at great cost and after much in-house and public taste trials it decided on a beer which it describes as having ‘a rich, light caramel character, while a heady dose of five different hops brings in floral grapefruit and plum notes, with a spicy overtone’. In my opinion it looks pretty good on pouring, but the head quickly disappears. The aroma is like wort that has just been run off from the copper, giving honey, corn and caramel. The taste is diluted Chiswick, not good. Perhaps this is a product of Fuller’s usual party-gyle brewing and these are the final running. Not recommended. Next is Marston’s Pale Ale 2.8%, now I really hope they didn’t spend a lot of time and money on this beer as it is rank. It pours golden yellow, with a thin white head. The smell (and I mean smell, not aroma) straw, grain and sulphur. The taste is sweet malt, grain and damp cardboard. Terrible. Finally Greene King, who has named its new 2.8% beer Tolly English Ale, so perpetuating the identity of former Ipswich brewer Tolly Cobbold which was acquired by Essex-based Ridleys in 2002 and became part of Greene King when it took over Ridleys in 2005.

> FIGHT BACK TO SAVEYOUR PINT SIGN THE BEER TAX E-PETITION It’s time to save your pint and fight back against this year’s budget which saw the Government continue its damaging policy of the beer duty escalator. Every year beer tax increases by 2% above inflation meaning your pint in the pub costs you 5-10p more. This mounting pressure is contributing to the closure of 16 pubs every single week. CAMRA is calling all beer drinkers and pub goers to sign an online e-petition today by visiting www.camra.org.uk/

saveyourpint. We need 100,000 signatures to trigger a high profile Parliamentary debate and put pressure on the Government ahead of Budget 2013. To stand a chance of doing this we need your help in reaching as many people as possible. So please sign the petition and then spread the word. CAMRA also has free material to take down your local and join the campaign. Email claire.cain@camra.org.uk to order

> Page 22 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

free beer mats and posters.* With around £1 on every pint going to the Treasury in beer duty and VAT, it’s time to save your pint and call time on the beer duty escalator! *One pubs pack contains 5 x A4 posters and 100 beer mats, please let Claire know how many pubs packs you would like.

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The Windlesora WINDSOR

A thoroughly modern pub situated within easy reach of Windsor town centre

Serving traditional ales, ciders and lagers DIAMOND JUBILEE WEEKEND Jubliee Beer Festival - All guest ales ÂŁ1.99

2012 OLYMPICS IN LONDON All televised events shown here

11 William Street, Windsor Tel: 01753 754050

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Heading to Ascot? Why not pop in?

Food served all day Free Wifi Open 8am till late

Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire | Page 23 <

the

wheatsheaf harlington

& crown the

harmondsworth

Come and join us at the Wheatsheaf or The Crown for excellent hospitality and great food! - All food made from fresh, local ingredients - 3 Real Ales • Regular Entertainment & Quiz Nights • Bottled Beers Open from 11am-12pm Food Served: 12-3pm & 5-9pm Mon-Fri 12-6 Saturday. No food on Sundays.

Open from 12pm-11pm Food Served: 12-3pm & 6-9pm Mon-Sun

High Street Harlington, Middlesex, UB3 5DU Tel: 020 8759 1781

High Street Harmondsworth, Middlesex, UB7 0AJ Tel: 020 8759 1007

> Page 24 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

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Queens Head - Open for business

> KEEPING PUBS OPEN! The local CAMRA team take this seriously > Our Pubs Preservation Officer describes the process and has The Queens Head, Water Oakley in his sights. The branch had noticed that this pub closed last December. We scan the planning applications notified each week, so we were alert enough to see the one where the pub’s owner and former licensee applied to change its use to a private house. He claimed it had been making a loss for several years and was not viable. It was formerly owned by Punch Taverns. After looking carefully at the application (12/00236/FUL), we concluded that the applicant had not made the case for the pub’s non-viability. The planning officer’s recommendation to the Development Control Panel was to approve the application, but fortunately Councillor Leo Walters had asked for it to be referred to the panel, so the officers’ decision could not be delegated, but had to be made by the whole planning committee, giving us a three minute speech to support refusal of permission. Our case was that with a better business plan, it could be viable. The two nearest rival pubs had been demolished for housing in recent years. The pub is within half a mile of a post office amid a cluster of houses at the end of the Windsor Road, and within a mile of Fifield and Water Oakley; with Oakley Green, Bray and Holyport not much over a mile distant. The nearest pub, the Fifield Inn, is just over a mile away, but it’s more of a restaurant than a pub. The centre of Maidenhead is not much over two miles away, and the pub is on the number 6 bus route from Maidenhead to Windsor, via Holyport, Fifield and Dedworth, with buses every hour until early evening. The busy A308 should generate a good passing trade, and Windsor is only three or four miles away, Slough and Bracknell six, Ascot seven. There’s also a cycle path along the A308. The River Thames is accessible from Bray Marina nearby, with cycle and pedestrian access to Bray via Monkey island Lane. It could be attractive to various communities if it offered them what they wanted. Planning permission was granted to expand the kitchen in 1999, but never acted on. Offering food would be essential for the pub’s survival. Above all, perhaps, the freedom from tie enables any publican to offer a selection of real ales enticing enough to attract discerning drinkers. As the pub has never

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been offered for sale, we don’t know if there is anyone out there interested in running it. We never had the chance to make the speech. The applicant withdrew the application on the morning of the hearing, but he is likely to resubmit it at a later date, after taking pre-planning advice. At our April branch meeting it was agreed to write to the licensee, with some suggestions on how he could make the pub viable, and even offering to put him in touch with a prospective buyer. The approach was rejected. So all we can do, it seems, is await another application. In the meantime, we can’t even use the pub, which is looking more blighted with every day that passes.

The fenced pub - not open for business

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> THE SOCIAL SCENE Social Secretary Tony Aslett’s account of what’s going on... >

Since the last edition of CAMRA Angle the local branch has enjoyed several social activities and events. Back in March a team took part in a quiz night organised by local Rotarians at the Holiday Inn in Maidenhead. This was a charitable event and raised money for the Thames Valley Adventure Playground. Our team of Real Ale Regulars gained a very creditable top 15 finish out of 40+ other entrants, surely proving that real ale is good for the brain! We have also enjoyed 2 real ale rambles both organised and led by two branch members. Mark Carter hosts a regular walk of the Hedgerley area including stops at the White Horse in Hedgerley itself and the Royal Standard at Wooburn Common. John Spencer has just hosted the 2nd ramble of the Cookham/Cookham Dean area. On a Saturday in April a dozen of us headed into London armed with travel cards and a map of the underground and visited several pubs with the help of the Northern Line. As we have some very keen cider drinkers in the branch it was decided to organise a tour of pubs which were noted for their quality cider as well as real ale. We started at the Southampton Arms in NW5 and then proceeded to the Harp near Trafalgar Square and finished at Euston where we had the choice of 3 pubs all within 2 minutes of each other, these being the Bree Louise, Euston Tap and Cider Tap. In addition to these activities there have also been several beer festivals, organised by pubs within our branch, particularly over the Easter and bank holiday weekends which were attended by many local members. Upcoming events include a talk at the Maidenhead Heritage Centre on the pub and brewing history of

Maidenhead which will take place on 30th June at 1.00pm. There will be a small charge of £2 per person and afterwards we will visit a few of Maidenhead’s pubs for “refreshments”. There will also be branch meetings held on the second Wednesday of each month at various locations within our area. These meetings are where the committee attend to the day to day running of the branch but all are welcome to come along and contribute,vote or just enjoy a pint. Full details of all social events can be found on the newly revised website www.swmcamra.org.uk and also in the monthly members update sent out by email from our Membership Secretary. We look forward to seeing you at a future event or meeting and our chairman may even buy you a pint on your first visit!

THE

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Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th August

Come along and try some of our exciting beers and ales whilst being entertained for the whole day and night!

• More than 8 Real Ales • Live Music & BBQ on Sunday • Children’s Entertainment Hatch Lane Wi n d s o r, B e r k s h i r e S L 4 3 R L 01753 863 531

> Page 26 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

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> REAL ALE IN FRANCE Real ale a little further afield > Recently I went to Bordeaux to play Real Tennis in a tournament. Having just lost in the doubles final on Sunday, and wanting to watch the Rugby match, we were delighted to go in the Frog and Rostbif pub. Real ale is brewed on the premises and served in pints or halves and television with English commentary set us up for the afternoon. The pub group has 7 pubs in Paris, Toulouse and Bordeaux it is owned by a Frenchman with a passion for English beer The selection was good: • FNB ABV 4.2% Lager style beer • Maison Blanche ABV 4.2% Wheat beer • Ginger Twist ABV 4.2 % biiter with the taste of ginger • Inseine ABV 4.4% A bitter with a slight red colour and a hoppy taste (good gear) • Dark de Triomphe ABV 5% dark stout like offering • Parislytic ABV 5.2% a hoppy malty beer As you can see from the names the owner has used the British way of naming his beers using the play on words. I generally don’t go to pubs to watch tele but this served very well and it captured the British pub atmosphere with both the drinks and food offering. For more info there website is www.FrogPubs.com I also ventured into another pub called the ‘’Sherlock Holmes’’ just off the Place De Gambetta. The pub is part of the John Bull Group and offers Wells Bombardier and Wells light London on Draught serve by the pint of half both of which

THE JOLLY FARMER COOKHAM

were in good order with a selection of Wells beers in bottles. Again they have captured the British pub feel and when I visited the theme was St. Georges day. The Group has 7 pubs in France and their website is www. sherlockholmespub.fr So anytime you venture to the very sophisticated city of Bordeaux and are in need of a good pint you can give these pubs a whirl.

Trevor, Joyce and Sian give a warm & cheery welcome to,

The New Inn 1, Farm Road, Maidenhead SL6 5HX

London Pride, Sharp's Doom Bar, Wadworth 6X Five Real Ales Available: Courage Best, Brakspears, a local pump and two further ever-changing ales

The New Inn plays the Waggon & Horses at Pinkneys Green Cricket Club on Monday 27th August from 2pm onwards

No background music or TV • Dog friendly

Thursday Quiz Night, Darts, Pool, Crib & lots more

Annual Charity Hog Roast for Kaffirs

Saturday 7th July 2012 from 4pm with a Beer Tent ALFRESCO DINING • NEW PLAYGROUND • NEW SUMMER MENU

Church Road, Cookham Dean, Berkshire SL6 9PD www.jollyfarmercookhamdean.co.uk • Tel: 01628 482905

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A big 2 bar pub with Patio & Large Garden, No Parking Problems We have been here 12 years and still going strong, call in and see first hand

Tel: 01628 777721

Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire | Page 27 <

> KAREN MURPHY 1 PREMIER LEAGUE 1 Continuing from our last issue, low cost sports EU broadcasters dealt a blow… The result, in the end, was something approaching an honorable draw, which both sides of this particular argument will now likely try to claim as a victory. The Premier League vs Karen Murphy had gone to the European Court of Justice to try and determine how the concept of a single European market weighs up against the country by country rights selling system which, amongst many, many others, the Premier League uses to sell coverage of its matches. The court found in Murphy’s case, in stating that the imposition of national borders to sell rights on a territoryby-territory basis contravened EU laws on free trade. Murphy, however, will probably not – along with other publicans, who will likely have been watching the case play out with considerable interest – be able to continue to show the broadcasts in her pub without legal, because the court also ruled that the Premier League does hold the copyright over its own logo and anthem (news of the existence of which may well have been news to many of us) and that she doesn’t have permission to broadcast those. There may well be many pubs that will begin (or continue) to broadcast foreign feeds to their customers, and it may now only be a matter of time before the first case for a breach of the Premier League’s intellectual copyright ends up in a British court. As champagne corks started to pop amongst those amongst us whose reflex reaction may be to cheer every time that the Premier League or Sky takes a knock, though, the reality of the situation is that it seems unlikely that the circumstances of many residential viewers will change. British Sky subsribers will be able to shop around and buy decoding equipment should they choose to, but it is not known how many will choose to do this. Still, though, the court ruled that “is contrary to the freedom to provide services and cannot be justified”, and, whilst only the most determined will be likely to shop around abroad for the best television deal that they can get, there seems nothing, in principle, to prevent British retailers selling foreign decoding equipment legally, from now on. It is impossible to say with any certainty what effect this ruling (or, rather, the High Court ruling which will be expected to take its cue from this ruling) will have effect on the game in England or Europe. The best guess would be to say that it will not be the earthshattering event that was reported this morning. We can certainly expect more clutter on the screen in the near future, as this is what the court found to be an infringement of copyright, and it wouldn’t seem unlikely to suggest that the next rights package to be sold will be done on Europe-wide basis rather than country by country. This, however, is mere speculation and it would only apply within the European Union anyway. The Premier League and Sky remain powerful organisations and to believe that they will merely cede the walled garden that they have spent twenty years cultivating will most likely be naive. There is still clearly a market for premium broadcasting in the

sports market, and Sky Sports and the Premier League will likely remain the only show in town for those that want this. It is also worth reiterating that Karen Murphy hasn’t exactly got what she wanted from today’s verdict. However, television rights licencing has, for Sky Sports and the Premier League, become a little more complicated today, particularly if they have to go to a pan-European model for future sales. As such, there was no significant winner in terms of legal rights today, and the biggest challenge that the rights holders and the bigger clubs may face over the coming years will come from the internet, and this is a medium that they have shown precious few signs of properly having come to terms with in recent years. Whether they can wean themselves off their addiction to television money and onto something else, is a question that can only be answered by the future.

5 Real Ales, including Rebellion, Doombar & one Real Cider Enormous Garden, Relaxed Restaurant & Function Room For Hire Quiz Night every Wednesday Night fundraising for the Helen & Douglas Children’s Hospice

1 Lee Lane, Pinkneys Green, Maidenhead, SL6 6NU Tel: 01628 630268

> Page 28 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

www.swmcamra.org.uk

> GREAT BRITISH BEER FESTIVAL 7th – 11th August 2012 The Great British Beer Festival 2012 tickets are now on sale and can be ordered by visiting gbbf.org.uk or by calling 0844 412 4640.

TAKE A LOOK AT OUR NEW WEBSITE >

The ‘Showcase for British Beer’ returns to Olympia, London this year where we are expecting 55,000 visitors to come along and enjoy the beer, cider, perry, food and entertainment. We look forward to seeing you there! Want to volunteer to work at GBBF? If you are interested in volunteering to work at the Great British Beer Festival this year then please click here for more details! We really do appreciate your support.

www.swmcamra.org.uk

Slough, Windsor & Maidenhead CAMRA now has a new website. Check out www. swmcamra.org.uk for all the latest pub news, beer festival and branch information.

Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire | Page 29 <

> LOCAL NEWS White Hart Wins CAMRA Pub of the Year 2012 > The White Horse in Hedgerley Village wins Slough, Windsor & Maidenhead CAMRA Pub of the Year 2012. Every year, local CAMRA members vote for their favourite pub from those listed in our Good Beer Guide. This year, after a close fought contest, the winner is The White Horse, taking just over a third of the votes. The White Horse is a genuine family run free house in the pretty Buckinghamshire village of Hedgerley. It is run by Kevin and Janet Brooker and has been in the same family for several decades. The Grade II listed building brims with character, especially the public bar. Evidence of the pub’s popularity with ale drinkers can be seen on the walls which are adorned with CAMRA awards going back over many years. There is also a lovely garden which makes the pub very popular in summer. The friendly staff serve locally brewed Rebellion IPA plus an ever changing range of 7 guest beers straight from casks behind the bar. As well as having a strong following of locals, the pub is a Mecca for real ale drinkers from far and wide. Real

cider is also available as well as a draft Belgian beer. A beer festival featuring well over 100 beers is held every year during the Whitsun weekend. The award was presented on 8th April, during their Easter mini Beer Festival, by our chairman Delia Allott. Pictured (left to right) are, Delia, bar manager Andy and Kevin. Our warmest congratulations go to Kevin and the staff. The pub now goes forward to the County heat where it will be judged against other branch winners in our region.

Real Art, Real Ale & A Real Campaign >

Pub Manager Lefter Mersini and Artist & Historian Mike Stevens.

On Wednesday the 14th March the Moon & Spoon in Slough, launched its spring beer festival with the help of Slough, Windsor and Maidenhead branch of CAMRA who were in attendance. Local artist and pub historian Mike Stevens had been commissioned by the pub to create two new pieces of artwork to hang in the pub. The art work consisted of two large framed pictures 3’x 2’, one depicting the history of the Moon & Spoon pub, the other in the form of Mike’s modern impression of an earlier work called ‘Slough High Street’ by the Berkshire artist William Redworth (1873 –1945). Both works were unveiled by Pub Manager Lefter Mersini and Mike Stevens at 7.30pm that evening. The presentation received a very favourable response from both staff and customers alike. Mike then joined other CAMRA members for their regular monthly meeting. The occasion presented an opportunity to sample 7 different beers and as usual Wetherspoons exclusive 3rd pint tasters were also available. During the spring beer festival The Moon and Spoon also showcased 5 new international ales all at £2.30 a pint; and there was even a chance to meet the brewer from the Windsor and Eton Brewery at the end of a very successful spring festival.

CAMRA LocAle 2012 Pub Listings > • • • • • • • • • • •

Barleycorn - Cippenham Barley Mow - Cox Green Bounty - Cookham Bridge House - Paley Street Craufurd Arms - Maidenhead Crooked Billet - Maidenhead Fox & Castle - Old Windsor George on the Green - Holyport Green Man - Denham Greyhound (Lloyds No 1) - Maidenhead Greyhound - Eton Wick

• • • • • • • • • • •

Guardsman (Grenfell Arms) - Maidenhead Horse & Groom - Windsor Jolly Farmer - Cookham Dean Jolly Woodman - Littleworth Common Kings Arms - Cookham Moon & Spoon - Slough Oak & Saw - Taplow Ostrich Inn - Colnbrook Portland Arms - Maidenhead Rising Sun - Hurley Rising Sun - Slough

> Page 30 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire

• • • • • • • • • •

Rose - Maidenhead Royal Stag - Datchet Stag & Hounds - Pinkneys Green Swan - Clewer Tower Arms - Richings Park Union Inn - Old Windsor Vansittart Arms - Windsor Watermans Arms - Eton Wheatsheaf - Slough White Horse - Hedgerley

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Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire | Page 31 <

> Page 32 | Supporting Real Ale, Real Cider & Real Pubs in East Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire