Lancashire Branch Formerly the West Lancashire Branch Autumn 2013
Central
Issue100
Ale Cry
Fighting for drinkers rights in
The 3 young lads on the right of the top photo are still active in CAMRA 40 years on, looking just as young. Can you spot them in the 2nd photo? (see page 5) (cont from previous column}
since 1973
Lord Mountain is a former leisure services advisor, consultant and lecturer with over 40 years involvement in the industry. In those 40 years he has never ceased to be surprised at the lack of vision and the incompetence of those involved - particularly in the case of pubs and the companies that run them. “ only pubcos and banks have a license to print money which is why they get away with such incompetence” his first article is below ed
Today we have a larger range of fine ales to choose from than we could have ever dreamed ....You don’t say... I’d never have guessed that. of thanks to the microIt’s amazing how few pub owners think of it as a nor brewery revolution, but mal business. If they did you would find many of them even that is under threat staying in instead of going out of business. from the conglomerates If a shop isn’t selling enough of one product it 1973(Moor Brook Inn) as they heavily promote introduces other products, perhaps changing a range what they refer to as altogether. It doesn’t automatically say ‘Dohh... what ‘craft ales’which is should we do??? I know we’ll flatten our building and a posh way of saying put flats there’ ‘Why?’ keg. The main battle ‘Everybody does it so it must be the answer.. dohh’ ground has moved to pubs themselves which If other businesses can adapt why can’t pubs? are dropping like flies Firstly unlike most businesses pubco owners don’t tend thanks to a brain dead to have a love for or an affiliation with their products. Government and brain dead If a quick buck can be made by flattening it, ah well pub companies. less aggro....let’s do it. 2013 (Black Horse Friargate) The solutions aren’t hard to Secondly lets remember who owns most of our pubs find unless you are as incompetent as and where they come from. When the Government is right the villians referred to above, in fact introduced legislation separating pubs from breweries, that the branch Lord Mountain will be making some pubcos came into being. Who formed these pubco’s? should be proud of the fact simple suggestions in coming issues It goes without saying that you had to have plenty that we have now been starting with his first article on this of money in fact many went into it to make ‘loads a fighting for the rights of real page. money.’ You didn’t need to be good at it. In fact some ale drinkers for over 40 years were so bad they ended up owing loads. Punch Taverns and have now published 100 At stake is a very important part and Enterprise Inns for example are billions of pounds of the social fabric of our society Ale Crys to support our in debt. - and who’s at the sharp end - the poor old far more serious than most people battles. licensee. But it doesn’t need realise e,g the loneliness, isolation But just as we as individuto be like that. The Withy and the health risks of drinking at als and as a campaign have home, inadequate alcohol edcucation Arms at Bamber Bridge was changed over the years so to become offices but the at school level and above,etc., etc. have the battlegrounds. owners decided to keep CAMRA has grown from a few hundownstairs as a pub and In 1973 when the branch dred members (our branch now has it became a pub of the season. ^ The Parkers Arms ^ in was launched the very exisover 800) to 150,000+ as the danger Chorley now offers help to businesses (eg faxing, copytence of cask conditioned ale is recognised but we we need to use ing). This should be the tip of the iceberg, with many was under serious threat that strength more wisely ed. new ideas also benefitting the community (cont page 9) pubs themselves were thriving as were clubs. P2 Chorley; P3 Pubco reform, Youngest Member; p5 Croston, 150,000, Girl Power; p6 Pub of Season - Nabs Head; P8 South Ribble Scene; p9 Lord Mountain; In si de th is is su e!!! p10 Wheatsheaf Fest; p12/13 Saltaire; p14 Clubs; p16 Jus’ Like That; p17 Slovenia, What Pub, Time To Remember; p18 Preston; p19 Dr. Ed; p20/21 First Ale Cry; p22 Branch Details; P23 MEMBERSHIP FORM .........................................................................and much more
Editorial
View from the Mountain............. ....................A pub is a business
It
White Hart Chorley Now Open
ter t a h C
The Malt ‘N’ Hops recently had
I visited The Minstrel a couple of Sundays ago for Stormin’ Norman’s Karaoke and enjoyed singing a couple of songs. Gerri has created a fine atmosphere at this south of Chorley pub for which I have a fondness and which Gerri thinks doesn’t get the mentions it deserves from local CAMRA. I hope this goes some way to putting things right. The three real ales on offer were in good nick. I stuck with the Hobgoblin. The evening was as usual enjoyable. i was reminded of the days when former Landlord Dave Brack made it an enterThe White Hart was tainment pub I loved served a good pint of John Willie Lees (mm) always one of Chorley’s prestige pubs.New Owner David Brackenridge. I was upset to learn of the recent Tony has brought back the death at just 56 of ‘Dave Brack’ former landlord of the quality the pub was renowMinstrel. I and fellow CAMRA member Mel had known Dave ned for forty years ago. It for many years from the time he managed Holts’s Broadway was the pub I did my trainnear Exchnge Quay in Salford and his friendship with Paul ing in before going into the Morrison at the White Lion at Westhoughton. They were old trade. I have been delighted to offer my advice to Tony, particu- style landlords. Holts believed that landlords kept their eye on larly as he looks to bring ‘locales’ into this spacious free house. the pub from the customer side of the bar. There is no doubt Tony hopes to be open by the time we go to press so why not that Dave’s personality attracted many customers to the pubs pay them a visit. (ed) Return of the Royal Oak he controlled by the way he mixed with them. I can think of The Royal Oak was one of the finest no-one who could better train bar staff in all aspects of bar pubs in the country - but that was many work. I will miss Dave. The best thing I can say about any years ago and many of its rooms were body is that the very sight of them cheered me up. lost when brewery architectural vandals Melodious Mick Starting at the southern end of the Chorley got their hands on it. It still has poten- area, we have Luciano’s at The Millstone. tial. Chorley Market Barber Ian and Although essentially an Italian restaurant, they business partner Andrew have taken over. The two floor pub have Bank Top Flat Cap on offer and drinkers are welwhich was recently ‘Kinetic’ will serve quality pub food, come in the bar or the excellent sheltered garden. The Yew Tree with real ales on both floors. It will offer 20% food discount to retired Combined Services members. The lads hope to open at Heath Charnock has had a reputation as a restaurant for many years, but now is truly a pub, with 3 beers from Blackedge availin mid September. able, including Anglezarke at 3.8%, a pale bitter brewed specially Adrian called at the The Hartwood and found it now has a for the pub. Just up the road at the Bay Horse, three or four beers couple of handpumps on action and possibly a real cider avail- are available including Jennings Cumberland and Sharps Doom able as well. Bar. On my last visit an excellent pint of Adnams Bitter was on offer. This multi roomed pub suffers from being a bit out of the way, but is full of character and well worth a visit. In the WheelMILL LANE, COPPULL, CHORLEY, LANCS. ton area it is all change. Stuart & Zoe have left the Golden Lion at Higher Wheelton and Tel: (01257) 470130 we wish them well – the pub is under temporary management at the moment. Having revitalised the Red Lion in Wheelton vilSte & Mary welcome you to Coppull’s only lage, John and Clare have moved on. Phil Entwistle from The freehouse: An oasis in a beer desert. Top Lock owns and is now running the pub, so there will be no Guest Ales include: Moorhouses, 3Bs concerns over beer range and quality. The Top Lock continues to serve the widest range of beers in the area (9 including a mild and and many more Good Beer a stout or porter) with the beers always being on top form. Guide -In Hoghton, The Sirloin has 3 or 4 pumps in action with a varied Sat night entertainment, range of ales and the Boars Head has Thwaites Wainwright, Cross we’re in it. Sun night quiz Bay Sunset plus a guest on offer. Ring Mill function room for hire In Mawdesley, The Robin Hood and Red Lion still offer an excellent range of beers but sadly the Black Bull remains under Monday to Thursday open from 3pm temporary management with Punch Taverns seemingly unable to Friday to Sunday open from 12pm find a suitable tenant. In Croston, Rob & Jo have taken on The Crown when a visit during the POTS presentation to Wheatsheaf confirmed it to be an excellent alehouse with 4 beers from the Thwaites list – on our visit the summer seasonal, Little Bewdy, was on top form. The pub will shut in late September for a major refurbishment and we await the results with interest. The Wheatsheaf and Black Horse continue to offer the visitor to this village a wide range of ales to sample. The Windmill in Eccleston has closed and due to structural problems will be demolished. This leaves the Brown Cow a bit isolated at this end of the village, although a decent pint of Thwaites Original was available on my last visit. In Coppull, The Wheatsheaf remains closed but building work continues and reopening is anticipated around the turn of the year. The Bay Horse, at Whittle is now called Jacks Pub and Dining at The Bay Horse, at Whittle. Adrian Smith
ley
Chor
Game Bird from Scottish Borders Brewery on the bar – the first pub in our area to feature a beer from this brewery (although it has now appeared elsewhere) (as). Alan - landlord of this Good Beer Guide pub has built up the custom after a few down years under Beartown Brewery and previous tenants. (don’t buy the pianist a pint - he has problems holding his ale.).
y
orle h C r e
Out
The Red Herring
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PubCo Reform – A Fair Deal For Your Local Campaign in detail. Please also take the time to lobby your MP to support the campaign for PubCo reform. To date, 168 of our Have you ever wondered why, with so many pubs calling themselves ‘Free Houses’, they all seem to sell the same beers? MP’s have signed up to support this campaign. Unfortunately only Like me, have you thought to yourself that the landlord could one of the MP’s who represent the drinkers and licensees in our show a bit more originality? If you have, then read on – be- branch area has bothered – stand up and take a bow Rosie Cooper Given what this campaign stands cause it is probably not the licensee’s fault. The majority (West Lancashire). of pubs in our branch area are owned by PubCo’s. As part of for – a fair deal for the working man (licensee), more choice for their tenancy agreements, the licensee has to source their beers the drinker (you and me), more opportunities for the entrepreneur from the PubCo, which restricts their ability to put the range of (small brewer) – I would ask the question why are these MP’s not If you care about Real Ale, if you ales we would like to see on the bar. The PubCo’s will argue showing their support! care about wider choice and especially if you care about your lothat their tenants have plenty of choice of Real Ales – with cal – ACT NOW. Adrian Smith perhaps 20 or more beers regularly available and a further dozen ever changing ales every month. This is true – but for the privilege of buying the beer through the PubCo, the licensee is forced to pay in the region of 40-50% above the price I know we said we needed some new they would pay from an independent wholesaler or brewery blood, but it may be some time before – which translates to an additional 50p a pint. However, some Rosa can become an active member. of the beers they are able to buy are notably cheaper than all Her great uncle Dave Parkes was the others on the list; and in these hard times this often means wondering what to buy her for her that the licensee has to choose the cheaper beers. So next time birthday, when he thought CAMRA you visit your PubCo owned ‘Free House’ and are faced with a membership might be just the ticket. selection of Wainwrights, Cumberland, Deuchars, Bombardier, He sent off for a subscription for her etc – you know why. Please note - we have nothing against which duly these particular beers, we just want some variety. On arrived, along top of this, many licensees are paying rents that are simply not with her economically sustainable, which leads to a continual churn Wetherspoon ing of tenants and ongoing pub closures. The licensee cannot vouchers, make a living wage and many of them are working 70+ hours which I think a week. The unbalanced relationship between the PubCo’s she has passed on to some good cause, and their licensees is driving up prices in pubs, restricting possibly Dave. investment in pubs and ultimately forcing pubs to close. It Seriously, we do need some of our also means that the many excellent smaller independent/mi younger members to become more in cro brewers out there are being frozen out as they cannot find volved with the running of the branch, enough outlets able to stock their ales. After nearly a even if it’s only reporting on what is going decade of campaigning and failed self-regulation the Govern- on in our local pubs. ment is finally consulting on the unfair unbalanced relationship Why don’t you come along to a branch between PubCo’s and their licensees. Now is the time to speak meeting and see what you can do for the up and get a Fair Deal for Your Local. We would urge you campaign. Paul Riley all to visit www.fairdealforyourlocal.com and read about the
Our Youngest Member
THE
POTTERS 3 Real Ales including:
Good Beer Guide 2013 Winner of Gidlow Paint and pint Competition)
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and a real fire
CAMRA Ad - Beer Fest:Layout 1
11/08/2013
11:04
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The Live Acts Appearing: Thursday: The Sue Raymond Band Friday: Hooray for Kate & Deadwood Dog Saturday: Elegantly Wasted & Phil Baker Sunday: Boxwood & Wagon Town
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Ale Cry goes back to Croston
Girl 150,000 Power is here!! Reasons Real Ale’s no longer a man only domain!
We last had an Ale Cry visit to Croston in 2010, and a lot can happen in three years, so it was appropriate that, as we were going there to present the Pub of the Season award to the Wheatsheaf, we had a look at the other real ale outlets in Croston on the same night, to see what changes had gone on since then. Because it is not easily accessible from Chorley of an evening, we hired our usual minibus and ran it through to Croston , picking up members on the way. We did the presentation at the Wheatsheaf first, with Dave Linley, our Chairman handing over the certificate to the management team of Jon and Becky. A full description of the features of this pub was given in the last issue. In the first three decades CAMRA’s memSuffice to say that its reputation for serving a wide range of quality real ales was upheld on bership grew steadily but in the last decade this visit, with the beers available being Windermere Pale (3.5%), Ossett or so it has trebled - in fact in the last two or Big Red (4%), Moorhouses Blonde Witch (4.1%) and George Wright Pipe Dream (4.3%). As time was tight with us having to get three years it has exploded and 100,000 has back to Preston by 11pm, it was decided that our party would split up so become 150,000. Two of the main reasons that we could cover all the pubs in the village. Some of us went along are young people taking the Campaign and to the Grapes at the far end of the village, close to the historic parish church. The Tudoresque its battles on board and women taking to Grapes has been a pub since at least 1799 and real ale and its wide range of flavours. our has seen use as a customs house and a magis- branch now has over 800 members and a trate’s court in the past. It has a small bar, a growing proportion are female. As yet few compact lounge, and there are two rooms at the front and a restaurant at the back. The Grapes, belonging to Enterprise are taking an active role. So ladies if you’ve 40 year gang (See p1) not already tried real ale Inns, offers a selection of real ales, with the guest ales changing each week so that their customers can try award winning beers from across the why not give it a try and whole country. Others made the walk up to the Black Horse on West- if you like it why not head Rd. This well known real ale venue is now run by Amber Taverns join us. (see p23) and after a period of ownership by Cains. Beers on the bar on the night were (L-R)Ken Hargreaves then why not start to Marston’s Pedigree, Thwaites Wainwright, and Moorhouses Premier, (now Fylde Branch), which was changed to Lees MPA during the visit. This friendly pub was play an active role in the once the venue for the now defunct Lancashire Branches Bowling Com- Dave Marsden, Ed Campaign Mick Clark. petition and still has its very good bowling green and Boules pitch. With its large bar area and seating areas including a games section and dining area to the rear, it is a well balanced pub catering for locals and visitors alike in comfortable surroundings. Meanwhile, another group vis- Organic, healthy, with limitless ited the Lord Nelson overlooking the village green. This former Higsons pub was once a farmhouse and flavours. A living product claims to be the oldest pub in Croston, with some unlike: parts dating back to 1640. With its cosy central bar with its roaring real fire in winter, and two separate phoney Zombeers and Alcopops rooms, the pub continues to be a good place for drinkers to congregate. The beers available were Marstons EPA (3.6%), Robinsons Dizzy Blonde (3.8%), Jennings Cumberland (4%), and that ever popular brew, Thwaites Wainwright.The greatest change with our visit of 2010 was UCLAN Real Ale to be found at the Crown, the Thwaites tied Society house in the village. Back then we had been continues to grow very disappointed that no real ale was on sale there. It is very different now, with a full range of cask beers now on sale including a true guest beer. The new licensees, Joanne and Rob have . transformed the pub, and plan a full refurb giving it more of a traditional But You don’t have to go to UCLAN. feel. The four beers when we went were Original, Wainwrights, the You may go to a different uni or college seasonal ale from Thwaites, Little Bewdy, a 4.2% pale ale brewed, as you might expect, with Australian hops, and the guest was Castle Rock’s You may work or be out of work Harvest Pale Ale, a superb 3.8% beer that was Champion Beer of Britain REAL ALE NEEDS YOU in 2007. You can get a cask ale taster, where, for £2.80 you get 3 third pints of the beers of your choice, a great way to sample beers you might not be familiar with. Home cooked food is served 12-7.30 pm, with all * Your local Branch of CAMRA, Central Lanproduce sourced locally, with special deals available. Another feature of cashire, has its own Facebook page. We cover the the pub is the acre of land at the back, with a large car park, extensive Preston, Leyland and Chorley areas. Details of: beer garden and boules pitch. There is a large log burning stove inside Branch and Social meetings; Committee meetings; the pub for the winter months and a collection of framed photos of the AleCry distribution crawls; Brewery trips; local village. One final attraction for us was the discount for Camra members. news; etc. All too soon we had to get back on the bus, but if you are travelling from * You are welcome to attend any of our meetings Preston, it is quite a short journey to Croston by train. You can catch the and events. 18.34 or 20.08 there and return on the 2100 or 2300 train and it is only Find us, Like us, Join us £2.70 per person return. That is a bargain in anyone’s money. With so * Go to www.facebook.com and search for CAMRA many good pubs to visit, why don’t you try today? Paul Riley. Central Lancashire Branch
to come and join us.
Real Ale -
Drink Real Ale - Mother Nature’s Choice UNDER 26
Ben -becooper@uclan.ac.uk Calum - ceslater@uclan.ac.uk
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PUB OF THE SEASON:-
NAB’S HEAD AT SAMLESBURY Our Autumn pub of the season is the Nab’s Head Hotel, which is situated in the tiny hamlet of the same name, in Samlesbury Bottoms, midway between Preston and Blackburn. Formally a miller’s house, it has been a pub for over 100 years and has recently had an overhaul to bring out the best in its features. A large pub with a central bar, it has a car park both front and rear with spectacular views over the Lancashire countryside. The licensee is Mike Worden, who has been in the trade for 15 years, having spent the last 10 years as manager of the Royal Oak at Riley Green, and he is looking forward to achieving the potential of this fine country pub. Currently there are three handpumps, with Thwaites Original and Wainwrights as permanent beers, with a rotating Thwaites beer on the other pump. However a fourth pump is being installed and Mike is joining the 1807 club, whereby selected Thwaites pubs can get an outside beer to add to the normal range. Food is available and Mike and his Head Chef Peter Cahill have developed a menu that has some old favourites and uses as many local suppliers as possible. Food is available Tues –Friday 12-2.30, in the evening on Wed and Thurs 5- 8.30, Fri 5-9, all day Sat 12-9, Sun 12-8 and Bank Holiday Mondays 12-7. The pub itself is open Monday evenings 5-11, Tues-Thurs 12-3 and 5-11, Friday 12-12, Sat 12-12.30 am and Sun 12-11. Other features of the pub are free WiFi, dog friendly, live sports, games, live bands and artists, and a quiz night. Check out their website for details (thenewnabshead.co.uk). What is even better is that if you are a Camra member, you will receive a discount of 20p off your pint of real ale. We will be running a minibus from Preston, calling in at other hostelries in the area on the night and making the presentation at the Nab’s Head at 9pm. It leaves at 7.15 and returns to Preston for 11pm. (See Future Meetings for more details). Paul Riley
The NabsHead
Mike behind the bar
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20p Pint discount with CAMRA membership card CAMRA Good Beer Guide 2013 & Cask Marque award Four Cask Ales – two rotating guests plus Theakston’s Lightfoot & Greene King IPA
See our website for this month’s ales Try out our popular weekly Quiz Night, Chase the Ace plus Play Your Cards Right every Thursday – starts prompt at 9pm and for sunny days’ don’t forget our very popular Beer Garden
Great beer and a warm and friendly welcome For upcoming events and other information visit www.blackbull-penwortham.co.uk or facebook 83 Pope Lane, Penwortham – 01772 752953 11-11 Monday to Thursday / 11 to 12.30 Friday & Saturday / 12 to 11 Sunday unless we decide to stay open later !
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SOUTH RIBBLE SCENE
In the last edition of Ale Cry I concentrated on the pubs of Bamber Bridge. This time round I have turned my attention to the pubs of neighbouring Walton-le-Dale.
house' of LocAle beers on offer, with Hart Of Preston beers Ice Maiden and Temptress being available alongside the aforementioned Thwaites Wainwright.
Entering Walton-le-Dale from the Preston direction and looking to the right the first building to be encountered is the former Bridge pub. Although it may still look like a pub, it is unlikely that we will be seeing any more beer served on the premises, with plans being announced earlier this year that the building is to be demolished and replaced by a £1m high tech children's nursery.
After three pubs so close together, the fourth Walton -le-Dale pub is slightly off the beaten track and can be quite difficult to find. The WELCOME TAVERN on Hennel Lane is surrounded by new housing, and although originally built as a country pub, it is now really a large sized estate pub. On my visit only one of the two handpumps was in use, and as I had 'passed' on drinking the Thwaites Wainwright at the White Bull, it seemed more than appropriate that I should sample it in this Thwaites tied house.
A little further along Victoria Road and I reach the first open pub, the YEW TREE, a pub that strangely stands isolated on its own personal traffic island. The pub re-opened in May 2013 after a refurbishment, and real ale has been given prominence with there being four handpumps on the bar. On my visit three beers were available - Caledonian Old Seadog IPA, Caledonian Golden XPA, and the Caledonian-brewed house beer Yew Brew. A good choice if you like Caledonian Brewery beers, but this is not always the case, as I was told that Wychwood Thresher would be the next beer to be coming on sale.
As I had missed out on a drink at the Sir Robert Peel, I decided to end my travels by calling in at BAMBER BRIDGE FOOTBALL CLUB, somewhere that I had omitted to include in my Bamber Bridge feature last time round. It was not a match day, but when I called in the club was packed out for one of its regular social functions. As usual there were two handpumps in use, with two interesting LocAles Bank Top Hip Toss and Hart Of Preston 1880 Foundation being the beers available.
Continuing along Victoria Road and I entered the SIR ROBERT PEEL. Two handpumps, but unfortunately no real ale available on the day. I believe that Thwaites Wainwright That's it for my latest spot check on pubs and the beers that they are selling, but what other news is there to report from South would normally be one of the beers on sale, and I was informed that I would be able to get some in the pub across the Ribble? road. Staying in Bamber Bridge the people at the WITHY ARMS on Station Road have been left disappointed that their plans to imAs directed I crossed the road to the WHITE BULL, where I was relieved to find that three of the four handpumps were prove and extend the pub have been turned down by the South Ribble Council. The main change was for there to be a conin use. Like the Sir Robert Peel, this was a pub that once servatory built upstairs at the front of the building, with other relied strongly on Boddingtons Bitter sales. However times changes also being planned so that the size of the pub would be have changed, and it was pleasing to see that there was a 'full nearly doubled. However with the initial submission having
The Old Black Bull
Now Free of Ties on Cask Beers This allows us to offer up to 9 local and regional Real Ales at all times
Heated Beer Garden 3D TV - Live Sports on 7 Screens PNE and sports based festivals throughout the Year
‘One of the UKs top 100 pubs 2011’ - Famous Grouse Awards Three time winner of George Lee Trophy Stan and Michael are looking forward to offering you a warm welcome Central Lancs Pub of The Year A Good Beer Guide and Cask Marque Pub Thurs Eve a Cask Ale at £1.99 a Pint 33 Friargate - PRESTON - PR1 2AT Tel: 01772 823397 www.theoldblackbullpreston.co.uk
PARKERS ARMS Park Road Chorley 01257 261999
Opening hours: Monday - Thursday: 11am - 12pm Friday - Saturday: 11am - 1pm Sunday: 11am - 12pm Real Ales from £2. per pint: Jennings’ Cumberland + guest Satelite Sports 8 8
View from the Mountain.......(cont from page 1)
been turned down, it is understood that the pub's Operations Director Lee Forshaw will be making an appeal against the decision.
The Parkers Arms notice board outside the pub also tells passers by that ‘Meeting Rooms’ are available - and of course they aren’t the only pub to do so.
Just up the road in Bamber Bridge, the Last Orders has been re-named the PUMP & TRUNCHEON. An Amber Taverns pub and previously keg-only, the company has re-launched the pub with it now becoming one of their select group of choice real ale outlets. Interestingly Central Lancashire branch members will get an early opportunity to check out the new regime at this pub with there being a CAMRA meeting there on September 23rd.
The principle is really about maximising available space and if a pub closes a contributory factor is usually an insufficient number of customers to make the pub profitable. So if there’s not enough customers then it follows that there’s plenty of spare space. The challenge therefore is to fill that space. The ideal way to fill that space is by attractng more customers. That’s easier said than done. All initiatives and ideas have pros and cons and in future editions I will go into detail about some of these options. This edition I will summarise and simplify them.
In the last issue of Ale Cry it was said that the SWAN at Higher Walton may be finished as a pub. This would appear to have been a gross overstatement, with the understanding now being that it will once again be operating as a pub.I have heard reports that this reopening may have been delayed slightly, but the hope is that this, previously keg-only pub will soon once again be back selling real ale. A pub that has already re-opened after a period of closure is the OLD OAK at Hoghton. This is now described as being a 'sister pub' of the nearby SIRLOIN, a pub which has recently been reported to be selling beers from Bank Top and Cumberland breweries. The Old Oak may have greater restrictions on the beers it an stock, but it would be good to,see it selling some similarly interesting beers. Finally news from the WALMER BRIDGE at Walmer Bridge, and it is that landlord Richard Moon is leaving the pub trade. Expectations for the new people will be high as this is one of the branch's chosen Good Beer Guide 2014 entries. More information about this next time. Gordon Small
Burscough
Hopstar
Southport Bank Top Lancaster
1 Golden Hill Lane Leyland
01772 453224 Facebook: Queens Leyland
Fine Selection of ‘Locale’ Casks Cheapest beer in town Live Sports: 9 Flat Screen TVs inc. Large Screen Live Music - Sat. & Sun. Bingo, Quiz - Wed Free wi-fi
Prospect
Allgates
Thwaites
Three Bees Bowland MoorHouses
Queens
• • • • • •
Drop prices Redesign or redecorate the pub Improve or change the facilities inside and / or out Welcome children and / or pets Change opening times Re-evaluate entertainment provision
• • • • • •
Make space for: Business support services, Office Space Meetings and Conference facilities Shops Bookies Charity shops
• • • • • • • • • • • •
Community Support Services: Library Post Office Credit Union Parcel delivery space Unemployed Centre Mums and Tots Womens groups Religion Pensioners facilities Youth Clubs Sports services Hostel
At first viewing some of the above might seem inappropriate for licensed premises and others simply ridiculous. I will go through them all as I go along. In the meantime I ask you to ‘keep an open mind’ ‘think outside the box’ and always remenber the most important words when considering a business development opportunity - ‘location, location, location.’ Just a taster from the above list: •
Mums and tots
A pub near Warrington held a creche for children on three days a week while the mothers socialised - in fact it was very much a social club atmosphere: darts; dominoes; pool; juke box; lunch; drinks; - and more importantly somewhere to wind down, make friends and socialise in a relaxed atmosphere. Meanwhile the kids enjoyed themselves and were fed and supervised. Modern society can be hell for young mums, many of whom rarely leave the house other than for shopping. The pub thrived and became recognised as a focal point for the community because eg mums took their partners to the pub at weekends and met with their new found friends at times other than with the Mums and Tots scheme, etc, so the pub in the community became a Community Pub Lord Mountain
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The Wheatsheaf Beer and Cider Festival
and a hoppy finish. The Wheatsheaf at Ashton in Preston held their Beer and With Jimmy and Cider Festival over the weekend between 2nd and 4th of Alan keeping pace August. The Sunday afternoon saw me meet up with a and making their couple of great mates, Jimmy Casby (aka Jimmy Concagh) own way through and Alan Thompson (aka Teflon Thompson - the only the myriad of Goalkeeper with non-stick hands). I have known both pump clips, the since the early 80s when we all used to play football for conversation was The Withy Trees pub in the LEP Sunday League. Back in flowing as well as the beer as we chatted the day, it was traditional for us to have a few beers in the and laughed our way through the afternoon. pub after the game and the Sunday afternoon we spent at I chose a pint of Adnams Fat Spratt which the Wheatsheaf was just like old times as the beer flowed was a deceptive 3.8% but very tasty and then and we reminisced about the fantastic times we had enjoyed a pint of Moorhouses Blond Witch, my favourite offering from together. The Festival at the Wheatsheaf was really Moorhouses at 4.5%. Pausing only to buy some more well organised and there was plenty going on to keep every- vouchers, we were soon choosing our next beers. For me it was body entertained with a program of live music, a BBQ and Blakemere Plum Porter which was very fruity, dark and strong, of course, a great choice of real ale. The Festival was also weighing in at 5.2%. Now, with a taste for more dark beer, I raising money for Help for Heroes, which is a great cause chose a pint of Blakemere Chilli Chocolate Stout. This was 5% that is close to my heart, having spent a lot of time at Selly and had a definite chilli kick which was very moreish. RealisOak hospital in Birmingham with some of our brave young ing that it was sensible to consider setting off for home, I chose lads, when my step-son was injured by an IED in Helmand Moles Brewery Elmo's Fire, back to pale beer and a fruity, bitProvince, Afghanistan back in 2010. The courage and ter taste at 4.4%. I didn't try any of the ciders, although bravery of those young soldiers, most of whom had terrible they seemed to going down well with other drinkers. There was a injuries was inspiring and Help for Heroes do a great job in wide choice available with varying strengths ranging from Hazy supporting our injured troops and their families. Brian had Daisy at 3.9% to Pig Swill at 7.5% with Crazy Goat, Legbender done a great job and put in a lot of hard work organising the and Panking Pole amongst others in between. As we walked weekend and there was a wide choice of beers and ciders from the outside beer tent, through the pub, which was packed available. Not only were the beers in good condition but with people of all ages having a good time, enjoying the band they were great value for money with the voucher system that was playing, I looked at my watch. We had been at the allowing all the real ales to be bought for £2 a pint and the Wheatsheaf for about 4 hours but what a great afternoon it had ciders for £2.50 a pint. First up for me was Prospect Blind- been. Great pub, great beer, great mates, great conversation and ing Light, pale and citrusy at 4.2%. It proved to be a lovely a great laugh. We had even managed to fit in a sausage. Sunday refreshing opener. Soon, Brian was pouring me a pint of Dave Bell afternoons don't get much better. Lancaster Lemon Grass which had a delicious zesty lemon flavour. Another winner at 4%. This was followed by a pint of Bank Top Gold Digger at 4% with hints of grapefruit
The Wheatsheaf 50 Water Lane, Preston, 01772 725917
Free House
Open:Mon-Thu 11-11 Quiz Night Fri & Sat 11-11.30 Thursday Sun 12-10.30 Live Music Fri & Sat All Live Sports 5 changing real ales + real Cider
Real Ales £2.10-£2.50 Real Cider £2.50
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THE MALT AND HOPS
A Pub of the Season
‘One of Chorley’s most popular real ale hostelries - a long time Good Beer Guide entry, a recognised stopping off point for train and bus commuters, serving a wide and changing range of ‘locales’, wifi, sports t.v. and much more, on twitter and facebook, on net caskaleschorley.com
Due to be refurbished soon and well worth a visit or two or three or more’
10
The Old Vic
Also known as the Vic and Station
Tel.No.
Find us
Fishergate Preston
Opposite Preston Railway Station CAMRA Recommended Good Beer Guide 2013 7 Handpumps in action Normally 20 different real ales available during the course of a week Two 3D screens - 4 Sports足Boxes Showing: Football, Rugby Cricket, Horse Racing, Darts, Athletics, Tennis, Golf and other major events Traditional pub with traditional lunchtime bar meals Buffets can be arranged
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Saltaire:Brewery and Pubs
While most of the real ale drinkers in our area seemed to be heading north for the beer festival at Hawkshead Brewery on July 20th, fourteen members of our branch were heading east to Yorkshire. It was the occasion of our annual summer day trip to a brewery farther afield than what could be easily reached in an evening. We had arranged to visit Saltaire Brewery, and what a good pick that was, for we had a really good day out in ‘Gods own county’. Saltaire Brewery is not actually in Saltaire, but in the adjacent town of Shipley. It was originally intended to be near the historic World Heritage Site of Saltaire itself, home of the philanthropist Titus Salt’s Mill, hence the name. It ended up however being set up in the old Victorian generating station which originally supplied electricity for the trams of Shipley, and what a great setting for a brewery it is. We were greeted at the door by Adrian Mellow, CAMRA’s Regional Membership Coordinator for Yorkshire, who led us up to the first floor bar area, where we were given our first pint of their ales. We could choose from South Island Pale (3.5%), Pride (3.9%), Blonde (4%), Cascadian Black (4.8%) or New World Red (5.2%). Andrew then introduced us to Brewer, Tony Steven son, who was to show us round and the BLO Bill Arnold. While savouring our first pint, we were given a short history of the brewery. Founded by former lawyer Tony Gartland, Saltaire began brewing in 2005 and in Tony’s own words; the first brews were ‘bloody awful’. However, things soon settled down and it has now justly won a good reputation for its beers. It has won more than 50 national and international awards. They directly deliver to over 300 pubs stretching from Ulverston and Sunderland in the north down to South Yorkshire, with Saltaire Blonde being their best seller. Tony then took us on a tour of the brewery after telling us their Health and Safety policy, which was to advise all visitors to ‘watch out’. Leading us to the mash tuns, Tony told us that they currently brewed six times a week on the 20 barrel kit. They were in the process of installing a further fermenter which would increase capacity by a third. The brewery equipment was all produced by Merkel of Germany and very impressive it looked, with a pleasing machine finish to the stainless steel vessels. All breweries have the same basis, but are all different, so our group were interested in hearing Tom’s explanation of their brewing process. They use Bairds pale malt for 80% of their brews, with additions of 5-10% crystal malt to add colour and flavour. Chocolate malt is used in the dark beers that they
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produce. Samples of these were available for us to try. 650 kilo of malt was sent down the hopper to the mash tun and the hot liquor (water) is added in the ratio of 2.4 water to 1 malt to end up with the grain at 65C in the tun. Brewing would start at say 8.30 and be over by 4. The malted wort was now passed through an underback to the copper, with the malt in the tuns being ‘sparged’ to remove all the sugars from the malt. After two hours, it is all in the copper. We moved over to the copper, which is heated by steam. This pro duces a rolling boil and the bit terness hops are then added. Boil ing continues for up to 90 minutes, with the majority of the hops added in the last five minutes to give flavours and aromas. We were able to have the pleasure of rubbing hops through our fingers and inhaling the wondrous aromas produced. I always look forward to doing that. Hops used include Fuggles, Cascade, with its citrusy flavours and some hard to get foreign hops. American hops are some of the hardest of all to get hold of. (‘When they are gone, they are gone.’) After the boil, the hopped wort is left to cool for 30 min and then passed through a heat exchanger and proceeds to the fermenters, incidentally warming up the water for the next days brew. Here the yeast is pitched in and fermentation begins. The yeast used is an original strain from Thwaites and it is still going strong. After every third brew, the yeast is given an acid wash to purify and renew it ready for the next pitch. After the brew has reached its correct gravity, it is put into conditioning tanks before casking or bottling. Some is actually kegged (Gold is Blonde in keg). The bottling is done by Robinsons of Stockport. Some beer is dry hopped in the fermenter at the end of fermentation. Steam from the boiler is also used for cleaning the casks in the cask washer. Tuesday is double brew day, but this would be increased when the new fermenter was put in. We returned to the bar, where we could have our glasses filled at a very reasonable price of £2. Considering that we were provided with a considerable buffet for free and had already had a free pint, this was a very satisfactory arrangement, as you only paid for what you actually wanted to drink, and didn’t have to try and ‘get your money’s worth’ An informal chat could be had now with our three hosts, with much talk on topics of the day. One interesting bit of news that was passed on to us by Bill Arnold was that one of the owners of Salamander, Chris Bee, was selling his share in that brewery and was buying a pub in Shipley called the Fox and would be installing Bill there to run it for him. It would have six handpulls and would sell other brews besides having Salamander ales on tap. As Shipley/ Saltaire already has a good number of excellent real ale pubs, as we were soon to find out, it makes this area an excellent place for a visit. The brewery has its own mini beer festival every month, usually on the last Friday, with 13 pumps spread over 3 bars.
These have become so popular, that a ticketing arrangement has had to be introduced. Go to their website for further details of this event and a full description of all their beers, including seasonal and special brews throughout the year. (saltairebrewery.co.uk) As we had arranged to leave the brewery at 3.30, at the appointed time, our chairman gave a thank you speech for the hospitality and we assured them that we would look out for their beers over our side of the Pennines. They can be found often in our free houses, and we recommend them highly, so if you see them, don’t hold back and try them immediately. Although our brewery visit was over, the day out was not, as we had already planned to visit the local Good Beer Guide pubs. We drove over and parked the mini bus at the Victoria on Saltaire Rd. This is a traditional child and dog friendly pub with a lounge and a separate public bar. There are usually up to six changing guest ales and on the day we could choose from York Guzzler (3.6%), Wentworth Busy Bee (4%), Goose Eye Yorkshire Pride.(4.3%) or Little Valley Tod’s Blonde (5%). Although quite quiet at that time of day, live music was on later that night and it would no doubt be busy. Coming out of the pub and turning left, we could see our last pub to visit, but before that we were going to the Ring o’ Bells. Reaching this pub involves a short hike up the steep streets to the left off Saltaire Rd, to reach Bradford Rd. Taking it easy (it is steep!), you should reach it in 5-10 min. You will find it a busy traditional pub with several TV screens showing Sports. We got a friendly welcome from the staff and locals and we had another six beers to choose from. Besides regulars Tetley Bitter and Copper Dragon Golden Pippin, there was TimothyTaylors Golden Best, Leeds Pale (3.8%), Salamander Stunt Nuts (4%) and Thwaites Wainwright, which could be an unusual beer for the locals. Going back down the hill, we approached our final pub of the day, Fanny’s Ale and Cider House. This pub is so popular that people were stood outside it drinking. However we could still find room to sit down while we drank our beer. The pub has been extended downstairs and it also has comfortable seating upstairs. Besides its beers, the pub is famous for the lounge being gas-lit, and there is a lot of breweriana adorning the rooms. The beers available on our visit, were regulars Taylors Golden Best and Landlord, Theakston Old Peculiar and the following guests:- Robinsons Dissy Blonde, Salamander Swathe Cutter (4%), Sadler’s Mellow Yellow (4.1%), Ossett Citra (4.2%) and Kelham Island Pale Rider (5.2%). It was no wonder that the pub was voted Bradford CAMRA pub of the year in 2010. It was a fitting end to what had been a grand day out, and the journey home seemed to pass quicker than the journey out. I look forward to next year’s trip. Paul Riley.
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Dog and Partridge 44 Friargate Preston Tel: 01772 252217
House Casks Include: Timothy Taylor’s Landlord, Joseph Holt’s Best Bitter Tetley Mild plus: Weekly Guests From The Punch Finest Cask Range and SIBA Direct Delivery
Smokey-o-Joes 32-Seater Smoking Area Good Value Lunches Including: ‘The’ Curry Fridays The Big Quiz Thursday Night Rock DJ Sunday
CAMRA CENTRAL LANCS BRANCH AND ... CLUBS
Beer Festivals at Bamber Bridge Football Club, while two years ago the people at Frenchwood Social Club also organised their own Beer Festival with over 50 cask ales being available. Beer Festivals at clubs continue to be popular. Already in 2013 there have been events at Fulwood & Broughton Cricket Club, at Whittingham & Goosnargh Sports & Social Club, and As you will read elsewhere in this Ale Cry, CAMRA will soon at Chorley FC's Victory Park Social Club. Coming right up-to date, in the month that this be launching WhatPub - a massive internet-based undertaking Ale Cry is being produced which it is intended will be a comprehensive on-line guide to there are Beer Festivals the nation's pubs. The creation of this national planned to be taking place at pub database will hopefully provide a great service, both to the Longton VM Sports & CAMRA members and to the general public, by making it a Social Club and at Our Lady & relatively simple on-line task for people to choose which pubs St Gerard's Parochial Centre at they want to visit - in particular to find out those pubs that are Lostock Hall. Holding an selling real ale - and just as importantly to find out those pubs that are not selling real ale. As the name suggests, annual Beer Festival is all well and good, but how many clubs in the area are actually selling real ale on a day-to-day basis? WhatPub will be concentrating primarily on the nation's real Really this is a question that no one has the answer to. ale pubs, but what about the increasing number of clubs that are now selling real ale? As I understand it there What we do believe to be true is that there are at least 24 clubs will actually be a small number of clubs included on the What- in the CAMRA Central Lancashire branch area that are curPub database. However the clubs that are likely to be included rently selling real ale (see the accompanying list). These 24 will be those that have a licence which allows them to currently clubs provide a good cross section of establishments that cater for a wide variety of people's beliefs, interests, and current or operate as a pub in all but name. past employments. Included on the list are two Conservative In the Central Lancashire branch Clubs and one Labour Club; three clubs that are associated with area a good example of this type Churches; two clubs that are associated with semi-professional of club would be Preston Grassfootball teams; two clubs that are directly associated with hoppers Rugby Football Club. cricket teams; plus there an even greater number of clubs that Most clubs are someare classed more generally as sports and social clubs. thing of a mystery to outsiders. Almost certainly there are quite a few more clubs in the area that This is not really surprising as are selling real ale. As a CAMRA branch we would be most a club's fundamental purpose is interested to learn of these additional clubs, and if anyone does to provide a service to its have any information about this then it would be great if they members, and as such they can be selective and highly protective of exactly who they will allow to enter their premises could provide details to the branch by sending an e-mail to clcamra@rocketmail.com. and utilise their facilities. Over the years it is Hopefully in the next Ale Cry we will then be able true to say that the majority of clubs have not been of any great interest to real ale drinkers. Until fairly recently it was quite rare to produce a more accurate and comprehensive list of real ale Gordon Small to find a club that was selling any cask conditioned beers, while clubs. those that did were almost certain to be stocking beers from one of the established big breweries. Of course there have always been exceptions. There is a Lancashire Club of the Year CLUBS SELLING REAL ALE award, and each year CAMRA Central Lancashire branch have been able to submit a nomination from the clubs in this area for • Bamber Bridge Football Club consideration. In practice for many years this involved very lit• Broughton and District Club tle thought by local CAMRA members, with at first St Teresa's • Chorley Cricket Club Parish Centre in Penwortham, and then later the Ashton Institute • Chorley Subscription Bowling Club & Social Club being the branch's default nomination year after • St George's Church Institute (Chorley) year. In recent years the number of worthy candi• Victory Park Social Club (Chorley) dates has greatly increased, with Bamber Bridge Football Club, • Fox Lane Sports & Social Club (Leyland) Preston Grasshoppers Rugby Football Club, and Our Lady & • Fulwood Club St Gerard's Parochial Centre at Lostock Hall, each having been • Fulwood & Broughton Cricket Club put forward on at least one occasion for the county award. With • Lonsdale Sports & Social Club (Fulwood) the emergence of these (and several other equally good clubs) it • Leyland & Farington Social Club is pleasing to see that the range of beers available in clubs has • Leyland Golf Club also significantly improved. Instead of being tied down to a deal • Longridge & District Conservative Club where they had to supply beers from one particular brewery • Longton VM Sports & Social Club company, several clubs are now on occasion able to stock beers • Lostock Hall Conservative Club from one or more of the many Lancashire micro-breweries. • Our Lady & St Gerard's Parochial Centre (Lostock Going back to St Teresa’s and the Ashton Institute, it is Hall) interesting to reflect that both these clubs originally enhanced • New Longton Sports & Social Club their reputations by hosting extremely popular Annual Beer • St Teresa's Parish Centre (Penwortham) Festivals. Starting in 1995 St Teresa’s Parish Centre hosted four • BAC/EE Sports & Social Club (Preston) successful Beer Festivals, before the club underwent a thorough • Frenchwood Social Club (Preston) refurbishment which forced them to bring this run to an end. In • New Meadow Street Labour Club (Preston) 1996 the Ashton Institute & Social Club held the first of its ‘Ok• Preston Golf Club tobaFest’ Beer Festivals and this was to be an important feature • Preston Grasshoppers Rugby Football Club of the local beer drinkers calendar for the next eleven years. • Thurlby Club, Ashton (Preston) More recently other clubs in our branch area have also • 55th Division Club (Preston) tried their hands at running Beer Festivals. In the late 2000s • Whittingham & Goosnargh Sports & Social Club there were three annual ‘end of season’
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The Crown @Croston 01772 972785
e-mail ~ thecrownhotelcroston@gmail.com
A warm welcome awaits from Jo & Rob
20p Discount to Card Carrying CAMRA Members 4 Cask Ales from Daniel Thwaites 1807 Cask Club Range
Home Cooked food served Lunchtimes & Evenings Full breakfast menu Saturday & Sunday from 10am Ample car parking with a large manicured, secluded beer garden & Boules Pitch
Major re-furb Closed from 30th September to 19th October Thwaites Dray Horses Will Be Here 20th October from 2pm
Thecrowncroston @thecrowncroston Mon-Thur 12 to 23.00 Fri 12 to 00.15 Sat 10 to 00.15 Sun 10 to 23.00 Closing times may be later than advertised !
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Save £££££ Jus’ Like That
The Railway Inn Steeley lane Chorley LancsPR6 0RD 01257411449 emailrailwayinnchorley@yahoo.co.uk
Jennings Cumberland and 4 changing guest ales
A CAMRA pub of the Season
A Good Beer Guide and Cask Marque Pub
I popped into the Prince of Wales nr. Chorley Market, introFree pool every Monday duced myself to new Manager Carley, told her that her preDarts and dominoes - Thurdays decessor, Gary who had moved to a Smith and Jones sister Free Jukebox every Tuesday pub - The Dragonfly in Bolton, offered discount on real ale to CAMRA members and she told me that her previous pub had the same offer. I resumed watching sport on t’ telly. Within 5 minutes she returned with the above poster offering 10% discount on production of an up to date CAMRA card. ---i.e. ‘jus like that.’ I call in about twice a week and tend to have a couple on each occasion, which if my sums are right will have paid for my CAMRA membership within about 16 weeks, had it not already been paid for by my £20 Wetherspoons tokens, or my visits to the Adelphi in Preston, Strawberry Gardens in Fleetwood, Bolton Wetherspoons, etc, etc. Seasonal music festivals which also offer discounts. So my Membership is repaid sevwith up to 8 bands eral times over. If you’re a real ale drinker you’d be a mug not to join. Among places offering discounts are: Adelphi (Preston)10%, Ancient Oak (Cottam)20p, Anderton Arms (Fulwood)20p. Correct at time of going Black Bull (Penwortham)20p, Crown (Croston)20p, Fishers (Preston)10%, to press but can’t be guaranteed Hayrick (Clayton-le-Woods)10p (Mon-Thu),
Chorley’s Premier Music Venue Live Music Friday and Saturday Evenings
V V
16
RILEY’S RAMBLES
:- Slovenia
WhatPub?!!
WhatPubWhatPubWhatPub
Before the main part of this article,I must There are many pub guides on the internet. However most of these tell you that my mind was wandering the are incomplete or hopelessly out of date. For the last year or so, other day, when I found out that Riley is all CAMRA branches have been working on a major project to now the eighth most popular name to give remedy this – to give you, the beer drinker and pub goer, the only to a boy. Just think,if was being born now, website you will ever need. Those of you who are members I could have been called Riley Riley. of CAMRA should already be aware of WhatPub and hopefully Spooky eh! Anyway, back to the article. Looking for some- will have had a look at the website. To those of you who are not where different to spend our two weeks in the sun, we thought members, the site should be available to the general public in that Slovenia seemed an attractive place to go. A country of only September to coincide with the launch of the 2014 Good Beer 2 million inhabitants, we had heard good reports of it. Our cho- Guide. The address of the site is www.whatpub.com The aim sen place to stay was a town on the coast called Piran. Slovenia of WhatPub is to provide factual information about all the pubs in only has a very small coastline and Piran looked the nicest of the the country, including address, contact details, websites, opening places we could stay. It is an old Venetian town and retains a lot hours, facilities and of course, range of beers. The site will not of its charm.This is not a travelogue, replace the Good Beer Guide; it is designed to supplement it. The so you will have to look up elsewhere about the GBG will still highlight the very best of the Real Ale pubs around charms of the area, and there are many. What the country. WhatPub will enable you to find all the other ones as you really want to know is what there is for the well. Many of these will also have excellent beer quality – but of beer drinker to get stuck into. Unfortunately course there are no guarantees. There will also be a picture of the there is not much choice, with most of the beer pub and a map (based on Google) giving you the exact location. sold being made by the two big breweries based Collecting and inputting this information has been a massive job in the country. However, there is a sign that and very much a labour of love. It is unlikely that the site will be things are improving and I did manage to find a fully complete by the time it is launched, but branches around the bar selling beer brewed by one of the few micro View of Piran country are working hard to fill in the gaps as soon as possible. breweries that have started up recently. The two main All the pubs in the Central Lancs branch area will be included by breweries are called Union, which is mostly drunk in the area launch date, although a significant number of surveys and photoaround Ljubljana, the capital city, and Lasko, which dominates graphs are needed to complete the job. Collecting the the rest of the country. Both breweries produce mostly the pale information is only the first part of the task – we need to keep it up lager type of beer popular in central and southern Eu- to date and that is where you come in. There are always going to rope and it is available both on draught and in bottle, be changes, particularly to opening hours, beer range and facilities. with a strength of about 5%. On a hot summer day it is Whether or not you are a CAMRA member, you can be the eyes just about acceptable to down one or two, but if that was and ears of the branch and report changes back to us so we can all there was to drink, I think you would get a bit fed up make WhatPub the indispensible website for the pub goer. The with it. I did find that certain bars sold a dark beer site features a facility for reporting changes, and while these will brewed by Lasko at 5.9% which made a change. It not update the site, they will be channelled back to us so we can reminded me of a stout, with a bit of chocolate in the make the necessary amendments. We also need quality pictures of Lasco taste.. Mostly though, the best bet for real ale drinkers the pubs. While we will take a photo when we visit, due to poor Dark would be one of the many German Wheat Beers weather, lighting, parked vehicles etc, the picture doesn’t always that were available in most bars. You could quite readily get show the pub at it’s best. So if you visit or just happen to be walkErdinger, both weiss and dunkel, Paulaner, Franziskaner and ing past when the weather is perfect, please take a picture and a couple of others at 3.5 Euro each, which is cheaper than you email it to the branch address (see inside back page). If it’s better can buy them in most bars in this country. Anyway, back than the one we have, we will use yours (although unfortunately to the microbrewery beer that I found. We were on a day trip to there is no way it can be credited to you). With your help we can Ljubljana, and we were walking along the riverside, which cuts make WhatPub the best pub site on the web. Adrian Smith right through the centre of this rather pleasing small city. Close to what is known as the Cobblers Bridge, we Over the next few issues I intend to publish a few old pictures I saw this bar called Zlata Lajica and have in my possession of some old long gone pubs in Preston. decided to have a drink. I noticed Some will be familiar to you, others may not. I am starting with that the waitress had a tee-shirt on what I think is the only known photograph of the Morning Star, a proclaiming The Human Fish Back of Zlata Pub Lion (Matthew Brown) pub that stood on the corner of Park Street Brewery. On enquiry, she told us what it was a and Vauxhall Road near to St Augustine’s church. My grandmother micro brewery that had started up in the small town lived in Park Street in a house that did not have electric lights, beof Slovenj Gradec up in the north of the country. Beer Mat ing illuminated by gas mantles. The picture shows the pub immeWhat was better was that they actually sold the beer in this bar. diately before its demolition along with all the houses, in the early I obviously ordered it straight away and was presented with a sixties. The flats on Manchester Road were built on the site and pint of deep red, slightly cloudy, naturally conditioned beer. It are still there. I never went in this pub, being only about ten when tasted superb, quite like a malty English ale and after all the it disappeared, but I did manage to get in and order a drink in the lagers, made a refreshing change. I have subsequently found out nearby Parkers Arms, a Thwaites pub on Manchester Road when that they brew three different beers, a pale ale, the red ale and I was sixteen. You would an oatmeal stout, and was available in six outlets in the city. If I not be able to do that now had had more time, I could probably have found all three beers adays. Once I have publisavailable between these pubs. The brewery, whose name, The hed this picture in this Human Fish, comes from a blind amphibious creature found issue,I intend to send it to deep underground in the famous Karst caves, was set up in 2008 Steve Halliwell, the local by an Australian called Matthew Charlesworth who decided to historian, to add to his settle in Slovenia after years of rambling. On the way, he had website containing a graduated from the American Brewers Guild and it looks to have collection of pictures and paid off. Hopefully it will one day reach Piran on the coast and I information on the old could drink it every day, when I go there again. pubs of Preston Incidentally, I actually visited the Karst caves during (pubsinpreston.blogspot. our stay and saw a live ‘Human Fish’ in its natural environment. co.uk). It is a fascinating history of the pubs of Preston and well Really weird looking animal! Paul Riley. worth a visit. Paul Riley.
Time to Remember.
17
Preston Parade It looks like our bit of news about the Mad Ferret pub in the one real ale (Worthington Bitter), as the anticipated throngs of last issue has more basis than mere rumour. If you remember, real ale drinkers have not appeared yet. It is still proclaiming from we hinted at a connection with The Continental. Well, accord- three posh signs attached to its walls that real ale is on sale. We ing to our sources, who will see if it eventually materialises; otherwise trading standards bumped into the owner may be needed. of the Conti, the Ferret Another Preston pub would be closing at the having a beer festival end of August for refu is the Guild, just down rbishment, and would from the Mad Ferret on reopen on Thursday 12th Fylde Rd. It will run September with four from Thursday 26th to handpumps on the bar. A Sun 29th with live music changing range of real and food. The pub norales would then be mally has three ales from offered. The pub is on the Greene King range Fylde Rd., opposite 53º, and immediately in front of the Bit- on, but the manager ter Suite. It is best known as a music venue and has mostly would like to have a been opening from Wednesday through to Sunday from 4pm. greater range there. If it It would be interesting to see if the opening hours are extend- can be shown that real ed. The adjacent Bitter Suite is well renowned for the quality ales sell well there, pos and range of its real ale. Hopefully sibly Greene King will allow the pub to follow in the footsteps of they will feed off each other. The its pubs like the Taps in Lytham and Freshfields in Formby where Continental itself will be having one an ever changing range of guest beers are the order of the day. of its ever popular beer festivals Looking forward to October, the Greyfriar in Preston will starting on Thursday 19th September be partaking in the Wetherspoon festival that month, but will be for three days, again with over 100 going that extra mile. During the last festival, the Greyfriar sold beers and ciders on sale. Meanwhile the most real ale of any Wetherspoon pub on the festival Saturday, we have no news of their other beating even the big hitters in Derby and Edinburgh. On a normal development on Ormskirk Rd. week, the pub sells over 2500 pints of real ale, but sold well over which seems to have come to some 1000 pints on that day alone. They are hoping to beat that this thing of a standstill. Maybe this is time. For this festival they will be looking to extend the bar along why the Blackamoor’s Head on towards the front of the pub creating a long bar that would have Lancaster Rd. has stopped selling its
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TOWNGATE ECCLESTON NR CHORLEYPR7 5QS TELEPHONE 01257 451594
Preston Parade (cont) the normal 10 pumps On enquiring when we could expect to plus another 12 beers see its return, I was informed that they behind the temporary did not know if the pub would be open extension, along with the following week, never mind selling some ciders. The beers any real ale. Let’s hope that somebody will include a mix of takes it over with a taste for ale and it unusual beers and does not become another cocktail bar some ‘specials’ and or worse. manager, Brad, is Another shock closure was the Derby Arms at Thornley, hoping to get some between Longridge and Chipping. A very popular country pub brewers down on certain evenings for the very popular brew- with a good reputation for its food, it seems to have fallen foul er’s nights. He would be looking to actually start the festival of the dreaded rent increase often perpetrated by owners, pubco during the week before the actual Wetherspoon starting date, Punch Taverns, on successful leaseholders. Having been run by thus extending the festival so that all the beers available would Will and Carole Walne for the last 15 years, their current lease be sold during the course of the event. expired on 30 June. During that time, ownership of the pub has For their next series of themed festivals, Stan and passed through many hands since Greenalls closed its breweries Michael at the Old Black Bull are planning to have a series of and became a (now non existent) pub co. It has finally ended up beers on sale that correspond to whoever Preston North End in the hands of the largest of the pub and bar operators, Punch are playing during a particular week. Say Sheffield Utd. are the Taverns, who have over 5000 leased, tenanted and managed opponents, you could expect to see some unusual beers from pubs. They also have £2.4 billion of debt! (Yes, billion.) They South Yorkshire on the bar. Also, Stan recently attended The have recently been trying to restructure this debt to help alleviGreat British Beer Festival in London and has picked up some ate crippling interest charges. good contacts, so expect some blockbuster beers to appear Unfortunately for the Derby Arms, the rent increase soon. would mean that the Walne family would not be able to run the A familiar face has appeared at the New Britannia on Heatley pub profitably in the future and with regret they have called it a St. Kim, who used to be in the Black Horse in Preston, is do- day there. Reading between the lines, I would not be surprised ing a few hours a week work behind the bar there, and enjoy- to see them turn up somewhere else, where their exciting plans ing meeting the many people she knew from her years in the can be fulfilled. Horse. The Brit is still selling its core range of beers and seems How many times have you seen a successful licensee content to stick with these.Bad news from the Angel in Lune driven out by a rent increase, only to be replaced with someone Street, which has been up for lease for a while; the real ale on a reduced rent, who cannot maintain the success of the previthere has completely disappeared. ous incumbent, leading to a downward spiral? I hope this does not happen there. Paul Riley
Dear Ed,
I was just perusing the latest issue, and wondered if you'd be interested - I'm Nick Duffy, twice semi-finallist on BBC Mastermind, and I've started hosting a quiz night every monday at The New Continental on South Meadow Street. I'm sure you already know how good the Conti's ale selection is, and wondered if you'd be interested in letting your readers know about it? I could even do you a quiz for inclusion in the magazine at no charge. Feel free to email, get in touch via our facebook page, or just turn up one Monday at 8.30 to join in. I'd advise getting there early though, we had 15 teams and over 70 contestants last week. Yours,
Nick Duffy Over 800 branch members but only a couple of dozen active. If you are one of the inactive majority don’t you fancy doing a bit to help fight the cause? Any help would be appreciated so why not get in touch (see p22) Ed
Stopping conglomerates turning pubs into supermarkets - just one of many fights CAMRA must fight. Join us in that fight ............. (see page 23) 19
The First Ale Cry
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Attention : Pubs, Clubs, Breweries, Pubcos, Suppliers to the trade Compare our target market with local press Read on--------------
Our quarterly publication goes right to the heart of your customer base. With an estimated 30.000 ‘interested’ readers ‘Ale Cry’ reaches ale drinkers all over the UK. Every pub we go in is given customer copies and also pub copies for drinkers to read and return to the bar for others to peruse. And it’s not just to local locals - no - no - no. As all our volunteer distributors travel around the country and further afield we leave pub copies in pubs we visit on our travels: from Scotland to Devon; from Wales to Yorkshire; from Canada to Germany; from the States to Poland etc., etc., Contact us (see below) for full details of where they’ve been left and to find out how to advertise with us Other than word of mouth you won’t find a better way to get your message across - Just ask our current advertisers Double Page £300 Back Page £195 Full Page £175 1/2 Page £95 1/4 £55
Published by: The Central Lancashire Branch Of The Campaign for Real Ale
18 pubs closing every day. The impact on our society is extremely serious.We need your support. Join us >>>>>>>>>>>
6 free gallons at Lion
Two more members who have taken on the role of branch >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> contact will win 3 gals of real Under 26 or over 60 ale each at the Leyland Lion. Yo u’ d be mad t to join CAM You could be one of them. We badly need RA From £15.50 to join:no£2 0 real ale vouchers, branch contacts i.e. people prepared to keep and 15 months members in touch with a few local pubs - passing hip for price of 12 + Real Ale Discou nts at hundreds ofthe news on to us, pu >>>>>>>>>>>>>> (see p16) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>bs >>>>>>>: distributing Ale Cry etc. It’s an enjoyable job which takes little effort and could win you 3 gals of real ale. Contact ed
Officers and Contacts:
Branch Details:
Branch Contact/Chairman Dave Linley 01772 735628 Secretary Gordon Small 01772 746118 14 Bank Parade Penwortham Preston Treasurer Paul Riley 01772 709272 Womens contact: Sue Riley 01772 709272 Web site/Young Members Gordon Small (see above) Social Secretary Steve Enderby 01257 410146 Communications (inc. membership & editor) Mick Clark 07984 840486
email address: clcamra@rocketmail.com
website- http://www.centrallancscamra.org.uk www.facebook.com CAMRA Central Lancashire Branch
Branch Meetings (8pm): Branch / Socials* Committee # You’re welcome to attend any of our meetings
Sep Oct Nov Dec
5 23 10 21 7 18 5 16
# Towneley Arms (Longridge) * Pump&Truncheon (B.Bridge) # Malt & Hops (Chorley) * Anchor (Lostock Hall) # Wellington (Glovers Ct., Preston) * Railway (Chorley) # Withy Arms (Bamber Bridge) * Christmas - Black Horse (Preston)
Trips
Mon Sept 30th - Ale Cry trip (inc pub of season pres to Nabs Head) Samlesbury area. Minibus from Old Vicarage, Preston (near bus station) Leaves at 7.15 - 11pm
Disclaimer: The views expressed in Ale Cry are not Deadline for Adverts and Articles for the 4/11/13 necessarily those of the Editor, the Central Lancashire Winter Edition:: Branch of CAMRA, or of the Campaign for Real Ale Expected Publication Date: 22/11/13
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AMAZING OFFERS FOR REAL ALE DRINKERS
Proud supporter of traditional, healthy, British made, real ales & CAMRA in its fight to bring this healthy, organically produced example of British culture to more people’s attention.
You don’t need an existing member to recommend you to join CAMRA, but if one has, he or she could win 3 gallons of real ale , just by insterting their details here.
Name Membership No Phone No
Direct Debit NonDD £23 £25 £28 £15.50
£30 £17.50
Accordingly, in association with CAMRA, we are pleased to announce these AMAZING offers:
£20 of JD Wetherspoon Real Ale tokens
15 months membership for the price of 12 if you agree to pay by direct debit
Chance to win 24 pints in the Leyland Lion on Hough Lane, Leyland for helping keep the branch informed aout what’s happening in your local pubs
So fill in this application form a.s.a.p. and post it to:
FAO Gary Fowler Wetherspoons Membership Offer, CAMRA, 230, Hatfield Road, St.Albans, Herts, AL1 4LW.
THE CONTINENTAL’S
11TH BEER FESTIVAL GINGER BEERS / BLONDE BEERS / TRADITIONAL BEERS / PALE ALES
19TH - 21ST SEPT 2013
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SOUTH MEADOW LANE, PRESTON, LANCASHIRE, PR1 8JP. 01772 499425
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