Ale Cry 94

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Central Lancashire Branch Issue 94

Winter 2011

Ale Cry

Formerly the West Lancashire Branch

Pub of

The Season

The Winter 2011 West Lancs Branch Pub of the Season is the Wheatsheaf on Water Lane in Ashton, Preston. Managers Brian and Elizabeth Luxton took over 15 months ago. Up to then, the pub only had one real ale on and that was not promoted at all.

The pub is owned by Amber Taverns, who have around 80 pubs in an area stretching from Stoke-on-Trent to the North-East.

They bought up many of the Last Orders pubs when Cains went bankrupt, which gives them the Bears Paw and Wellfield in Preston and Last Orders in Bamber Bridge locally as well as the Black Horse at Croston (formerly Devonshire Inns). Sadly they are not promoters of real ale, advertising John Smiths on their website as their main bitter.

This is where Brian comes in. He is a big supporter of real ale and has now got 5 handpumps installed, with at least 3 real ales on sale at all times, 5 at busy times. He specializes in Moorhouses beers, with at least one on sale at all times, but also stocks Courage Directors, which is popular in the pub and beers from local brewers such as Hart, Prospect, Copper Dragon and Bank Top. He & Elizabeth are not new to the pub trade, having previously managed a Good Beer Guide pub elsewhere in Lancashire.

Trade in the pub has increased generally since they took over, with some of the locals converted from keg to drinking real ale, as well as a growing trade in specialist real ale drinkers.

The pub is open from 11am to 11pm every day (perhaps until 11.30pm at weekends),, with live music Friday and Saturday night, an Open Mic night and 2 big screens for sport. 4 football teams also operate from the pub.

All are welcome at the presentation which will take place on Thursday 12th January at 8.45pm. It will be followed by the normal weekly quiz.

Dave Linley

Inside this issue!!!

Contents: p2 Editorial, South

Ribble; p3 New Name; p4 Preston; p7 Chorley; p12 Riley’s Rambles; p13 Quiz; p15 Germany; p16 Lion, Brinscall; p19 Locale; p22 Lancaster not; p23 Branch Details Pg24 MEMBERSHIP FORM

and much more

:

Melissa Cole will be in the Old Black Bull Friargate - for a special book signing of her book: ‘Let Me Tell you about Beer’ which has received rave reviews from the national press

Editorial Head in the Sand Stupidity

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Ale Cry has referred many times to the shortsighted, greedy attitudes of incompetent pub companies and the impact on their licensees and the social life of our nation. I have said before that the most incompetent organisations in country are the banks and the pub companies and that is confirmed on an almost daily basis.

It has an impact on Ale Cry as advertising revenues are reduced or diverted. That is the sole reason why the last issue was 36 pages and this one is only 24. Before I start feeling sorry for myself let me say that the impact on Ale Cry is as nothing to the impact on the victims of the pub companies - the licensees who if they do what is deemed by the pubcos to be a bad job they

will have their rent increased and lose their livelyhoods. If they on the other hand do an

excellent job they will have their rent increased by even more and lose their livelyhoods.

Why this shortsighted, evil attitude by the pubcos?

ARMS

Simply because they are incompetent to the point of stupidity.

BROOK STREET.

CHORLEY

This month alone one local licensee who has struggled valliently against the odds and succeeded in turning the pub’s fortunes round has told me that 50% increase in rent has forced him out. Another (a Good Beer Guide pub) is facing the same

situaion.

So what is does the strategy of these companies entail?

1) Entice those with a pension or redundancy payment ( and there’s a lot of those now) to make their dream of running their own pub become a reality

2) ASAP - up their rent until the quit

3) return to step 1) above

If that strategy fails - apply to the Council for permission to turn the pub into flats or knock it down for housing

Seasons greetings from Ed

Black Sheep Bitter .

3B’s Doff Cocker Guest Ales Good Beer Guide 2012 at great double prices

Under 26

over 60 You’d be mad noor t to join CAMRA From £14 to join: £20 rea l ale vouchers, and 15 m membership for the pr ice of 12 (see back pageonths )

South Ribble Scene

The big news in South Ribble is the arrival of a Wetherspoons pub in the area. After a lengthy build up the LEYLAND LION opened as announced on October 18th, and by all accounts it has been a very successful venture. Located in the old Post Office building on Hough Lane in Leyland, it is bigger than it looks from the outside, although the frontage is not as eye catching as many other Wetherspoons pubs across the country.

After the pub had been open a couple of weeks I paid my first visit there on a Friday lunchtime and the place was packed out, with no tables left unoccupied. Perhaps understandably the service was a little slow, but things seemed to improve as time went on. The pub has an impressive total of 10 handpumps, and on the day there were six different beers to choose from, these being Acorn Barnsley Bitter, Greene King Abbott Ale, Moorhouses Leyland Lion, Moorhouses Ruby Witch, Ruddles Best Bitter, and Wychwood Gingerbeard, while also available on handpump was Westons Country Perry.

Although it is good to see the branch get another Wetherspoons pub, it is to be hoped that the other pubs in Leyland can survive with the added competition. I subsequently called in at the ROSE & CROWN on Stanifield Lane in Farington, where at least I was able to get a seat for an undisturbed read. The beers available there were Black Sheep Bitter, Greene King IPA, and Theakstons XB. The WITHY ARMS has been attracting a lot of interest in Bamber Bridge, but following my recent visit there for LocAle purposes (see separate article) I took the opportunity to call in at two other Brig pubs, and I was pleasantly surprised. The PEAR TREE on Station Road certainly had a much improved beer range since my last visit a couple of months back. The beers available were Caledonian Autumn Red, Copper Dragon Golden Pippin, Courage Directors Bitter, Jennings World's Biggest Liar, and Shepherd Neame Spitfire. Nearby, the PETERS BAR on School Lane was once again found to have an interesting range of beers on offer with Cross Bay Sunset Blonde Bitter, Lancaster Red, and Shepherd Neame Spooks Ale all being available.

It has been reported that BAMBER BRIDGE FOOTBALL CLUB has been experiencing financial difficulties lately, but all seems well in the club bar with a good turn round of real ales continuing to be the norm. Having just missed by minutes one of their more exotic guest beers, I found that Black Sheep Bitter, Moorhouses Pride Of Pendle, and Thwaites Wainwright were the beers available on a recent match day afternoon.

In Lostock Hall, there have been changes at the VICTORIA on Watkin Lane, with the landlord unexpectedly departing the scene in September. The pub has since been run by temporary managers, and was host to a successful CAMRA committee meeting in November. Beer quality has been maintained, with Caledonian beers Autumn Red and Flying Scotsman being found there on my most recent visits.

They say that Christmas comes earlier and earlier each year. Well it has certainly come early this year at the FLEECE in Penwortham, which if my eyes weren’t deceiving me, had a Christmas Tree and decorations up as early as November 16th. There was a good choice of beers available on the day for revellers, with Black Sheep Bitter, Charles Wells bombardier, Holdens Golden Glow, and Tetley Bitter all being on sale.

Finally, in the last Ale Cry I promised more information about the SMITHY INN at Much Hoole. In recent weeks I have called in a couple of times and things appear to be going well. The pub has four handpumps, with two in use on both my visits. First time round the beers available were Mitchells & Butlers Plum and Titanic Lifeboat, while on my second visit it was a Moorhouses clean sweep with Premier Bitter and Black Cat being the beers on sale.

Gordon Small

ATTENTION: PUBS, BREWERS & PUBCOS The theme for the Spring issue is 22 BREWERIES so do yourself a favour and advertise in Ale Cry Ed

New Name -- New Opportunities!!!!!

We are the no longer the West Lancashire branch of CAMRA We are now the Central Lancashire Branch (subject to a rubber stamp from ‘head office’).

The Special General Meeting decided overwhelmingly on the name change.

When we were created in 1973 we covered the whole of west Lancashire.

Some

Now as CAMRA has grown (to over 120,000 members) branches have sprung up to the west of us and now we have a name which states clearly where we are located.

Wherever possible over the coming year we will indicate that we were formally the West Lancashire Branch and our logo will wherever possible show that we represent the Heart of Lancashire ( a name rejected by AGM as a branch name)

ed

My letter to Lancs Evening Post 4th Jan 1974

ed

things change but .................

kinetic

At the heart of Chorley’s night life Open Sun - Wed: 12 - 12 Thur: 12 - 2am Fri - Sat - 12 - 3am 3 Handpumps serving real ales from local breweries from £2 a pint Live DJs Thurs - Sat Sky Sports 3D Live Music Downstairs bar for private functions

The

Walmer Bridge

63 Liverpool Old Road, Walmer Bridge, Preston, PR4 5QE. Telephone - 01772 612296.

Darts - Wednesdays.

Quiz Night - Thursdays.

Live Football Coverage Five handpumps:

Robinsons Unicorn plus up to three guest beers always available.

Holder of Cask Marque and ACE Award certificates.

Large beer garden with children's play area.

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The latest pub to join

the real ale family

is the Plungington

Tavern on Plungingon Rd. The PunchTavern owned pub has been taken on by Mark Gibirdi who has been there since May this year. He was in charge at the Wheatsheaf in Preston for a year where he had real ale on and he also been in the Wellfield. He is a well travelled man, having also been in charge of pubs in Bolton, Accrington and Ashton in Makerfield. He has started with just one pump which has had Thwaites Wainwright and Deuchars IPA on up to now and it seems to be going really well. If he could increase the trade, he would like to get another pump in with changing guests. The pub itself is a traditional local split into two distinct areas, a lounge and a games room with pool and darts. Live football is featured.

The pub is open 12-11 (12 Fri-Sat).

On Friargate, The Lamb and Packet has recently been selling Fullers seasonal Summer Ale and Greene King St Edmunds Ale (4.2%) alongside its fine range of Thwaites beers (Nutty Slack, Original, Wainwrights, Bomber). They intend to continue having such ‘outsider’ beers on sale as they are selling quite well. Over the road at the Sun, another Thwaites house, they have just won Cask Marque accreditation for the quality of their beers.

On Heatley Street, the New Britannia has lost its lunchtime meals, the experiment with food provided by Daisy’s Diner having proved unsuccessful. Those who fancy a lunchtime meal in that area would do well to try the good wholesome food in the Dog and Partridge on Friargate which is cooked by landlord Ronnie Fitzpatrick himself, and a good job he makes of it too. You could also try one of his two ever changing guest beers or his three permanents (Holts Bitter, Tetley Mild, Taylors landlord) while you are there.

Meanwhile Dean Mather, the lessee at the New Brit, has taken over the former Pond restaurant in Cannon St. and opened it as the Steak House, selling a wide range of various types of steak. He has installed handpumps and has recently been selling Robinsons beers. Whether cask ale in such an environment can be sustained remains to be seen. He will also be running 4

PRESTON

4

a real ale bar on the Christmas market due to take place on the Flag market on the 10 and 11 December. There will be 12-16 different real ales on sale during the event, which will have a sectioned off drinking area with no entrance fee.

Further up Friargate, the Black Horse has finally got its new landlord in the shape of Graham from the Saddle Inn at Lea, He intends to keep up the running of both pubs. It is planned that the pub will close for a short while in the New Year whilst a refurb will take place. Graham is well known in this area, having also run the Plungington Hotel among others. He has won many awards during his career for the pubs he has run and I would expect him to continue in the same vein.

When you go in the Stanley Arms on Lancaster Rd, you will always be helped in your choice of what beer to have from their changing range of

four guest ales. Over the bar

you will find beer tasting

notes for each ale, kindly

provided by the beer suppli

ers S&N Cellarman’s Choice.

I have always wondered why

other pubs that get their beer

from them do not also have

these signs, for they have

details on colour, bitterness,

aroma etc. and prove invalu

able when you do not know what the beer will be like. Well done Steve.

The Ship Inn on Fylde Rd seems to be going through another crisis with a To Let sign appearing again, not long after it reopened after a previous sudden closure. Real ale availability there was again somewhat on and off, which can not have helped.

Let us hope the next lot get it right. Just up the road, the Bitter Suite is having a Christmas beer festival over the weekend of 14-17 December. You can be sure some unusual and new beers will be on at this multi award winning free house run by Paula and Kay.

Prices in the Old Blue Bell, the

Samuel Smith’s owned pub on

Church St. have gone up by eight

pence for the Old Brewery Bitter.

that means you will now have to

pay the princely sum of £1.68 for

a pint. Still a magnificent bargain

PARADE

when you see the price of beer elsewhere ever and ever going closer to the £3.00 mark. In some places it has already breached that. In the newly opened Broughton Inn to the north of Preston, a Vintage Inn on the A6 you can have a choice of five real ales along with your food, but at a cost. On my visit you could have Greene King IPA at £3.10, Sharps Doom Bar at £3.15 and the following all at £3.20:- Fullers Summer Ale, Thwaites Wainwright and Marstons Pedigree.

Meanwhile in Goosnargh, Wayne at the Grapes has

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 Meet The Brewer returns in the new year

‘One of the UKs top 100 pubs 2011’ - Famous Grouse Awards

A PNE Supporters Pub replaced the Tetley mild with Moorhouses Black Cat, which, I am sure, will go down well. He is having a live band performing on New Years Eve, so if you are in that neck of the woods, why not go down and bring in the New Year with some of the four Real Ales he has on the bar.

Finally, Steve Gregory, the bar/cellarman at the Corporation Arms in Longridge, has left to become a manager at a Greene King pub. He was going on a training course in the art of looking after a Greene King outlet before being allocated to one of the thousands of pubs they now own in the country.

Meanwhile Kevin Proctor will now also take over the beer ordering etc. along with all the other things involved in running a highly successful pub and restaurant.

Paul Riley

Stan and Pam are looking forward to offering you a warm welcome A Good Beer Guide and Casque Mark Pub Look out for the special feature weeks in the new year 33 Friargate - PRESTON - PR1 2AT Tel: 01772 823397 www.theoldblackbull.com

5 Unbenannt-1.indd 1

25.11.2011 14:55:51

C

The Original

FARMERS ARMS Bar and Restaurant

• Up to 6 CASK ales at a time.

• A varying selection of real ales from local micro breweries • Bar open all day until 12pm • A large selection of freshly made bar snacks • Sandwiches to T-bones & Ostrich served all day

• Special offers on beers all day everyday.

• Excellent bed & breakfast accommodation.

• with en-suite facilities available • Single room from £20 (en-suite from £25) • Double room from £25 (en-suite from £30)

TOWNGATE ECCLESTON NR CHORLEYPR7 5QS TELEPHONE 01257 451594

CAMRA Good Beer Guide since 1995 CAMRA Good Food Guide

You’re guaranteed a warm welcome atn the

Royal Oak, Riley Green 01254 201445

Attention Lasses.

The number of young women drinking real ale has soared. You see them at beer festivals almost outnumbering the men.

It’s a natural, often organic, healthy product.

Try it for a month and you won’t go back to your ‘Zombeers’ or alcopops. If it works for you get in touch with me.

Sue Riley (women’s contact)

THE SHAWES ARMS London Road Preston Opening Times: MON-THURS - 12 - 11 FRI-SAT - 12 - 12 SUN -12 - 10.30

3 Guest Ales and Ciders Bar Snacks Sky Sports TV Large rear garden overlooking River Ribble Families and Dogs welcome Pool Table, Dart Boards, Table Football Quiz night and play your cards right - Thursday Fortnightly DJ Karaoke

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Chorley Chatter

Not a lot of new news to report in the Chorley area recently.

Cask ale has been introduced to the bar of the Imperial opposite Chorley's flat iron car park. This pub last had real ale under its previous guise as Time Square and now has a single hand pump selling Black Sheep Bitter.

An old friend has returned to the bar of the Prince Of Wales on Cowling Brow.

Jennings Bitter was a regular favourite at the pub until about five years ago when it was replaced by Banks's Bitter. It has returned as a guest on a temporary basis

THE GRAPES INN AT GOOSNARGH

and by all accounts is going down very well with the locals.

The fledgling Burscough Brewery has broken into the Chorley free trade market with its beers appearing in the Rose & Crown, Malt n Hops, and the Swan With Two Necks.

Three pubs are continuing to fly the flag for local microbrewers. The Potters Arms and White Bull in Chorley, along with the Red Herring in Coppull, are selling Three B's, Bank Top, and Moorhouses respectively.

Successful beer festivals have been held at the Sea View in Whittle-le-Woods, the Top Lock at Heapey, and in the Drill Hall, Chorley.

Alan Thompson

Real ale has returned to the Crown on Chapel Street. Landlord George is currently experimenting with different ales to judge their popularity and hopes to increase the number of operating pumps as the sales increase.

The market Prince of Wales doesn’t get the credit it deserves. I was in on Sunday watching Liverpool and City draw an exciting match and the beers - Bombadeer, Pride of Pendle and Cocker Hoop - were on fine form.

The Black Horse at Weldbank closed recently with the licensees claiming that an increase in rent of 50% has forced them out. Holt’s bitter was very popular and I for one will miss it. Interestingly the sign in the window then advertised ‘Free of Tie. A week later a notice has appeared advertising pub re-opening 2nd December. I hope the new licensee takes full advantage of the ‘Free of Tie’’ clause - something most licensees would give their eye teeth for and that we see a wide range of real ales to tempt a rapidly growing market

Black Horse in Summer

Four Real Ales SIBA direct delivery

Cask Marque Live Sports Function Room Available Beer Garden and Bowling Green to Rear Open Mon 5 - 11 Tues - Thurs 12 - 12 Fri - Sat 12 - 1, Sun 12 - 10.30 Food Available Tues - Sat: 12-2.30, 6 -9 Sun - 12- 8 Why not try our lunchtime offer of two meals for £10

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: Black Horse in Winter

Paul Riley and I visited the Lock and Quay for their advert. I felt guilty for neglecting to visit it for so long. We were both very impressed by the meals, ales and atmosphere

Royston

‘The’ Curry Fridays The Big Quiz Thursday Night Rock DJ Sunday

7

`

The Lock And Quay

Anne, Vicky and Staff Welcome You To the recently refurbished

LOCK AND QUAY

Beer and Music

Melodious Mick Review of the year and looking forward to 2012

I have had an enjoyable 2011 at music festivals around the uk. For those reading this column for the first time I am not one for sitting in fields. I don’t mind camping in fields but not sitting there 100 yards from a stage listening to powerfully amplified music - although the atmosphere can be electric - those sort of festivals are not for me. I prefer sitting in pubs - not listening to the main artistes in the main halls but meeting other musicians (including some of the main artistes) who enjoy the informal jamming sessions, which can occationally provide real magic.

01257 274150 www.thelockandquaychorley.com Comfortable eating & drinking with a warm welcome Live Sports Delicious home made food: Specials board • kids eat FREE with adults • small appetite menu • afternoon teas • weekend English breakfast • seniors days (mondays) • Christmas menu - • bookings now being taken • Christmas • Day open 12 - 5 • Christmas • Dinner 12 - 2 • • CASK ALES - varying range • Live Bands (check website for details) • Quiz nights - Wednesdays (FREE SUPPER) • FREE pool every Monday • Dogs welcome •

Jon Brindley at the Swan with Two Necks in November It was on one such occation that Ebeneezer introduced me to Wiganers John (Lemon) O’Grady and Jon Brindley and I have been hooked ever since.

From a real ale perspective the great thing about these festivals is that even pubs which don’t normally sell real have free flow barrels at the bar and many pubs organise real ale festivals to co-incide with the music festival. Once again the Editor has asked me to slim down this article so I’ll finish with two points. The first is that if you didn’t go to any festivals this year you should try it next year (details in next issue).

The second is to point out to pubs and clubs that we will be happy to print reviews of their entertainment events. This year the readers enjoyed reading about festivals at the Railway in Chorley and the Continental in Preston.

All the best for the new year Mick

8

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 2012 7 Handpumps in action Normally 20 different real ales available during the course of a week Two 3D screens - 4 Sky 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 9

PARKERS ARMS Park Road Chorley 01257 261999

Opening hours: Monday - Thursday: 11am - 12pm Friday - Saturday: 11am - 1am Sunday: 11am - 12pm

Cricketers Arms Brinscall Hilary welcomes you to her traditional warm friendly pub

Real Ales from £2.00 per pint: Jennings’ Cumberland + guest Fresh food served 11am - 8pm all week Daily Specials 3 Course Sunday Lunch £8.95 Wednesday Lunch OAP Special - 25% off * 4 Course Christmas Lunch * * Throughout December £7.95* Christmas Day 6 course Lunch £20

Real Fire 3 real ales including Jennings Cumberland and Cocker Hoop Sky Sports TV Large Beer Garden Families and dogs welcome Free Wi Fi

Home cooked meals including Sunday Roasts £3.50 !!!

The Railway Inn Steeley lane Chorley LancsPR6 0RD 01257411449 emailrailwayinnchorley@yahoo.co.uk

Jennings Cumberland and 4 changing guest ales

CAMRA pub of the Season Cask Marque award for excellent real ales Free pool every Monday Darts and dominoes - Thurdays Free Jukebox every Tuesday

Chorley’s Premier Music Venue

Live Music Every Saturday and some Fridays Saturday 10th December: Jackhammer Saturday 17th December: Superjammer New Years Eve: The Stories Don’t miss: 10th March: The Insiders Seasonal music festivals with up to 8 bands

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Golden Lion

Blackburn Road New Front Extension Higher Wheelton (opened November 2010) Chorley Quiz Night Wednesday 9.30 01254 830855 FREE Pie Supper. Large Jackpot stuart>swanton@btinternet.com www.sugarvine/goldenlionwheelton.co.uk

Tuesday and Thursday Steak Night 2 Steaks and Free bottle of Wine £13.95 Sunday Roasts 2 for £9.95

6 handpumps: 5 Thwaites

+ 1 exclusive to Thwaites ‘1807 Club’

GLC Outside Caterers Monday - Free Pool Sky and ESPN Sports Channels

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Come down and receive a warm welcome from our friendly staff

CAMRA Pub of The Season Spring 2011

Riley’s Rambles................

When Preston’s game with Hartlepool was postponed in September, we looked around for somewhere nice we could stay for a few days. After watching the farmer’s weather report for the week ahead which indicated that the north east coast of England would have the best weather, we picked Whitby as the destination for our break.

There are many reasons for picking Whitby for a holiday, some of which I will tell you about during the course of this article, including the great choice of pubs selling real ale.

After arriving at our guest house on the west side of the town and wandering down the (very) steep cliff road down to the harbour and the River Esk, we saw on

the other side of the harbour the ruins of Whitby Abbey (St. Hilda’s) and the entrance to the harbour. One can understand why Bram Stoker chose this as the place where Dracula came ashore in his novel and how to this day it acts as a magnet for lovers of the story and why Whitby has its Gothic weeks which attract people from all over for its festivities.

We had other things on our mind though, and soon we were tucking in to some fish and chips which Whitby is proudly famous for. We walked along the har-

bour front towards the railway station, checking the position of some of the pubs we would be visiting later. We were going to the station because Whitby is at one end of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway and wanted to know the times of the trains for a trip on the railway later in the week. I have mentioned before the connection between steam train enthusiasts and real ale. Opposite both the railway station and bus station is probably the best pub in Whitby, the Station Inn. The local branch of CAMRA certainly thinks so, for it has just made it their pub of the year.

When you go in you will understand why for, besides its range of eight real ales, a cider and fruit wines, you will find a warm friendly welcome in this multi-roomed pub. On our visit there were Timothy Taylor’s Golden Best and Landlord, Black Dog Whitby Abbey at 3.8%, Sharps Doom Bar, Copper Dragon Golden Pippin, Camerons Strongarm, Caledonian 80/-, and Osset Silver King. The enthusiastic licensees try to maintain a superb range of varying styles. There is live music on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday evenings in the back bar and very entertaining it was on the two occasions we went there.

Crossing the swing bridge over the river to the old town you will find loads

of small shops in narrow streets leading to the bottom of the 199 steps you would need to climb to get up to the ruined Abbey. We were surprised by all the sweet shops selling all sorts of goodies. You could even get sweet tobacco (made from coconut) which I can remember munching on 50 years ago. You will also find a good range of pubs

in a very small area, which is always a plus. Just off the market square on Church St. you will find the Black Horse,

a little gem of a pub dating from the 1600’s. There is a front bar, mainly unchanged from the 1880’s which can get

crowded, and down an alley there is the back bar. This warm, friendly pub offers five ales, which on our visit

included Leeds Samba at 3.8%, Adnams Bitter, Black Sheep Ale at 4.4%, Black Dog Rhatas at 4.6% and Taylors

Landlord. A range of tapas, olives, Yorkshire cheeses and seafood nibbles are available

If you had turned right when you came over the swing bridge you would come to a pub called the Endeavour, close

to the Captain Cook Museum. Originally called the Imperial, it now

celebrates Cook’s first voyage to the antipodes.

This cosy, one room pub has an open fire and the bar has

5 handpumps that serve, besides John Smith’s, approx 140 beers

annually, sourced from all over the country. On our visit these

included Leeds Samba (3.8%), Mordue Autumn Tyne (4.0%) and

in

Brentwood Gold (4.3%). Regular folk/Irish music sessions are held at weekends and there is a tremendous atmosphere during Whitby’s Folk Week.

While you are down there, it is well worth a visit to the Cook museum, housed in the place where he lodged whilst

Paul Riley Whitby. It is very interesting. We also found a real pie restaurant and shop close by where we dined on home made pie (several varieties available) and mash with mushy

12

peas all at a very reasonable price. Very good they were too.

18

..................Whitby

If you decide to go up the 199 steps to visit the ruins of the abbey or to

visit St Mary’s church which is up there too, you might need to recover from your strenuous exertions by going into the Duke of York at the bottom of the steps. With a history that can be traced back to the Doomsday book, it has been an ale house and pub for 150 years. You will find historic pictures, memorabilia of Whitby and, on our visits, 5 real ales, Deuchars IPA, Black Sheep bitter, Sharps Doom Bar, Directors Bitter and Wells Bombardier. We found it quite relaxing in there. Just further back to the bridge, you will find the Shambles. It has a barn like interior with a large central bar with tables and chairs spreading out from it. The pub overlooks the river and from the tables on the veranda you get super views over the activities in the harbour. The beers on our visit were Theakstons XB and Old Peculier, Copper Dragon Golden Pippin and Great Newsome’s Jem’s Stout at 4.3%, a dark smooth beer with smoky roasted malt flavours and aromas.

There are several other real ale pubs in Whitby that I didn’t get to go into, for, as mentioned, there are many other things to do in and around |Whitby.

We spent a full day on the North Yorkshire Railway, visiting Grosmont and Pickering and no visit to Whitby should miss what must be one of the best museums in the country. It has the best collections of fossils I have ever seen, with the actual fossils on display and not plaster casts of them. The fossils were all found along the coast there and are truly magnificent. They include a plesiosaur of over 15 foot and the largest ancient crocodile you will ever see. We could have spent several days in there, with so much to see. I haven’t even mentioned the lovely clean beaches, which in the height of summer must be very alluring, but can be a bit chilly in September.

Having access to a car, there are many other places to visit in the area. Castle Howard is only 50 minutes away. One place we went to was Robin Hood’s

Bay, rather quaint and no doubt beautiful in good weather. It was cold and wet when we went and we soon repaired to the pub overlooking the bay, the Victoria, and had a lovely warming bowl of home

made soup. It also had some good real ales

on sale including Camerons Bitter and

Strongarm, Black Sheep Bitter, Copper

Dragon Black Gold and Wold Top Big

Sky, a tasty seasonal beer of 3.8%. The

other attractive thing with the beers

in this pub was the prices, which were all

under £3.00, which is not the case in `

most of the pubs in Whitby. Most were

over the £3.00 mark, going up to £3.40.

I have found that pubs in Yorkshire on the

Every whole canThur be more expensive than we

are used to this side of the Pennines, but

don’t let that put you off. They are well

worth the visit.

Quiz:

Paul Riley

Real Ale -

The Lancashire Walks Ale Cry Quiz No 7

Organic healthy, with limitless flavours.

A living product unlike: phoney Zombeers and Alcopops-

Quiz set by John Griffiths and Bob Clare 1.

In what year was the Moorhouse Brewery established?

2.

Where is the administrative centre for the Borough of Fylde?

3.

What is the main ingredient of Black Pudding?

4.

What brewery is based at Bashall Town, Ribble Valley?

5.

What position does Lord Shuttleworth occupy?

6.

Architect Oliver Hill designed which iconic Lancashire building opened in 1933?

7.

Who did Shakespeare call “Time honoured Lancaster”?

8.

What is the origin of the pub name “Swan with two Necks”?

9.

What word did stutterer Dicky Turner from Preston give to the language in 1832?

10. What honour was given to Chorley born Sir Norman Haworth born in 1937?Ans page23

Drink Real Ale Mother Nature’s Choice

13

14

Good Beer, Dodgy Trains - Germany 2011 Deutsche Bahn are worse than British Rail!

hill. Most are very basic, with bench tables and seats under permanent canopies, a small serving kiosk, a beer store built into the hill and a smoky kitchen serving a sausage-based menu. The whole arrangement has a shanty-town feel to it, but is immensely popular with the locals.

This now seems to be true - their long-distance trains seem to be less reliable, though years ago they were always spot-on. Alan Thompson and I flew out to Köln-Bonn Airport on our way to meet Dave Marsden in Bamberg. This meant catching one of the German ICE highspped trains from Deutz station in Köln. So we got there in plenty of time, and found the train was 25 minutes late. We waited, and waited, and waited and eventually it arrived 45 minutes late. It was obviously underpowered – it turned out only one of the two units that make up these trains had any power.

Forchheim has 4 breweries of its own, and each has at least one keller, plus there are kellers serving beers from out of town breweries. As normal in Germany though, each keller serves only one brewery’s beers – there are few free houses. We went first to the Greif (griffin) brewery keller but soon moved on because of a very noisy party of local drinkers. Next up the hill was the Hebendanz keller, one of the town breweries. The town’s annual Annafest festival was due to start the following day, so the only beer on sale was the Festbier, a slightly stronger version of their standard Helles. Hebendanz was damaged by a serious fire a few years ago, and it is good to see that they have recovered and that the beer is on top form.

Eventually struggling into Frankfurt an hour late, we had to get off the failed unit and find seats in the other unit, and eventually we got to Bamberg 75 minutes late – a lot of good drinking time lost! A very attractive Fraulein came round the train after Frankfurt and offered us forms to claim compensation – eventually we got £15 each back but would rather have had the drinking time.

As soon as we had got into the Hebendanz festival, a massive thunderstorm broke right over the Kellerberg, so we had to stay for a couple of beers, dodging the leaks through the shanty roofs, before making our way back to Bamberg for the rest of the evening.

A quite bizarre spot, interesting but not somewhere I’d particularly want to go again – the shanty town feel to the place put me off, or may be it was the rain.

We have been going to Bamberg most years for many years now, so it is difficult to find brewery taps we have not visited. There are still a few around Bamberg listed in Thomas’s fine Good Beer Guide to Germany which we have not visited. Mainly these are in remote rural areas, with few if any bus services.

Another source of information about new breweries in Franconia is the various blog sites operated by English-speaking fans of Franconian beer. Thomas operates one simply called www. german-breweries.com, while another is the online Franconian Beer Guide. Last spring, both reported that a new brewery had opened in Strassgiech, a village a few miles outside Bamberg and on one of the more frequent bus routes. The Drei Kronen (Three Crowns) in the centre of the village was a historic brew-pub, but brewing stopped in 2003.

However, we did find one in a area a few miles from Bamberg which could be reached by a combination of buses. Gasthof Weber in the small, quiet village of Röbersdorf, is served a couple of times a day by a bus heading out to even more remote villages. The main purpose of most of these buses is as school buses, so after leaving from Bamberg Station, our bus trundled round various schools, picking up children and dropping them off in the villages, before depositing us at a bus stop at the back of the Gasthof Weber.

It had apparently been taken over and re-activated so one afternoon we went to have a look.

Arriving soon after it had opened for the evening, we started asking questions of the barmaid about the brewing, in a mixture of German and English. She served us a beer but then disappeared into the back and soon the brewer, Andreas Gänstaller, appeared to talk to these English beer-tourists who had come to see him. He explained in good English that he and his wife had been operating a small, established brewery in Trabelsdorf, another village in the vicinity on behalf of the owner, but wanted to set up on their own.

So, they acquired the Drei Kronen and built it up as a successful bar. They do not brew there, but they heard about a brewery in yet another village, Schnaid, which was available to buy – the owners of that brewery had built themselves a luxurious new brewery. So they bought the brewery in Schnaid, in a very small remote village, but ship the beers to the more accessible Drei Kronen to sell them. Confused? We were!

Anyway, however it got there, the Gänstaller Keller beer was excellent. Keller beers are very dry, hoppy unfiltered beers matured in open tanks in the brewery cellar before being put into barrels. This means they are very ungassy as the carbon dioxide escapes during conditioning.

They are among the most tasty of Franconian beers, and this was a good example.

This turned out to be a very modern operation although it was founded over 200 years ago. A walk through the brewery yard suggested quite a large scale operation, with brewing equipment visible through the windows on one side of the yard, and a bottling plant on the other. In fact, only the brewery tap is supplied on draught, with the majority of the beer being sold in bottled form, either from a shop at the brewery or by home-delivery, a common arrangement for small breweries in Franconia.

The brewery tap had the usual arrangement of formal tables and pale wood paneling, but with quite an up-market chintzy feel to the décor. We tried the Landbier Helles, a tasty pale ungassy lager. They do brew a beer actually called Lager, which is a darker beer, unlike an English lager, and a Rauchbier, brewed with smoked malt.

The return to civilization was in a tiny, completely unsigned minibus with no-one else on, which drove up into the village before coming back to pick us up – you never know what you are going to get with German country buses. This took us to Hirschaid where the BrauereiGasthof Kraus (which we had been to before) provided us with a late lunch, and some of their home-brewed Vollbier (full-beer, usually a maltier beer than the standard Helles beer).

From here, a train to Forchheim enabled us to get a bus to the Kellerberg. This is a bizarre, and I think unique, area, with about 20 different bierkellers set among the trees on a wooded

23 15

Although we did not get a chance to go there, the blogs report that the Trabelsdorf brewery has not closed once Herr Gänstaller left – the owners son is now brewing there, bizarrely called Beck – no nothing to do with the ubiquitous beer “only ever brewed in Bremen, Germany.

This year was a shorter than usual visit to Franconia, but still worthwhile for the range of good beers on offer, and I think will probably be going back.

Forchheim has 4 breweries of its own, and each has at least one keller, plus there are kellers serving beers from out of town breweries. As normal in Germany though, each keller serves only one brewery’s beers – there are few free houses. We went first to the Greif (griffin) brewery keller but soon moved on because of a very noisy party of local drinkers. Next up the hill was the Hebendanz keller, one of the town breweries. The town’s annual Annafest festival was due to start the following day, so the only beer on sale was the Festbier, a slightly stronger version of their standard Helles. Hebendanz was damaged by a serious fire a few years ago, and it is good to see that they have recovered and that the beer is on top form.

As soon as we had got into the Hebendanz festival, a massive thunderstorm broke right over the Kellerberg, so we had to stay for a couple of beers, dodging the leaks through the shanty roofs, before making our way back to Bamberg for the rest of the evening.

A quite bizarre spot, interesting but not somewhere I’d particularly want to go again – the shanty town feel to the place put me off, or may be it was the rain.

Another source of information about new breweries in Franconia is the various blog sites operated by English-speaking fans of Franconian beer. Thomas operates one simply called www. german-breweries.com, while another is the online Franconian Beer Guide. Last spring, both reported that a new brewery had opened in Strassgiech, a village a few miles outside Bamberg and on one of the more frequent bus routes. The Drei Kronen (Three Crowns) in the centre of the village was a historic brew-pub, but brewing stopped in 2003.

It had apparently been taken over and re-activated so one afternoon we went to have a look. Arriving soon after it had opened for the evening, we started asking questions of the barmaid about the brewing, in a mixture of German and English. She served us a beer but then disappeared into the back and soon the brewer, Andreas Gänstaller, appeared to talk to these English beer-tourists who had come to see him. He explained in good English that he and his wife had been operating a small, established brewery in Trabelsdorf, another village in the vicinity on behalf of the

Dodgy Trains - Gemany 2011 (cont) owner, but wanted to set up on their own.

Good Beer,

So, they acquired the Drei Kronen and built it up as a successful bar. They do not brew there, but they heard about a brewery in yet another village, Schnaid, which was available to buy – the owners of that brewery had built themselves a luxurious new brewery.

So they bought the brewery in Schnaid, in a very small remote village, but ship the beers to the more accessible Drei Kronen to sell them. Confused? We were!

Anyway, however it got there, the Gänstaller Keller beer was excellent. Keller beers are very dry, hoppy unfiltered beers matured in open tanks in the brewery cellar before being put into barrels. This means they are very ungassy as the carbon dioxide escapes during conditioning. They are among the most tasty of Franconian beers, and this was a good example.

Although we did not get a chance to go there, the blogs report that the Trabelsdorf brewery has not closed once Herr Gänstaller left – the owners son is now brewing there, bizarrely called Beck – no nothing to do with the ubiquitous beer “only ever brewed in Bremen, Germany.

This year was a shorter than usual visit to Franconia, but still worthwhile for the range of good beers on offer, and I think will probably be going back

Dave Linley

Lion Loose In Leyland The long awaited third JD Wetherspoons pub in our area opened in October.

In the lead up to the official Managers Mark and wife Caroline asked our CAMRA branch and local residents if we would help with staff training. The onorous task included consuming meals and a couple of drinks each from the menu.

Caroline Mark and branch members

We were all invited to peruse the memorabilia

much of which came from the Motor Museum

round the corner. We all found it fascinating. I

was particularly impresses by the stained glass

window depicting the War of the Roses.

On opening day the famous Leyland Lion bus

after which the pub was named put in an appear

ance.

In terms of design and appearance the Lion is

the best of the three and whilst it is slightly

smaller than Chorley and far smaller than

Preston, I found it more welcoming.

We thank Mark and Caroline for their hospitatity and wish them all the best

`

The Lion visits on Opening Day

Lord Mountain

A warm welcome to Brinscall

Brinscall moved into our branch - The West Lancs branch from the East Lancs Branch just in time for us to change from the West Lancs branch to the Central Lancs Branch. If that doesn’t confuse you nothing will.

Even though Brinscall has always been part of Chorley Borough for some reason it was considered part of the Blackburn Area, It now takes its rightful place alongside Wheelton, Higher Wheelton and Withnell as part of our Branch.

It is something that has irked Hilary long serving licensee of the Cricketers For our part we are delighted to welcome a pub which serves quality real ales in such a friendly atmosphere.

Amongst the range of Jennings ales Cocker Hoop is always on tap and is very popular with regulars and visitors alike.

The food there is excellent and with a Sunday roast for £3.50 value and quality are guaranteed.

Just down the road Mark and Kiera at

the OakTree haven’t had long to cont

emplate their place on the CAMRA

map. He only moved in a couple of

weeks ago from the White Horse in

Adlington, which was keg only. In the

Oak Tree Mark has been able to sell

the real thing varying his beers

One pump at the moment but he

hopes to add more soon.

We say a fond welcome to both pubs

and wish them all the beat Toad

16

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   

 

  

   

 

  

  

   



17

Coming Soon:For every issue I receive more articles

than I have space for. As a result some articles I promised haven’t materialised. So hopefully in the next issue we will have the Beer Police article and the return of Peter Pieman.

I am also alerting Breweries which may wish to advertise with us the the theme for the next issue is

Breweries

A warm friendly welcome awaits you from Gillian

Wellington

124 Tulketh Road - Ashton on Ribble - PR2 1AR Tel: 01772 726641 3 different cask ales available - changed weekly Open mic nights 2nd and 4th Monday Live artiste Saturday Karaoke Friday and Sunday nights Quiz Sunday

Lamb and Packet Friargate

5 Cask Ales inc. Guests

European Lagers

Open 12-12 all days Food available 12 ‘til late Great selection of bottled world wide beers and wines

Sky Sports Free Wi-Fi

Heated outdoor smoking area

See our Facebook page for details of upcoming events Wellington Pub - Preston

OUR LADY & ST. GERARDS Brownedge Road, Lostock Hall, Preston PR5 5AA Te l e p h o n e : 0 1 7 7 2 3 3 9 4 59

2 Guest Ale Handpumps rotated on aweeklybasis

Live Entertainment & Function Room

Sports Channels - Sky Sports & ESPN

Quiz Nights every Sunday & Tuesday

SnookerTable & Pool Table

Memberships Available

18

Following the lead of other branches, CAMRA West Lancashire branch first launched a LocAle scheme in Spring 2009. In practice this meant that the branch was putting into place an initiative that we would actively support those licensees in our area who were selling at least one beer that had been brewed within 30 miles of their pub premises.

As the branch prepares to up sticks and re-locate from West Lancashire to Central Lancashire, there are now 37

establishments (36 pubs plus one club) which have been identified as being eligible to take part in the

branch's LocAle scheme. With several new additions since the last Ale Cry was produced, this is an up-to-date list of the branch's LocAle participants:-

BRIDGE, Adlington (various).

WITHY ARMS, Bamber Bridge (various).

SADDLE, Bartle (Thwaites).

CRICKETERS, Brinscall (various) TILLOTSONS ARMS, Chipping (various) BLACK HORSE, Chorley

MALT & HOPS, Chorley (various). POTTERS ARMS, Chorley (Three B's).

SWAN WITH TWO NECKS, Chorley (various).

ORIGINAL FARMERS ARMS, Eccleston (various). HORNS, Goosnargh (various). YEW TREE, Heath Charnock (various).

(Thwaites). BOATYARD, Hoghton (Thwaites). SMITHS ARMS, Lea (Thwaites).

WAGON & HORSES, Leyland (Thwaites).

CORPORATION ARMS, Longridge (various).

ROBIN HOOD, Mawdesley (various).GOLDEN CROSS, Preston (Arkwrights).

MOORBROOK, Preston (Thwaites). NEW WELCOME, Preston (Thwaites).

OLD BULL, Preston (Moorhouses).

SUN, Preston (Thwaites). PRESTON GRASSHOPPERS RUGBY CLUB (Thwaites). WHEATSHEAF, Preston (various).

NABS HEAD, Samlesbury (Thwaites). NEW HALL TAVERN, Samlesbury (various) WELCOME TAVERN, Walton-le-Dale (Thwaites). closed

DOG, Whittle-le-Woods (Thwaites).

SITTING GOOSE, Bartle (Thwaites).

KINETIC BAR, Chorley (Prospect).

WHITE BULL, Chorley (Bank Top).

GOLDEN LION, Higher Wheelton BULL & ROYAL, Longridge (Thwaites).

LAMB & PACKET, Preston (Thwaites).

OLD VIC, Preston (various).

ROYAL OAK, Riley Green (Thwaites).

RED LION, Wheelton –stop press -

Since LocAle was first launched the situation in CAMRA West Lancs has improved significantly with two real ale breweries now operating within the branch boundaries. Both are located in Preston, ARKWRIGHT'S BREWERY is based at the Real Ale Shop on Lovat Road, while HART OF PRESTON BREWERY is based on the Oxheys Industrial Estate.

People may also be aware of the SMART BREWING COMPANY, a third Preston-based business that has recently had its Best Bitter, Brewery Bitter, and Smart Arse beers appear in some local pubs. As we understand it Smart's beers are currently being contract brewed by Wessex Brewery in Wiltshire, so they do not qualify for LocAle status. However it remains to be seen whether they will eventually make the move to establish their own brewery premises within the branch area.

Regrettably the large AB INBEV brewery at Samlesbury is believed not to have produced any real ale for years, but just outside the branch boundaries there are many other breweries which are close enough to qualify pubs in the CAMRA West Lancs area for them to achieve LocAle status. As well as relative giants like Moorhouses and Thwaites, there are smaller breweries like Bank Top, Burscough, Cross Bay, Fuzzy Duck, Hop Star, Lancaster, Lytham, Prospect, Southport, and Three B's which can often be found on the bars of local pubs.

In each issue of Ale Cry I am featuring three of the branch's LocAle pubs. This time it is the turn of:LAMB & PACKET, PRESTON. Arguably Preston's very first student pub, this Thwaites tied house on Friargate has had its own fair share of ups and downs over the last 20 years. It is good to report that things are again looking up for the Lamb & Packet with it recently having undergone a complete internal refurbishment. Since re-opening in August it has become a better place for the real ale drinker, and it is now offering a good selection of Thwaites Brewery beers plus it is also selling guest beers from the 1807 Cask Club range. On a recent visit five different beers were available, with Thwaites Indus Pale Ale, Lancaster Bomber, Nutty Black, and Original being the four LocAle choices.

WELCOME TAVERN, WALTON-LE-DALE. Hidden away down Hennel Lane in Walton-le-Dale, this is a Thwaites tied house that has unfortunately been largely overlooked by CAMRA West Lancashire branch in recent years. Once a relatively isolated but popular country pub it is now an estate pub that serves as a real community local. Over the years the Welcome Tavern has usually had just one real ale available, but on my visit I was confusingly faced with a choice of Thwaites Our Boys or Thwaites Our Girls. However as both were dispensed from the same handpump I can be content that I was unbiased in my support of this beer which will be raising money for the Royal British Legion.

The Lamb and Packet WITHY ARMS, BAMBER BRIDGE. Like the Lamb & Packet, another pub which re-opened during the Summer with a brand new image after a short period of closure. Previously the Withy Trees, then Shifty O'Shea's, and more recently the Top House, the Withy Arms is now a cross between a pub and a wine bar with a tandem bicycle thrown in for good measure. Located at the junction of Station Road and Brownedge Road, great things are expected of this pub, with them planning to hold their first Beer Festival in December. There are always four different beers on handpump, and on my visit all four were LocAle beers, these being Burscough Mere Blonde, Prospect Silver Tally, Thwaites Our Boys, plus the house beer Withy Ale (which apparently is also brewed by Thwaites Brewery).

Look out for pubs and clubs in the branch area that are displaying LocAle promotional material - and in particular look out for 2012 window stickers which will start appearing soon. These establishments are to be recommended if you wish to support those licensees who are doing their bit for local breweries (and for the environment).

Gordon Small LOCALE - THWAITES PUB LOCATIONS UPDATE In the last issue of Ale Cry I highlighted the unfortunate situation that Thwaites Brewery had two of their pubs incorrectly located for people who were using the 'Find A Pub' facility on their on line website. The Bull & Royal (really on Derby Road in Longridge) was shown as being in the Withy Trees area of Fulwood, while the New Holly (really on the A6 near Forton) was shown as being in Preston city centre close to Lancastria House.

Three months on and things are not that much better. The good news is that the Bull & Royal is no longer being shown in Fulwood, but the bad news is that it is still not being shown anywhere near Longridge. The New Holly continues to be shown in Preston city centre - so perhaps I was right in thinking that Thwaites Brewery may have ambitious plans to re-locate this pub.

Looking again a bit closer at the Thwaites map and it soon becomes apparent that the above two pubs are by no means the only problems. The Welcome Tavern at Walton-le-Dale is hard enough to find as it is, but the Thwaites map does not even appear to acknowledge its existence. Similarly the Sitting Goose at Bartle is also not shown to exist on their map, even though it is quite close to another Thwaites pub, the Saddle, which is clearly marked. Checking once more on Longridge and I managed to find that it does indeed have a Thwaites pub flagged up for visitors. However on closer investigation this is another error, as the pub is actually the Black Bull at Ribchester, which is being shown on the Thwaites map as being just off Lower Lane in Longridge.

I just hope no one has been dropped off the bus in Longridge only to find that they had quite a trek to Ribchester to get to the pub they wanted.

19

CAMRA West Lancs Branch Well it looks like CAMRA West Lancashire branch is finally coming to an end after being in existence for some 38 years.

..............................................The End

At a Special Meeting held on October 24th 2011 at the Stanley Arms in Preston it was overwhelmingly decided by those present that the branch should no longer be called CAMRA West Lancashire and that it should henceforth become known as CAMRA Central Lancashire branch. The wheels are currently in motion to get the name change fully authorised and registered, but with the demise of CAMRA West Lancashire imminent what can we say about the branch since it came into existence in 1973?

Ready or not, counting the old branch out, here are some telling figures:1 - There has been just one CAMRA BEER FESTIVAL. The branch's one and only Beer Festival was held at the Victoria Hotel (now the Old Vic) in Preston in May 1978. Since then there have been joint ventures with many other organisations, but I think it fair to say that CAMRA West Lancashire branch had just about given up on holding a second Beer Festival. Perhaps CAMRA Central Lancashire branch will have better luck.

3 - There have been three BRANCH WEBSITES. The branch has struggled with its presence on the internet. The first CAMRA West Lancashire branch website was set up in 1999, the second in 2001, and then there was a third website created as recently as 2010. As well as the three websites the branch currently also has both Facebook and MySpace webpages. In practice all are now redundant, but in the very near future a brand new CAMRA Central Lancashire website will be making its appearance.

8 - There have been eight REAL ALE GUIDES. The branch's first local beer guide was the Preston & District Real Ale Guide which was produced in 1975. Priced at 20p, it was a slim volume that listed all the branch's known real ale pubs but gave no descriptions of them. The most recent local beer guide came out in 2004 and was priced at ÂŁ4, and looking to the future it was actually entitled the Central Lancashire Real Ale Guide. The well received Preston Guild Guide was produced in 1992 - all being well there will be a second Preston Guild Guide produced in 2012 by the fledgling CAMRA Central Lancashire branch.

30 - There have been 30 GEORGE LEE MEMORIAL TROPHY awards.

The first George Lee Memorial Trophy winner was the Olde Blue Bell in Preston, with the pub holding the trophy for the year 1981/82. Named in memory of the popular former Moorbrook landlord who had helped in forming the branch in 1973, the George Lee Memorial Trophy is the branch's premier award given to the pub, organisation, or person that is considered to have done the most for real ale locally in the previous year. As things stand the Bitter Suite, the Continental, the Old Black Bull, and St Teresa's Parish Centre have all been two-time winners, with the 2011/12 winner to be voted on at the Christmas Branch Meeting at the Angel, Preston.

58 - There have been 58 PUB OF THE SEASON awards.

The first Pub of the Season winner was the Hogshead (now the Guild) in Preston for Autumn 1996.

With no pub yet having won the award twice there have been 58 different Pub of the Season recipients, with several of these pubs sadly having bitten the dust in the intervening years. With the branch in the process of changing its name, the Winter 2011/12 Pub of the Season, the Wheatsheaf at Ashton, will have the distinction of being both the last CAMRA West Lancashire winner and the first CAMRA Central Lancashire winner.

94 - There have been 94 issues of ALE CRY. The first Ale Cry was produced in April 1978. It was initially a single sheet issue costing a princely 2p, but this charge was dropped after that first edition. Over the years Ale Cry has gradually improved in quality and grown in size, with the Autumn 2011 edition reaching a mammoth 36 pages and being full colour throughout. On a personal note, this is the 45th 'CAMRA West Lancs And' article I have written for Ale Cry. What comes next - do I now write 'CAMRA Central Lancs And' articles?

132 - There have been at least 132 BREWERY TRIPS. The branch's first brewery trip was to Jennings Brewery at Cockermouth on September 13th 1973, and in 1974 alone there were as many as eight brewery visits arranged. The most recent brewery trip was to Hart Of Preston Brewery on July 14th, with 16 branch members being excellently entertained on one of the few really hot days of Summer 2011. Brewery trips may not be as regular as they used to be, but the Social Secretary has no doubt a number of possibilities in mind for 2012.

460 - There have been approximately 460 BRANCH MEETINGS. The first branch meeting was held at the Moorbrook in Preston on June 25th 1973. Since then branch meetings have been held once per month at a great number of different venues initially in the Preston area, but more recently throughout the entire branch area. The 38th CAMRA West Lancashire branch AGM took place at the Stanley Arms in Preston on June 13th 2011, when a motion was carried that CAMRA Central Lancashire would be the branch name preferred by the majority of those branch members present.

1000 - The number of times that I said ....

This is probably the number of times that I have said that we should stay as CAMRA West Lancashire branch (As you will gather I was one of the few branch members who were in opposition to the name change). Calling this article 'The End' reminded me of that rather depressing Doors song from the 1960s, and strangely it is a song that also includes the line 'The West is the Best'.

Well that's about it for CAMRA West Lancashire branch. I suppose that a branch name change is not the end of the world. Long live CAMRA Central Lancashire branch.

Gordon Small

Over 700 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?

20 Any help would be appreciated so why not get in touch (see P23)

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And it’s not just to local locals - no - no - no. As all our busy bee 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 p23) 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.

21

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Guest Ales include: Moorhouses, 3Bs and many more Good Beer

Guide -Sat night entertainment, we’re in it.

Sun night quiz Ring Mill function room for hire Monday to Thursday open from 3pm Friday to Sunday open from 12pm

8

Ale Cry Visits Lancaster....................................................................NOT

You will have read elsewhere in this issue that we have changed our name to The Central Lancashire Branch. Over the years there had been a bit of opposition to this name change from people who thought it reminded them of the Central Lancashire New Town. This was the name given to the massive development in the seventies onwards to the area around Preston, Leyland and Chorley. The original plans included Grimsargh and Longridge in the scheme in what was called the Longridge spur. A successful campaign ensured that Longridge was not included in the new ‘super city’.

Move forward to the present day and our London masters have come up with a plan that would move Longridge and Chipping( our real destination for this trip) from the Ribble Valley into a new parliamentary constituency including Lancaster. They have as much in common as Fishwick in Preston does with Ribble Valley, which is part of the same plans. Maybe sense will prevail. Meanwhile Ale Cry visits Longridge and Chipping.

We were on our way to present the summer Pub of the Season award to the Tillotsons, so on the way we took the opportunity to visit some pubs that we don’t visit as much as we should. Our first stop was the Old Oak at the fork in the road when you approach from Preston, a welcoming pub that has been run for a couple of years by Fred and Pat.

On entering we were pleased to find 5 handpumps which on our visit were dispensing the following beers:- Theakstons Best Bitter which was a regular beer, Jennings Cumberland and Thwaites Wainwrights, both of which are fairly regular and Gray’s Best which is either brewed in Burton on Trent or is a rebadged Coachhouse beer, nobody seemed sure. Anyway it was on special offer at £2.00 and went down very well, as did all the others that were tried. The Gray’s was a changing guest, with Deuchars IPA being a fairly popular incumbent of that posi-

tion. The pub itself has seating round the bar area, a comfortable lounge with a warming real fire and a games room to the rear. Sports are shown on the TV with darts and dominoes on Tuesday. There is a beer garden round the back

The Old Oak - Longridge of the pub. Opening hours are 12 till 12 (1am Fri & Sat). Food is served every day 12-4 except Tuesday, with a special Curry Night on Thursdays 6-9

Climbing back on our minibus, we proceeded to our next pub, which was the Alston Arms, on the way out of

Longridge on the way to Chipping. We had tried to visit the pub on a couple of previous trips, but at that time it was

always closed on a Monday. We were not prepared for what we found on this visit.

The pub was heaving and it was mostly all women. We had arrived on the occasion of a Ladies pre-Christmas charity

fundraising night. The novelty of having fifteen men arriving looking for some Real Ale did not put them off and we were

made most welcome, with some good items on sale. The pub is run by Nick and Lindsay Metcalfe who have been there

for two years, and they have four ever changing beers from the Cellarman’s Reserve list on the bar. On our visit we found

Wychwood’s Wizard’s Staff (3.8%), Holt’s IPA (4%) with Caledonian Deuchar’s IPA and Flying Scotsman(4%). Nick and

Lindsay are gaining a reputation for their good quality home cooked food which is available 12-2(not Mon) and 5-9, all

day Sat (12-9) and Sun (12-8). The pub itself is open 12-3 (not Mon), 5-11, except on Fri and Sat when it is open 12-12

and 12-11 on Sunday. There is a large car park and beer garden with fantastic views over the fells. Again there was a real

Alston Arms

fire.

They have also recently taken over the licence for the White Bull in Longridge and installed a manager to run it for them with three changing Real Ales. There they have live

music on Fridays with darts and dominoes in both pubs

It was soon time to head off to Chipping so we hopped back on the bus and arrived at the Tillotsons in plenty of time for the Pub of the Season presentation, so early in fact

that Curly the landlord was still on his way back from a day at the races in Carlisle. It was decided to have one of the four Real Ales on offer and then try the Sun, just up the road, before coming back later. Bowland Pheasant Plucker(3.6%), Moorhouses Premier(3.7%)and two Hawkshead beers, Bitter(3.7%) Lakeland Gold(4.4%)were available at the Tillotsons. Up at the Sun Inn on the corner of aptly named Windy Street, we found three Real Ales on the bar, Ansells mild(3.4%) (which according to Wikipedia is currently brewed by J W Lees), Black Sheep Bitter and Thwaites Wainwrights.

The Sun’s Landlady, Ann has been there for three years and has recently opened the Lizzies Lounge restau

rant there with Nick Wharf, formerly of Heathcotes as the chef. They still do the famous pie and peas with

gravy in the bar. In the back room you can still chance your arm at ‘ringing the bull’ and dominoes and darts

feature on Tuesday. The pub is open 11.30-3, 4.30-12 Mon- Thurs, 11.30-2am Fri-Sun with food available

12-3, 6- 8.45 midweek and 12-9 Fri-Sunday. Pie and peas are served all day! For those who cannot negotiate

the very steep steps at the front of the pub, access can be gained at the rear through the outside seating area

for when the weather is nice.

presented with his Autumn Pub of the Season award by yours truly and it was gratefully received. A good

description of the pub was given in the last issue, but for completeness, I will tell you that the pub is open

12-3 and 5-12 midweek( except Monday when it is shut) and 12-12 at weekends with its popular home

cooked and locally sourced food available lunchtimes and evenings and all day on Sunday.

The Sun

We returned to the Tillotsons where after getting our next pint in, Curly arrived and was duly

Eventually it was time for us to return to Preston and we emptied our glasses and got on the minibus for our return trip. Once again everybody had had a good night out in this corner of Lancashire which will always be in the Ribble Valley, no matter what our parliamentarians may say.

Our next sortie will be to Longton and beyond on Thursday 2nd of Febrary.

Paul Riley

Chipping can be reached during the day from Preston by the Number 4 bus which goes via Woodplumpton and takes around an hour to get there. Sadly, it is no longer

22

possible to get there by bus in the evenings (not even on Friday), or any time on Sunday, these services being part of the recent cutbacks by Lancashire County Council, under orders to save money to stave off the bankers.

Curly, and Paul at the Tillotson with the pub of the Season Certificate

THE ROYAL ARMS Country Pub

Tockholes Rd, Tockholes, Darwen, BB3 0PA Tel. 01254 705373 Introducing new 4th handpump

Christmas Fayre Menu: 2 courses £10.95; 3 courses £11.95 - booking required Every Thursday is Food Specialty Night

Roaring open fire

and home cooked food

LIVE EVENING ENTERTAINMENT Open Mic every1st Saturday in the month

A CAMRA GOOD BEER GUIDE PUB

Motor Homes and Camper Vans welcome overnight New web site: www.theroyalarms-tockholes.co.uk Join us on facebook at ‘The Royal Arms Country Pub’ Officers and Contacts: Branch Contaact And Treasurer Womens contact: Chairman

Vice Chairman Secretary

Webmaster and Young members Social Secretary Communications (inc. membership & editor)

Branch Details:

Paul Riley 01772 709272 Sue Riley 01772 709272 Alan Thompson 01257 276363 Dave Linley 01772 735628 Gordon Small 01772 746118 14 Bank Parade Penwortham Preston Steve Eaves steveneavesuk

@yahoo.co.uk Steve Enderby 01257 410146 Mick Clark

07984 840486

email address: wlcamra@rocketmail.com or NEW email address: clcamra@rocketmail.com

Deadline for Adverts and Articles for 3/3/12 Spring Edition:: Expected Publication Date: 24/3/12 Published by: The West Lancashire Branch Of The Campaign for Real Ale Disclaimer: The views expressed in Ale Cry are not necessarily those of the Editor, the West Lancashire Branch of CAMRA, or of the Campaign for Real Ale

Branch Meetings (8pm): Branch / Socials* Committee # You’re welcome to attend any of our meetings

Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

8 19 5 12

23 9 20 1

#Malt and Hops (Chorley) *Angels (Preston) #Old Black Bull (Preston) *Pub of Season Presentation / social Wheatsheaf Water Lane Preston *Leyland Lion, Hough Lane, Leyland #Black Bull, Penwortham *Black Horse, Friargate, Preston #Swan with Two Necks, Chorley

Trips

Thur 2nd Feb - Ale Cry trip to Longton and beyond. Minibus from Old Vicarage, Preston (near bus station) Leaves at 7.15 - Return to Preston 11pm. Contact Paul Riley to book a place (01772 709272)

Quiz No 7 Answers Quiz kindly donated by:www.lancashirewalks.com

23

1) 1865, 2) St.Anne’s, 3) pigs’ blood. 4) Bowland Brewery, 5) Lord Lieutenant of Lancashire 6) The Midland Hotel Morecambe, 7) John O’Gaunt.

8). The Worshipful Company of Vintners were given the right to own some swans as distinct from the monarch who owned the rest. The beaks of Vintner swans were marked with two nicks. 9) Teetotal, 10. Nobel Prize for Chemistry

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