Mine's A Pint magazine issue 35

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CAMPAIGN for REAL ALE FREE THE CAMRA MAGAZINE FOR READING AND MID BERKSHIRE ISSUE THIRTY FIVE • AUTUMN 2015 • FREE - PLEASE TAKE A COPY IN THIS ISSUE Pub & Brewery News Small Beer The Butlers Story Maris Otter 50th Anniversary Join CAMRA Behind the Bar: The Queens Head Kevin and Kerri Durkan receiving their Pub of the Year award for the Fox and Hounds, Caversham, at their summer beer festival. PUB OF THE YEAR

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Transcript of Mine's A Pint magazine issue 35

Page 1: Mine's A Pint magazine issue 35

CAMPAIGN for REAL ALE

FREE

THE CAMRA MAGAZINE FOR READING AND MID BERKSHIRE ISSUE THIRTY FIVE • AUTUMN 2015 • FREE - PLEASE TAKE A COPY

IN THIS ISSUEPub & Brewery News Small BeerThe Butlers StoryMaris Otter 50th AnniversaryJoin CAMRABehind the Bar: The Queens Head

Kevin and Kerri Durkan receiving their Pub of theYear award for the Fox and Hounds, Caversham,

at their summer beer festival.

PUB OF THE YEAR

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Contact UsUseful contact details for this magazine, CAMRA and other important things…Mine's a Pint Circulation: 3,000.Outlets: Over 70 across the region.

Editor: Phil [email protected] 455 029381 Addison Road, Reading, RG1 8EG

Magazine published on behalf of Readingand Mid Berkshire CAMRA by:

Orchard House Media [email protected]

For advertising enquiries please contact Jane Michelson:01778 [email protected]

Reading & Mid Berkshire CAMRAwww.readingcamra.org.uk

Social Secretary: Quinten Taylor [email protected] 424232

Contact for all other branch matters:Katrina [email protected] 401 9437

Local Trading StandardsReading Borough Council:www.reading.gov.uk 0118 937 3737

West Berkshire Council:www.westberks.gov.uk 01635 519930

Royal Borough of Windsor &Maidenhead:www.rbwm.gov.uk 01628 683800

Wokingham Borough Council:www.wokingham.gov.uk 0118 974 6400

The next issue of Mine’s a Pint will be published in December Please feel free to submit copy or ideas by 8 November

The opinions expressed in Mine’s a Pint arenot necessarily those of the editor or theCampaign for Real Ale. © Campaign forReal Ale 2015.

SEPTEMBERThu 17: Branch meeting. Foresters Arms, 79-81 BrunswickStreet, Reading, RG1 6NY. CAMRA members only, please.

Sun 20: Pub walk. Pangbourne circular via Greyhound,Tidmarsh. Meet at Pangbourne Village Hall car park 11.00.Train from Reading 10.45, return 17.45 from Pangbourne.Contact Chris Hinton on [email protected] / 0118 987 3203.

Fri 25: Southall Curry Night. Meet 19.30 onwards for drinksat the Conservative Club, High Street, Southall, UB1 3HB,then Nagina Karahi restaurant at 20.45. Contact JohnRobinson on [email protected] / 0118 940 2787 /0790 434 3187.

Tue 29: Gala Awards evening for our branch award winners.Castle Tap, 120 Castle Street, Reading, RG1 7RJ.

OCTOBERThu 1: First Thursday of the Month Social. Venue TBC.

Mon 12: Branch meeting. Butchers Arms, 9 Lower ArmourRoad, Tilehurst, RG31 6HH. Meeting in the left hand bar.CAMRA members only, please.

NOVEMBERThu 5: First Thursday of the Month Social. Wargrave SnookerClub, Woodclyffe Hostel, Church Street, RG10 8EP. ContactJohn Robinson on [email protected] / 0118 9402787 / 0790 434 3187. 19.00 start.

Wed 18: Branch AGM. Purple Turtle, 9 Gun Street, Reading,RG1 2JR. Meeting in the cellar bar. CAMRA members only,please.

See www.readingcamra.org.uk for details of these events asthey come available. For details of an event with no contactlisted, to suggest an event or to receive regular e-mail updatesof the branch diary, contact Quinten Taylor (Quinno):[email protected] / 07887 424232.

Branch DiaryAll events start at 20.00 and are open to everybody unless specified.

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Well, it wasn’t a great summer weather-wisebut it’s certainly been good for real ale. Inthis issue we're looking both backwards andforwards, celebrating some of the best bitsof the past but also looking to the future.

Everyone likes an award, and CAMRAawards come in all shapes and sizes, fromPub of the Year (our local winner is on thefront cover), through Beer of the Festival, tomore individual awards when there's some-thing unique that's worth celebrating. Thisyear we're bringing a lot of the local awardstogether for our first ever Gala AwardsEvening. To be held at the Castle Tap on 29September, this is a new idea for us and youcan help make it a great success. Comealong and meet the winners from some ofthe best local pubs, clubs and breweries, andbe a part of marking their achievements.

Our pubs, like our beers, are rooted in tra-dition but also have a history of innovation,and you can read about two local pubsinside – one that's building on the best of itshistorical elements, the other with a brandnew concept of serving beer. There’s also alight-hearted guide to being a pub customerand, no, it’s not as easy as you might think!

Finally, how would you like to be involvedin the production of Mine's a Pint? We'relooking for somebody to help with, ormaybe take the lead on, putting together thePub and Brewery News for the magazine. Itwould suit somebody with an interest in thelocal real ale scene, who likes bringingtogether snippets of news from lots of differ-ent sources and creating a thorough round-up of local happenings. Could that personbe you? If so, get in touch and we'll have achat over a pint or two.

Cheers.

Phil Gill - [email protected]

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From the Editor

ContentsBranch Diary 3

From the Editor 4

Pub & Brewery News 5-11

Small Beer 12-15

The Butler’s Story 16-17

Gala Awards 19

Twyford Beer Festival 20

Maris Otter Barley 22-23

Oktoberfest 24

Behind the Bar 26-27

So you want to be a pub customer? 28-29

Join CAMRA 30

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Pub News

ARBORFIELDOver the summer, and just too late to beincluded in the last issue of Mine's a Pint,the SWAN was converted into an Indianrestaurant called Daruchini. There’s a smallbar area but no real ale is on offer now. A historic building with a grade 2 listing,the Enterprise-owned Swan had been closedfor some time and its loss leaves the BULLas the only pub in the village. Change of usefrom pub to restaurant is permitted develop-ment – meaning it doesn't need planningpermission. Although CAMRA has secureda concession that says any pub listed as anAsset of Community Value has that permit-ted development right removed, that was nohelp in the case of the Swan.

CAVERSHAMThe RED COW in Star Road was closed andbelieved to be for sale as we went to press.

An intriguing planning application was sub-mitted for a roof terrace at the BARONCADOGAN on Prospect Street but has now

been withdrawn. We understand that twomore handpumps may be installed to take thetotal to eight and increase the guest beer range.

Weston’s Old Rosie draught cider has beentrialled at the CLIFTON ARMS on ProspectStreet. Hopefully it will prove popular andbecome a regular feature.

The new owners of the GRIFFIN, GreeneKing, are slowly making their presence feltwith IPA Gold seen on the bar over the sum-mer. GK gained ownership when they tookover the Chef and Brewer chain. Theyappear to still offer a 10% discount toCAMRA members.

CRAZIES HILLThe HORNS has reopened with new tenants.Adam Purdy is the new landlord – welcome,Adam! Crazies Hill is a tiny village north ofthe A4, near Wargrave, and it's great to seethis Brakspear pub back open and trading.The new telephone number is 0118 9406041.

HARE HATCH

Sadly, after a brief respite, the QUEEN VIC-TORIA – another Brakspear pub – has nowfinally closed and planning permission hasbeen granted for it to become a private

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Pub & Brewery News

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Baron Cadogan, Prespect Street

The Queen Victoria in better times

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house. In the early days of this CAMRAbranch we fought hard to save it from a previous closure threat so it’s even sadder tosee it finally meet its end. Many years ago thebus stop on the A4 was called the Two Queensand served the Queen Adelaide pub as well asthe Queen Victoria. Now both are gone.

HURST

The CASTLE is a 16th century grade 2 listed building that sits in the village centreopposite the parish church. In fact it'sowned by the church and is one of the vil-lage’s oldest buildings. Besides being highlyregarded for its food offer the pub operatesas a free house featuring local brewers –Binghams, Loddon and Vale on a recentvisit. Look at the blog at fueledbybeer.word-press.com for a circular walk featuring thispub and also the Wheelwright's Arms atWinnersh.

PLAYHATCHTwo big events to look out for at theFLOWING SPRING are the Autumn RealAle Festival in October and Nick andHazel’s Five Year Anniversary Party inDecember. The Autumn Beer Festival runsfrom Friday 9 to Sunday 11 October withplenty of real ales and real ciders and liveentertainment on the Saturday. Looking fur-ther ahead, Saturday 12 December is thetime to celebrate five years of Nick andHazel running the pub, something of whichthey are very proud.

READING

The RED COW in Southampton Street hasbeen sold freehold and remains closed at thetime of writing with no indication of itsfuture use.

Almost opposite on Southampton Street, theRED LION is under new management – welcome Chris! - and local breweryBinghams has been supplying the ale. Initiallythe low turnover created some problems withbeer quality but after some welcome coopera-tion between landlord and brewer, a way wasfound to allow Twyford Tipple to be servedfrom smaller casks known as “pins” in thecellar. This should mean that the beer staysfresher and is served cooler, so a double bene-fit. Brewer Chris Bingham says, “They aretaking either Twyford Tipple or BrickworksBitter every week and all the signs are thathe's really making an effort to turn it backinto a real ale pub.”

Beer quality continues to get good reports atthe FISHERMAN'S COTTAGE onKennetside. On a recent visit SirenUndercurrent, Red Squirrel Citra, FullersLondon Pride and a West Berkshire ale wereall available.

The QUEENS ARMS on Great Knollys Street(next to the Reading Buses depot) no longerserves real ale – the cask Doom Bar has goneand the handpump has been removed.

In contrast, the PHEASANT at the top ofSouthampton Street is a real ale gain. After a

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credit: Photo © Paul Rayner

Red Cow, remains closed

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make-over there's a single handpump dis-pensing Doom Bar. This is very much a com-munity local with two bars, pool and a rearcourtyard area for smokers. The “Emeraldgreen” buses stop almost outside.

The THREE TUNS on Wokingham Roadhas received Cask Marque accreditation.Alongside two house beers (Doom Bar andYoungs) there are at least four guest alesevery week which have so far included HogsBack TEA, St Austell Tribute, BinghamsBrickworks, Loddon Hullabaloo andRebellion Smuggler.

Both pubs on Forbury Road were closed atthe time of writing. But both the BrakspearPub Company (RISING SUN) and Fullers(CORN STORES) tell us that they intend toreopen their premises as soon as they canfind new tenants. In the case of the CornStores that may involve some internal alter-ations. In all honesty the pub has sufferedfrom an awkward layout for some time sothat may be no bad thing.

If you're very quick you might just catch thefirst beer festival to be held at the CASTLETAP in Castle Street. Between 10-13September they plan to offer 20+ beersalongside live music, food, games and ahomebrew competition. Let's hope it's thefirst of many such events.

Trade is slowly building up at theFORESTERS ARMS in Brunswick Street asthe new licensees continue to make improve-

ments. Usually at least two real ales on ingood condition and it's worth a visit.

Coming just too late to be reported in thelast issue, the WYNFORD ARMS in KingsRoad has closed. This was Reading's firstfull-time gay pub and operated for over 20years. The licensees say that problems withthe owning pubco – Star Pubs – about rentreview and lease renewal were to blame,alongside other factors. Soon after closurethere was a suggestion that the pub wouldbecome a live music venue but nothingseems to have happened yet on that front.

Further up King’s Road, the OUTLOOKhas started a cask ale loyalty scheme. Buysix pints and get your card stamped eachtime, then get a seventh pint free. Three aleswere on when we visited – Greene King IPA,Churchill IPA and Purity Mad Goose.

While the pub has been closed and “lost”for a while, works to convert the QUEENELIZABETH in George Street into housingseem to have finally started. Double glazinghas been installed and the pub signremoved.

O'NEILLS in Friar Street has been seeing awider range of beers in recent months.Alongside the regular Doom Bar a numberof guest ales including Hop Back SummerLightning and Timothy Taylor Boltmaker

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The Eldon Arms: 19 Eldon Terrace, Reading RG1 4DX Tel: 0118 327 7249

The Lyndhurst: 88 Queens Road, Reading, RG1 4DG Tel: 0118 961 7267

The Retreat: 8 St Johns Street, Reading, RG1 4EH Tel: 0118 957 1593

Great choice of Ales and Ciders

Food and snacks served daily

Live music guaranteed every weekend

All 3 pubs are available for functions

Book early for your Christmas and Year End functions

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have been seen, and served in good condi-tion. A few doors further up Friar Street,YATES'S has also been selling TimothyTaylor beer – this time Landlord.

SONNINGThe GREAT HOUSE has undergone a refur-bishment and rebranded itself as the CoppaClub. It's looking to be not an expensivegastropub, nor just a drinks only place, buta social hub which does good food and letsyou also just go in for a coffee or a pint.Binghams Twyford Tipple is available inbottles and there are a couple of handpumpswhich currently have Loddon beers on.

THEALEPlanning application no. 3 for the REDLION on Church Street … following twoprevious refusals for change of use to housing, West Berkshire Council was consid-ering a fresh application at the time of writ-ing. In each case the number of newdwellings to be built to the side and rear ofthe pub has reduced – from nine, to eight andnow seven.

TILEHURSTThe popular FOX AND HOUNDS on CityRoad has new licensees. So it's farewell andbest wishes to Gary and Jules, and welcometo Tom. Local resident Tom and family havebeen pub regulars for many years and we

wish them well in their new venture. Thebeer range was London Pride and Doom Barwhen we visited but Tom told us that afterdiscussion with his suppliers he intendsmoving all the real ale to the small counterat the side and providing up to four beerson handpump. The two existing ales willremain with another two featuring as guests.

WALTHAM ST LAWRENCEThe saga of the STAR on Broadmoor Roadlooks as though it's reached its conclusion.Following earlier refusal of planning permis-sion for conversion to a dwelling, a secondapplication was approved. We did coordi-nate with our friends at Slough, Windsor &Maidenhead CAMRA over an objection, butin the end the council was persuaded by thebetter evidence the applicants submitted thesecond time around.

An ex-Wadworth pub, the Star had beenclosed for a while and used to offer goodbeer and food, even winning an award fromus for “Best Pub Pizza” in 2008. The villageis now down to only one pub but the goodnews is it’s the BELL and owned by a village trust, so looks as safe as any pub canbe at the moment.

Brewery News

ASCOT ALESThe brewery is work-ing with the OfficialMonster Raving LoonyParty again to offerBlonde Ambition. This isa rebranded version ofAureole Ale, the popular 4%hoppy golden ale, and is the 12th and lastbeer in the Co-Ale-Ition series. It's due tofeature in the Strangers Bar of the Houses ofParliament next year.

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The Single Hop IPA series continues and thenext two brews are:Flyer: a UK variety that has aromas ofstoned fruits, liquorice, treacle-toffee andcaramel with slight burnt notes. Its bitteringcharacteristics can be best described as spicy,citrus, liquorice and resinous.Target: another UK variety that has excel-lent, intense aromas of sage and citrus, aspicy undertone in flavour and sharp andassertive bitterness.

The popular Oktoberfest ale should bereturning for the autumn. It's brewed withGerman malts and hops and comes in at4.8% ABV.

BINGHAMSOnline booking is nowavailable for theSaturday brewery toursand it's also possible tosend a voucher codeby email to a friend toallow them to bookonline when it suitsthem. Macchiatostout was officially

launched at the Great British BeerFestival and proved very popular, selling outwell before the end of the festival. It’s beenon a few preview outingsto beer festivals and theNags Head but hopefullyit will grace a pub nearyou soon. September seesthe return of Thirst Pastthe Post which was firstbrewed for Ascot BeerFestival and it will returnthere at the end ofSeptember. It will be fol-lowed by the “V” OldAle and The Warmer inthe autumn into winter – all at 5.0%ABV.

The Millenium Madejski Hotel at theReading FC stadium is stocking BrickworksBitter and Space Hoppy IPA in bottles. Thenearby Island Lounge on Kennet Island bythe Circle Hospital has also started to stockbottled Binghams beer.

DICKENSThis new brewery at Great Expectations isoffering Brewing Experience Days forgroups of 2-20 people. If you want to findout more about terms like “mash tun”,“sparging” and “racking”, and make someof your very own beer, it may be the day foryou. Contact the pub for prices and moredetails. You can see more of the Dickensbrews on the bar now, but it's fair to saythey could be better promoted.

LODDONThe website www.loddonbrewery.com has anew look with lots of video clips behindeach page.

SIREN CRAFTRecent beers from this innovative breweryhave included Summer Spreeze, a coffee andjasmine green tea pale ale; Ryesing Tides, a7.4% IPA brewed with rye instead of barley;and Mum’s The Word, a 5.5% smoked cherry and chipotle milk porter.

WEST BERKSHIREFor the second year running, WestBerkshire were selected as the OfficialAle of Henley Royal Regatta. GoodOld Boy and a special beer brewedexclusively for the event – the 4.0%Henley Pale – were available from theStewards’ Enclosure and Regatta Bar.Good Old Boy, also at 4.0%, is nowthe official ale of Reading FootballClub and, as previously reported, wasselected as the official ale of the BMW

PGA Golf Championship at Wentworth inMay this year.

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See the separate feature and advert in this issuefor more details of the OktoberWest festival,being held in October to help celebrate thebrewery's 20th anniversary year.

WILD WEATHEREight local breweries have featured in theMonster Raving Loony Party's Co-Ale-Itionseries of beers. Out of all twelve brews in theseries, Wild Weather’s HowlinGale has provedthe most popular with over 40,000 pints beingconsumed.

WINDSOR AND ETONThe brewery is living up to its name by expand-ing into Eton, taking over and running theGeorge Inn close to the bridge. This is W&E'sfirst pub and involves taking over an existingtenancy, so any physical changes will be gradual.However, they say that “from our first day youshould notice two things – beer quality and stan-dard of service.” They plan that the George Innwill gradually become a proper pub again, andwill serve traditional reasonably-priced Englishfood that appeals both to visitors and locals.

XTBuilding work has started to double the size ofthe brewery and adding a new tasting room fortrying beers from the XT and Animal Brewingranges. The extra space will also allow for theinstallation of new vessels to extend the craft-keg beer range, to develop more aged souredbeers and oak barrel conditioning of strongerstouts and porters.

ZERODEGREESAlong with the other three Zerodegrees branch-es, Reading town centre's first microbreweryhas been running “Meet the Brewmaster”events. These complimentary events include anintroduction to Zerodegrees, a brewery tour,beer tasting and a Q&A session with the resi-dent Brewmaster.

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CHAMPION BEER OF BRITAINAfter over a year of local tasting panels andregional heats leading up to the finals, a realale from Newport, South Wales has beencrowned Champion Beer of Britain.“Cwtch”, from the Tiny Rebel brewery, wascrowned the Best Beer in Britain at theGreat British Beer Festival at Olympia inAugust.

Head Brewer Gareth Williams is the manwho brewed Cwtch – which is pronounced“cutch” and means cuddle in Welsh. Onhearing the news, he said:“I feel like I’m dreaming! This is the ulti-mate award to win in our eyes and afterwinning at the Great Welsh a few years agothis feels even better. It's just a crazy feelingand we’re massively proud.”

Nik Antona, Champion Beer of BritainDirector, spoke in praise of the winner, say-ing: “The Champion Beer of Britain title isone of the most coveted titles in British beer.For over 30 years brewers have put forwardtheir real ale in the hope it will win and thisyear Tiny Rebel’s Cwtch is a very worthywinner of this prestigious award.”

Co-founder of the brewery BradleyCummings, added this on the beer itself:“We were brought up on real ale and we lovetraditional styles. Cwtch is our modern ver-sion of a traditional bitter, with extra hoppingfor a more pronounced bitterness and aroma.It’s new world and old world all in one.”

This year the Silver award went to Jaguarfrom Kelburn (Renfrewshire) whilst theBronze award went to Dark Drake fromDancing Duck (Derby).

Small BeerA roundup of news and information...

The Red Cow in Caversham is the latest pub to be nominated byCAMRA as an Asset of Community Value. We were waiting on the out-come as we went to press. This is a fast-moving topic. In the last issuewe set out how you could nominate a pub as an ACV. Things havealready moved on and, although that information remains correct,there's now a new service from CAMRA that takes a lot of the effortout of making a nomination.

There’s a new online nomination form that CAMRA branches can useto fill out information on the pubs they wish to nominate. CAMRA'shead office then use the information provided to complete the localCouncil's nomination form, and return it along with the necessary LandRegistry documents. The form is then submitted to the council by thelocal branch.

While nominating a pub as an ACV isn't a difficult process, anythingthat makes it easier has to help. Currently over 800 pubs are registeredas ACVs and CAMRA’s target is to increase that to 1,500 by the end ofthis year and 3,000 by the end of 2016. The new service should enablebranches to work towards those ambitious targets.

ASSETS OFCOMMUNITYVALUE

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NEW BOOK – OXFORD PUBSHave you heard about the Oxford pub witha witch’s broomstick plastered up behind awall? The inn where Shakespeare used tostay, and may have fathered an illegitimatechild with the landlady? The pub with aceiling painted to resemble the SistineChapel in Rome? The inn which was a six-teenth century brothel, or the pub where therock group Supergrass made their debut?

These are just a few of the stories recountedin Oxford Pubs, a new title by DaveRichardson who also edits CAMRA’sOxford Drinker magazine. The book delvesinto the history of over forty of the oldestand most interesting of Oxford’s pubs, allbut a few of which you can still visit todayto soak up the atmosphere, just a short trainride from Reading.

Which is the oldest pub in Oxford – a claimmade by more than one? Where didInspector Morse, with his sidekick Lewis,really drink? Which pub offers “an educa-tion in intoxication”? Where’s the pub witha vegetarian-only menu? Which one brieflyacted as a morgue, after a train crash? Andwhere can you find the Pub of the Year as

voted by the Oxford branch of CAMRA?

Oxford Pubs should appeal to anyone witha thirst for knowledge and history, bothancient and modern, and is packed withcontemporary and archive photographs.Available from bookshops, from the pub-lishers Amberley Publishing, and also directfrom the author – signed on request, for£14.99 including postage and packing.Contact [email protected] or send acheque made out to D. Richardson to 42Kennington Road, Oxford, OX1 5PB.

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SMALL BEER

CIDER DUTY – A CAMPAIGN WINEU efforts to remove the duty exemption currently enjoyed by small UK producershave suffered a welcome setback. The exemption makes it economic for cider andperry to be produced on a small scale. It had been under threat from a drive to har-monise duty across the EU and its loss would have threatened the future of themajority of our cider and perry producers.

Over the summer a hurriedly-organised online petition in favour of keeping the dutyexemption gained over 26,000 signatures and was presented to the government justbefore the budget. The Chancellor responded in his budget speech by announcingthat the current exemption will remain. This is excellent news for real cider drinkersand small producers alike. CAMRA is delighted with the government’s commitmentand will now be working hard to ensure that they can keep their promise with a legalexemption in the EU Directive.

Author Dave Richardson at the site of thelong-gone Swindlestock Tavern

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If you fancy a weekend away before theChristmas decorations start to appear, thenwhy not hop over to the Isle of Wight for theirBeer and Bus Weekend, taking place on 17and 18 October.

The weekend was inspired by a similar eventorganised by Sheffield CAMRA. Since theinaugural event in 2014 the Isle of Wight BusMuseum has moved premises to the oldSouthern Vectis depot in Park Road, Ryde.Event operations will be split between themuseum and the car park on Newport Quay,with a shuttle service running regularlybetween the two locations.

In addition, a network of seven Beer and Busesroutes has been prepared and Isle of WightCAMRA representatives have been busy sign-ing up pubs for this year’s event. New for2015 is an enhanced service to the West Wightarea, with pubs in Yarmouth, Shalfleet andCalbourne added to the map, and they havealso managed to add a route serving pubs inSandown and Shanklin Esplanade too.

Information about the event can be foundon www.iwbeerandbuses.co.uk or by search-ing for “Isle of Wight Beer and BusesWeekend 2015” on Facebook.

WALK TO THE PUBWalking is one of the best ways to get fit,and if you can combine it with a lovelycountry pub, even better. Chris Hinton isorganising another CAMRA walk onSunday 20 September, this time basedaround Pangbourne. Meet in the Village Hallcar park at 11.00, then it’s a 3 mile walkalong the River Pang to the Greyhound atTidmarsh – the first beer stop.

A different route for the return takes youalong lanes and footpaths, covering 3.5 milesand reaching the Swan back at Pangbournefor about 2.30. There are various food andbeer options in Pangbourne so the plan willevolve during the day to suit those on the walk.

Contact Chris for more info. on [email protected] or 0118 987 3203.

ISLE OF WIGHT BEER AND BUS WEEKEND

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Beer and Bus routes forthis year's event

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It was a humble beerhouse called the Baker’sArms when it came into the hands ofCharles Butler (born 1795), a farmer fromBlewbury, in the 1830s. The Butler familyran their wine merchants’ business from thesite for nearly 150 years and the businessbecame known as Butler’s Wine Vaults orjust plain Butler’s. Charles Butler gifted thefirm to his son of the same name on the latter’s 21st birthday. Charles junior (1827-1911) fathered a large family and three ofhis sons, Charles George, William Edwardand Harry, were at various times partners inthe company. A fourth son, BenjaminHerridge Butler, plied his trade as a dispensing chemist.

It was William Edward (1854-1924) whoemerged at the head of Butler’s in the early20th century. He had previously been a grocer, had some training in brewing andwas also an avid collector of lepidoptera.William Edward junior (1872-1942) was aschool teacher in his earlier years, teachingat St Laurence’s School and later at theBritish School, but joined the family firm in1919. His sons, Bernard and Felix, were thelast members of the family to run Butler’sbut, like their father and grandfather, pursued other means of earning a living dur-

ing their younger days. Bernard William(1897-1981) was a clerk on the GWR butjoined the family firm in a similar positionin 1923 before becoming a partner in 1935;

his younger brother, Felix John (1905-97)was a school teacher in London before serving in the Second World War, joiningButler’s following his demobilization in 1946. Butler’s was very much a hands-on businesswith Bernard travelling one or two days perweek to pick up orders in surrounding villages, first using a motor bike and later aMorris 8 registered RD7666. Initially deliv-eries were made by hand-carts and horse-drawn vehicles but motor vans were usedfrom 1916 onwards. Wine was importedthrough London and Bristol and wine, spirits and beer were all bottled on the

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Reading is somewhat lacking in “heritage pubs” but if any has a right to this title it is surelythe Butler in Chatham Street. Not that its history is that of a normal pub since for much ofits existence it was better known for the sale of wine and spirits than humble beer!

A cabinet of mementos

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premises. Such was the family’s local famethat nearby Charles Street and CarolineStreet were named after Charles junior andhis wife.

In 1976 the brothers, both by then in their70s, decided to sell the premises to Fuller’swho reopened it as the Butler in 1977 withBernard Butler pulling the first pint and beersold at 1952 prices in this Jubilee Year.Initially the Butler flourished under Fuller’sand under the first tenants, the Gillases,achieved Good Beer guide entries from 1979to 1983 but after their departure there werenumerous changes of management, particularlyin recent years. This led to Fuller’s selling thepub last year to a consortium, including theexperienced Ted Allnutt of Nags Head fame.

Following the arrival of new leaseholders,Graham Emmerson and Sue Harrison, per-mission has been granted to extend the pubinto the former wine shop area that hasbeen largely unused over the last 38 yearsand to underline the Butler’s unique her-itage. Considerable refurbishment hasalready been completed including a brandnew kitchen which is serving good whole-some food and full roasts on a Sunday.

Written by John DearingImages by Laurence Hansford

The Butler in the 1970s

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Mine’s a Pint18

Call: 01628 826622 / 2781 Email: [email protected] Visit: www.birdinhand.co.uk

The Bird in Hand, Bath Road,Knowl Hill, Twyford,

Berks RG10 9UP

A charming 14th Century Country Inn betweenMaidenhead and Reading. The Inn serves a host

of regularly changing Real Ales.

The beautifully refurbished Restaurant overlooksthe garden and the Inglenook fire provides a

warm and cosy setting.

The Inn has 22 en-suite bedrooms - standard,superior and suites. One room is adapted forthe disabled. Free wifi available throughout.

Quiz Nights13th September,

4th & 25th October, 15thNovember & 6th DecemberFree entry. Winning team get a

round of drinks.

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There’s a lot to celebrate in our local puband brewing trade. So much so, in fact, thatReading & Mid Berkshire CAMRA is host-ing its first ever Gala Awards Evening.

Come down to the Castle Tap in CastleStreet, Reading on 29 September and youcan be a part of this event. Meet some ofour local brewers and publicans and helpthem celebrate the part they play inReading's growing real ale scene – and drinksome of the winning beers.

Brian Jones is leading on organising theevent and he said, “What a wonderful selec-tion of pubs we have in the branch andwhat a marvellous range of beers from somany breweries that we find in them. Oneof our branch objectives is to promote andcelebrate our pubs and this is a great way todo it.”

Receiving awards will be many of theLocAle of the Festival brewery winners fromthis year’s Reading Beer and Cider Festival.On the pub side, awards include Cider Pubof the Year, the finalists in Pub of the Year,

and new awards for “Phoenix” and “BestNewcomer”. Hopefully this will be the firstof an annual series of events to reward allthat's good in our local pubs and breweries.

A few awards have already been presentedat other events. As a taster, pictured here areWest Berkshire Brewery celebrating theiraward for Maggs Magnificent Mild, present-ed on a recent Reading Beer Festival helpers’trip.

The Gala Awards Evening is open to all –whether or not you’re a member ofCAMRA. We look forward to welcominganyone who enjoys a good beer and wantsto show their support for the pubs thatserve them, and the breweries that producethem.

Phil Gill

Mine’s a Pint19

Gala Awards Evening

Simon Lewis and Vicky Mills from WestBerkshire Brewery celebrate their success withPaul Hexter of the Royal Oak, Wantage

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Twyford Beer FestivalTwyford Beer Festival (TBF) is one of thosesmall beer festivals and was matured in thebrain of Ian Wisdom, the Festival Organiser.He not only had to convince people that itwas a great idea, but had to sell the idea toSue (his wife and she who must be obeyed).After all, who in their right mind would holda beer festival, with live music, to raise moneyfor a male cancer charity called Orchid?

Over the past five years TBF has had three dif-ferent venues. The first was at the TwyfordScout Hall, with years two to five being held atLoddon Hall. This year witnessed TBF goingoutdoors, being held under a tent in a field.

With the organiser and his team praying to theweather gods for good weather, a brilliantcrowd of over 1,000 people visited during theday. “Which was absolutely fantastic”, toquote Ian. The day started with 38 casks ofbeer. Some must have evaporated due to theweather, because by the time we closed we hadsold over 60 casks along with the cider, wine,mead and Pimms.

Over the years several of the organisationalteam have taken on the role of Ms Twyford, inan attempt to raise money and awareness of thework that Orchid do. This year Trevor took onthe role of Ms T, and in the guise of “Trevina”(pictured right) successfully raised an addition-al £576.81 – a fantastic achievement. Next yearPete Cook from Sherfield Village Brewery hassaid that he will be Ms T, so please don’t besurprised at what you see...

This year the donation to Orchid was a staggering £4,000. An additional donation of£500 and Trevina’s £576.81 raised the overalltotal to £5,076.81. For a small beer festivalTBF has done very well, raising over £21,000in six years for Orchid.

Written by Arthur PounderPictures by Natalie Smith

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2 Broad Street Reading, RG1 2BH

01189 508119the-alehouse-reading.co.ukenquiries@thealehousereading.co.uk

A Community pub in theheart of Reading

Follow us on twitter @AlehouseReading

3 West Berkshire Ales6 Guest Ales

German & Belgian BeersReal Cider, Perry and Mead

Local CAMRA Pub of theYear 2014 Runner Up

Local CAMRA Cider Pub of the Year 2013 & 2014

Pub quiz first Monday of the month

e e

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It may seem strange to note the anniversaryof a cereal variety, but there’s good reasonto celebrate the half century of one particu-lar barley type. Particularly so given the taleof domination, decline, rescue and revivalthat spans its extraordinary 50 year history.

While Maris Otter might not be a householdname, it is legendary among a group of craftbrewers and beer-lovers. Once malted, it

becomes the ingredient by which brewersswear. Although less than 6% of British beeris produced with Maris Otter malt, morethan half of the most recent ChampionBeers of Britain are made with Maris Otter.Quite the record for an ingredient.

Most cereal varieties are superseded withnew and better versions within five or sixyears. So 50 years of continuous productionis truly exceptional. As Mark Banham fromgrain merchants H Banham points out, it’s“well worth commemorating.” So he hasjoined forces with David Holliday fromNorfolk Brewhouse to create a commemora-tive beer festival.

50 new beers are being created especially forthe national Maris Otter 50th anniversaryfestival in Norwich, 17th – 19th September.Brewers from 44 different counties ofBritain and 6 countries from across theworld are each providing a birthday beer forthe event. “This is the first beer festival tohave all 50 beers brewed with a single maltvariety,” says Mark. “As far as we know, it’salso the first birthday party ever to be heldin honour of a grain!”

Maris Otter dominated the market through-

Maris Otter Barley

FIFTY YEARS OLD

Checking the sowing of the 50thanniversary crop of

Maris Otter inOctober 2014

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out the 1970s. However, by the late 80s ithad fallen out of favour with many of thelarger breweries. Luckily a number of brewers remained loyal to the breed. Theysaid the malt it produced performed excel-lently in the mash tun, and the resultingbeers had a depth of flavour unmatched bythose made with other malts. This commit-ment from a small group of brewers encour-aged grain merchants H Banham and RobinAppel to buy the rights to it in 1992. Theyare still the sole owners, and maintain asecret plot of land in Norfolk dedicated tomaintaining the integrity of the variety.

Just one example of an award-winning beerproduced using Maris Otter comes fromChiltern Brewery, based in the Chiltern Hillsnear Aylesbury. Their 4.8% ABV “JohnHampden’s Golden Harvest Ale” has wonthe “Best Bottled IPA” category at thisyear’s Farm Produce Awards organized byGreat British Food magazine. Golden amberin colour and floral on the nose, John

Hampden’s is brewed in the style of a classicharvest ale with premium quality MarisOtter malt and the aromatic fruitiness ofonly a single famous English hop, Fuggles,for balance.

Phil Gill

Mine’s a Pint23

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West Berkshire Brewery kick off the fun on19 September with their OktoberWestFestival at their base in Yattendon. It prom-ises to be a fun, light-hearted event completewith live music and dancing, as well as awide selection of Bavarian beers and WestBerkshire’s own brews. A German bakery andstreet food, along with an oompah band, areon the bill. A regular shuttle service is plannedfrom Pangbourne and Thatcham railway sta-tions. Tickets for the festival cost £15 (£12.50with CAMRA discount) which includes a freepint and stein glass.

XT Brewery from LongCrendon in Bucks areholding their next OpenDay on Saturday 3October. Billed asOxtoberfest, there willbe music, food, beer andfun for all the family.The name fits in with

their Animal Brewing offshoot, which namesall its experimental beers after animals –recent examples have included Platypus and,more appropriately for an Oktoberfest,Dachshund.

Upham Brewery have renewed their sponsor-ship of Hampshire’s OctoberFest for 2015.This is one of the county’s biggest annualconsumer shows and champions the county’sheritage of food and drink producers. Thisyear’s event will take place from 9-11

October at Basingstoke Cricket and SportsGround with around 10,000 visitors expected.Over 120 beer and cider brands will beshowcased alongside craft and food producers,with Upham serving up their three stapleales: Punter - a traditional best bitter with a4% ABV; Tipster - a refreshing golden alewith a 3.6% ABV; and Stakes - a premiumbitter with a 4.8% ABV. This year a specialautumn seasonal ale, Upham EPA, will alsobe available. This 4.2% ABV English PaleAle is being brewed to celebrate the 50thanniversary of Maris Otter malting barleyand is representing Hampshire in the 2015National Maris Otter 50th Anniversary BeerFestival.

As Upham Brewery sponsors London IrishRFC and with this year’s OctoberFest coinciding with the 2015 IRB Rugby WorldCup, the festival will host a range of rugby-themed events. On Sunday 11 October,coaches from London Irish will put on tworugby masterclasses for 60 local youngstersaged 9-11 and 12-15. The coaches will bejoined by players from the London IrishFirst Team to give expert advice and run theyoungsters through various rugby drills.

Phil Gill

Mine’s a Pint24

OktoberfestA long-standing fixture in Munich, the Oktoberfest idea now seems to have taken hold herein the UK but with some twists. Local breweries are getting involved, so here's a preview ofwhat to expect.

London Irish players in the Upham tent forOctoberFest

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Behind the Bar

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THE QUEENS HEADWe took on the Queens Head inChristchurch Road a little over two yearsago. It had seen better days – a few years ofneglect from the landlords, Enterprise Inns,had seen it decline despite the best efforts ofa series of enthusiastic operators. It hadalways been a student hangout, affectionate-ly known as “The Nob”, but times change.Students are well catered for on the campusand with the Queens Head being tied, thewriting was on the wall.

We also operate the Moderation inCaversham Road, so it was natural for us todo a Moderation “clone”. The Mod hasbeen successfully revitalized since we took itover about eight years ago, and the demo-graphics of the areas are fairly similar. Sothere you have it, the Queens Head has forthe past two years been operating with ourblend of homemade food with an Asiantwist and your regular array of beers and afairly decent wine list.

However, during a trip to Chicago I wasamazed by the fantastic, vibrant beer scene,loads of choice on keg products, most ofthem local producers. What’s more the beertasted great! At this point I ought to men-tion that I’m not a great fan of real ale.Sacrilege, I hear you shout, but I mean I’vealways loved the idea of great, locally pro-duced beer, but I just prefer my libationrather cold with a bit of gas.

So finally my eyes had been opened to aworld of tasty, cold, carbonated beer. Evenmore amazingly, when I returned home Irealized that the “Craft Beer” revolutionwas already well underway on our doorstep,so I had to find a way to bring the revolu-tion to the Queens Head.

The beer tie was in the way. How could Iput on great new interesting products with-out breaking the terms of the lease? I talkedto my Area Manager and he agreed that wecould convert the outbuildings at the backof the pub and, if I put a bar in, it could be

Andy Becalick, the man behind the Moderation, Bali Lounge and Queens Head inReading, tells us about his latest craft beer venture.

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free of tie for seven draft lines, great! Ofcourse, there would be a rent increase for theconversion work and a fairly hefty annual tie release fee, but I’m an optimist, so Iploughed on with the idea.

The final hitch to sort out was the external bar.I’d seen an article on self pour beer walls –there were a couple of examples in the UK, butit was mainly in the USA and Australia. Thesethings are state of the art, computerized gizmos,that allow customers to dispense their ownbeer. You simply buy credit at the bar in exchangefor a “beer button”, go to the beer pump, chooseyour tipple, select “third”, “half” or “pint”(yes, you actually get what you pay for, a fullpint!) and pour your beer. When you’ve fin-ished drinking, return your beer button to thebar for redemption of any remaining credit.

The full range of real ales remain on the bar, ofcourse, and the beer wall adds to what’s onoffer in the pub. So far we’ve had local beersfrom Siren, Renegade and West Berkshire, aswell as guest beers from the USA and Europe.Plus we’re finding new and exciting beers everyweek. In fact, if you know some that you wantus to put on, let us know and we’ll do ourbest. Cheers!

Andy Becalick

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If you're a local landlord with big plansfor your pub and want to tell us all aboutthem, get in touch and you could featurein a future issue of Mine’s a Pint.

A charming country pub. The friendly & relaxed atmosphere welcomes locals, families, walkers, dogs & cyclists alike

• Cosy seating area with wood burner

• Ideal for walks & to hack to, very near the Knowl Hill bridle path

• Home-made food served Mon - Fri 12-3pm & 6 - 9pm, Sat - Sun 12-9pm

• Sunday Roast from 12 noon to 3pm

• Beer garden overlooking fields

01628 822 010Knowl Hill Common, Berkshire, RG10 9YE

Serving London Pride permanentlywith weekly changing guest ales

Bar Food Served Monday - Friday noon until 2pm

Hog Roast SpecialistsRing for details

Regular Jazz NightsThursday 1st, 22nd October

and 12th NovemberMarquee available for events

Arborfield Road,Shinfield,Reading,Berkshire,RG2 9EA

Tel: 0118 9884130

A UNIQUE, TRADITIONAL BAR

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The British pub is one of the greatest institu-tions in the world. The customers who frequent our pubs are a diverse bunch whoenjoy a huge range of drinks which notmany other countries offer, but there is acertain etiquette to going to the pub. Sohere’s a guide for would-be pub-goers.

DRESSBecause pubs are so different in style andmanner a sense of dress will apply as appro-priate – for example, it is not clever to entera posh bistro bar wearing a ten year oldfaded brewery T-Shirt which has seen betterdays and is often worn with saggy jeansand, yes – sandals. Loud beach shirts withshorts may look great in Pepe’s Bar in Spainbut not in The Dog & Duck. Of course youwant to make an impression in the pub butthere are ways of doing that so choose yourwardrobe with care. Because even if youthink nobody’s looking - they are!

ORDERING DRINKSIf you are with friends (assuming you havesome!) it's always a good policy to work outthe drinks order before going to the bar.Otherwise this may happen:“Yes Sir, what can I get you?”“A pint of bitter, mate.”“Which one Sir? We have ten.”“What do you recommend.?”“Another pub sir?”

After trying three or four of the beers avail-able:“Oh I don’t know, give me a lager instead.”“And for the ladies Sir?”“One gin and tonic.”“Ice and lemon Sir, slimline tonic?”“Oh, hang on I’ll go and ask.”

Several minutes later:“Ice, no slice and fat tonic.”“Anything else?“Yes, a glass of white wine.”

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So you want to be a pub customer?

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“Dry, Medium Dry or Sweet Sir? Smallglass, medium glass or large glass?”“Hang on – I’ll go and ask.”

Of course, all this time you are waiting toget just one pint of real ale – that’s all, justone pint please!

“She’ll have a large medium white – oh witha splash of lemonade.”“Is that everything sir?”“No, Fred wants a Guinness!”

Remember, always order the Guinness last –the staff love it. Now that the bar is packedwith other customers waiting to get a drink,it is time to pay – so get your plastic out.

“Sorry Sir, we don’t take cards.”“What! Every pub takes cards.”“Not us Sir, sorry.”

Then complete panic breaks out as thegroup fumble around trying to find loosechange in order to pay the bill. No rush –the other customers have either left by nowor dropped dead of thirst. Actually to befair lots of pubs now take cards but it does-n’t half add time to settling your bill and itreally frustrates the cash customer behindyou.

HAVING FUNNobody likes a good laugh more than me –well actually everyone likes a good laughmore than me, but when you are in a pubwith your mates there are a few things youshould try and avoid.

(1) You are sitting at a table and your bestmate is directly opposite you, approx.500mm away, so why are you shouting at him?

(2) In fact let’s all shout at each other!

(3) So, here we are all together for a beerand a chat. Wrong, let’s all get our mobile

phones out and trek through the emails justin case George Clooney did actually call youback! Oh and by the way, staff in my opin-ion have a justified right to shoot you if youare using your phone while being served atthe bar – that is just rude.

(4) Don’t forget to spill a pint or two – italways causes hysterics amongst your mates.

(5) It is not a crime to get rat-arsed butplease do it in a dignified manner – effingand blinding is not funny; mooning is justnot on and making stupid remarks to a bar-maid is just out of order (and she’s probablyheard all those corny lines before anyway!)

(6) When the last bell goes that means thatthe bar is closed! Sorry but you missed lastorders because you were shouting at yourmates. And no, you can’t have just one morepint of Creme de Menthe even though youare smiling through a haze at the barmaidand you are one of the pub’s bestest-evercustomers!

So, anyway, get down the pub, choose yourdrink (real ale or cider of course) and enjoyyourself. And don’t take this too seriously.

A. Scot

Mine’s a Pint29

Do you workin a pub?Do you have any pet hates – things thatthe customers do that really annoy you?Let us know and maybe we can print afollow-up piece of good advice for customers. It works both ways of course,so if you have any stories from the customer side, again, let’s hear them.

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