Ullage September - November 2019 1

ON OTHER PAGESSwift Halves - Pub, brewery & cider news 2-4

Locale (West of A34) 3

Beer & Cider Festivals 4-5

Cholsey to Woolhampton hike 6

Pub Profile: Kings Head, Thatcham 7

Winchester to Canterbury Tales 8

Cask ale in Brussels, WhatPub, Gig Guide 9

CAMRA Books & Membership 10

Boak & Bailey, Curmudgeon columns 11

Diary Dates, CAMRA Contacts & Festivals 12

@WBCAMRA @WBCAMRAcider @UllageBeer

www.westberkscamra.org.uk @WBCAMRA

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Eight Outstanding Community PubsNik Antona, CAMRA’s National Chairmansaid: ‘Pubs play a significant role incommunities across the country, providing aspace for local people to meet, helping totackle loneliness, and having a positiveimpact on the personal wellbeing ofpub-goers.’ Thatcham pubs rarely win CAMRA awardsbut the efforts of Lisa and Louis Ludewiggenerated nominations that led to the WestBerkshire CAMRA 2019 Community Pub of theYear award for the Kings Head, Thatcham. Since arriving at the former coaching inn withits large beer garden in October 2018, they haveintroduced Scooter meets, Race Nights and a Tugof War contest for charities and held live music,disco and karaoke nights. See the Kings Head profile on page 7 for moredetails and photos of the sports orientated pubwhich has teams in local darts and pool leagues. This year’s contest restricted nominations topreviously unrecognised pubs. However, plenty ofworthy nominations were still received forprevious winners: The Cottage Inn, Upper

Bucklebury and the Three Horseshoes, Brimpton. Located in Newbury, two of the joint winnersof the 2018 award, the Cow & Caskmicropub and

the Old London Apprentice,were also ineligible this year.

Qualifying pubs nominatedfor the 2019 award included: theLamb Inn, Newbury, with darts,pool and crib teams and host ofNewbury Jazz Platform; theRowbarge, Woolhampton,visited by Mikron Theatre Coand the Old Boot Inn, StanfordDingley where Andre andRebecca have organised Kidsparties, monthly over 60’sFriendship lunches withentertainment and evenings ofmusic and sing-alongs.

Lisa & Louis - Kings Head, Thatcham

See page 10 for Membership form

West Berkshire CAMRA Champions 2019:West Berkshire Brewery Maggs’ Magnificent Mild - Bronze (Mild) -

see page 2CAMRA Central Southern areaPub of the Year - The Bell Inn, AldworthClub of the Year - The Hungerford Club

W Berks & Berks SE CAMRA branches visitTwo Cocks Brewery, Enborne - 15/6/2019

2 The Campaign for Real Ale West Berkshire

Swift Halves■ Since leaving his brewing job at West BerkshireBrewery in December, Tom Broadbank hasestablished Delphic Brewing Co in Thatcham. Used brewingequipment wassourced fromupscaling breweriesand a new conicalfermenter wasimported fromChina. Tom is gratefulfor advice on settingup from Kevin Brady(IndigenousBrewery) and thebrewery now has allthe relevant licences.The Wheatsheaf Inn, Thatcham will stock a beerfrom Delphic permanently and a secondhandpump will sometimes feature a differentDelphic beer. Follow brewery developments on Facebook,Twitter and Instagram (@delphicbrew)

■ Meet up with West Berks CAMRA onSaturday 16 November (12.30) at theWheatsheaf Inn for a Thatcham ale trail thatwill include the White Hart and presentationof the Community Pub award to the KingsHead. If Tom Broadbank is free he may join usat the Wheatsheaf or allow a visit to DelphicBrewing Co during the afternoon.

■ Brakspear Gravity is the newname for Brakspear Bitterbrewed by Marston’s at theWychwood Brewery in Witneyusing the ‘double drop’fermentation vessels from theoriginal Henley brewery.

■ CAMRA member Chris Reynolds is alsoMembership Secretary of West BerksRamblers. On Tuesday 29 October at 10am, hewill lead a leisurely 6 mile circular walk fromMortimer Common via Wokefield Commonand Stratfield Mortimer followed by a publunch. Meet at car park opposite the Horse &Groom RG7 3RD. Contact Chris on 07979 804637 to join this oranother trial ramble.www.wberksramblers.org.uk

■ The newburypubwalks.org.uk website,updated in June 2019, offers around 50 circularwalks of 3 - 5 miles from pubs near Newburyand nine linear walks from pubs on the Kennet& Avon canal.

White Hart, Hamstead Marshall

■ On Saturday 27 July, Branch Chairman AndyPinkard led a CAMRA #SummerOfPub aleamble from the Hatchet Inn, Newbury to theDundas Arms, Kintbury mainly via the canaltowpath and footpaths. There were stops for beerat the Craven Arms, Enborne and the White Hart,Hamstead Marshall. More photos from the dayare in the Branch News section ofwestberkscamra.org.uk

■ The Saviour Brewery is at theWhite Hart, Hamstead Marshalland the Saviour Pennies beerclub usually meets there quarterlyon the first Tuesday of the month. On Tuesday 1 October, Stella and the Teamhave organised an extra ‘Big Bash’ from 6pm to9pm. This free evening is open to all to meetbrewer John Trueman and beer club membersand sample two free casks of Saviour ales whilelocal musicians the Cover Brothers perform.Local historian Sue Ellis will also talk about thehistory of the White Hart Inn, beer andalehouses. saviourwhitehart.co.uk

■ The Loungers cafe bar chain was founded in2002 by three friends in Bedminster, Bristol.There are now over 100 lounges in the UKincluding Alto Lounge, Caversham and CobrizoLounge, 12 Northbrook Street, Newbury, whichopens on 11 September. The international beerrange includes draught Bath Ales Dark Side stout.www.thelounges.co.uk

■ After four years running the Lion in Newbury,Kirsty will leave on 9 October. Heather andquizmaster Kieran will stay on at the Wadworth'spub but will surely miss Kirsty.

■ Having run the freehouse in World’s End forseven years, on 20 August, Paul and Traceythanked customers and wrote on@TheCoachBeedon Facebook page ‘It’s withheavy hearts that we will be leaving The Coach inthe coming weeks …’ .

■ Arkell’s Big Hit returnsas a seasonal beer for theautumn. The 4.2% ABVwell hopped IPA is darkamber in colour withcitrus and caramelflavours.

■ In July, West Berkshire BreweryHead BrewerWill Twomey and Marketing Manager ClareCandy posed with CAMRA London & South EastArea Champion Beer of Britain 2018 Goldcategory awards for Maggs’ Magnificent Mild andGood Old Boy (Bitter) in front of ‘Dave’ theBedford van converted into a mobile bar.

In August, ‘Dave’was parked the otherway round insideOlympia during theGreat British BeerFestival. Matt was keptbusy inside providingservice with a smile.Maggs’ Mild went onto win Bronze in

CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain 2019 (Mildcategory). The West Berkshire seasonalcask ales are No Worriesfollowed by Dr Hexter’s Healerin October. No Worries, 3.6%ABV Australian Pale Ale, isbrewed with Australian hops togive citrusy and tropical flavours coupled with anearthy herbaceousness. No longer available all yearround, Dr Hexter’s Healer isreturning for the autumnseason. Welcome back to the 5% ABV, well hopped robustamber ale packed with richflavours and marmalade zestiness!

The beer garden with rural views is now openoutside the West Berkshire Brewery Taproom andKitchen at Yattendon. See the back pageadvertisement for revised opening times.Planning permission was also granted for twoseparate parking areas for customers and staff. Tickets for Oktoberwest at the Taproom on 28September sold out well in advance. Over 150people (27 teams) attended Ed and Paj’s monthlyquiz night at the Taproom on 31 July. Tickets forthe quiz on the last Wednesday of the month andbrewery tours on 7 September, 5 October and 9November can be booked by phone 01635 767090or via the online shop. www.wbbrew.com

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Wheatsheaf Inn, Thatcham

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Ullage September - November 2019 3

■ The Great Shefford (previouslythe Swan Inn), is due to reopenwith a new look after a majorrefurbishment. The large site iseasily reached by the A338 fromHungerford to Wantage or the road fromNewbury to Lambourn, served by Kennections 4bus service. The six handpumps for cask ales are fed bynew lines from the cellar using a separate routefrom chilled drink lines. New garden furnitureand planting overlook the river Lambourn. Joshua Khan, proprietor of the King CharlesTavern, Newbury has appointed Georgiana fromhis second pub, the Broad Face, Abingdon asGeneral Manager of his third pub. He can alsorely on Kevin as chef at the Great Shefford.

■ New beers from Loddon Breweryto look out for are: Dragon Quad,4.4% ABV, a session IPAquadruple-hopped with Dragon hopfrom Slovenia and Bring the Rain,4.5% ABV, a New Zealand Pale,packed with Motueka and Wai-iti hops.

■ Quiz dates at the Cow & Caskmicropub, Newbury,are Wednesday 18 September, 16 October and 20November. Home Crib league matches will resumeon Tuesdays from late September.

■ Food from Colline’s Kitchen is now available atthe Globe, 148 Bartholomew Street, Newbury.There is a weekly quiz on Sundays at 7pm.

■ The Wild Weather Ales brewery shop openinghours are amended from those shown inadvertisement below to Mon-Fri 10am-5pm andSaturday 10am-2pm. The shop offers a growler filling service withcanned beers and merchandise for sale. Head Brewer JD has recently brewed the UK’sfirst 11% ABV Spruce Tip DIPA. The Weather Station, formerly the EldonArms, Reading, is due to open in mid Septemberwith 23 taps and 3 hand pumps for a variety ofWild Weather and guest beers.

■ Cask Ale Week (19-29September) is organised by Cask Marque. Visit caskaleweek.co.uk to get involved and finddetails of events andcompetitions.

There are now 38 LocAle pubs in our branchserving beer from breweries within 25 miles.pubsofficer@westberkscamra.org.uk

See also the LocAle Pubs page onwww.westberkscamra.org.uk

LocAle Pubs - WEST of A34

The Bell at Boxford Boxford

The Blackbird Bagnor

The Downgate Hungerford

The Eastbury Plough Eastbury

The Five Bells Wickham

The Fox at Peasemore Peasemore

The John O’Gaunt Inn Hungerford

The Red House Marsh Benham

The Tally Ho! Hungerford Newtown

The Three Swans Hotel Hungerford

Locally Brewed Real AleGeorgiana, Joshua & Kevin (at Broad face)

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■ On 3 August, Ullage editor, Tim Thomas,presented Nick Hex with a CAMRA certificate tothank Nick and Maggie for almost 30 years ofservice to the community at the Old Chequers,Thatcham and the Castle Inn, Cold Ash. On 5 August a post from them on the pub’s Facebookpage thanked customers for their ‘amazinggenerosity’ on Sunday’s final lunchtime of trading. The Castle Inn reopened on 9 August and is nowrun by Nathan and Kirsty. The traditional meatraffle, with a draw on Friday evenings, is continuing.

■ The Old London Apprentice, Newbury, hostsColin’s music quiz on Tuesday 10 September, 8October and 12 November. There’s a comedynight on Saturday 5 October and Northern Soulnights with Gilo on Saturday 7 September and 23November. See the Gig guide on page 9 for livemusic events at the OLA. A range of Pukka Pies from Leicestershire willbe on the menu from mid September.

■ The Highclere Red House now offers takeawaythin crust pizzas on Tuesday - Friday from 5pmand Saturday from noon with eat-in everyWednesday night. The Hampshire bar has openedwith additional keg beers and lagers fromBrooklyn, Italy and Sweden to complement realales and ciders from the original bar - typicallyTimothy Taylor’s Boltmaker, Ramsbury Gold andTutts Clump Traditional Farmhouse Cider. Thebottled beer range includes non-alcoholic lagers.www.thehighclereredhouse.com

■ Jeff Evans (on left in photo above) presented aSummer Beers event at Inn at Home, Newburyon 12 July. As it was the shop’s fourth anniversary,proprietor David Marklew kindly offered thegroup a bonus Saison beer. Future events at Inn at Home include: 6 September: Tutts Clump - Cider & Cheese; 13 September: Siren Craft Brew; tbc: German Beers. www.innathome.co.uk

■ The Summer Fox Fest at the Fox Inn,Hermitage, 6 - 8 September, features real ale, livemusic and a BBQ. www.hermitage-fox.co.uk

■ The Wetherspoon autumn real ale festival runsfrom 9 - 20 October in over 800 pubs, includingthe Hatchet Inn, Newbury.

4 The Campaign for Real Ale West Berkshire

Beer & Cider Festivals

Silver – Afghan IPA (Strong Bitter)Grey Trees Brewery (Aberdare, S Wales)

Bronze – Citra (Golden)Oakham Ales (Peterborough)

Other category winnersGold – Ay Up (Bitter) - Dancing Duck Brewery

Vanilla Stout (Speciality) - BinghamsBrewery Gravediggers (Mild) - Church EndBrewery

Bronze – Maggs’ Magnificent Mild – West Berkshire Brewery

Winners announced at theGreat British Beer FestivalSupreme ChampionGold – Shere Drop (Best Bitter)

Surrey Hills Brewery(Dorking)

■ Local ciders at Newbury Real Ale Festivalinclude: Green Shed (Wheel Cider, Just Dry &Big Tony), Ciderniks (Combe Raider &Kingston Black), Pang Valley (BerkshireGold) and Tutts Clump (Reading Gold &Farmhouse Perry). Tutts Clump Applejack icecider uses the fractional freezingmethod to increase the flavour andalcohol content to 19.5% ABV.Higher rates of duty make it moreexpensive than traditional cider.Tim Wale suggests enjoying it asan aperitif like a Brandy. Availablein screw top bottles from Inn atHome, Newbury. Tim accepts any surplus apples for TuttsClump Cider at Travellers Rest Farm,Hungerford Lane, near Stanford Dingley (RG76JH). Quantities of 25kg and over can beexchanged for cider or apple juice.

■ From Berkshire, Butts Brewery’s Wild Mild andBinghams Brewery’s award winning Vanilla Stoutwere served at the Great British Beer Festival andboth will be available at Newbury Real Ale Festival.

■ The Catherine Wheel, Newbury is holding abeer festival 5 - 8 September and a ticketed partywhen the pub reopens after closing for NewburyReal Ale Festival on 14 September. There will beextra beers on stillage throughout the RugbyWorld Cup (20 Sep - 2 Nov) and for theHalloween beer festival (31 Oct - 2 Nov).

■ Thanks to Newbury &Thatcham Hockey Club fororganising Newbury RealAle Festival at NorthcroftFields on Saturday 14September. Visit the WestBerkshire CAMRA stand for information aboutbeer, cider and pubs. New members joining onthe day get tokens for two free pints. Allmembers can enter a free raffle to winCAMRA’s 2020 Good Beer Guide. Get moredetails and discounted tickets in advance viawww.newburyrealale.co.uk

■ The beers fromHermitage Breweryat Newbury Real AleFestival are WellhouseIPA, Harvest Time,Ambling Home and anew one - Date with Destiny. The latter is asmooth bitter with hints of the exotic from thedate syrup added at the end of the boil. It will alsobe available in bottles subsequently from localoutlets including Inn at Home, Newbury.

■ Andy Parker brewed and supplied ElusiveBrewing cask and keykeg beers for the Great

British Beer Festival (GBBF).The brewery tap yard(opposite Siren Craft Brewtap yard) at HogwoodIndustrial Estate,Finchampstead is due to openon Fridays 14:00 - 18:00 andSaturdays 12:00 - 20:00 fromlate September.www.elusivebrewing.com

■ Binghams BreweryVanilla Stout was theSpeciality categorywinner at the GBBF. The brewery tap yard atRuscombe Business Parknear Twyford is open onSaturdays 11.30 - 16.30until 28 September andduring December. binghams.co.uk

Ullage September - November 2019 5

■ Choko beer festival at Laurence Hall, Cholsey OX10 9PP onSaturday 28 September raises funds for African communityprojects and local charities. Live music and over 30 ales andciders. Discount for advance tickets.www.chokobeerfestival.org.uk

■ Burghfest charity beer and music festival is held at theRecreation Ground, Burghfield Common RG7 3EN on 27-28September with a family funfair and over 40 local ales andciders. Free admission. www.burghfest.uk

■ A CAMRA discount of over 40% is available for the Ascot Beer Festivalheld in the grandstand of the Queen Anne Enclosure for the racecourse’sautumn racing weekend on 4-5 October. Book in advance at ascot.co.uk andquote CAMRA2019. Meet up with Alison Chetwynd and West BerkshireCAMRA members on Friday 4 October at 1pm just past the end of the mainbeer serving area (near bar with brewery names T – Z).

■ From 11-13 October, Hampshire OctoberFest organised by DestinationBasingstoke features food, drinks andlive music. Discount for advancetickets. Free admission for CAMRAmembers with card. Meet up with Alison Chetwynd andWBCAMRA members on Saturday 12October at the entrance to theHampshire Hog tent at 1pm.

■ From 24-26 October, CAMRAfestivals at Swindon and Oxfordcompete for customers. Both locations(Swindon Steam Railway Museum andOxford Town Hall) are within walkingdistance of a station. See back page for more details.

We pride ourselves on being a traditional community pub where there’s always

a warm welcome from Ken & Caroline

Bingo - :ursdayLive bands - SaturdayKaraoke - Sunday

�Private parties and bu;ets catered forPrivate function room for hire

�Sunday lunches every other Sunday

(check with pub for dates)

�Four real ales including Harvey’s Sussex Best,Fuller’s London Pride & Wadworth 6X

CAMRA discount

THE OLD LONDON APPRENTICE

2 Hambridge Road, Newbury, RG14 5SS | Tel: 01635 41483www.oldlondonapprentice.co.uk

26 Broad Lane, Upper Bucklebury RG7 6Q 01635 864544www.thecottageinnupperbucklebury.co.uk

COTTAGE INNUPPERBUCKLEBURY

A West Berkshire CAMRA Community Pubof the Year: 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017 & 2018

Families welcome - Outdoor Play Zone+ Paddock with hens, goats & rabbitsGreat circular walks from the pub to

the Pang valley & Bucklebury CommonLounge and separate bar with Sky Sports & BT Sport

5ree Cask Ales including Good Old Boy

Tue-Fri 12-3 & 5-11 Food 12-2 & 6-8.30Saturday 12 - late Food 12-2.30 & 6-8.30

Sunday 12 - 8 Lunch 12 - 3

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OXFORD BEER & CIDER

FESTIVAL 2019

Thursday 24 October 17.00-23.00

Friday 25 October 11.00-23.00 Saturday 26 October 11.00-22.30

Oxford Town Hall St Aldate’s, Oxford OX1 1BX

oxfordbeerfestival.camra.org.uk @oxfordbeerfestival2019 @oxford_beerfest

170 real ales 130 Thursday and Friday, 40 new, different ales for Saturday

50 ciders and perries

the 22nd

6 The Campaign for Real Ale West Berkshire

NEWBURY’S FIRST MICRO PUB

1 Inches YardMarket Street

NewburyRG14 5DP

Cow & Caskis available for private hire, and given enough notice we will try very hard to have “Your Favourite Micro Brewery Ale” on the stillage. Although we are a “Micro Pub” we can Squeeze, Jimmie, Squash or Shoehorn 20-25 persons in and make them comfortable.

We can alsoprovide afew seats!!!

Opening Hours Mon Closed

Tue 5-9 Wed 5-9

Thu 12-2, 5-9 Fri 12-2, 5-10

Sat All Day 12-10Sun Closed

Tel:07517 658071

Discountfor CAMRA

card holders

CAMRA DiscountsMembers enjoy discounts at

CAMRA beer festivals,Wetherspoon pubs

(* with voucher) and pubs below:

Aldermaston:Hind’s Head

Brimpton:Three Horseshoes

Newbury:Catherine Wheel

Cow & CaskGun, Wash Common

Hatchet Inn*King Charles Tavern

Old London Apprentice

Woolhampton:Rowbarge

Cholsey to Woolhampton Hike Alan HaseldenFollowing an early Saturday morningbreakfast meeting at Reading’s Hope Tap, fivefriends / colleagues and I boarded the trainfor the short ride to Cholsey to begin anotherepic cross-country ale hike over the BerkshireDowns and beyond.

In dry yet overcast conditions, we venturedsouthwest towards the Ridgeway’s rolling chalkhills by following sinewy footpaths throughwoodland and meadow arriving just short ofnoon at The BellInn, which greetedus with its indeliblecenturies-old rusticcharm. A goodcouple of hours werespent here relaxingwith two successivefour-pint pitchers ofIndigenous’s 3.4%‘Baldrick’, aBerkshire brewed dark mild with upfront hints ofraisin and a moderate bitter finish. The four othercask ales served were West Berkshire’s 4% ‘OldTyler’ and one each from Arkell’s, Loose Cannonand Rebellion. In addition, there were two stillciders available from Berkshire’s Tutts Clump andfour from Lilley’s. Further, we devoured up to adozen home-made bread rolls with choice fillingswhile locals and visitors continued to arrive andboost the hubbub. Although it seemed impossibleto top such an experience, nonetheless wecontinued our hike from Aldworth towards thetranquillity of Ashampstead Green and its historicSt Clement’s church. Just beyond, in Yattendon, we called at WestBerkshire Brewery’s Taproom and fortunately thebrewery’s full core range of cask ale was available:‘Good Old Boy’,‘Maharaja IPA’, ‘MisterChubbs’, ‘Mister Swift’and ‘Maggs Mild’. Theabundant, lofty premisesmay be industrial-like,but our round of wellkept 3.4% ‘Maggs Mild’along with the staff ’s

hospitality, the view out to the countrysidethrough the huge windows and the quiet classicrock music playing on the jukebox made it awonderful place to be. There were many othervisitors too, including children happily playing,mostly in the garden area outside.

At mid-afternoon, withbreaking cloud andincreasing sunshine, weventured throughHighwood Copse toStanford Dingley for abrief stop at the BullInn. Low ceilings andsolid oak beams testifyto the 15th centuryorigin but the smart

furniture, fittingsand signage tell ofa more modernand extensiverefurbishment.Customers canchoose from thesmaller bar roomto the left, the

larger dining area to the right or the extensiverear garden. In addition to ‘Doom Bar’ on caskthere was ‘Good Old Boy’ and the 3.7% sessionbitter we enjoyed - ‘Mister Chubbs’. The final leg of our hike threaded lanes andfootpaths through Beenham and the grounds of

Douai Abbey and soon we reached Woolhamptonfor the canalside pub / restaurant, The Rowbarge,at around 7pm, whilst clouds gathered to dispense

odd drops of cool light rain. The 29 cask ales forthe pub’s Summer Festival were each served fromhandpump and came courtesy of West Berkshire,Three Castles, Timothy Taylor, Revolutions,Stamps, Milestone, Itchen Valley and Exeter

breweries. Further, cidermakers Tutts Clump, ThirstyFarmer, Broadoak and Lilley’sprovided the 16 different stillcider boxes. Between us wesavoured Revolution’s 4.5%porter ‘Clash’, Itchen Valley’s3.9% elderflower honey ale‘IVBEE’ and Exeter’s 5.1%chocolate stout ‘Darkness’ and

found them wholly agreeable, but the team wasdivided concerning the live rock band bellowingout covers of old songs from bands like TheUndertones and Ramones. Evidently theRowbarge staff had worked hard putting on thisfestival and there were many cheerful customersboth inside the pub and outside in the garden.Overall, it was a fantastic full day out in theBerkshire countryside!

Streatley Warren

Rowbarge festival bar

Ullage September - November 2019 7

Pub Profile #67

The Kings Head ThatchamThe Kings Head claims to be the oldest pubin Thatcham and is located on the Broadwayin the middle of town. It has recently had acomplete refurbishment but still retains itsair of easy welcome. Being the friendly centre of the community issomething that landlady Lisa and her husbandLouis, and children Connor and Ollie, strive forand achieve. Lisa, who took over the pub inOctober 2018, knows the pub of old as herparents spent many hours there when she was achild, so she knows all about the history of theKings Head and the people who use it as theirlocal, and being a local is exactly what this pub isall about. The Kings Head is open everyday and isregularly used through the week by localtradesmen after work, and by players in the dartsand pool teams. On Friday evenings there isoften live music. The weekends see morefamilies using the pub especially in good weatherwhen the large beer garden with its outside barcomes into its own. There is also a covered areain the garden with a large screen so you don’thave to choose between sitting in the garden orwatching your favourite sport. Many fund raising events for Parkinson’s andCancer charities are held. These include ScooterMeets on the first Sunday in the month, aGarden Party, Tug of War and Darts contests andWednesday Quiz nights. The pub’s regulars havealso got together to make a Naked Calendar thatis to be sold for charity. Last October, Thatcham Town Councilrecognised the Kings Head as being the placewhere, on 3rd August1784, the first mailcoach changedhorses on the journeybetween Bristol andLondon. There is ablue plaque outsideto commemorate thisdate. More recently the pub was recognised by EiGroup (Enterprise Inns) as a 2019 regionalwinner for Best Sports Venue. The Kings Head has a Lounge and Public bareither side of the central serving area, there isalso a cozy alcove towards the back and a

separate pool table roomto the rear. There areplenty of seats with a mixof upholstered benchesand wooden chairs. Twodart boards are featured,one in the Public bar andthe other with the pooltable, which means that two matches can beplayed at the same time. Sports fans can find TVscreens to watch the live action. Two real ales are offered, Purity Mad Gooseand West Berkshire Good Old Boy. Both beershave good turnover so nothing goes to waste.Lisa also offers cider and a selection of lagers,craft and keg beers. The Guinness Extra Cold, abeer close to her heart, has been awarded aQuality Approved certificate for 2018-19.Although no meals are available, there are barsnacks including pickled eggs. Alison Chetwynd

The Kings Head59 BroadwayThatchamRG19 3HP

Telephone: 01635 862145

Facebook: @thenewkingsheadthatcham

Opening hoursMonday - Saturday: 12 noon - 12 midnightSunday: 12 noon - 11.30 pm

Above: Lounge barRight: Public bar

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David Hatfull (theSnapper) and RonanHatfull (theScribbler) set offfrom Newburystation on Monday 29July with backpacks,camera equipmentand sturdy walkingsticks. After a day inWinchester theywould hike the 138miles of the Pilgrims’

Way to Canterbury, in twelve stages, lodgingin several traditional inns on the way. Their intention was to make photographic andwritten portraits of contemporary examples of the29 pilgrims portrayed in 14th century Englishpoet Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. These excerpts from Ronan’s daily blog postsmention some inns worth visiting. Day 1 - Winchester: ‘Walking into the HydeTavern was like stepping back in time. Thistraditional pub, which hosts regular open mics,writing sessions and folk nights, has been a localestablishment since 1860, with original walls thatdate back to the 16th century.’

‘The landlady, Jan, greeted us and immediatelybegan to tell us of the Tavern’s history. She has runthe pub for the last 11 years and gave us a tour ofthe downstairs music venue and nearby remainsof Hyde Abbey, a building which once rivalled theCathedral.’ Day 6 - Albury to Box Hill: ‘The DrummondArms in the centre of Albury is a quintessential

English country inn and it is easy to imagineChaucer’s Pilgrims quaffing and quarrellingwithin its confines. A relaxing garden with arunning brook beside it is complemented indoorsby a beautiful dining room, in which we enjoyedtapas and salmon the previous evening. The inn isrun by South African couple Taz and Jay’.

‘Chef Jay agrees to be photographed as ourrepresentative of Chaucer’s Cook. He discusses theEgyptian influence behind much of his menu dueto some of the chefs he has employed. Although heis considerably more polite than the Cook (whoselewd tale is cut short by the shocked Prioress andthe irate Host) he confesses that his tongue canbecome somewhat sharper in the kitchen! Ournext stop is the bustling village of Shere.’ Day 9 - Limpsfield to Wrotham:‘Today we passed thecounty boundary fromSurrey into Kent. David,having been born inKent and spent the first12 years of his life thereuntil his family movedto Stafford always feels asense of being home when in Kent….’ ‘The Bull, Wrotham, a 14th century inn, ourlodgings for the night, has narrow staircases andquiet rooms. It also houses a formidablesmokehouse and we dine upon fine pilgrimscuisine with an American twist tonight!’

Day 11 - Aylesford to Lenham: ‘There is a stop forsome liquid refreshment at the Dirty Habit,Hollingbourne, a thirteenth century innfrequented by pilgrims. This provides muchneeded relief before the road ahead which is dryand dusty.’ Day 12 – Lenham to Chilham: ‘Dr Ryan Perrystops by for dinner anddrinks. He lives inChilham and works atThe University of Kent’sSchool of English. Ryanhas agreed to be ourClerk and paints a vividpicture of GeoffreyChaucer as a workingwriter’. ‘Eating and drinking in The Woolpack Inn,which houses some portraits of Chaucer’sPilgrims, the writer has never felt closer.’

Day 13 - Chilham to Canterbury: ‘We awakein full awareness that this is our final day ofwalking. It is a strange, melancholy feeling and wediscuss the way time seems to have passeddifferently to normal during the past fortnight. Bywalking from inn to inn, time seems to haveelapsed more slowly and peacefully.’ ‘We walk the final mile side by side, nearly twoweeks since we departed Winchester. The sense ofachievement really hits us now and it feels notunlike the day we entered central London threeyears ago for our 146 mile Shakespeare walk fromStratford-upon-Avon.’ ‘Tomorrow we will attend Sunday Service asthe final mark of our pilgrimage. The evening is arelaxed affair spent at one of Canterbury’s oldestpubs – The Parrot, which is mentioned in TheCanterbury Tales.’ Tucked away down a cobbled street, thehistoric pub features medieval beams and oakfloorboards. There are up to six real ales at the bar. ‘We are so thankful for all the kind people wehave encountered along the pilgrimage and to allthose who agreed to be photographed as part ofthis project. We will never forget this.’ Look out for a future exhibition of David andRonan’s photographic and written portraits. To view all the blog posts visitthesnapperthescribbler.home.blog

8 The Campaign for Real Ale West Berkshire

Winchester to Canterbury - The Snapper & The Scribbler’s Tale

A beautiful, authentic country pub with rooms offering:Award winning real ales from Ramsbury brewery

Stunning, Michelin rated, home cooked foodDelicious Sunday roasts

Amazing orangery and brand-new kitchen,opened Spring 2019

10 luxurious guest bedroomsGlorious walled beer garden

Al fresco dining under leafy vine terrace3 roaring log fires

4 private dining rooms for up to 70 guests

Accreditations include :Muddy Stilettos – Best Boutique Stay 2018Alistair Sawday’s Special Places To Stay 2019

The Michelin Guide 2019The AA Good Pub Guide 2019

Country & Town House - Great British & Irish Hotels 2019

THE SQUARE, YATTENDON, BERKSHIRE RG18 0UGTELEPHONE: 01635 201 325

EMAIL: INFO@ROYALOAKYATTENDON.COMWWW.ROYALOAKYATTENDON.CO.UK

YATTENDON

visit us online loddonbrewery.com

great beers from oxfordshire since 2003

Ph

oto

s: D

& R

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ull

Ullage September - November 2019 9

Simon Grist, Jenlain Delcourt & Jody Lecieux

A Brussels Beer City (www.beercity.brussels)blog post by Eoghan Walsh titled Gulp // Caskale comes to Brussels mentions JenlainDelcourt and his partner Jody Lecieuxopening Gist in December 2017. Gist (Flemish for yeast) is located at Placede la Vieille Halle aux Blés 30, Brussels, facinga cobbled open space which has a bronzestatue of Jacques Brel. In late June, after a few days in Antwerp forthe Beer Passion Weekend beer festival, Ullageeditor Tim Thomas and friends spent three hourson a warm Sunday afternoon outside Gistsampling draught beers from the sixteen taps andthe two hand pumps with swan necks.

On our visit the cask ales were Taras Boulbafrom Brasserie de la Senne and Heavy Porter fromNo Science Brasserie, both Brussels based. Before leaving, Tim spoke with Jenlain whoexplained that they are able to sell casks of beerwithin three days so that the quality ismaintained. They also check the cask beercarefully each day and will not serve it if thequality has deteriorated. The couple expect to beinvolved with serving cask beer at the BXLBeerFest in late August. Later on Sunday, after Gist had closed, Timwould meet Jenlain and Jody as customers inMoeder Lambic Fontainas. Jenlain had previouslyworked at this leading Brussels beer bar,established in 2006. There are six hand pumpshalf way along the rear wall of the long bar whichalso has 40 taps evenly spaced along the front.Originally, these hand pumps were mainly used toserve lambic and kriek but Jenlain introducedsome pale ales to this range. Read Tim’s blog posts for more details ofBelgian breweries, beers and bars onbeereurope.blogspot.com

Cask ale in BrusselsP

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to: S

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WhatPub is the Go-to website on mobileor desktop to find pubs, whether you are aCAMRA member or not.

WhatPub (whatpub.com) is also the portalallowing members to submit beer scores forthe pubs they visit using the National BeerScoring System (NBSS) as below.0. No cask ale available1. Poor. Beer that is anything from barely

drinkable to drinkable with considerableresentment.

2. Average. Competently kept, drinkable pintbut doesn’t inspire in any way, not worthmoving to another pub but you drink thebeer without really noticing.

3. Good. Good beer in good form. You maycancel plans to move to the next pub. Youwant to stay for another pint and may seekout the beer again.

4. Very Good. Excellent beer in excellentcondition.

5. Perfect. Probably the best you are everlikely to find. A seasoned drinker willaward this score very rarely.

Members new to beer scoring will be able tofind great tutoring support at our Branchmeetings and social events and online:www.camra.org.uk/nbss At meetings in January and February, theWest Berkshire branch of CAMRA relies oncollated beer scores to determine which pubsare selected for the Good Beer Guide. Submitting beer scores throughout theyear is an excellent way of contributing to theCampaign while doing something enjoyable.If there’s no phone signal, just submit whennext connected, using desktop or mobileversions of WhatPub.

Visit pub, sample ale and score!

Gig GuideAce Space, St. Nicolas

Road, Newbury. Tickets:

Hogan Music, Newbury.

www.acespace.org.uk

28 Sep - Kelly Oliver + Said the Maiden

19 Oct - Charlie Dore with Julian Littman

16 Nov - The August List + Loud Mountains

Also Unplugged Open Mic on 1st Friday

of month

Newbury Jazz Platform

FB: @NewburyJazzPlatform

at The Lamb, Newbury

Jazz, featuring Gavin Wilkinson’s

house band.

3rd Wednesday of each month 7.30pm:

19 Sep, 17 Oct, 21 Nov

Entry £2

The Angel, Woolhampton

Jazz from 8pm Saturdays

www.jazzangel.co.uk

28 Sep - Claire Jones Quintet

26 Oct - Lea Lyle Quartet

30 Nov - Peter Jones

The Monument, Newbury -

Fridays & Saturdays

20 Sep - Gary Myles

21 Sep - Slaughtered On Set

28 Sep - JJ and the Jukes

5 Oct - JJ & the Jukes

19 Oct - Beatle Juice

Open Mic night with Oli Hill on Thursdays

Catherine Wheel, Newbury

23 Oct - Scott Freeman

6 Nov - Fred Irwin

20 Nov - Amya-Ray

26 Nov - Doozer McDooze

4 Dec - Grant Sharkey

Document House, Newbury - Fridays

13 Sep - Hooch

20 Sep - Faux Fighters

27 Sep - White Monkeys

18 Oct - Roadhouse

8 Nov - Toxic

The Globe, Newbury

Alternate Wednesdays from 3 Sep, 1 Oct,

12 Nov - local musicians

The Newbury, Newbury

Weekly on Thursdays - Sion Whiley

presents Open Mic night on the roof terrace

Old London Apprentice, Newbury

28 Sep - Soultones

19 Oct - Wardour Street

1 Nov - Doolally Experience

2nd Friday of each month is Folk Night

The White Hart, Thatcham – Saturdays

21 Sep - Sub Zero

9 Nov - Monkey Dolls

23 Nov - No Way Out

30 Nov - Fubar

Fox Inn, Hermitage

21 Sep - Nicole & the Papas

19 Oct - Mudslide Morris & the Revelators

More pubs with live music:Hungerford area: Railway Tavern,

Wheatsheaf

Newbury: Lock Stock & Barrel, Nags Head

Thatcham area: Kings Head, Swan,

Taste of England

One of Newbury’s oldest and finest Inns Enjoy West Berkshire‘s Good Old Boy

And our weekly guest beers from some of the areas finest producers

Great Fresh Food served daily

Bath Road, Speen, RG14 1QY (01635) 521152 www.hareandhoundshotel.net

10 The Campaign for Real Ale West Berkshire

Geographer and environmentalist Bob Steelsigned copies of his pub walks books at the GreatBritish Beer Festival on Tuesday 6 August. Apartfrom a lifelong interest in good beer and goodarchitecture, he is a keen walker, cyclist andorganic gardener.

Describing the fully revised third edition ofCAMRA’s Peak District pub walks, Bob said ‘The economic history of the Peak has left us a very rich industrial and transport heritage which is apparent in the majority of the walks in thisvolume. Add to this the variety of plants in thedifferent environments and the handsomeindividuality of the vernacular buildings and youhave a series of fascinating layers which helps toexplain why this is my favourite area of Britain forwalking. Also the Peaks pubs are thriving, althoughthere have been some losses, and the beer choice andquality has probably never been better. This book isa celebration of both the fine pubs of the PeakDistrict and the enticing landscape.’ Bob’s four other pub walks books coverLondon, Edinburgh, Yorkshire and the SouthEast. Each illustrated book contains detailedwalks, featuring pubs along the route that servereal ale, together with a commentary about thelocal area and history.

Stand-up comedian James Dowdeswell alsosigned copies of his CAMRA book, The PubManifesto (featured in Ullage Winter 2018/19), atthe festival. Earlier, James had entertained theaudience, waiting for the official announcementof 2019 Champion Beer of Britain winners, withtales of his experiences growing up in a pubowned by his parents. Visit pubmanifesto.camra.org.uk for moreinformation about James and the book.

CAMRA’s best selling Good Beer Guide 2020is published on 12 September, 2019. The foreword by Professor Brian Cox gives hispersonal story of the importance of beer andbrewing. The Guide includes interesting articlesfollowed by the important listings of pubs bycounty and the final section with details ofbreweries and their regular beers. The Branch will have limited copies of theGuide for sale direct to members for £11 at eventsfrom 12 September. All CAMRA books can be viewed and orderedonline via shop1.camra.org.uk

This Guarantee should be detached and retained by the payer.

The Direct Debit Guarantee

l This Guarantee is o�ered by all banks and building societies that accept instructions to pay by Direct Debits

l If there are any changes to the amount, date or frequency of your Direct Debit The Campaign for Real Ale Ltd will notify you 10 working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed. If you request The Campaign for Real Ale Ltd to collect a payment, confirmation of the amount and date will be given to you at the time of the request

l If an error is made in the payment of your Direct Debit by The Campaign for Real Ale Ltd or your bank or building society, you are entitled to a full and immediate refund of the amount paid from your bank or building society

l If you receive a refund you are not entitled to, you must pay it back when The Campaign Real Ale Ltd asks you to

l You can cancel a Direct Debit at any time by simply contacting your bank or building society. Written confirmation may be required. Please also notify us.

Instruction to your Bank or Building Society to pay by Direct Debit

Please fill in the whole form using a ball point pen and send to: Campaign for Real Ale Ltd. 230 Hatfield Road St. Albans, Herts AL1 4LW

To the Manager Bank or Building Society

Address

Postcode

FOR CAMRA OFFICIAL USE ONLYThis is not part of the instruction to your Bank or Building Society

Membership Number

Name

Postcode

Signature(s)

Date

Banks and Building Societies may not accept Direct Debit Instructions for some types of account.

Instructions to your Bank or Building SocietyPlease pay Campaign For Real Ale Limited Direct Debits from the account detailed on this instruction subject to the safeguards assured by the Direct Debit Guarantee. I understand that this instruction may remain with Campaign For Real Ale Limited and, if so, will be passed electronically to my Bank/Building Society.

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Reference

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Join up, join in, join the campaign

✂Or enter your details and complete the Direct Debit form below and you will receive

15 months membership for the price of 12 and save £2 on your membership subscriptionAlternatively you can send a cheque payable to CAMRA Ltd with your completed form, visit www.camra.org.uk/joinup, or call 01727 798440.* All forms should be addressed to Membership Department, CAMRA, 230 Hatfield Road, St Albans, AL1 4LW.

Your details:Title ................................ Surname ........................................................................................

Forename(s) ...........................................................................................................................

Date of Birth (dd/mm/yyyy) ...............................................................................................

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Protect the traditions of great British pubs and everything that goes with them by joining today at www.camra.org.uk/joinup ✂

Direct Debit Non DD

Single Membership (UK) £26.50 £28.50

Under 26 Membership £18 £20

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†Price of single membership when paying by Direct Debit. *Calls from landlines charged at standard national rates, cost may vary from mobile phones. New Direct Debit members will receive a 12 month supply of vouchers in their first 15 months of membership.The data you provide will be processed in accordance with our privacy policy in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulations.

Includes

£30 Real Ale

Cider & PerryVouchers

From as little as

£26.50*a year. That’s less

than a pint a month!

Ullage September - November 2019 11

Two years, twohundred pubs(July 9, 2019)

Some thoughts on Bristol pubsIn general, Bristol pubs are good.They tend to be friendly, even if they don’talways look it.They’re extremely varied – hippy hangouts, oldboys boozers, gastropubs, craft beerexhibitions, backstreet gems, family hangouts,and so on.They mostly have real ale, even those thatmight not if they were in any other city. Wereckon we’ve counted three (four if you thinkBrewDog is a pub) that didn’t have anything atall on offer.They’re loyal to local beer, even if there’s nosingle dominant historic city brewery.Your chances of finding Bass, Courage Best,Butcombe or some other classic bitter are veryhigh. The likelihood of finding mild is almostzero. Hoppy beers tend to be hazy, soft andsweet. (Not that we’re grumbling but we dosometimes crave paler, drier beers of thenorthern variety.)

Sparklers, in summary(May 16, 2019)

[A sparkler is a perforated nozzle attached tothe end of a handpull. Regularly used in theNorth of England but less often in the South.]

• Sparklers work best with well-conditionedbeer, bringing some of CO2 out ofsuspension to form a denser head, butleaving plenty in the body of the pint.

• But if a beer is low on condition, a sparklermight well rob it of what little CO2 it has,leaving it with a head, but even flatterbeneath.

• Therefore, sparklers might equally be usedto make beer in poor condition look betterthan it is, or to give a beer in goodcondition a particular presentation.

• But there’s no way for a drinker to knowuntil they taste it.

• Sparklers may also mute or otherwise affectperception of certain flavours and aromas.Some beers are brewed with this in mind.

• Otherwise, it’s a matter of personalpreference.

• So sparklers are neither purely good, norpurely evil.

We’re Boak and BaileyWe’re geeks in general, but especially aboutbeer and pubs. We write under the namesJessica Boak and Ray Bailey. We live in Bristolin the UK. We’ve been blogging about beersince 2007.www.boakandbailey.com

When is aPub not a Pub?

mudgeon

When it’s a bar, of course. While there’s nospecific legal distinction, the two carryvery different connotations. This is not tosay one is better than the other, but they’recertainly not interchangeable. However, it’snotoriously difficult to come up with ahard-and-fast definition separating onefrom the other. Beer writer Martyn Cornell has recentlyhad another stab at it on his Zythophile blog,where he suggests that a key distinction is thatpubs tend to have a bar at right angles to yourpath when coming in through the entrancedoor, whereas bars have their counter runningalong a side wall. In general, while you can point to variouscharacteristics that pubs usually have, and barsdon’t, it’s always possible to come up withexceptions to the rule. Overall, it’s often a caseof ‘you know one when you see one’. Pub names usually start with ‘The’, but barnames seldom do. Pubs are often specificbuildings designed for the purpose, while barstend to be part of a larger building. Pubs makeuse of the upper floors of the building, while abar may be underneath something entirelydifferent. The licensees of a pub are likely tolive on the premises, but with a bar they hardlyever do. Bars are often aimed at a specific,identifiable ‘crowd’, while pubs seek a widerand more general clientele. And, at leastoutside urban centres, pubs often have carparks, but I can’t think of a single bar thatdoes. A pub retains its identity throughvarious changes of ownership, while that of abar is very much tied up with its currenttrading format. Some Wetherspoons, particularly those intheir more modern design idiom that areconversions of former retail units, do verymuch say ‘bar’ rather than ‘pub’, whereasothers that are in existing pub premises aredefinitely pubs. However, their generalatmosphere and wide customer mix are verymuch those of pubs regardless of their design.And, while their name says otherwise, I’d saythat the vast majority of micropubs, going bythe criteria set out above, are in reality smallbars … There’s also the vexed question of when apub actually turns into a restaurant. Mostrestaurants obviously aren’t pubs, but quite afew have the outward appearance of pubs andindeed might once have been one. Strictlyspeaking, if anyone can come in and have adrink without needing to buy a meal, it doesn’tqualify as just being a restaurant. However, I’dsay there also needs to be a test of whether anymeaningful number of people actually do, andwhether non-diners are made to feel welcome.

The Curmudgeon column appears in Opening Times, Stockport & SouthManchester CAMRA’s bimonthly magazine.Comments on his articles can be left on thewebsite curmudgeoncolumns.blogspot.com

AWARD-WINNING BEERhand crafted from our own Ramsbury Estate malt

from easy-drinking traditional golden ales,to an IPA bursting with hops or

a smooth craft lager,our brewery has a taste for

every palate.

www.ramsbury.com

STOCKCLOSE FARM, ALDBOURNE, WILTSHIRE , SN8 2NN

01672 541407

The Six Bells, The Green, BeenhamReading RG7 5NX Tel: 0118 9713368

Email: info@thesixbells.co.ukwww.thesixbells.co.uk

Meals served evenings and lunch times(except Mondays) Closed Sunday evenings

Traditional Sunday Roast lunches

En Suite Guest Rooms & Function Room available

Choice of 3 Cask Ales

‘Pie and Pudding Club’ every Wednesday!

West Berks CAMRA Pub of the Year 2008 and 2015

AA���� Inn

We are in theCAMRA Good

Beer Guide2019 (11th year

running)

01672 541224www.redlionbaydon.co.uk

Real AlesDog & Family Friendly

12 The Campaign for Real Ale West Berkshire

Diary Dates 2019

Ullage is published by the West Berkshire branch of the Campaign for Real Ale and is copyright of CAMRA. The opinions expressed in this publicationare those of the contributor and are not necessarily endorsed by the Production Team or The Campaign for Real Ale. Every effort is made to ensure thatthe information contained in Ullage is correct, but the publishers accept no responsibility for any errors or omissions.

10a Arnhem Road Newbury RG14 5RU +44 (0)1635 43026 clere.uk.com

A unique mix of in house creative and print production

Design | Print | Web

WEST BERKSHIRE BREWERY | THE OLD DAIRY | YATTENDON | RG18 OXT

01635 767090 TAPROOMANDKITCHEN@WBBREW.CO.UK

- EVENTS- TOURS- REAL ALE- CRAFT BEER- SHOP- TAPROOM- KITCHEN

TUES - SUN | 10AM-11PM

SHOP OPEN DAILY 10AM-6PMMON | 10AM-6PM (Kitchen Closed)

OPENING HOURSBeer Festival DiaryCAMRA run or supported beer festivals provideexcellent opportunities for sampling a widerange of real ales, from all over the UK andoverseas. Here are some of the major and mostaccessible festivals for West Berkshire drinkers.

See pages 4 & 5 for more festival details.4-5 October13th Ascot Racecourse Beer FestivalAscot Racecourse, Ascot SL5 7JXwww.ascotbeerfest.org.uk

11-13 October11th Hampshire’s OctoberFestBasingstoke Cricket & Sports GroundFairfields Road, Basingstoke RG21 3DRwww.hampshireoctoberfest.co.uk

24-26 October22nd Oxford Beer & Cider FestivalOxford Town Hall, St Aldate’s, Oxford OX1 1BXwww.oxfordbeerfestival.camra.org.uk

24-26 October33rd Swindon CAMRA Beer Festival STEAM Museum, Fire Fly Avenue,Swindon SN2 2EYwww.swindon.camra.org.uk

3-7 December36th Pig’s Ear Beer & Cider FestivalRound Chapel, Id Glenarm Road, Hackney,www.pigsear.org.uk

Thursday 12 SeptemberWest Berkshire BreweryTaproom social7.30pm

Saturday 14 SeptemberNewbury Real Ale Festival socialMeet at CAMRA stand Details: page 4 Noon - 6pm

Tuesday 1 OctoberBig Bash (music, history & beer)White Hart, Hamstead Marshall Details: page 2 6pm - 9pm

Friday 4 OctoberAscot Beer Festival socialDetails: page 5 1pm

Saturday 12 October Hampshire’s OctoberFest socialDetails: page 5 1pm

Wednesday 16 OctoberBranch meeting 8pmHare & Hounds Hotel, Speen

Saturday 16 NovemberThatcham ale trailStart: Wheatsheaf Inn Details: page 2 12.30pm

Thursday 12 DecemberChristmas Social & QuizOld London Apprentice,Newbury 7.30pm

Tuesday 17 DecemberChristmas Lunch socialHatchet Inn, Newbury 12 noon

Further details on our website: www.westberkscamra.org.uk

The following is a list of all forthcoming meetings of the West Berkshire branch of CAMRA. Some are ‘social’meetings, lively and friendly occasions where we enjoy a few beers; others are ‘branch’ meetings, which areslightly more formal and where we discuss beer and pubs issues. Unless stated, our meetings are open toall-comers – and new members are particularly welcome!

West Berkshire CAMRA

Chairman/ Andy Pinkard Membership: Tel 07989 382676 (M) chairman@westberkscamra.org.uk membership@westberkscamra.org.uk

Secretary: Mike Avery Tel 07918 138612 (M) secretary@westberkscamra.org.uk Treasurer: Alison Chetwynd treasurer@westberkscamra.org.uk

Press Officer: Karen Bowen pr@westberkscamra.org.uk

Webmaster: Tony Girling webmaster@westberkscamra.org.uk

Pubs Officer: Paul Worsley pubsofficer@westberkscamra.org.uk

Pubs DB/ Kevin BradyBeer Surveys: pubsdatabase@westberkscamra.org.uk

Ullage Tim ThomasEditorial: editor@westberkscamra.org.uk

Ullage Richard LockDesign: editor2@westberkscamra.org.uk

Printing: Clere www.clere.uk.com

Local Trading Standards office: Tel 0345 404 0506Facebook & Twitter:@WBCAMRAwww.westberkscamra.org.uk