Pub of the Year Results Inside
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Issue 116 Spring 2015 Pub of the Year results inside Plus pub news , nostalgia, and other information on Real Ale and pubs in County Durham Durham CAMRA committee Chairman & Public Affairs Officer: Peter Lawson Treasurer: Neil Shaw Secretary : John Collinson Minutes secretary: John Corbett Membership secretary: Dan Kolb Durham Drinker, publications, & campaigns: Paul Dobson Apple Rep (cider) & Wear Valley Pubs: Paul Dobson Pubs officer: Dave Thornton Website editor: Emma Nicholls Social Secretary & Beer Festival Director: Lindsey Wright Technical and Equipment Officer: Nick Young LocAle Co-ordinator: Joe Davison Pubs Preservation: Peter Jones Take advantage of Durham Drinker’s competitive advertising rates. Quarter page £25, half page £45, or full page £80. 3,500 copies distributed across County Durham’s pubs and clubs, and anywhere else our members are visiting. Design service available Brewery Liaison Officers Contact us at: [email protected] [email protected] Durham: Tony Chilton Consett Ale Works: John Collinson Find us at: Hill Island: Tony Chilton Www.camradurham.org.uk Yard of Ale: Ian Carrick Stables: John Collinson And Facebook, and Twitter Weard’Ale: Paul Dobson Black Paw: Paul Dobson Just a Minute: Gerry Vickers Blackhill : Peter Lawson Leamside Ale Company: Joe Davison Sonnet 43: Peter Jones Hello and welcome to issue 116 of Durham Drinker. Since we last met, we’ve seen a number of pubs reopen—the Brewery Tap at Crook, formerly the Coach and Horses, appeared on the scene just before Christmas after an impressive renovation and boasting half a dozen handpulls. It will soon be offering ales from the associated Fat Brewer brewery. Great news for Crook. The Travellers Rest at Witton Gilbert has reopened , after a refurbishment,. with four ales on offer. Great news for Witton Gilbert. In these days of pubs closing every week, it’s great to see that there are peo- ple out there bucking the national trend and actually opening pubs. On the other hand, many of those closing are the property of PubCos. No further com- ment is needed here, as plenty is constantly being made in the local and na- tional media on the subject. We’re losing many profitable pubs because satis- fying shareholders ranks higher than keeping good pubs open. The sign pictured to the right (many thanks to the Turf at Consett, who obviously have their fingers on the pulse of what pubs are there for) sum sup what pubs should be all about—an escape from the real world and the chance to spend a little time in good company with good beer, good cheer, and good company. Landlords want to provide this and make a living, not provide an income for anony- mous company shareholders. Paul Dobson Dates. for your diary…. The Half Moon Inn Tuesday March 10th, Branch Meeting, Newfield Inn, Newfield, nr Chester le Street March 12th—15th, beer festival, New Inn, Durham March 12th—15th, beer and music fes- tival at the Bonny Moor Hen, Stanhope March 19th—21st Darlington spring beer festival, The Forum, Borough Road, DL1 1SG Tuesday March 24th, 7:30 Tuesday Tipple, the Half Moon, Durham March 13th—29th Wetherspoon spring A Traditional British Pub in the beer festival Heart of Durham City March 27th—29th , beer and music A choice of Cask Marque ap- proved real ales, including Bass, festival, the Turbinia, Aycliffe Durham Brewery’s White Gold, April 2nd—6th Surtees Arms, Ferryhill and Timothy Taylor’s Landlord Station, beer festival BT Sport, Sky Sports, and ESPN Tuesday April 7th, 7:30 Annual General for all live sporting events . Meeting, Ship Inn, Middlestone Village Fantastic outside drinking area April 15th—18th, Newcastle beer festi- leading down to the river Wear, val. Branch social on 16th with two TVs April 17th—19th, Beer & Bands festival at the Pavilion, Bishop Auckland Tuesday May 12th, 7:30 Branch Meeting, Causey Arch Inn April 22nd—25th Beer festival, Smith’s Arms, Castle Dene near Chester le Street June 12th—15th Beer festival, Barley Mow, Birtley July 3rd-4th Ceddesfield Hall beer festi- val, Sedgefield Like our Facebook page to see our weekly guest ales & sporting events Why not sign up to our webpage for more info on offers? The Half Moon Inn New Elvet, Durham City, DH1 3AQ Tel: 01913741918 www.thehalfmooninndurham.co.uk As seen on TV! Are you in the club? The branch pubs group has spent a considerable amount of time over the last year or so gathering information on the pubs in our area and entering it into CAMRA’s Whatpub online database. Good progress has been made on this front, however a matter we would like to get round to doing is to get the same information on clubs in our patch, as currently what we have is very sparse. In the recent voting for pubs and club of the year, when Chester-le-Street Crick- et Club regained its title from Durham City Rugby Club, it was very noticeable that the majority of voters did not submit a choice for Club of the Year Indeed if you look through the list of winners in this category over the years, it has always been one or other of these excellent establishments which have carried off the title. But clubs are a big thing in the North East. A number of villages in County Durham sadly do not have a pub any more, but a club may still be going. Maybe a lot of CAMRA members have the vision of a club from the days of Federation Brewery and it tanks of beer, but clubs can take many shapes and forms these days , and some of them do serve real ale. We have made some very small inroads in hunting out these clubs and know for a fact that the traditional working men's clubs in Belmont, Hamsterley, Durham, and Shildon offer cask ale. On the sporting front the golf clubs at Bishop Auck- land, Brancepeth Castle, and Beamish Park have real ale in their clubhouses. Shildon also does well as at its football club (Northern League is senior football in our area by the way) you can get Greulich Special (named after a goal-scorer in Durham Challenge Cup Final win) brewed by Black Paw brewery. In Chester-le -Street, the ‘other’ cricket club at the Emirates Riverside ground will provide you with a pint of Pedigree on match days in their Durham Jets bar. But that's about all the information we have at the moment – there must be more – tennis clubs, ex -servicemen's clubs, health clubs, catholic clubs, commu- nity centres – even night clubs! Do you know better, are you a member of any form of club, or is there one in your village? Please let us know, especially if it serves real ale. Even the fact that it doesn’t serve a cask beer would be of value, to save a survey visit. Please email any information you have to [email protected] Dave Thornton Pubs bits and pieces—some updates Following last issue’s piece on the success of real ale at the Welcome in Bishop Auckland, an update is due. The ale has proved so popular that both pumps are often in use, and there have been 22 different ales available—and still counting. Smiling customers raise a glass of ale at the Wel- come—something’s making them happy Another follow up on the last issue….The Fat Brewer in Crook had already set up its training programme, and in December they opened their Brewery Tap. The former Coach and Horses has been impressively refur- bished, and boasts six handpulls offering beer from all over the land, including some from the Just a Minute brewery in Spennymoor. The next stage in the Fat Brewer’s plans is the production of their first brew, which took place on February 20th, so by the time you read this Rouge should be on the bar at the Tap. Smiles and handpulls at the Tap While we’re updating on issue 115’s bits and pieces, we might as well tell you that the House Beer at the New Inn, Durham, proved popular—so much so that a second version is now on offer. This one is Camer- on’s Gold Bullion branded specially for the New Inn, and initial sales indicate that it will prove just as popular as the IPA. CAMRA Durham’s Pub of the Year 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2012, and Town Pub of the Year 2014, Runner-up 2015 ..and runner- up 2014! ..and 2014 and 2015 Durham CAMRA Pub of the Year 2013, runner up 2014 & 2015 April 17th—19th As mentioned in the piece on real ale in clubs, Whatpub is the place to record your opinion of the beer you’ve sampled. If you’re a CAMRA member, simply log on using your membership number and password, search for the pub you wish to score the beers for, and enter your score. There is an app for your mobile, if you’re that technologically advanced, or you an log on using your PC—or the one in the library. Failing that, pass your scores to another CAMRA member, and they can work the magic for you. The important thing is that the quality of the beers in our pubs is eval- uated, as that evaluation can be invaluable when providing information for Pub Guides such as the Good Beer Guide. Witton Gilbert Newly refurbished and under new ownership Offering the best in home-made food Offers available lunchtime and early evening A range of four cask ales Large car park Newly rejuvenated beer garden Events all year Front Street, Witton Gilbert DH7 6TQ tel.0191 3710458 Website - www.travellersrest-wittongilbert.co.uk Follow us on facebook - www.facebook.com/travellersrestdurham Email—[email protected] Another one bites the dust.