theleicesterdrinker www.leicester.camra.org.uk FREE Issue 110 April / May 2017 The Newsletter of Leicester CAMRA Branch Circulation 5,000 throughout Leicestershire & Rutland See Centrefold MILD IN MAY for Details Leicester Beer Festival 2017 p4 Pub of the Month p22 INSIDE Brewery & Pub News ................ p6-7 Three Men Off the Buses .............. p8 Brewery Resurrection ................. p19 Awards for All! ......................... p20 Jim’s Jaunt .............................. p24 Out & About with the Editor p10 Festival Diary ........................... p28 Facebook/leicestercamra @LeicesterCAMRA leicestercamra Designed & Printed by AnchorPrint · www.anchorprint.co.uk EDITOR Rob Macardle Please send contributions to FROM THE EDITOR [email protected] Website: Welcome to the April/May edition www.leicester.camra.org.uk of The Leicester Drinker. Facebook: As ever this is an eventful time of year. Hard Leicester Campaign for Real Ale work for a lot of those involved but Leicester Beer The Drinker welcomes letters, news, views and articles Festival was another great success, and despite for possible publication. Please keep it brief and to the the odd setback here and there the local pub point and supply your name and address (this will scene is largely healthy; the updated Ale Trail only be published with your permission). The opinions leaflet boasting more Cask Ale outlets than ever expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of before. We’ve also received a large amount of the Editor, Leicester Branch, or CAMRA. articles for this edition so some have had to be ADVERTISING RATES carried forward to the June issue, so apologies to 1 /6 page £ 35 + VAT those contributors on this occasion. 1 /4 page £ 50 + VAT 1 Voting for Pub of the Year and other associated /3 page £ 66 + VAT 1 awards was much improved with the simple online /2 page £ 85 + VAT option encouraging many to vote early. As a result, 1 page £160 + VAT Back Page £190 + VAT there are several presentation ceremonies on the horizon, details of which can be found on page 29. Series Discounts available on 1/4 page and above VAT Registration Number: 102 0964 57 Don’t forget that May is Mild Month and this year CAMRA Recommends that if you are in any way we have 45 participating venues (up from 32 last dissatisfied with the measure of your pint in any of year) for what is our 4th Mild Trail. This year we’ve Leicestershire & Rutland’s pubs, contact the Trading teamed up with Hinckley branch so it’s possible Standards. Details below. to collect stickers from 11 Hinckley pubs. All the details are on the four page centrefold but if you • City of Leicester Council has now moved from don’t wish to damage your copy of The Drinker New Walk. All Weights & Measures enquiries should be referred to Citizens Advice 03454040506 or everything is downloadable from our website www.citizensadvice.org.uk (www.leicester.camra.org.uk). RM • Leicestershire County Council 2000, E-mail: [email protected] • Rutland County Council Offices, Catmose, ADVERTISE IN THE Oakham, Rutland, LE15 6HP. • Trading Standards are part of Environmental LEICESTER DRINKER! Health. All initial enquiries to Rutland County With a circulation of 5,000 and an estimated Council can be made through the customer readership of three times that number, services team. 01572 722577 The Drinker reaches licensees and pubgoers Leicester CAMRA makes every effort to publish the alike and is available free of charge in almost Leicester Drinker on time, however sometimes due to 200 outlets. The newsletter is published every lack of copy being received it may be a few days later two months by The Campaign for Real Ale, than advertised. Leicester CAMRA cannot accept any prices to advertise start from £35 plus VAT. responsibility for advertisements taken that feature a Contact [email protected] in dated event that has occurred before publication. the first instance. Postal Copies can be obtained from S. Collier on 07504 829830 LEICESTER DRINKER ADVERTISING/COPY or email: [email protected] DEADLINES 2017 16 South Drive, Leicester LE5 1AN Recommended Absolute (Please supply stamps) LD111 Jun/Jul 17/05/2017 24/05/2017 www.camra.org.uk LD112 Aug/Sep 12/07/2017 19/07/2017 LD113 Oct/Nov 13/09/2017 20/09/2017 LD114 Dec/Jan 15/11/2017 22/11/2017 2 April - May 2017 The Newsletter of Leicester CAMRA Branch The Stamford Arms, Groby 10% CAMRA DISCOUNT ON ALL CASK ALES • BEER FESTIVAL 13th - 19th APRIL • 18 Cask Ales (10 available at any one time) • 14 Real Ciders • Food available • Play Area for Under 12s • Family Garden • Tuck Shop • No Smoking Area • 5 Star Accommodation • Available for Bed & Breakfast • WiFi • Holiday Lets Available • Shires Magazine Pub of the Year • CAMRA Pub of the Month February 2015 • 7 Cask Ales & Cider Always Available • Food Served from 10am - 9.30pm Fine Food & Real Ales Open 11-11 (11.30 close Fri & Sat) The Anchor Food served 12-9 (8 Sun) 74 Loughborough Road, Wi-Fi Beer Garden Children’s Play Area Hathern, LE12 5JB 01509 646688 www.anchorinnhathern.co.uk The Leicester Drinker www.leicester.camra.org.uk 3 “One of the best festivals I have ever been to. Definitely the best beer list I have ever seen.” T.S. 50 YEARS OF LOCAL RADIO 2 3 5 Leicester Beer Festival The total attendance over the three and a half Yorkshire plus 23 local breweries. Breweries days was about 5% down on 2016’s record ages range from our very own Everards started numbers, but still nearly 5,000 in all. Over 100 in 1849 through to sixteen breweries that only volunteers worked in excess of 2500 hours in opened in the last 12 months. 114 casks had total. This year we adopted a token system sold out by Saturday evening, the first to go for beer purchases; there were a few teething being from new local brewer Framework, their problems but bar service was quicker and 5.6% cloudy wheat beer, Witbier. The most smoother and it met with general approval. unusual beer was an experimental “Bread Approximately 255 different beers were Beer” brewed by West End in collaboration with available - over 18,500 pints. Beers were sourced Leicester University students for charity. from breweries throughout the UK including The International bottle bar was again well- Wales, West Midlands, the South West, Derby, supported, especially in the evenings as most Nottingham, Northampton, Lincolnshire and people bought to take away. Bottled lager 4 April - May 2017 The Newsletter of Leicester CAMRA Branch 1 “[A festival] fitting for Champions League! Congratulations to all.” R.W. 4 6 sales were down but with two cask lagers taking them away, but more people kept the available many were choosing that option. Festival Beer Programme. Cider was again popular, particularly sweet Curries sold well, as did the extended and and medium versions, over half the options more diverse range of cobs, pies and sausage selling out well before the end of the festival. rolls. At the end of the festival surplus cobs An innovation for this year was a Gin bar that were taken to local pubs (West End Brewery, also stocked Wine and Prosecco. Western, King’s Head, Donkey and Aylestone’s Festival T-shirts were again in great demand. Union and Black Horse) raising a further £82.76 Glass sales were down, with fewer people for our chosen charity, LOROS RM PHOTO CAPTIONS PHOTO 1. The Gin Bar, presided over by Alan 3. No conferring….Ivan and Simon of 4. Thursday morning and Sarah of The Black Horse, Market Harborough Brewery search for 10.45am and Aylestone with Selina Conroy (Everards, inspiration in an ice breaker quiz held already a healthy centre), John Turner (Licensee, The on the Wednesday evening for the queue. Swan, Newbold Verdon) and Abby brewers. Six teams took up the challenge 5. Aaargh! What to (Everards assistant for the day). with Grainstore coming out tops on a choose? tie-breaker against Beardy Monkey and 2. More than one way to have a 6. Everards had a funny face! Parish.. Belvoir and West End also took part. smart new bar. The Leicester Drinker www.leicester.camra.org.uk 5 BREWERY NEWS ANSTEY ALES are currently brewing once a week in April and Midland Red (4.5% abv from the core range of Father’s Favourite (3.7%), Bitter using Willamette, Columbus and Amarillo hops) Packhorse Bridge Best Bitter (4%), Darkroom Oatmeal in May. Once again Everards hosted an overseas Stout (4.7%) and Paleface IPA (5%). Currently testing brewer for the J D Wetherspoons Beer Festival. Jeff out a new mild. The Tap and Barrel at Wigston looks Bagby from Bagby Brewery, San Diego, CAL created likely to be the first to have all of them outside of the a 4%abv Traditional English Bitter using Target and Stadon Sports and Social Club, Anstey. Goldings hops, called Back Garden. A dedicated BEARDY MONKEY has made some inroads into website (www.everardsmeadows.co.uk) has now surrounding counties. Some experimental work with been set up to follow the progress of the brewery a ginger-infused bitter and plans to develop the re-location. During their move, beers will be brewed business in local beer festivals and country pubs. elsewhere for a short time, but no decision has yet Also looking to add a second 19 gallon fermenter as been made as to who will brew these. The Poet & business increases. Castle, Codnor (a Project William pub) is to change brewery from Ashover to Lincoln Green. BELVOIR have installed a small 5-8 barrel fermenter for special brews.