www. February 2014 issue 107 InnSpire .org.uk THE MAGAZINE OF CHESTERFIELD AND DISTRICT CAMRA Chestereld CAMRA Pub of the Year The Tramway Tavern Matlock and Dales Sub Branch CAMRA Pub of the Year The MoCa Bar FREEPage 1 COPY Inn Chairman’s Report Spire Welcome to the first issue of InnSpire for 2014. Chesterfield & District We’ve chosen our Chesterfield and District Pub Editorial & Production of the Year for 2014 – the Tramway Tavern - Tim Stone & Debbie Jackson CAMRA Tel: 07773 141433 Brampton Brewery’s second pub. An excellent [email protected] Chairman time was had at the award presentation in Advertisements Mick Portman January. Our Winter Pub of the Season is the Peter Boitoult 88 Walton Road, Chesterfield S40 3BY Rykneld Turnpyke in Clay Cross – you can see Tel: 07791 159 526 Tel: 01246 277757 reports on both presentations in this issue. [email protected] Further Information Branch Contact We’re now working on our selections for the www.innspire.org.uk Jane Lefley 2015 Good Beer Guide, a job which gets harder [email protected] [email protected] every year owing to the constantly increasing Article Deadline for April 07790 863432 number of excellent pubs selling excellent beer in the branch area. Issue 108 Wobble Organisers I’m sure that 2014 will be another great year for drinking beer, and hope that Friday 21st March 2014 Ray Easter InnSpire has a circulation of 4,250 [email protected] our readers will enjoy it as much as we shall. copies and is produced by and copyright of the Chesterfield & District Colin Clark Mick Portman Branch of CAMRA. [email protected] Matlock & Dales Sub Branch No parts may be used without permission. Articles & letters are Contact always welcome and may be Peter Boitoult 07791 159 526 submitted by email to the InnSpire Editor, address above. Do you have trouble Please note that the views expressed finding a copy of InnSpire? herein are those of individual contributors and not necessarily those Why not guarantee yourself a copy by of the national Campaign for Real Ale subscribing to our Postal List? or the local Branch. As each issue is published, you will Chesterfield & District CAMRA is a be one of the first to receive a copy of Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale Innspire, directly to your door. To receive a whole year’s worth of Innspire, please send six second class LARGE letter stamps to: InnSpire Postal List, 88 Walton Road, Chesterfield S40 3BY Please remember to include your full name and address. Page 2 Page 3 Campaign Update BARROW HILL ROUNDHOUSE The sale of over 200 Marstons’ pubs to a property company, announced just before Christmas, raises further questions on the future of the industry. Some we know will become private residences, some will become supermarkets, and RAIL ALE the fate of others is unknown. What can be deduced is that there will be fewer pubs in which to drink. Forget the moral and ethical questions of drinking 2014 in a controlled environment, which is what pubs are all about, we need to campaign to make sure that as many pubs as possible are retained as viable THE MOST ATMOSPHERIC BEER FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR! drinking establishments. At the time of writing, there is no information about which pubs are involved. th 6pm - 11pm* Change of use to residential is relatively easy to resist, as a full planning THURSDAY 15 MAY application is needed. Change of use to other retail is much more difficult to th resist, as no planning application for change of use is needed. The only matters FRIDAY 16 MAY 12noon - 11pm* to be considered will be traffic problems and extensions and modifications to the building. This latter is much more difficult. th SATURDAY 17 MAY 12noon - 11pm* About a year ago when new planning laws came into force, the concept of an asset of community value was introduced. This is a scheme whereby a building Tickets or a piece of land can be proposed as an asset of value to the local community. available It was sold to us as an idea to help save, among other things, pubs. It turns OVER 200 from 1st out that it is as good as worthless. All that happens is that it puts a six month pause into the planning process during which the locals are expected to raise March the money to make an offer for the said asset. If at the end of six months they REAL ALES! have not managed it, the process moves forward as before. So it seems that the much publicised changes in planning law intended, among other things, to PLUS help save pubs has been no help at all. MAIN SPONSORS: CIDERS, PERRYS, CRAFT KEG CASTLE ROCK, FULLERS Very soon after publication of this issue of InnSpire, there will have been a AND WORLD BEERS AND EVERARDS public enquiry into the refusal by Chesterfield Borough Council to grant Tesco Approved Festival TRAIN RIDES, LIVE MUSIC SUPPORTING SPONSORS: planning consent to change the well-loved Crispin Inn into a local shop. To AND GREAT FOOD MARSTONS, BATEMANS, TITANIC, choose a public enquiry rather than just a plain appeal hearing seems to be OAKHAM AND NAVIGATION a deliberate ploy to involve the Council in considerable extra complication. THURSDAY: ADVANCE & ON THE GATE £4.50 FRIDAY & SATURDAY: ADVANCE £6.50, ON THE GATE £8 Chesterfield CAMRA have objected, as have many others, so it will be an *No under 18s allowed on site after 5pm. Train rides run until 5pm on Friday & Saturday. No train rides on Thursday. interesting time (if you like that kind of thing!) There will be a full report of proceedings in the next issue. Tel: 01246 472450 Alan Craw CAMPBELL DRIVE, BARROW HILL, CHESTERFIELD, DERBYSHIRE S43 2PR Page 4 www.barrowhill.org Page 5 Brewery News Brewery News cont. Barlow Raw are also joining forces with Educatables, the Derbyshire Times Band of The conversion of the brewery to a five barrel plant should be completed by the Year, and will be producing a 3.8% pale ale in February, ready for a series the time you read this. Robert Slater won the brew day competition and his of gigs. The band will be playing at the White Swan in town on 6th March, and traditional bitter, Pathfinder, will be available at the Winding Wheel festival. Also then at various local pubs in March and April – see the band’s Facebook page at the festival will be Betty’s Blonde and Full Monty. Full Monty will be judged in for details. the East Midlands regional competition for strong bitters at the National Winter Ales Festival to be held at Derby. Festival success Rumours of a brewery tap have proved accurate, as brewer Glyn has joined forces with designer and InnSpire editor Tim Stone to take over the Brampton Ale House, in partnership with Thwaites. The Chatsworth Road pub is currently undergoing refurbishment, and is planned to re-open in February. It will be renamed the Tap House – what else?! There will be eight real ales available, including two or three from the Barlow range. The guest ales will be sourced from small breweries around the country. There will also be real ciders on offer, and a great selection of quality wines. “I’ve been looking for a brewery tap for a while, and when the Ale House became available it was an obvious choice, with its great location and potential,” explained Glyn. “We’re aiming for a friendly pub, which welcomes discerning drinkers – whether they enjoy a pint of great local real ale, or a good choice of fine wines.” Look out for The Tap House on Facebook to keep in touch with progress. Brampton December saw the Mild / Wild Turkey fusion released at the three Brampton houses, which very quickly evaporated. Look out for the Winter Bock / Jack Local breweries were presented with their awards from October’s Market Daniels combo, which should be another rare treat for those bourbon fans Festival at a special event in January. Battle of the Beers winners were: amongst us. Gold – Ashover’s Littlemoor Citra 4.1% Silver – Raw’s Butchers Strong Ale 7.3% Raw Bronze – Dancing Duck’s Indian Porter 5% The girls from the Butchers Arms at Woodsetts came along and brewed their own beer - Identity Crisis - a 4.3% Pale Oat Vanilla Mild. Guest brewer Raimondo The Drinkers Choice awards – Battle of the Beers and Beer of the Festival - voted brewed twice with us - one Raw beer and a collaboration - Black Saison 5.7% - a for by festival drinkers both went to Instant Karma, Test Brew Number One 3.9% Belgian style saison with black pepper, elderflower and sweet orange peel. Page 6 Page 7 Pub News Two of the branch area LocAle recognised pubs have had their cellar men accredited by Cask Marque. Congratulations to Anthony Payne at the town centre Rutland Arms and Gary Gregory from the Fox and Goose at Wigley. The new year has seen the Brunswick in Derby launch a brand new food menu, alongside a full range of 16 real ales. The outside of the Speedwell, Staveley, has been spruced up with a new coat of paint. The opening hours have also been extended - it's now opening at 5pm, an hour earlier, on weekdays. Big-hearted fundraisers have boosted Ashgate Hospice in memory of a young nursery worker who died of cancer. The Blue Stoops in Walton held a fundraising event after Laura Nettleship died aged just 29.