Want to support our best pubs? Let's walk the talk!

Want to support our best pubs? Let's walk the talk!

The press is currently filled with news of the demise of the great British pub. But is it really all doom and gloom?

We hear that the rate of pub closures has risen to 52 per week, up one third on just 6 months ago. In the same week CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale) forces an investigation by The Office of Fair Trading into the crippling effect on tied pubs of high rents and beer prices charged by the monopolistic pub companies.

But there continues to be more positive anecdotal news of individual pubs adapting to the changing needs of the customers with more locally sourced food, special offers and entertainment (not just Sky Sports!). Some of the pubs I “follow” on Twitter are even now reporting record takings.

Not every pub can survive (and we all have stories of pubs that shouldn’t!) but there are many living on the brink of closure that it would be a tragedy to lose not just for their local communities but also for all of us who treasure their existence.

So what can we do? Well my aim throughout this summer is to support at least one pub each week (after a walk of course), sample their menu and if I’m impressed I’ll then spread the word by letting people know on MyFavouritePubWalks.com, this blog and Twitter for all who may be interested.

If you love our pub heritage too and like to include refreshment stops on your walks, I encourage you to join me and do the same to help our best pubs through this recession… and enjoy the exercise at the same time of course!

Please do share details of any gems you find on the way by commenting on www.myfavouritepubwalks.com, http://thepubwalker.blogspot.com or http://twitter.com/pubwalker as we’d all love to hear your experiences. And if you need inspiration for a pub walk to try then you can find it by following any of those links too.

Finally, why not even submit a pub walk for everyone to download?

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Coastal Pub Walk to the Horseshoe Inn at Marcross, South Glamorgan, Wales

This Week's Pub Walk... along the South Glamorgan coast to the Horseshoe Inn at Marcross

This circular pub walk returns to one of my firm favourites in South Glamorgan and this time to a yet another great pub. The Horseshoe Inn is a traditional village pub with log burners and a stone floor. It also plenty of courses for under a tenner plus a range of real ales that helped it earn its place in The Good Beer Guide.

If you like sea views, dramatic coves, old ruins and real variety then this pub walk is a must.

When you reach the beach, take some extra time here to enjoy the impressive rock formations of the cliffs here which are being constantly eroded. The jagged cliffs contrast sharply with the flat rock terraces of the beach which have been worn smooth over the millennia and together these make a dramatic sight.

Full details can be downloaded at Horseshoe Inn Walk.

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Pub Walk to the Plough and Harrow on the South Wales Coast Path, Glamorgan

This Week's Pub Walk... returning to the Plough and Harrow on the South Wales Coast Path, Glamorgan

This circular pub walk includes the Coastal Footpath to Marcross with some spectacular scenery and a choice of two great pubs. The Plough and Harrow is full of character and a true favourite of mine, appearing in not only The Good Pub Guide and the AA Pub Guide but also The Good Beer Guide who voted it the Best Pub in Wales 2003.

This walk has plenty of interest with varied terrain, seaward views, two dramatic coves, some old ruins and a nature reserve.

Full details can be downloaded at Plough and Harrow Pub Walk.

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Coastal Pub Walk from the Plough and Harrow, Monknash, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales

Coastal Pub Walk from the Plough and Harrow, Monknash, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales

Our long weekend on the South Wales coast gave the perfect opportunity to find some more pub walks in Wales to add to the MyFavouritePubWalks.com database. Although pubs seem to me to be thinner on the ground there than in rural areas of England, we still found a few gems that gave access to some great walks.

We started with a two and a half mile pub walk from the Plough and Harrow at Monknash which had plenty of interest with varied terrain, sea views, a dramatic cove, some old ruins and a nature reserve.

The Plough and Harrow itself is a very friendly traditional village pub that welcomes visitors as warmly as its regulars. Dating back to 1383, it is not much to look at from the outside but venture inside and you will find a very cosy interior - inglenook fireplaces, beams and heaps of history with tales of the “Wreckers of Wick” storing bodies in the bar ... so of course a number of ghosts are said to haunt the place! There are information leaflets on the tables with more details.

The food is of a high standard with good sized portions and main courses under £10. There is an emphasis on traditional dishes and the Welsh faggots went down a treat! It features in The Good Pub Guide 2008 and The Good Beer Guide 2008 and was voted Pub of the Year by CAMRA. It offers real ales and promotes Welsh breweries with a choice of 3 regular beers Hereford Pale Ale, Bass and Otley 01, plus 3 guest beers and a choice of 8 ciders.

For the full details and directions please click on Plough and Harrow Pub Walk.

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Publicans - Advertise Your Community Pubs Week Events for Free

Publicans - Advertise Your Community Pubs Week Events for Free

As a follow up to yesterday's post, I now see that CAMRA is offering free publicity to publicans organising special events (e.g. pub walk competitions) so whatever you are planning for your customers make sure you let them know.

Details of how to advertise can be found by visiting Advertise for Free.

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Old Spot, Gloucestershire, voted National Pub of the Year

Old Spot, Gloucestershire, voted National Pub of the Year

The Campaign for Real Ale yesterday announced the winner of the coveted title of National Pub of the Year. This goes to The Old Spot in Gloucestershire following a vote that considered the quality of the beer, atmosphere, décor, customer service, clientele mix and value for money.

As part of the selection process, CAMRA members vote for their favourites to find 16 regional winners. These were then shortlisted to four pubs for the Grand Final with the winner announced to kick off Community Pubs Week.

You can see full details of the winner and runners-up by clicking on National Pub of the Year.

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Find Your Local Events - Community Pubs Week

Find Your Local Events - Community Pubs Week

There are more ways of supporting Community Pubs Week than downloading a pub walk or sharing a pub walk that is one of your favourites. CAMRA is publicising a whole range of activities being offered by publicans which you might want to try.

These range from treasure hunts to "Meet the Brewer" sessions, a special "Bacon Bash" menu to mark national bacon week too and of course some group pub walks are being organised too. Take a look at what is going on in your area by clicking on Events for Community Pubs Week.

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Community Pubs Week Starts Tomorrow

CAMRA's Community Pubs Week - Starts Tomorrow

Running from Saturday 16th to Saturday 23rd February 2008, The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is again organising Community Pubs Week to celebrate the British Pub and to encourage us all to support our pub heritage.

This is a great opportunity for pub walkers like us to put our own favourite pubs on the map and help their survival with a new pub walk to draw new custom through their doors. The general view is that there is a tough year ahead for community pubs and we've all seen the figures saying 56 pubs a month close for good. So if you want to support your local in this way then click on Submit a Pub Walk to find out how easy it is to add a pub walk to MyFavouritePubWalks.com.

There a plenty of other things going on this coming week and if you want to find out more just click on Community Pubs Week.

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This Week - A Pub Walk with Beautiful Views from The Cross Keys at Llanfynydd, Wales

This Week - A Pub Walk with Beautiful Views from The Cross Keys at Llanfynydd, Wales

Wales is renowned for many things of course, not least of which is its exhilarating walking country. However, recorded pub walks are somewhat thinner on the ground so you might want to try a walk from The Cross Keys which is now available to download from MyFavouritePubWalks.com.

This circular walk starts and finishes in the car park of the Waun-y-Lyn Country Park with some beautiful views. Stop on the way at The Cross Keys which is a real old country pub featured in CAMRA's Good Beer Guide 2008. Try some of their excellent soup, sandwiches with real crusty baguettes, or go for home cooked main meals.

To download, simply click on Cross Keys Pub Walk. If you have any other favourite pub walks in Wales (or indeed anywhere else!) that you would like to share, simply click on Submit a Pub Walk to add them to our database and share in our profits.

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This Week's Pub Walk - The Woodman Inn at Wild Hill in Hertfordshire

This Week's Pub Walk - The Woodman Inn at Wild Hill in Hertfordshire

How about a walk around the edge of Camfield Place, the country estate in Hertfordshire that was the home of the late Barbara Cartland? This route offers tree-lined footpaths and quiet country lanes, rivers and a panoramic view.

The refreshment on offer at The Woodman Inn is popular with the Campaign for Real Ale, winning a regional title for its ale and regularly featuring in CAMRA's Good Beer Guide. And if you get there at lunchtime, word has it that it is worth trying a bacon and egg door step, a cheese and onion roll or a ‘Tony Special’.

If you fancy trying this for yourself, you can download the route by clicking on Woodman Inn Pub Walk.

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‘Station Porter' voted best winter beer in the land!

‘Station Porter' voted best winter beer in the land!

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) recently held its National Winter Ales Festival and named Wickwar Station Porter as Supreme Champion Winter Beer of Britain 2008.

The description alone in CAMRA's Good Beer Guide 2008 is intoxicating... “A rich, smooth, dark ruby-brown ale. Starts with a roast malt; coffee, chocolate and dark fruit then develops a complex, spicy, bittersweet taste and a long roast finish.” Wow, I've go to try this one!

To read more about the National Winter Ales Festival and see a complete list of the winning ales, visit Champion Winter Beer of Britain 2008.

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CAMRA Announces National Pub of the Year Finalists

CAMRA Announces National Pub of the Year Finalists

The Campaign for Real Ale has announced the finalists for the prestigious title of National Pub of the Year.

CAMRA members visited thousands of pubs to select 16 regional winners which were then short-listed to the best four for the final. The overall winner will be announced on February 15th 2008, on the eve of CAMRA's Community Pubs Week (February 16th - 23rd).

I always think that award-winning pubs are always a great starting point for a new pub walk so if you want further details of the finalists visit National Pub of the Year Finalists.

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This Week's Free Pub Walk - The Six Bells in Fulbourn, Cambs

Free Pub Walk:

The Six Bells in Fulbourn, Cambridgeshire.

A fascinating and varied longer walk including not one but three nature reserves, a duck pond and a windmill that still has its full quota of sails.

Stop en route at The Six Bells which is a traditional pub featuring in the Good Beer Guide. It offers a good range of home-cooked food and wide selection of real ales.

To download for free visit The Six Bells Pub Walk.

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Good Beer Guide 2008 is Published

Good Beer Guide 2008 is Published

CAMRA's annual bible, lovingly compiled by its 87,000 members, has arrived again. With its 4,500 entries, it is easy to find a pub to use as a base for a new pub walk and hopefully many of these will appear on MyFavouritePubWalks.com in time.

This year's edition highlights the only 10 pubs that have secured a place in the guide for every one of the 35 editions since CAMRA published the first one. Quite an achievement and worth seeking out as a priority.

For details of the 10 top pubs click on the Good Beer Guide 2008.

Today's Pub Walk: The Peacock Inn in Chelsworth, Suffolk.

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Great British Beer Festival - Hobsons Mild Voted Best Beer in Britain

Great British Beer Festival - Hobsons Mild Voted Best in Britain

Today marks the end of the 30th Great British Beer Festival at Earl's Court where Hobsons Mild from Hobsons Brewery in Shropshire was voted the Best Beer in Britain.

The 2007 Good Beer Guide, published by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) describes it as: "A classic mild. Complex layers of taste come from roasted malts that predominate and give lots of flavour."

For more news items from the event and a complete list of the winners, click on Great British Beer Festival winners.

Today's pub walk: The Victory Inn in Hamble, Hampshire.

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