Award-winning Pub Company to open in Centre of Cardiff

Knife & Fork Food to open fifth location as they announce acquisition ofTwenty Nine Park Place

Award winning pub group Knife & Fork Food have announced plans to open their fifth venue, Twenty Nine Park Place, this July.

The pub, which is Knife & Fork Food’s most ambitious venue yet, follows on from the 2014 opening of The Discovery in Lakeside, and will join other venues in the group’s portfolio which incorporates The Conway in Pontcanna, The Pilot in Penarth and The Old Swan Inn in Llantwit Major.

Twenty Nine Park Place, which sits adjacent to the steps of the National Museum Wales, is currently undergoing an extensive £200,000 refurbishment, which will completely overhaul the interiors of the grand townhouse to bring it in line with the aesthetic of a refined, traditional pub for today, complete with bar area, open kitchen, restaurant and a small private dining room on the first floor.

The venue will be a visual step away from the much-loved interiors of the group’s more suburban and rural venues, however, hallmarks will remain that fans of the local pubs will know and appreciate.

The acquisition of Twenty Nine Park Place is the next step in an expansion strategy for the regional pub group that was established in 1999 with Woods Brasserie and has since gone on to experience great success, turning over £3.7 million in 2017, generating and maintaining strong local followings and being recognised by the acclaimed Michelin Pub Guide.

The move into Cardiff city centre has been largely self-funded by Knife & Fork Food, and is the result of several years of careful consideration regarding their next move. Speaking about the new venture, Sean Murphy, one of three partners who own the group, said: “Until now we’ve always considered ourselves to be a company that specialises in community pubs and to date we have been very successful at that, however, when we saw Twenty Nine Park Place we simply couldn’t resist such a magnificent opportunity”

“The venue is stunning and our move into town heralds the beginning of a whole new era for us. Our current customers will certainly feel at home when we open as it will very much have the Knife & Fork Food stamp on it, however, we’ve unquestionably scaled it up a notch, now that we’re in the city centre.

“We’re looking forward to opening our doors in July, but for now we’re very busy making it the very best city pub with food it can possibly be. And, in association with Wonder Company who have put together a contemporary yet comfortable design, it promises to be worth a visit! ”

The kitchen at Twenty Nine Park Place will be under the control of Head Chef Steffan Bonnifay, who is currently Head Chef at The Discovery in Lakeside. From the new ground floor open kitchen, Steffan and his team will be serving up a constantly evolving menu, loaded with fresh local produce. And fans of the group’s other venues will also be pleased to discover signature classic dishes, including the best-selling fish and chips and traditional pies.

And the drinks offering won’t disappoint. Under the stewardship of Managing Director, Sean Murphy, who also owns the Vale of Glamorgan Brewery, the bar will boast an impressive array of ales to entice and excite even the most jaded of ale aficionados.

Speaking about the plans for the bar, Sean says: “We’ll have a range of 14 keg and cask craft ales from Wales and all over the world. It’s something I’m really looking forward to curating.”

“Gin and rum will also be a big focus for us and like all of our other venues there will also be a whiskey corner.”

The extensive renovation schedule is currently underway and Twenty Nine Park Place is scheduled to open in late July.

Twenty Nine Park Place, Park Place, Cardiff CF10 3BA.

Folow the pub on Twitter and Instagram

Cider Championships 2018

Raise a glass to Allan Leonard Lewis VC

Some twenty miles to the West of Hereford, the ancient Rhydspence Inn stands near the border with Wales. In fact the border here is marked by a stream that flows through the garden of the pub. Not too far away from Hay-on-Wye, the Rhydspence, was built, according to English Heritage, in the 16th Century, although the original timber-framed building was added to in the 19th and 20th Centuries. Wikipedia has more information on this Drovers' Inn.
The Rhydspence is featured in the book 'Historic Inns and Taverns of Wales and the Marches', written by Paul R Davis, an excellent book which features cut-away architectural drawings of historical pubs.
Anyway, the purpose of the visit in the snow the other night was not to delve into the history of this ancient hostelry but to raise money for a statue to Herefordshire's only native-born holder of the Victoria Cross, Allan Leonard Lewis.
Allan Leonard Lewis was born in 1895 in nearby Whitney-on-Wye, he was one of 9 children and his father worked as a jobbing carpenter.  Following the outbreak of WW1 he volunteered to join up and was initially enlisted into the Royal Army Service Corps where he maintained and drove transport. Wanting to do more Allan transferred to the infantry and was posted to the Northamptonshire Regiment. His soldierly disposition and character earned him promotion to Lance Corporal and he took part in the final allied push to break the German Hindenburg Line in late 1918. 
Lance Corporal Lewis demonstrated exceptional bravery on two occasions during these final battles. Both events were witnessed by others and showed his quiet confidence, spirit, determination and bravery under fire. He was killed on the 21st September 1918 a few weeks before the war's end. The Victoria Cross was presented to his parents by H.M King George V at Buckingham Palace in April 1919.

Allan Leonard Lewis's name is commemorated on two war memorials in Herefordshire reflecting his parish of birth and his parish where he spent most of his life. The memorial on the side of the Whitney Church is in wood and was carved by his father. 
The A L Lewis VC Memorial Fund is working with the support of Herefordshire County Council to honour this brave local hero. It is intended to commission a life-size bronze statue of him to stand in a prominent position in Hereford. 
The group's chosen artist is Jemma Pearson, who sculpted the wonderful statue of Elgar which stands in the Cathedral grounds. 

As part of the fundraising efforts, the Herefordshire-based Swan Brewery have brewed a special Hero's Ale to help with the fundraising. This chestnut-coloured ale is brewed with Fuggles and Goldings hop varieties, which were the dominant hop varieties in this area of Herefordshire a century ago. The low ABV of 3.9% is also in keeping with the First World War as Government restrictions meant the alcoholic strength of beer was reduced. As well as being served in pubs throughout Herefordshire, the beer will also be on tap at the Amber Taverns pub, the Allan Leonard Lewis in Neath.

Next month will see the launch of a special bottled cider made by Gwatkin's of Abbeydore

BBC Hereford & Worcester coverage of the night is here 

Mochyn Ddu to reopen as Brewhouse & Kitchen

UK Brewpub business to open in Cardiff in February

Nationwide brewpub business Brewhouse & Kitchen has announced plans to open its first Welsh location in Cardiff next month.

Brewhouse & Kitchen Cardiff will be the eighteenth venue in the company’s countrywide portfolio, which has an annualised turnover of over £25m.

Following an extensive £550k refurbishment project, Brewhouse & Kitchen Cardiff will be opening within the former premises of the Mochyn Du public house, just off Cathedral Road near Cardiff city centre.

The Cardiff launch follows recent 2017 openings for the ambitious brewpub group in Nottingham, Lichfield and Bournemouth. The new Cardiff venue represents the first Welsh location for the brand, whose CEO Kris Gumbrell was born and bred in the Welsh capital.

The interiors of the brewpub have been overhauled in keeping with the Brewhouse & Kitchen style, featuring large barrel tables, bottle lights and an impressive copper microbrewery, which takes centre stage, alongside an open kitchen where patrons will be able to watch the chefs at work.

The pub will also enjoy the benefit of having a dedicated in-house brewer. And like its other locations across the UK, Cardiff’s new brewpub will produce a range of its own unique craft beers, including four cask and three keg core beers, available throughout the year, and an additional four seasonally-changing kegs, plus an ever changing brewer’s choice tap.

Core beers will include Y Mochyn Du (Session Bitter), Tiger Bay (Oatmeal Stout), and Haka’ed Off (Traditional IPA). While seasonal variations include Whitchurch Boys (Wheat beer), Gohebydd (Belgian style ale) and Marvellous Medicine (Black IPA).

In addition to the craft beers brewed on site, the drinks list boasts an impressive selection of draught and bottled craft beers and ciders from breweries across the world, as well as an extensive food menu and range of on-site Academy experiences, including a day long ‘Brewery Experience Day’, on which you can learn how to brew beer; an insight into the wonderful world of beer with a two hour ‘Beer Masterclass’ and a ‘Beer & Food Matching Experience’.

Speaking about the launch of Brewhouse & Kitchen Cardiff, Kris Gumbrell said: “I’m a proud Welshman and grew up in Cardiff and so it has always been a long held ambition of mine to open a location in Wales.

“We’ve been consistently searching for the right location and the right opportunity – we just had to wait until the right site came on the market – so when this pub became available on the outskirts of the city centre - we wasted no time.

“Renovations are well underway and we’re excited to open our doors in February and bring our Brewhouse & Kitchen concept to Cardiff and to Wales.”

Brewhouse & Kitchen Cardiff will open to the public on Monday 12th February.

Sophia Close, Pontcanna, CF11 9HW
The building that became the Mochyn Ddu was originally built as a lodge for Sophia Gardens, becoming a pub called the Poacher's Lodge in 1994 and was renamed the Black Pig/Mochyn Ddu in 2002. Brew Wales previously covered the pub in 2010 here

Best Breweries in Wales 2018

Once again this blog comes out of retirement for the annual look at the best and worst that breweries in Wales have to offer. For those of you interested, Brew Wales moved to a Facebook platform some years ago, the blog is now only used occasionally for items that need it such as the Now & Then series or lists like this.

According to the geosocial networking service Untappd, the best breweries in Wales are:

1. Crafty Devil Brewing Co   Unchanged since last year
2. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co   Unchanged since last year
3. Wild Horse Brewing Company   New Entry!
4. Hopcraft Brewing     Up from #4
5. Grey Trees Brewery   Up from #6
6. Lines Brew Co.   New Entry!
7. Tenby Brewing Company   Down from #3
8. Gwynt y Ddraig   Unchanged since last year
9. West By Three Brewing Co. New Entry!
10. Heavy Industry Brewing    Down from #9
11. Mad Dog Brewing Co  Down from #7
12. Otley    Down from #11
13. Purple Moose Brewery (Bragdy Mws Piws)   Down from #13
14. Glamorgan Brewing Co  Down from #14
15. Gower Brewery  Up from #16
16. Untapped Brewing Company   Down from #15
17. Mantle  Down from #14
18. Harbwr Brewery  New Entry!
19. Hallets Down from #12
20. Cwrw Llŷn   New Entry!
21. Cwrw Ial Community Brewing Company   Down from #18
22. Big Hand Brewing Co   Down from #19
23. Hafod Brewing Company  Down from #20
24. Mumbles Brewery  Down from #17
25. Bragdy Twt Lol  Down from #24
26. VOG Brewery     Down from #21
27. Kingstone Brewery   New Entry!
28. Great Orme Brewery     Down from #23
29. Tudor Brewery   Down from #28
30. Conwy Brewery      Unchanged since last year
31. Celt Brewing        Down from #27
32. Tomos Watkin and Sons Ltd.    Down from #26
33. Bluestone Brewing Co.    #Down from #22
34. Brains Craft Brewery    Down from #29
35. Boss Brewing Company    Down from #29
36. Brains      Down from #32
37. Facer's           Down from #36
38. Rhymney Brewery    Down from #33
39. Evan Evans      Down from #34
40. Monty's Brewery    #Down from 35
41. Brecon Brewing    #Down from #37
42. Felinfoel Brewery Co Ltd    Down from #38
43. Sandstone     New Entry!

According to Untappd "A brewery must have at least 1000 ratings and at least 5 different beers in their portfolio to qualify for this list. Their ratings explainer is here.

Once again, Evans Evans Brewery are near the bottom of the list, not that they care as they have a few other things to worry about at the moment.

The best beers in Wales according to Untappd are:

1. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co  Imperial Puft
2. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Chocolate Stay Puft
3. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Clwb Tropicana
4. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Stay Puft
5. Celt Brewing Ogham Ash - the votes for this appear to be for beers brewed before the brand was ruined by Evan Evans Brewery
6. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Captain Insano
7. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Bonsai
8. Crafty Devil Brewing Co Tax Man
9. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Hadouken
10. Crafty Devil Brewing Co Not So Safe As Milk
11. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co In & Around The Mouth
12. The Waen Brewery Snowball
13. Crafty Devil Brewing Co You Love Us
14. Purple Moose Brewery (Bragdy Mws Piws) Chocolate Moose
15. Crafty Devil Brewing Co Safe As Milk
16. Crafty Devil Brewing Co The Devil We Know
17. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Sugar Rush
18. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Peaches And Cream IPA
19. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Bass Drop
20. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Sonic Boom
21. Crafty Devil Brewing Co Fairy Tale Of Cardiff
22. Celt Brewing Seven Flowers (Shapeshifter Series) the votes for this appear to be for beers brewed before the brand was ruined by Evan Evans Brewery
23. Hopcraft Brewing Waen Snowball
24. Hopcraft Brewing Citraic
25. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Beer Money Inc.
26. Mad Dog Brewing Co Petronius DIPA
27. Crafty Devil Brewing Co I Am the Resurrection
28. Wild Horse Brewing Company New England IPA Citra Mosaic
29. Mad Dog Brewing Co Granola Stout
30. Celt Brewing Ogham Willow the votes for this appear to be for beers brewed before the brand was ruined by Evan Evans Brewery
31. Crafty Devil Brewing Co Rock N' Roll Star
32. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Dutty
33. The Waen Brewery Mousse Warning
34. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Dirty Perle
35. The Vader Shuffle Tiny Rebel Brewing Co
36. Lines Brew Co. Double IPA Blend DIPA
37. The Waen Brewery Pamplemousse (late 2016 see Hopcraft Pamplemousse)
38. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Cali American Pale Ale
39. Hopcraft Brewing Mate Spawn And Die
40. Wild Horse Brewing Company Breakfast Cookies Milk Stout
41. Hopcraft Brewing Citra Plus
42. Heavy Industry Brewing Nos Smoked Porter
43. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co XLPA
44. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Lupulin Fiasco
45. The Waen Brewery Chilli Plum Porter (2016 late brewed at Hopcraft)
46. Hopcraft Brewing Sharks Against Surfers
47. Tiny Rebel Brewing Co Stupid Sexy Flanders
48. Crafty Devil Brewing Co Mikey Rayer All Dayer

Over at Ratebeer the top 50 list is different again, dominated by Lines and Tiny Rebel

1. Lines Line ACD - Farmhouse IPA Sour/Wild Ale
2. Lines Line CD - Double Barrel Farm Blend (Burgundy / Pinot Barrels) 
3.  Tiny Rebel Imperial Puft Imperial Porter                  
4. Lines Line A - New Zealand New England Session IPA      5             
5. Lines Line AD - Double IPA Blend (Nelson, Citra, Chinook & Amarillo) Imperial IPA            
6. Tiny Rebel / Arbor Bonsai India Pale Ale (IPA)    
7. Lines Line A - Pale Oats on Delta Resin Session IPA                          
8. Lines Line A - Dry hopped IPA India Pale Ale (IPA)                            
9. Tiny Rebel Sugar Rush Imperial Stout     
10. Lines Line CA - Nelson Saison Saison       
11. Tiny Rebel Clwb Tropicana India Pale Ale (IPA)   
12. Tiny Rebel Captain Insano Imperial IPA 
13. Tiny Rebel Loki Lite Session IPA 24          
14. Tiny Rebel Hadouken India Pale Ale (IPA)                            
15. Tiny Rebel / Dark Star Rebel Alliance Saison                        
16. Lines Line FA - Primary Brett Imperial stout Imperial Stout                           
17. Crafty Devil You Love Us India Pale Ale (IPA)                      
18. Tiny Rebel Dirty Stop Out Stout 308                        
19. Tiny Rebel Tiny Batch In and Around the Mouth India Pale Ale (IPA)        
20. Hopcraft Sharks Against Surfers American Pale Ale                          
21. Tiny Rebel Cereal Killer Session IPA                         
22. Tiny Rebel The Vader Shuffle Porter                      
23. Tiny Rebel / Weird Beard Dirty Perle Stout                          
24. Otley Oxymoron Black IPA                          
25. Tiny Rebel Stay Puft Porter                         
26. Hopcraft A Good Rogering Black IPA                       
27. Otley mOtley Brew Imperial IPA                                         
28. Tiny Rebel Cali American Pale Ale            
29. Lines / Fyne Ales Green Lines Saison Saison                        
30. Hopcraft Devilfish Ink Black IPA 20          
31. Tiny Rebel Bass Drop Imperial Stout       
32. Hopcraft Citraic American Pale Ale                          
33. Hopcraft Graveyard Eyes (5.3%) Porter                 
34. Tiny Rebel / Dugges Pina Colada Pale Ale American Pale Ale                        
35. Tiny Rebel Urban IPA India Pale Ale (IPA)                             
36. Tiny Rebel Cwtch Amber Ale                      
37. Tiny Rebel Loki Black IPA                              
38. Tiny Rebel The Full Nelson American Pale Ale                    
39. Tiny Rebel Frambuzi Sour/Wild Ale                         
40. Hopcraft Citra Plus American Pale Ale                    
41. Tiny Rebel Beer Money Inc. India Pale Ale (IPA)                
42. Tiny Rebel Beat Box American Pale Ale 
43. Waen Snowball Sweet Stout                      
44. Tiny Rebel Sonic Boom India Pale Ale (IPA)                          
45. Tiny Rebel Gin & Juice Spice/Herb/Vegetable                    
46. Hopcraft Spanish Main Stout     
47. Hopcraft Mate Spawn and Die American Pale Ale                             
48. Heavy Industry 77 Amber Ale    
49. Crafty Devil / BrewDog Cardiff No Ifs, No Buts, Just Coconuts Stout         
50. Tiny Rebel Billabong American Pale Ale

Again no Welsh beers make the Beer Advocate UK & Ireland list

Once again, CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, decided not to publish their Champion Beers of Wales 2017, either on their national website or on their festival website or even issue a press release of the winning beers but the winners for their 2017 competition are below:

1. Grey Trees Brewery Afghan Pale Ale
2. Boss Black
3. Untapped Ember