Christmas beer festival at the Cross Inn

The Cross Inn at Cwmfelin near Maesteg will be holding a beer festival this weekend.
Have previously covered the pub here

At the bar :

Cerddin Brewery Beer :

Solar 4%

Cascade 4.8%

Cwrw Tri 4.5%

WPA 4%
Wye Valley
Butty Bach
Brecon Brewing Co - Cwrw-istmas 4.2%
Neath Ales - Deliverance 4.5%
Otley Brewing Co, - O HO HO 5%
Skinners of Cornwall - Christmas Fairy
Wye Valley - Christmas Whisker 4.5%

Ciders :
Westons
Old Rosie
Wyld Wood
Bounds Brand
1st Quality
Raspberry Twist
Thatchers
Heritage
Cheddar Valley

The pub is a short walk uphill from Garth station on the Maesteg line.

Tiny Rebel Tap Room opens Friday!

The brewery that took the CAMRA Great Welsh Beer & Cider Festival by storm earlier this year, Tiny Rebel, will be throwing their doors open to the public this Friday.

Beers on:
Cask

Baby’s Got A Temper! – This 8% Oak Ages 2xIPA has never been let loose on a hand pull ever before, and maybe never will!
Cwtch and Billabong –Wales Vs Australia. A dedication to teams that will be battling it out on the pitch the next day.
Keg
Baby’s Got A Temper – You choose which method of dispense you prefer
Hadouken! – Because you love it
Hot Box – The last keg on earth
Dirty Bong – This is billabong….unfiltered, unpasteurized etc etc etc. May never be done again.

Bottles
The usual suspects
+ Many more in reserve

They will also be catering for the ladies on the night who prefer fruit based drinks…boo you! As well as snacks, board games, tours and an iPod juke box (so bring yours).

And finally they willl be serving all beer in brand spanking new glassware that you’ll also be able to purchase on the night.
So wrap up warm and bring some cash (because they do not have chip and pin) and come on down to the only place in South Wales worth coming to on Friday 30th

How to get there - the Number 35 bus stops on Docks way, a short walk from the brewery. Leaves from Stand 17. Suggest buying a £3 Day ticket (exact money only on Newport bus!) or if arriving via train a 'Plus Bus' ticket from your home station for only £2.50.     Google Map:
View Larger Map

Tiny Rebel brew new beer for new Cardiff bar

 The former Glamorgan Councils Staff Club on the corner of Womanby Street/Westgate Street in Cardiff reopens this weekend as 'Fire Island' and Newport-based brewers Tiny Rebel have brewed a special beer for the venue, Beat Box - a 4.5% American Pale Ale. 11 other cask ales will also be available.

Are pub conversions to supermarkets always a bad idea?

Following on from the comments posted yesterday on this article here I'd thought I'd do another story on pub conversions to supermarkets.
Pictured above is the former Lloyds pub on Cambrian Road, Newport. Nothing to do with the faction of Chaverspoon that have the name today, this was a former Ansells pub that was named after a former brewery they took over and closed that stood opposite. Ansells also had their area offices above the pub. Now this was never a great pub, beer quality was appalling and in its final years the place was renamed Jarcals and appealed to the nighttime crowd of drinkers in the 'Port. When it did have real ale, the choice was Ansells Best and for a while Burton and eventually Tetleys, not a great choice and not a great pub. Its not that a pub on this road could not succeed, further up Cambrian Road Chaverspoons opened their first pub in Wales and the John Wallace Linton is still there to this day, with their indifferent staff being rude to customers and no doubt serving piss-poor beer etc. The blame for the failure of this pub was down to the brewery and later the pubco.

The building that was Lloyds today has been converted into a Tesco Express, so the beer quality and the range has improved drastically, along with the clientele. It only became a pub in the 1980s so no big loss to Newport. A not very good pub with poor quality beer and a limited range has been swapped for a shop and off-licence with a far better range of products - the consumer wins all around!

Below is the picture from Google Streetview, the building is in the process of being converted into a Tesco Express.

View Larger Map

December Pub Auction

The next local pub auction will be on Wednesday December 5th at 1430 in the Celtic Manor Hotel, Newport. Twelve pubs are up for auction as I write this, this may well change so check the Sidney Phillips website for updates. A couple of cheap ones on this list, with the guide prices starting at £75k – although as these pubs have been in pubco hands for a number of years the buildings will no doubt need a lot spending on them to bring them up to an acceptable standard.

Tredegar Arms, High Street, Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil, GP £145,000
Large pub on the road into Merthyr, formerly a Rhymney/Whitbread Brewery pub, quite large, car park, lounge, bar, letting rooms. The only let-down is the pub being on the outskirts of Merthyr Tydfil.

Four Bells, St Athan, Vale of Glamorgan, GP £175,000
One of only 2 pubs left in the village, the Four Bells is an ex-Hancocks/Welsh Brewers/Mercury Taverns pub, with a garden, car park and 2 bars. Since the closure of the RAF base at the village the custom has declined somewhat.

General Picton, Nantyfyllon, Maesteg, Mid-Glamorgan, GP £125,000
Large, end-of-terrace locals pub with lounge bar, public bar, restaurant and skittle alley/function room as well as a separate 3-bedroomed house. All that for a relatively low guide price, well it is near Maesteg and it looks like the only smoking solution is the street, not ideal.

Cross Keys, Cefn Hengoed, GP £160,000
A large-detached building with 2 bars and a function room, a trade patio supplies the smoking solution.
Gwyn Arms, Alltwen, Pontardawe, GP £75,000
Former Rhymney/Whitbread pub, 3-section open-plan bar. Surprisingly large, the building stretches back more than is apparent from looking at the frontage. Patio and garden serves as smoking solutions.
New Inn, Mountain Ash, GP £75,000
Large, open-plan pub with a trade garden. Quite a lot of building for this very low guide price.

Tradesmans Arms, Machen, Caerphilly, GP £165,000
Pub situated on the main road through Machen – there is a lot of competition locally, although the Ffwrwm Ishta was shut the last time I went past it. Described as 'Sought after residential area' so change of use may be on the cards here.

Royal Hotel, Treharris, GP £125,000
A substantial Victorian hotel dating from 1895 with 2 bars, snooker room and 9 bedrooms. Being sold as 'Development possibilities'.

Castell Y Bwch, Henllys, Cwmbran, GP £220,000
Situated in a rural location between Newport and Cwmbran, this pub once had a good reputation for food. A large plot, 0.73 acre so this may attract residential conversion.
Coity Castle, Bridgend, GP £160,000
Situated just off the town centre, near to the railway station. Looks like the only smoking solution is the street so a conversion to restaurant maybe on the cards.

Oddfellows Arms, Maindee, Newport GP £125,000
Dating back to 1854, this detached pub is set in the residential area of Maindee. Outside smoking area at the rear, two bars, the one thing letting this pub down is that there is a Chaverspoon's in the area. Other nearby pubs – the Star, the Globe, the Royal Albert are also closed at the moment.

Fusion, 1 Station Road, Gloucester GP £195,000
Formerly the Prince Albert pub, this street-corner local near the railway station looks like it has seen better days. Smoking area appears to be the street only.

Edmondes Arms, Cowbridge

Edmondes Arms, Cardiff Road, Cowbridge, CF71 7EP

Open 4-11 Monday-Friday, 1-11 Saturday, 4-10.30 Sunday

The Edmondes Arms is a stone and brick built pub on the eastern edge of the historic market town of Cowbridge, the stone is the local light-grey Jurassic limestone. The pub was built in 1899 and the date features on the outside of the building together with the coat of arms of the original owner, the Reverend Thomas Edmondes, a major landowner of the town in the nineteenth century. This building replaced two older pubs, one also called the Edmondes Arms and the other called the Red Lion, these were demolished after Hancock’s Brewery bought them in 1895. Both these pubs were in existence in 1835. The pub windows all feature a stained glass panel with ‘Bar’ and 'Smoke Room' on them. The corner doorway has been blocked up and is now called ‘Jack’s Corner’ after a dog that lived at the pub. The present-day doorway leads to a small entrance hall with the bar to the left and the lively games room to the right. The games room features a pool table, darts board and a newspaper cutting with photographs of why ‘Jack’s Corner’ was named. The games room and the rear yard were the site of the original Edmondes Arms.

The bar features wood panelling and rugby memorabilia and there is an original cast iron fireplace to one side. The bar is approximately the site of the former Red Lion pub. A door to the rear of the bar leads through to the lounge which, in turn leads to an outside area with seating. The lounge features a piano as well as more seating. Unusually, the Edmondes Arms still retains most of its original internal layout and has not had dividing walls knocked through to make the pub open-plan.

Wye Valley Hereford Pale Ale and Hancock’s HB are the two permanent real ales on the bar, with occasional guest beers such as Sharps Doombar making an appearance. Regular live music events are held at the pub.

Every week a pub is converted to a supermarket

Above: The Black Horse,Somerton, Newport which is to become a Tesco Express

CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, has today urged the Government to change planning laws which are currently allowing the nation’s major supermarket chains and developers an easy route to ripping the hearts out of small communities, with new research showing that since January 2010, over 200 pubs across Britain have been converted into supermarket convenience stores.

CAMRA has been lobbying hard in recent years to persuade the Government to close arcane planning law loopholes in England and Wales which are allowing pubs - amenities which provide a community centre and a managed environment to consume alcohol - to be demolished or converted without the need for planning permission, and therefore rendering communities powerless in the fight to save their locals.

Based on a national pub conversion survey carried out by its members, CAMRA has found that since the beginning of 2010, a staggering 130 pubs have been converted into convenience stores by supermarket giant Tesco, and 22 by Sainsbury’s, with a further 54 by other companies such as The Co-Operative, Asda and Costcutter.

With a further 45 pubs reported to be under threat of conversion across Britain at present, Mike Benner, CAMRA Chief Executive, said:

‘Weak and misguided planning laws and the predatory acquisition of valued pub sites by large supermarket chains, coupled with the willingness of pub owners to cash-in and sell for development, are some of the biggest threats to the future of Britain’s social fabric. For years, large supermarket chains have shown a disregard for the wellbeing of local communities, gutting much-loved former pubs in areas already bursting with supermarket stores.

‘Pubs are being targeted for development by supermarket chains due to non-existent planning controls allowing supermarkets to ride roughshod over the wishes of the local community. At a time when 18 pubs are closing every week this is damaging a great British institution. Unless action is taken by the Government to address obvious loopholes in planning legislation, more local communities will be forced to give up their local pub without a fight, and seeing the pub signs of Red Lions and Royal Oaks being corporately graffitied over by supermarket empires will become an all too common sight.’

John Denham, MP for Southampton Itchen, said:

‘Residents across the country are feeling powerless to intervene as local community pubs are being turned into convenience stores.

‘The Castle, a pub in my own constituency in Southampton, is the latest in a line of pubs being sold by large pub company Enterprise Inns to the giant supermarket chain Tesco. CAMRA’s new figures show that this kind of behaviour is rife around the country as around 1 pub a week is converted into a convenience store.

‘The Government needs to wake up to this looming crisis in the pub industry and look not only at planning laws that allow pubs to be converted so easily, but also at the cosy relationship between national retailers and large pub companies that so often leave local communities feeling left out in the cold.’

The Black Horse pub in Somerton, Newport which is pictured in this article is a former Ansells pub and planning permission was originally refused to demolish this pub and build a Tesco on the site. However the building has since been vandalised with roofing material removed - it seems Tesco are prepared to wait until this building has to be demolished for safety reasons rather than work with the existing structure.

Win a chance to brew beer with Otley Brewery

Leading South Wales microbrewery and former CAMRA Champion Beer of Wales brewer, Otley Brewing Company has launched a Real Beer Box with a difference.

Customers buying an Otley Real Beer Box this Christmas may get an extra surprise with their delivery.

In association with Real Beer Box, Otley Brewing Company has asked its customers to look out for a golden ticket hidden inside the box which could contain a chance to win a brew day at its new brewery in Pontypridd.

The winner will be invited to spend the day alongside the Otley brewers who will show them how the beer
Nick Otley, managing director of Otley Brewing Company, said: “Real Beer Box is a great way for people to sample our beers that may not have heard of us before. It makes us even more accessible to the market outside Wales and we hope that our golden ticket competition will not only inspire future beer enthusiasts, but also encourage customers to sample the different beers in our range.

“In particular we are looking forward to working alongside the winner of the brewing day ticket, and you never know we might let them brew a beer of their own.

As well a day brewing, lucky customers who receive a golden ticket are also in with the chance of winning either one of six mini kegs or a six month RealBeerBox subscription.
Nick continued: “What could be a better present for any beer enthusiast to open on Christmas day than a box of Otley beer and discovering you will be brewing a beer with the Otley boys!”

Otley Brewing Company is based and manufactured on the Albion Industrial Estate in Cilfynydd. The brewery, which recently moved to the premises, manufactures 3,000 bottles each week and has just opened its new front of house shop alongside its brewery tours and tasting sessions.

Now and Then - former Hancocks Brewery Newport

A bit of a change with these photographs, thought I'd go for the former Hancock's Brewery in Newport which was demolished in the 1970s and Newport Central Police station built on the site in the late 1990s. Que jokes about where once hogsheads were rolled out, today the entire pig exits the building!

The view from Cardiff road looking towards George Street

Full frontal views, facing Gilligans Island/Mariners Green

Above and below: Around the back of the station in Mountjoy Road

Now & Then - former Griffin pub, Cardiff

The Griffin, in St Mary Street, Cardiff, was demolished in the late 1970s and the space was used by the neighbouring Nat West Bank to expand in to.

Best pub in South Wales is the Red Cow!

CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, have judged the Red Cow, Llwydcoed to be the best pub in South Wales after the winners from local branches were judged against each other.
The award-winning brewpub, home to the Grey Trees Brewery, has been transformed by landlord Ray Davies into a real ale Mecca and features beers from across Britain, as well as his own brews. Have previously written about the pub here.
The Red Cow also features Gwynt Y Ddraig cider and craft keg beers from Thornbridge as well.

The West Wales winner was The Talbot, Tregaron and the North Wales and overall Welsh winner was the Bridge End, Ruabon, which won UK Pub of the Year earlier this year.

Brains launch Barry Island IPA in Tesco

A beer brewed earlier this year for the CAMRA Great Welsh Beer & Cider Festival has been relaunched today in bottle format in selected Tesco stores.


Created by Simon Martin, aka Mr Real Ale Guide, this India Pale Ale was inspired by the ‘IPA revolution’ across the pond. The boy from Barry has used a trio of hops from the US in this pale coloured ale, which is bursting with citrus aromas. A unique smooth malt taste upfront is finished off by a vigorous bitterness and a ‘tidy’ clout of citrus and berry hop flavours. At 6% its ideal as a breakfast beer (joke!)

Barry Island IPA is now available in selected Tesco stores nationwide:


Wales
Bridgend Extra, South Wales
Cardiff Extra, South Wales
Carmarthen Extra, West Wales
Haverfordwest Extra, West Wales
Llanelli Extra, West Wales
Newport Gwent Extra, South Wales
Pontypridd Extra, South Wales
Swansea Extra, South Wales
Swansea Marina, South Wales
Swansea Llansamlet Extra, South Wales
Talbot Green, Pontyclun, South Wales

England
Cambridge Bar Hill Extra, Cambridge
Brooklands Extra, Weybridge
Burgess Hill, West Sussex
Cheshunt Extra, Waltham Cross
Chelmsford, Essex
Elmers End, Beckenham
High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Martlesham Extra, Ipswich
New Malden Extra, Greater London
Purley Extra, Greater London
Royston Extra, Hertfordshire
Twickenham Extra, London
Watford Extra, London
Orpington Extra, Kent

Dot Com stores – available to order via Tesco.com
Croydon
Greenford

Zummerzet and Dorzet visit

Had to pick up some cidermaking equipment the other day so the Disco was fired up for a trip across the Severn and to Somersetshire and Dorsetshire. Oh and it was a good excuse to visit a few pubs as well!
We managed to find a black-hole for Sat-Navs as well where the Nokia Maps did not work, neither did the Garmen - Yes we had two Sat-Nav systems for this journey as neither the driver or myself bothered bringing a decent map along. Still we saw some picturesque villages when we got lost! Bristol really needs a motorway on the East and South sides as well - driving along the M32 takes you straight into the centre of the City and the aromatic aroma of Cabot Circus but its all surburban roads heading South then.
First stop off was the Rose & Crown in Trent, a part-thatched multi-roomed pub in a village where Charles II took refuge after the Battle of Worcester. Now a gastro-pub but with a range of beers on from Wadworth and Hook Norton. Claims to date from the 14th Century but rather like the food prices this date was somewhat over-inflated!
After our pick-ups we found ourselves in the historic town of Sherborne and quickly found the only freehouse in town, the Digby Tap. And what a great find! Excellent range of beers in this former Regional Pub of the Year for CAMRA. Packed full of history, this multi-roomed pub is one of the best pubs I have been in for ages.

The type of wall that gives architectural historians nightmares

Some of the beers available at the Digby Tap

Wished we stopped here to eat rather than the gastro-pub!

With a couple of hours of daylight left we decided to visit a cider farm and after no answer from one maker we went to Burrow Hill, home of the Somerset Brandy Company.

Above: Gathering the apples, a bit more mechanised than the picking I'm normally used to!

The barn that houses the cider press, the corrugated roof hides an older, thatched roof and the apples are run into the barn via a water shoot below the ground. Cider has been made on this farm for at least 150 years.

A view of the apple tump, with the water chute leading to the milling and pressing barn.

Left: Apples being taken up to the milling area

Some of the old machinery in the barn. These wheels would have driven belts that supplied power to various bits of milling and pressing equipment.

Naturally any visit to a cider farm would include a taste of cider, although the staff were a bit surprised when we opted for the dry, apparently only the locals like it that dry!

Cider and perry is available both on draught and in bottles from the farm shop.

The products for sale are on show on an old cider press.

Burrow Hill Cider is also home to Somerset Brandy Company where the ciders are distilled into cider brandy. Available to buy online as well.

A good day out and best of all I was not the one doing the driving!

Czech out Brains new Pils

Brains’craft brewery team has taken inspiration from the Czech Republic for their latest cask beer.

A Pils from the Hills is a full-bodied pilsner-style beer, weighing in at 5% ABV and brewed with Pilsner Malt and hopped with Hallertau Tradition and Saaz this is a crisp, thirst-quenching beer with an elegant bitterness.
It’s the latest experimental brew from their craft brewery and follows a tropical Black IPA, a golden ale, and a green hop beer.
The beer will be available in 30 Brains pubs from today Wednesday 7th November. For a full list of stockists click here.

New Brewery for North Wales

A new brewery has been started in Dolgellau by a husband and wife team who formerly worked as solicitors, Stephen and Jane Warner have set up Cwrw Cader Ales at the Marian Mawr Industrial Estate and are producing 2 1/2 barrels a week of beers called Idris Bitter and Cader Gold  for pubs and hotels in the area.

The brewery has been supported by the Welsh Government’s Trade Development Programme, managed by business development company Menter a Busnes,

“I’d decided I wanted to do something completely different after spending many years in the legal profession in Nottingham,” said Stephen, "Jane and I have had a home in this part of the world for over 15 years; starting the brewery has enabled us to live here full time. We have started in a modest way to test the market and refine our brewing skills while continuing to work part-time in the legal profession .Early signs are very positive and we hope to make a real contribution to the local community as we expand and take on staff.”

Cwrw Cader Ales was formally launched at an event held at Y Llew Coch public house in Dinas Mawddwy with Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas AM and guests from local businesses.

Sera Catrin Jones of Menter a Busnes, said: “There is a resurgence in micro-breweries in the UK and Cwrw Cader Ales is in a strong position to break into the market with some good quality products that they have developed through hard work and a passion for brewing.”
Full details from the Daily Post here.