Friday 12 September 2008

Pub of the Year

The Good Beer Guide launch brings with it the next phase of the 2008 CAMRA Pub of the Year competition. In the spring each branch put forward their favourite pub for judging at their regional level and the regional winners are now declared and set out below.

It is now my pleasurable duty to judge the next level - the super region. The CAMRA regional directors visit their 4 nearest pubs before 31 October and the winner of each of the 4 super regions goes through to the final.

My first visit will be to the East Anglian entry, The Chequers in Little Gransden.

Regional Winners:

Central Southern -
Royal Oak Inn, Newbury Street, Wantage, Oxfordshire, OX12 8DF

East Anglia -
Chequers, 71 Main Road, Little Gransden, Cambridgeshire, SG19 3DW

East Midlands -
Arkwright Arms, Chesterfield Road, Sutton Cum Duckmanton, Derbyshire, S44 5JG

Greater London -
Trafalgar, 23 High Path, Greater London, SW19 2JY

Greater Manchester -
Crown, 154 Heaton Lane, Stockport, Greater Manchester, SK4 1AR

Kent -
Butcher's Arms, 29A Herne Street, Herne, Kent, CT6 7HL

Merseyside, Cheshire & North Wales -
Blue Bell, Rhosemor Road, Halkyn, North-East Wales, CH8 8DL

North East -
King's Arms, Beach Street, Deptford, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, SR4 6BU

Scotland & Northern Ireland -
Marine Hotel, 9-10 Shorehead, Stonehaven, Grampian, AB39 2JY

South & Mid Wales -
Tafarn John y Gwas, Drefach-Felindre, West Wales, SA44 5XG

South West -
Tom Cobley Tavern, Spreyton, Devon, EX17 5AL

Surrey & Sussex -
Royal Oak, Friday Street, Rusper West Sussex, RH12 4QA

Wessex -
Red Lion Inn, Kilmington, Wiltshire, BA12 6RP

West Midlands -
Beacon Hotel, 129 Bilston Street, Sedgley, West Midlands, DY3 1JE

West Pennines -
Manor Arms, Princes Street, Broughton-in-Furness, Cumbria, LA20 6HQ

Yorkshire -
Kelham Island Tavern, 62 Russell Street, Sheffield, Yorkshire, S3 8RW

2 comments:

Stonch said...

I'm sorry, but I think it's astonishing that The Trafalgar is London's entry. The ale quality and selection is, of course, very good. But that's not enough. I'm not slagging the place off - I'm sure the regulars love it - but it's not a pub that would appeal to a wide section of people and therefore reinforces certain views about CAMRA and its members.

The Beer Justice said...

I know what you are saying. On first appearances, all 4 pubs that I have to judge for the next stage are similar types of boozers.