Mine's a Pint - Summer 2018

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– part of The Havisham Group - have built the Shurlock Inn into a well-respected bar and restaurant with locally-sourced food and beer, so this bodes well for The Corn Stores. Renovation works have not yet started and we don’t know when they will but we understand that all trading areas will be refurbished and an outside area at the rear is being planned. We look forward to seeing this lovely old building brought back to life again and to being able to sup a pint or two in one of its new bars. Down at Cemetery Junction, what was until recently The Abbot Cook, has now become THE HOPE & BEAR. This large prominent pub has had a bit of a makeover and the main entrance has moved to the Kings Road side of the building where there is also an enhanced patio/garden area. Up to 5 cask ales should be available and manageress Rachael Langley told us that Doom Bar and St. Austell Proper Job will be permanent. Oakham Inferno and Purity Mad Goose were also available on a recent visit with the 5 th pump not yet in use. Cider in a box is also on sale and the pub will feature an ever-changing selection of craft beers as well. Children are welcome up to 9 pm and the pub offers full disabled facilities. Food is available every day from 12 – 10 (9 on Sundays) and the bar is open until midnight on Thursday/Friday and Saturday. Heading back into Reading town centre but still on the Kings Road and another change of name for one of our local pubs. This time it is the old Bali Lounge (previously The Warwick Arms) which now goes by the name of THE BISCUIT & BARREL. New owners have reverted to more of a pub Mine’s A Pint 10 with food than an Eastern style restaurant with beer, so the Thai furniture and decorations have gone and it looks more like a proper bar again. There are boxed games and a TV (terrestrial only), wifi, piped music and a small patio area at the side. Kids are welcome and the pub does food from 12 – 9 Monday – Saturday. On the beer side there are two handpumps with Doom Bar being a regular offering (£3.00 a pint Monday- Friday 4-7) plus a regularly changing guest ale (Bonds of Wokingham and Tring Brewery beers have been noted). Nice to see this bar open again and we wish them well. Another place with a new name but seemingly little else changed is the BROAD STREET BAR AND KITCHEN, which is what used to be Artigiano’s. There’s no real ale but a range of bottled beers is available. BREWDOG has opened on Castle Street and seems to be attracting plenty of customers. It extends the range of drinking establishments in town and that has to be a good thing. Twenty taps showcase Brewdog’s own beer plus that of guest breweries and there have already been special events including a tap takeover that featured two Berkshire breweries – Uprising and New Wharf. The owners of THE BUTLER in Chatham Street have submitted a planning application to demolish the old outbuildings and tyre centre and to create a number of new letting rooms at the rear of the pub. The existing toilets will then be moved upstairs inside the pub but the main structure and layout of the bar areas will not change so this Good Beer guide listed pub will continue with its beer and music.
The FISHERMAN’S COTTAGE on Kennetside have also submitted a planning application, this time to create a two storey extension for 6 bedrooms on the top floor of the pub. Works will include alterations to the car park and some of the interior and exterior sections of the building affected by the works. We think that these would be letting rooms. Photo courtesy of the Allied Arms We’ve been getting good reports about the beer quality at GREAT EXPECTATIONS in London Street. The in-house brewing has stopped (many of our reporters didn’t rate it very highly anyway) and the beer range has been reduced to 4 cask ales plus cider but the quality had improved. The range of ales was quite interesting on a recent visit with the likes of Slaters of Staffordshire and Milk Street from Frome being available. This bar / restaurant / hotel is just across the IDR from the Oracle – a short walk from the town centre. Launched in mid-April 2018, the ALLIED ARMS now has 10 cask ales available on a regular basis. Dating from late Georgian times, the pub has built up a reputation for having excellent quality cask ales available at all times. The popularity of the monthly Payday festivals has prompted the team to bring us a wider choice on a more frequent basis, so we can enjoy up to 10 different ales from near and far every day. In addition, a new range of craft beers has been introduced which are available in bottles or cans. Alongside the ales up to six real ciders are served. So why not treat yourself to a beer or two after work or enjoy the award-winning garden – described as Reading’s best kept secret! Mine’s A Pint 11 The multi-award winning NAGS HEAD in Russell Street has had a refurbishment: the old lino flooring has been ripped up and new timber flooring laid throughout the single bar area. All very smart. You probably didn’t notice it because the pub is usually so busy you can’t see the floor! SONNING By the time you read this, renovation works should have been completed at THE BULL in Sonning. This is a Fuller’s pub (although owned by the church) and hopefully the very pleasant interior areas will not have been spoilt – it’s the kind of pub that foreign tourists adore. Nearby – right by Sonning Bridge – is the COPPA bar which is a great place to be on a warm summer’s day as they have a large riverside garden with seating booths, deckchairs and its own bar (keg only). There is also a patio area for drinking or dining as well as the extensive indoor areas. Beers at the main bar are Doom Bar and Loddon Ferryman’s Gold and on a recent visit were in good nick and nice and cool. Pub news collated by Dave McKerchar
Page 1: THE MAGAZINE FOR READING AND MID BE
Page 4 and 5: 7TH GREAT YEAR! CRAFT ALES & CIDERS
Page 6 and 7: Good Beer Guide Belgium Do you visi
Page 8 and 9: Mine’s A Pint 8
Page 13 and 14: All images are courtesy of the brew
Page 15 and 16: Mine’s A Pint 15 oats and cacao n
Page 17 and 18: Mine’s A Pint 17 the solid commit
Page 19: Image courtesy of Kath Lilley • A
Page 22 and 23: AGM At the AGM the membership as a
Page 24 and 25: us travel for night owls loads of o
Page 26 and 27: Beers below 4.2% ABV WINNER RUNNER
Page 28 and 29: TIME FOR SOME REAL ALE TRAINING! Re
Page 30 and 31: collection of jugs in the Lounge an

Mine's a Pint - Summer 2018

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