fylde ale - issue 91 - autumn 2015

ISSUE 91 / AUTUMN 2015

WWW.BLACKPOOL.CAMRA.ORG.UK

FYLDEALE The Magazine of the BLACKPOOL, FYLDE & WYRE Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale

IN THIS ISSUEBRANCH AWARDS

The Vic, Blackpool CC & Taps

BACK FLOWING AGAIN Running Pump

AL’S ALE TALES Do We Need Fylde Ale?

Plus Much More...

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WWW.BLACKPOOL.CAMRA.ORG.UK• ISSUE 91 / AUTUMN 20152

The Magazine of the BLACKPOOL, FYLDE & WYRE Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale

WWW.BLACKPOOL.CAMRA.ORG.UK ISSUE 91 / AUTUMN 2015 • 3


FYLDE ALE welcomes letters, photographs, news, views and ideas for possible articles. Please keep things short and to the point. Please supply your name and address (which will only be published with your permission).

FYLDE ALE is distributed to many pubs in our Branch area. They are listed on our website (see below): click on “News” and then “Fylde Ale”.

NEIL PASCOE [email protected] t: 01253-734243 m: 07734473972

The Editor retains the right to edit any submissions. Views expressed in this publication are those of their individual authors and are not necessarily endorsed by the Editor, branch committee or the Campaign for Real Ale nationally. All editorial copyright © Blackpool, Fylde & Wyre CAMRA 2015; please contact the Editor if you wish to reproduce any of it. Blackpool, Fylde & Wyre CAMRA accepts no liability in relation to the accuracy of advertisements; readers must rely on their own enquiries. It should also be noted that acceptance of an advertisement in this publication should not be deemed an endorsement of quality by Blackpool, Fylde & Wyre CAMRA.

© 2015 Capital Media Group. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be transmitted, reproduced, recorded, photocopied or otherwise without the express written permission of the copyright holder.

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FYLDE ALE is published quarterly by Capital Media Group on behalf of Blackpool, Fylde & Wyre Campaign for Real Ale. Advertising Rates are set by Capital Media.

WWW.BLACKPOOL.CAMRA.ORG.UK

Welcome to the new style Fylde Ale! Produced with our new publishers, Capital Media. I hope you like

it but feel free to say, if not. Maybe it’s like pub refurbs (of which there are quite a few at the moment): feelings are often mixed but, if there’s still some of the “old”, you may come to accept some of the “new”. Anyway, I look forward to hearing your views.

Of course, I’m one of the new bits myself, although there’s a lot more old than new in my overall make-up (nearly said “mash-up”, sounds a better word for it - if only I knew what it meant). My CAMRA membership number (392) might suggest I have been around almost since the earliest days of the Famous Founding Four of CAMRA. Maybe, in some ways, I have, but I only became “reactivated” when I retired in 2005, and got more involved with the Branch, helping with bits and pieces such as festivals, publicity, LocAle and so on.

The editor job is a “biggie”, though, and, following on from the sterling work of Alan and Marian Doggart, a huge challenge (Wardy’s article on them gives a clue why). Let’s hope I don’t manage to undo all their good work! If you’ve seen the fi lm “Citizen Kane”, you may recall the Orson Welles character of the same name publishes his grand statement of intent when he takes over his fi rst newspaper. It all ends in tears, so better not go in for too much of that kind of nonsense.

I would simply like our magazine to be entertaining and informative - and, well, campaigning. If you stop reading it, we have failed. And let there be diversity of views too. There’s no such thing as the only “right” opinion! End of statement from Citizen Pascoe.

Other than to stress that it is our magazine, not mine, nor yours, OURS. That’s where you come in. Your ideas, especially about possible contributions, will be welcome. Above all, your letters, emails etc (I gather we are even in the Twittersphere, though I am not a communicant myself - or is that something religious ? maybe right word for it then). And any local pub/beer NEWS too. Do we have any budding correspondents or reporters out there, especially from the darkest depths of the Fylde? Needless to say, the shorter and sweeter, the better. Contributions, I mean.

My thanks to all the contributors to this issue. Main thing now is for you to Enjoy!

Neil PascoeEditor of Fylde Ale

THE ED SAID...ESSENTIAL INFORMATION

WELCOME TO FYLDE ALE MAGAZINE

YOUR RIGHTS AS CONSUMERSComplaints about short measures etc. should be addressed initially to pub landlords. If you are still not satisfi ed, you should contact your local Trading Standards Offi cer, namely:

LANCASHIRE: County Hall, Preston. Tel: 01772 254868

BLACKPOOL: Enforcement & Quality Standards, Progress House, Clifton Road, Blackpool FY4 4US Tel: 01253 478359



EVENTS FOR YOUR DIARY

CHAIRMAN PAUL SMITH e: [email protected] VICE CHAIRMAN IAN WARD

e: [email protected] BRANCH CONTACT/SECRETARY MAGGIE HODGKISS

e: [email protected] MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY RAY JACKSON

e: [email protected] YOUNG MEMBERS’ SECRETARY MATT WALKER

e: [email protected] TREASURER JOHN HODGKISS

e: [email protected] IT OFFICER GARY WALKEY

e: itoffi [email protected] CIDER PUBS OFFICER VANESSA GLEDHILL

e: ciderpubsoffi [email protected]

SOCIAL OFFICER LORNA WOODWARD e: socialoffi [email protected] MAGAZINE EDITOR NEIL PASCOE

e: [email protected] PUBLICITY OFFICER RUSS COBB

e: [email protected] FLEETWOOD FESTIVAL CHAIR RICK PICKUP

e: fl [email protected] LYTHAM FESTIVAL CHAIR RICK PICKUP

e: [email protected] PUBS OFFICERS:

IAN WARD e: pubsoffi [email protected] RICK PICKUP e: pubsoffi [email protected] TIM SHIPWAY e: pubsoffi [email protected]

BRANCH CONTACTS WWW.BLACKPOOL.CAMRA.ORG.UK

@fl eetwoodbeer Blackpool Fylde & Wyre CAMRA

Hello and Welcome to our newly designed Fylde Ale. I hope you like it.As a branch, we have come a long way in the last

few years, winning the National CAMRA Membership award last year, and are now the 7th largest branch in the whole of CAMRA - out of over 200 branches.

I hope that many more of our new and existing members would like to come on one of our social trips or to our monthly Branch meetings. The trips in particular have become very popular and details can be found on our Branch website.

We have several things to look forward to over the Autumn months. As well as the three trips listed in Fylde Ale (in “Events for Your Diary”), we have our 8th Lytham Beer & Cider Festival to look forward to at Lowther Pavilion in October. I hope to see many of you there, either trying some of the drink on offer or, even better, volunteering to work!

I would also like to congratulate the Victoria in St Annes for winning our Branch Autumn Pub of the Season award, and would encourage you to go and try a few of their splendid beers.

Paul SmithBranch Chairman

You don’t always have to be a CAMRA member to join in. So check our website for full details. All are welcome unless otherwise stated below.

BRANCH MEETINGS: [8pm start unless otherwise stated]

• Thurs 24th September Royal Oak, Fleetwood• Tues 27th October St Annes Cricket Club• Tues 24th November to be confi rmed

REGIONAL MEETINGS: [13.00 start unless otherwise stated]

• Sat 21st November West Pennine Regional TBC• Sat 16th January Lancashire Branches TBC

SOCIALS:

We organise GREAT trips to all sorts of places - usually by coach. There are various set pick-up points around the Fylde for coach trips - St Annes, Blackpool, Fleetwood, Thornton and Poulton-Le-Fylde. Times vary from to trip to trip, so check our website for full details.

The trips tend to be very popular, so it’s important to make a RESERVATION. If you’re a Branch member, you can do this on our website, under “Trip Bookings” (you’ll need to log in fi rst). Alternatively email our Social Offi cer, Lorna at socialoffi [email protected]).• Sat 5th September East Lancs and Skipton• Sat 10th October Keighley, Shipley & Bradford• Sat 7th November Leek & Macclesfi eld

BRANCH BEER & CIDER FESTIVALS

Highlights of the Year! Get them in your diary NOW!• Lytham Beer & CIder Festival: Thurs 1st - Sat 3rd Oct - Lowther Pavilion, Lytham• Fleetwood Beer & Cider Festival: Thurs 11th - Sat 13th Feb 2016 - Marine Hall, Fleetwood.

VIEW FROM THE CHAIRHELLO AND WELCOME...



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Protect Those Scores On The Doors



Only a few years ago, the Victoria in St Annes seemed to be facing almost certain demolition. On Tuesday

28th July, we made the Grand Old Lady our Autumn Pub of the Season. What a testimony to the Power of the People and the Newfound Faith of the “Spirit”!

When the Spirit pub company decided back in 2011 to try and sell the Vic to a property developer, so it could be replaced with fl ats, a group of local activists calling themselves the “Victoria Hotel Community Association” sprung into action to stop them. It was a long and bitter struggle - a real David v Goliath one - and, against all the odds, the VHCA triumphed (with the support of this Branch). However, relations between the two “camps” remained problematic. The VHCA’s energetic support for the pub was undimmed, though, and they have continued to organise all sorts of fund raising and social activities. Maybe that faith was infectious, for Spirit (soon to become part of Greene King) seemed to see a new light and, in 2014, embarked on a £ 300 k refurbishment of the pub. It was probably the most signifi cant investment in the place since it was fi rst built back in 1897, and it has transformed it - inside and out, providing much better catering and, above all, more real ales!

It was obviously this last that caught our attention, although, in truth, the manager, Jordan Sadler, had been working on the pub’s real ale quality since he fi rst arrived 17 months ago - helped in this by his cellar

manager, Cliff Thompson. So we thought it was high time all this good work was properly recognised.

The Branch award was made to Jordan by Rick Pickup, one of our Pubs Offi cers. He paid tribute to all that had been achieved. “The beer range and quality are really good. After all the dangers of the recent past, the pub is now refurbished and refreshed.” Jordan was delighted and thanked the Branch. “We are planning to put some hand pumps into the vaults and introduce ‘real’ lagers. Things are going well and we can maybe even think now of challenging the likes of the Taps !” (We await Mr Norris’s views on this with interest.)

It was only appropriate that some members of the VHCA should be present to witness this fruition of their labours. Founder members, Bruce and Caroline Goodridge, said they were thrilled. Equally appropriate was the separate award made to Jordan by a well known CAMRA and VHCA stalwart, Dave Wood - a 1923 photo of the St Anne pierhead, designed by the architect of the Vic, Dent Harker. (How does Dave unearth this kind of stuff ?!)

It was even more appropriate that the presentation should be made in the re-opened pub vault, where we continued with our Branch monthly meeting. Jordan says the snooker room is also back in full swing, which seems so reminiscent of the heyday of pub snooker on the Fylde.

At last, Victoria has cast off her widow’s weeds and, with a nod to the past, turned her head to the Future!

Neil Pascoe

THE LADY IS FOR TURNING!THE VICTORIA, ST ANNES



We had a double celebration for the Branch this Summer, as two of our most successful venues

achieved county-wide recognition.Our 2015 Club of the Year and Pub of the Year both

went on to win their respective Lancashire awards.Blackpool Cricket Club has added the Lancashire

Club of the Year for 2015 to its ever-growing list of achievements. Presenting the award, Pubs Offi cer Rick Pickup said, “Once again, the Cricket Club has shown itself to be the best real ale club in the Fylde, and now that goes for Lancashire. At this rate they will need to build an extension to display the certifi cates.” Licensee Pete Campbell said, “A few years ago, we were having to appeal for donations from members just to keep the club going. Selling real ale has helped to turn the Club’s fortunes around and I thank CAMRA members for playing their part in that.”

Not to be out-done, the Taps in Lytham added the Lancashire Pub of the Year 2015 to its success at Branch level. Presenting the award, Lancashire Area Organiser Adrian Smith said, “The Taps has won this award four times in the last eleven years. When you consider the high standard of real ale pubs in Lancashire, this is a fantastic achievement.” Landlord Steve Norris paid tribute to his staff, saying, “Although it says ‘The Taps’ on the certifi cate, the award is really for the whole team behind the bar.”

The Taps has recently re-opened after a comprehensive re-furbishment, which has expanded

the drinking area inside and out whilst retaining all the pub’s legendary character.

Both Blackpool Cricket Club and The Taps now go forward to compete with clubs and pubs from Cumbria and the Isle of Man for the West Pennine Regional awards - the next step on the road to the National success.

Russ Cobb

ONWARD & UPWARDFOR BLACKPOOL CC & THE TAPS

Pub of the Year 2012 - As voted by the Blackpool, Fylde & Wyre Branch of CAMRA

Come and enjoy our Seven hand pulled ales on offer in the original Bank Vault

Now serving two of our veryown Cask Ales (3.7% & 4.2%) & our own Stout (4.5%)

Traditional Cask Cider now available

Any Cask Ale £2: Mon - Thurs, 3pm - 7pm

42 St Annes Rd West, St Annes, FY8 1RF • Tel: 01253 725852number�[email protected].�fteensstannes.com

‘Come and pay a visit to this hidden gem of a pub’

42 St Annes Rd West

Member



Having got over the emotion of the many plaudits and good wishes heaped on him over his last few weeks

as our West Pennines Regional Director (RD), I cornered Ray Jackson (Jacko to all, Wacko to some!) and quizzed him about where it had all gone wrong, er, no, sorry, all started.

“I joined CAMRA at the 1982 Fleetwood Beer Festival,” he recalled, “but I fi rst came across the campaign in 1978 when I was a fi refi ghter based at Bispham fi re station. CAMRA was holding its national AGM at the nearby Norbreck Castle, and, typical me, I got hold of a complimentary ticket from the fi re service.”

Ray has always enjoyed getting involved and his fi rst job in our Branch soon after joining was as Branch Treasurer. “The Treasurer stood down mid-year, so I took over. We had four bank accounts and then at the next AGM I didn’t even get considered for the job! That was a bit upsetting, so I didn’t renew my membership until I went to a membership recruitment evening held at the Mitre on West Street, Blackpool, and before long I was doing the combined secretary and membership secretary job.”

Jacko went along to county and regional events and, after a day at the St Albans HQ, he was elected to the West Pennines RD job, covering Lancashire, Cumbria and the Isle of Man, in March 1995 at the Greaves pub in Lancaster, which appropriately is currently being demolished to make way for sheltered accommodation. His proposer was Alan Risdon, now sadly no longer with us but known as “No Socks” and for many years associated with the Golden Rule in Ambleside. He was seconded by our own Gary Levin.

I asked Ray for particularly memorable events. “I was proud to have helped save the IoM branch from extinction when it was really struggling. And there have been one or two other branches more recently that have got themselves in a bit of a mess and it’s good to help get things sorted. I remember turning up at the County Hotel in Carlisle in my early days and they said ‘Who are you?’ and I replied ‘I’m the new RD’. I was a bit nervous!”

Ray’s appearance in a tutu has passed into CAMRA folklore. “It was at Fleetwood, where else, and another time I was in the Strawberry Gardens in the town and a woman was asking who I was and Syd Little, of Little and Large fame, was there and said ‘That’s the top man in CAMRA!’” Locally, Ray is rightly proud of the role he played in saving the Victoria pub in St Annes, having given evidence at the planning inquiry.

Jacko and me have had many ups and a few downs. We remain fi rm friends. Well, usually! I’ve enjoyed my Lancashire role as his spin doctor and sometime speech writer.

Meanwhile, I couldn’t let the handover of Fylde Ale to our new editor pass by without a catch up with the previous incumbents, Alan and Marian Doggart, who developed this magazine into the nationally commended publication it has become. Alan gave a fair bit of detail in the last Fylde Ale about his career and journalistic life, but I couldn’t resist digging further.

“When I started work in the civil service, as part of the team responsible for the administration of the Crown and County Courts in Cumbria and Lancashire, I was at the Workington offi ces, and I got used to covering for the liquid lunches enjoyed by my two more experienced colleagues. One lunchtime, a couple came in asking to be married. I told them to wait. Eventually the other two chaps returned, and informed me we didn’t do weddings. I’d been working there two months and still had no idea what we were supposed to do! Anyway, I got into writing by doing pieces for the union magazine. Over time I did pieces for in-fl ight airline magazines and newspapers including the Daily Telegraph.”

So how did the interest in world beers develop? “We’ve always enjoyed holidays in Belgium, and we came across the now famous Cafe Brugs Beertje in Bruges, run by Daisy and Jan. It became a focal point ! I couldn’t believe the range and quality of beer styles that we’d been missing out on,” enthused Alan. “We took over Fylde Ale in 1998 just as the short lived Blackpool Brewery was about to open. It was still an A4 black and white format. We took a break, during which Rose-Marie Gledhill took over and made the change to the present A5 colour style. When we returned, we wanted to make the magazine a bit different to the majority, and our love of world beer styles helped.”

MOVING ON...BUT STAYING PUT



Planning is well under way for the 8th

Lytham Beer & Cider Festival, which will open at the Lowther Pavilion in Lytham at 5pm on Thursday, 1st October.

As usual, we will have a varied range

of about 100 real ales, ciders and perries and a selection of beers from around the globe. At the time of going to press, it’s a little too early to give any insights into what beers will be available, but as usual we’re planning to have a range of some old favourites and some from newer, less well-known brewers.

After listening to feedback from our last few festivals, we have decided this year to reintroduce a festival programme. So if you’ve been used to bringing a magnifying glass to read our very small print beer list, the good news is that you won’t need to any more! We will also be hosting one of the regional contests that selects beers at the early stage of the journey towards possibly becoming Champion Beer of Britain. Hopefully, our winner will get all the way to the top!

Our festival charity this year will be North West Air Ambulance. Any unused beer tokens can be donated to this worthy cause, so please give generously.

As usual, Thursday will be a quiet night, but, on Friday, we will be entertained by the Full Fat Boogie Band and, on Saturday, by the Blackjacks.

If you aren’t a CAMRA member, ask at the door and you can join there and then. See you there!

Rick Pickup, Festival Chairman

LYTHAM BEER & CIDER FESTIVAL

Alan has a refreshing, and typically blunt, view about the present beer scene. “We British are stuck in our ways. Look at the craft beer furore. In the USA a craft beer simply means it is traditionally made by a small brewery. Over here we tie ourselves in knots about it. Meanwhile, the USA now challenges Belgium for the widest number of beer styles.” And next? “I’d like to do a regular piece for Fylde Ale about our local breweries and brewers, who are producing some good stuff that I think they can be proud of,” says Alan, getting enthusiastic again!

I’m pleased to number Ray, Marian and Alan amongst my friends and long may they remain stalwarts of our branch.

Wardy

The Old Town HallIn the centre of Poulton-le-Fylde

5 Church Street | FY6 7AP | t. 01253 892257

5 CASK ALESincluding Copper Dragon, Moorhouses,

Saltaire, Jennings & Roosters

1st Floor Weekend Wine Bar

Discount Off a Pint of Real Aleon production of a valid

CAMRA IDCAM

Des & Staff

offer a warm welcome

to all customers

old & new

Open - Thursday 1st October: 5pm - 11pm, Friday 2nd & Saturday 3rd: Noon until 11pm. Admission - CAMRA Members & Students (with NUS ID): £1.50, Non Members: £3.50 (except for Friday after 7pm, £4.50).



Catforth is one the rural gems of the Fylde. It may have few other facilities but, at one time, was

blessed with two pubs, the Running Pump and the Bay Horse. Then, sadly, some years ago, the latter was demolished and replaced by housing. That’s still there but now appears to be semi-derelict - which doesn’t say much for the planning or development “vision” involved.

Over the years, the Pump has had its ups and downs too (no pun intended !). I can remember it when it was managed by the redoubtable Mrs Walmsley. A bustling and popular venue with lots of character (and characters) and a far-fl ung outpost for Robinsons’ beers. However, it couldn’t escape the commercial tradewinds that have hit so many pubs, especially out in the sticks, and there followed several changes of landlord and periods of closure.

So it came as little surprise when Robinsons decided to put it up for sale in 2014. (Maybe the only surprise

b e i n g R o b b i e s overcoming their usual reluctance to let pubs go at all.) The real s u r p r i s e was the d e c i s i o n of a local b u i l d e r ,

Brian Staines, to buy it, not for re-development but to preserve it as a pub. He was determined that the village should not lose one of its few remaining facilities. It was almost an act of public benefaction - and faith, because it had to become a viable investment once more.

A programme of work then started and has been transformational. When the pub re-opened in May, it had been extended and re-decorated inside and out. This has been achieved with a happy blend of the old and the new. When you enter, as of old, and turn into the little snug on the right, there is still the same intimacy and the splendid stone fi replace. But turn to the left and you’re in a vastly improved dining area with possibly some of the most expensive pub wallpaper on the Fylde (costing, it is rumoured, between £ 80 to £ 100 a roll). The central servery is still in place but the other lounge area has been extended round the corner with larger windows letting out onto a vista of Fylde countryside and the hills beyond.

The pub’s new manager is Nicola Heritage. She comes with a lot of experience in the pub trade and some valuable connections. She has worked at the Continental in Preston and is a partner in the Moorbrook there. In case you don’t know already, these places and the folk behind them have been transforming the pub and beer scene in Preston for some time, and, now that it is completely free of brewery tie, the Running Pump is able to source its beer from them. Just for good measure, Gary Culshaw of the Moorbrook helps keep an eye on the cellar too.

There were four hand-pumped beers on when I called: two from Thwaites and two from micros, Revolutions and Wall’s (at weekends, the number

BACK FLOWING AGAINRUNNING PUMP, CATFORTH was determined that the



usually goes up to fi ve). Circumstances prevented a comprehensive tasting but the two micro beers (Keepers’ Gold and Go Go American Pale) were spot on! Real cider is “under consideration”.

“We want the Pump to become a go-to destination for people,” Nicola told me. “Ideally, we’d like to extend the outside areas and improve the parking facilities.” That said, as the photo maybe shows, it is very pleasant sitting outside. After all, you’re not sat alongside a trunk road and cars can be accommodated without much diffi culty. (The No 80 bus passes through between Preston and Great Eccleston, if that’s any help.)

The opening times are 12 noon till 11, except for on Monday (opens at 4 pm). The food has enjoyed some very good reports on the internet. It is all home-cooked with specials at the weekend. There is no food on Mondays, but otherwise it’s available from 12 - 2.30 and then 5 - 8.30 Tuesday to Friday, and throughout the day at weekends (until 7.30 on Sundays). You can keep tabs via the pub’s new website www.runningpump.co.uk.

It is tremendous news - for Catforth obviously and the wider world - that the Running Pump is back in business. Go see for yourself and help make sure it now stays that way!

Neil Pascoe

12 Henry Street, Lytham, FY8 5LE

Quiz Night Every Mon @ 9pm

t: 01253 736226

CAMRA 2015Lancashire

Pub of the Year

CAMRA 2015Lancashire

Pub of the Year

10 REAL ALES & 2 CIDERS

Food served: Mon - Sat, 11am - 5pm

www.thetaps.co.uk@The_Taps



On a cool July evening, a Motley Crew of hardy CAMRA members and friends headed North on the

M6 to “God’s own country”, the Lake District.Passing a farming landscape of dry stone walls,

Herdwick sheep grazing contentedly on the fells, white painted cottages and babbling becks, our coach trundled through the Friday evening traffi c. Our destinations - Staveley and Ings. The atmosphere on the coach was buzzing with good humoured banter and the eager anticipation of the evening’s delights to come.

This was the Hawkshead Brewery’s 9th Summer Beer Festival and, as ever, a superb event not to be missed. On offer this year were 91 beers, including 66 guest beers from 16 different breweries.

Being one of the many lady CAMRA members, my preferred tipple is the highly drinkable summer beers, those delicious light, crisp, citrus fl avours that make drinking a pleasure. On this particular evening I was spoilt, as one of my all-time favourites was on offer: Hurricane Jack from Fyne, a pale, citrus, hoppy, refreshingly drinkable ale.

The beers were served quickly from four well-staffed bars, including an outside marquee. Acoustic musicians played from different locations throughout the 3 day festival and a DJ played chilled ambient music with an EDM (Electronic Dance Music) funk/soul vibe. Food was served throughout the evening.

Also in the village of Staveley is the Eagle and Child, a traditional Lake District inn with yet more real ale, mainly from Cumbrian breweries. Just a pleasant fi ve minute walk from the brewery, it would have been rude to miss it out!

An optional fi nal stop on the tour was the Watermill Inn and Brewery in the small, quiet village of Ings. It is run by a friendly and welcoming landlord, Brian Coulthwaite, and his mother, Barbara, was also there, a long term friend of many of us. Their hospitality is second to none, greeting friends old and new, and a very pleasant hour ensued, reminiscing about days gone by. The Watermill has a fantastic range of beers brewed on site in their own brewery, many being named after man’s best friend. My particular favourite being the Collie Wobbles, a pale refreshing ale with a fruity, hoppy taste.

Alas, the clock struck 11pm and it was time to depart for the Fylde Coast, before we all turned into beer monsters! As usual, the coach was relatively quiet on the return journey - just the odd groan and snoring in unison, which those still awake had to endure. Another successful trip enjoyed by all.

Tonight, as we do on so many of our social trips, we went to a special corner of England, sampling the delights on offer. We are a friendly bunch that seek good company and real ale in a variety of locations, but our main aim is just to have fun! So why not come

and join us on one of our future jollies (in “ E v e n t s For Your Diary”)?

L o r n a Woodward

AN EVENING IN PARADISETRIP TO THE LAKE DISTRICT

jollies (in



To help decide which outlets are suitable for inclusion in future editions of CAMRA’s National “Good Beer

Guide”’, the Branch has a system for recording monthly assessments of beer quality in pubs and similar outlets in our area throughout the year. Already we are looking ahead to GBG 2017!

Only CAMRA members can record assessments. The preferred method for doing this is by voting online, on our website www.blackpool.camra.org.uk. (Those without access to the internet can give a note to the Chairman of the monthly Branch meeting, with details of their Membership number and the scores awarded for particular pubs.)

On-line voters using the Branch website need fi rst to log in using their CAMRA membership number and password. Click on “GBG”, then on “GBG 2017 ratings” and record scores against the alphabetical list of pubs presented. You should only vote for pubs you have visited and can only vote once a month for any given pub. We ask that pub landlords do NOT vote for their own pubs.

Please be sensible and balanced in scoring. The Branch reserves the right to disregard any votes that show signifi cant deviation from the norm or average pattern of votes.

POSSIBLE BEER SCORES0 : No cask conditioned ale available

0.5 : Beer undrinkable, so poor you have to take it back or can’t fi nish it.

1 : Poor. Beer that is anything from barely drinkable to drinkable with considerable resentment.

1.5 : Poor / Average. You think of fi nishing your ale and moving on.

2 : Average. Competently kept, drinkable pint but doesn’t inspire in any way, not worth moving to another pub but you drink the beer without really noticing.

2.5 : Average / Good. It is better than average but perhaps not a defi nite good.

3 : Good. Good beer in good form. You may cancel plans to move to the next pub. You

want to stay for another pint and may seek out the beer again.

3.5 : Good / Very Good. You will probably stay here rather than move on.

4 : Very Good. Excellent beer in excellent condition.

4.5 : Very Good / Perfect. Possibly close to the best you ever had, but not for sure.

5 : Perfect. Probably the best you are ever likely to fi nd. A seasoned drinker will award this score very rarely.

You can also vote on CAMRA’s “WhatPub” website (www.whatpub.com). You need to log in as above, but votes are recorded on individual pub pages. Please do NOT vote for the same pubs on both websites! Only one score will count.

“WhatPub” is also a very useful way of telling us about any changes in pub details (eg. opening hours, range of real ales etc). Just click on “Submit Updates” and details will be sent to the Branch.

Despite all the above rules and regulations, WE DO VALUE YOUR INPUT.

SCORING PUBS FOR THE GOOD BEER GUIDEWAYS & MEANS



When the Velvet Coaster opened in Blackpool in May 2015, we decided to try and visit all NINE

Wetherspoon pubs on the Fylde coast in a day, using public transport.

So, on Wednesday 3rd June, we got the 09:44 No.7 bus from Cleveleys to Lytham, using the Blackpool Transport £4 day ticket (obtainable in shops displaying the Pay Point logo). After touchdown in Lytham, Kev, Jayne, Kim, Lou and I had breakfast at The Railway, before setting out on our all day “Spoons” tour.

I had put together a bus and tram timetable for the day, and a checklist to note the number of beers available and what we tried. Details are below for anyone wanting to try our route.

The Velvet Coaster, apparently now the largest pub in the UK, had 30 hand-pumps - we counted 18 different ales - with real ales available on all the bars on all three levels of the pub. Sadly, no dark ale was on, but the Manager said they would try and ensure a dark ale was on in future.

The best beer choice of the day was at the Poulton Elk, which had 10 hand-pumps serving 10 different beers. Our three overall favourite drinks of the day were Wickwar Station Porter (6.1%), Coach House Blueberry Ale (5.0%), and Gwent Y Draig Black Dragon Cider (7.2%).

We had a great day visiting all 9 pubs, and the £4.50 bus / tram ticket is an ideal way to do it. I’m sure we’ll be taking the Challenge again soon!

Chris Harring

[Ed: Thanks, Chris. 9 ‘Spoons on the Fylde coast is pretty amazing. More amazing still is the likelihood that 7 of them will be in CAMRA’s next (2016) Good Beer Guide - thanks to their beer quality, not some bias in favour of ‘Spoons. Makes you think, doesn’t it ?!]

RAILWAY - Lytham Start on No 7 Bus at Cleveleys Bus Station at 9:04Bus stop on Station Road, Lytham: Arrive on No 7 at 11:02 Depart on No 7 at 11:48 (or 12:03; 12:18; 12:33)

ALBERT & LION - Blackpool Arrive at Tower Bus stop.Depart on foot at 15:45 (to walk to Layton Rakes)

VELVET COASTER - Blackpool Arrive at Pleasure Beach Tram/Bus stop.Depart on foot at 14:15 (to walk to Auctioneer)

POULTON ELK - Poulton-le-FyldeArrive at Hardhorn Road Bus stopDepart at St Chad’s Bus stop on No 13 at 17.59 (or 18.29 (last bus))Change at Castle Gardens Bus stop. Depart on No 14 at 18.20 (or 18:40; 18:50; 19:00; 19:30)

AUCTIONEER - Blackpool Bus stop at Bagot Street:Depart on No 11 at 14:55 (or 15:10; 15:25; 15:40)

THOMAS DRUMMOND - Fleetwood London Street Bus/Tram stop:Depart on Tram at 19:53 (or 20:23)

JOLLY TARS - CleveleysCleveleys Centre Tram stop:Depart on Tram at 20:42 (or 21:12)or at Crescent Bus stop:Depart on No 7 at 20:53 (or 21:23)

TRAWL BOAT - St Annes Bus stop by Wood Street: Depart on No 7 Bus at 12:51 (or 13:06; 13:21; 13:36). Change at Starr Gate Bus stop. Depart on Tram at 13:10 (or 13:20; 13:30; 13:40; 13.50) or on No 1 Bus at 13:06 (or 13:21; 13.36; 13:51)

LAYTON RAKES - BlackpoolBlackpool - Corporation Street Bus stop: Depart on No 2c at 16:50 (or 17:20)

SPOONERAMACHALLENGEVISIT FYLDE’S 9 WETHERSPOONS



BEER DISCOUNTS FOR CAMRA MEMBERS

BLACKPOOL• BAR 19 • DOG & PARTRIDGE • DUNES HOTEL • DUTTONS ARMS • PUMP & TRUNCHEON • THE SADDLE • THE SHOVELS • SWIFT HOUND • MERRIE ENGLAND (North Pier) • WASHINGTON

FLEETWOOD• STRAWBERRY GARDENS • ROYAL OAK

LYTHAM• COUNTY HOTEL • SHIP & ROYAL • STATION TAVERN

POULTON• BLACK BULL • GOLDEN BALL • GRAPEVINE • OLD TOWN HALL • THATCHED HOUSE• CASTLE GARDENS, Poulton/Carleton

ST ANNES• FIFTEENS • LORD DERBY • VICTORIA

OTHER• THE VENUE, Cleveleys • THE ALBION, Bispham• THE GOLDEN EAGLE, Anchorsholme

One of the many advantages of CAMRA membership is CHEAPER BEER - in certain pubs. You already receive 50p vouchers to spend in Wetherspoons, where it’s cheap as chips anyway! But some other local pubs offer discounts too. Amounts vary from pub to pub.

The current list of outlets is below, but things can change. Some pubs drop out and new pubs join, so please help us keep this list up to date. Let the Editor know of any changes. If you are a landlord who wants to start offering discounts, please let the Editor know too and we will add you to the list.

Don’t forget to take your CAMRA MEMBERSHIP CARD to receive discounts!

It is in the natural order of things (which doesn’t always apply in CAMRA!) that, as one RD goes, so another

arrives. Thus it came to pass that, at the West Pennines Regional meeting on May 16th, Angela Aspin was duly elected as our new Regional Director, following on from Ray Jackson.

Angela is based on the Isle of Man and has been its Area Organiser within West Pennines Region for several years. However, that has not stopped her getting around the rest of these isles and her distinctive form is well known at many CAMRA gatherings and beer festivals. She is undoubtedly a do-er, ever busy and keen to make a difference.

She says she is delighted to have been chosen. Even though she was in a fi eld of one, it was not an automatic shoe-in; branches still had to vote for her. “I am committed to the cause”, she said in her electoral address. “I like to think I helped put the IoM on the CAMRA radar.” That it most certainly is - having now hosted numerous national and regional events and beer festivals.

She is also canny enough to be a Life member of CAMRA. “I endeavour to adhere to CAMRA’s aims and objectives” but “do not always toe the party line.” Adding, cryptically, “though it may be best practice to wear wellingtons in the rain, we do not all have the same size feet.” I’ll leave you to ponder that one !

Although she has lived on the IoM for almost fi fteen years, she is not Manx - by birth anyway. Her family

comes from Barrow-in-Furness and she’s Blackburn-born and bred (the accent is a bit of a giveaway). So she has many links to this region and wants to work with all its branches to encourage a more regional mindset. She would like us to share our activities and experience, especially about beer festivals, and avoid too much branch parochialism. Most importantly, given her base, she is ready to travel !

At present, she is still getting to grips with things and with the multitude of RD-level stuff in her in-tray. But I’m sure she can get on top of all that. Her background in social care and facilities management promises a good skill set for handling people and the practicalities of organisation and planning.

But can she stop CAMRA taking over her life ? She has some answers for that too: cricket and bridge. She is a life member of Lancashire CC and chairs her local bridge club. I suppose both can get you steaming from time to time, but at least she shouldn’t have to wear her wellies - much !

Angela, we wish you all the very best in the new job and look forward to working with you. Neil Pascoe

WELCOMEANGELA ASPIN, REGIONAL DIRECTOR



Why, all over Britain, are there magazines like FYLDE ALE praising “real” beer? You don’t fi nd the same

with wine, milk, coffee, tea, cheese, fruit beans or any other food or drink. Despite the continuing closure of pubs and breweries, we are still a major beer drinking and producing nation. Unlike in most other beer drinking countries, a large amount of our beer production is in an unfi nished form requiring time and care in a pub cellar with the expertise of a skilled cellarman to turn it into a unique fi nished product.

Maybe we need such publications because the English fi nd it diffi cult to accept the things they are good at. (I exclude the Welsh and Scots, who refuse to keep quiet about the few things they believe they do well, thus infl icting bagpipes, haggis, male voice choirs and Charlotte Church on us.). The things we are good at continue to disappear at an alarming rate; sharp Cheddar and creamy Lancashire cheese vanishes under a mound of slimy brie; black puddings and Cumberland sausages are buried by pasta and poppadums; Rolls Royce, Rover and Harrods become foreign companies, and even our language is daily bastardised.

I am not a raging nationalist or xenophobe. Regular readers of this magazine will be aware of the awe in which I hold most of the beers brewed in Belgium and the micro-brewed and craft-brewed North American beers. In fact I am very much an internationalist, even a pro-European, but am continually amazed by the English attitude of ignoring the very things that made us great. We have a great tradition of beer making in England: the 18th century porters and stouts, 19th century IPAs, still leaders in beer styles but often the best ones being now imported from outside the UK. So, what did the 20th century bring us? Certainly the second half of that century saw our once great brewing industry turn its back on these amazing beers and, to our shame, begin to concentrate on an insulting interpretation of cold, fi ltered “lagers”. Insulting is too gentle a word. These “lagers”, which now make up about half of our beer sales, bear no resemblance to “real” continental lagers, but are, as Roger Protz describes them, “a distress purchase snatched from supermarket shelves by people who pay more attention to saturation advertising than to aroma and fl avour”.

Brewing beer is something we do well and can feel proud of, yet the posh papers print hundreds of inches about foreign wines with only an occasional mention of beer. Oz Clarke, who privately rates beer above wine,

told me that the papers he writes for aren’t interested in beer, it is too “downmarket.” The Decanter magazine got into a rage a few years ago because it thought the Observer was in danger of giving more space to “Protz on Pubs” than to its wine expert. Recently the Sunday Times informed its readers that “the English now drink more wine than beer!” This is a downright lie that went unchallenged; the truth is that beer outsells wine on a ratio of more than four to one and, in addition, almost half the wine consumed is the type drunk straight out of the bottle on a park bench rather than in the dining room.

Finally, the problem is further compounded by the “big brewers”. These companies, who made their names and fortunes on the backs of great beers, are moving quickly away from those products. Bass, once celebrated as one of the world’s foremost brewers, dumped cask ales for “Oirish”, nitrogenised chemical mixtures and sweet alcopops, all aimed at the young and gullible. Whitbread, anxious to dump its history and its roots, became a “pub group”. We can get as angry as we like when Bass and Whitbread can be sold to companies like Anheuser-Busch, Heineken, InBev or South African Breweries – companies with no idea of how we English like our beer. So, the message sent to English consumers is that beer isn’t important, our heritage can go to the highest bidder and is not worth a brass farthing. So, we DO need FYLDE ALE and its brother and sister magazines - so that we can remind people of what English beer has achieved, and can continue to achieve with your support, with enthusiastic brewers and breweries, large and small, continuing to uphold our great heritage. It is left to dozens of little publications like this to keep beer lovers informed about their favourite drink.

Alan Doggart

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In 2007, CAMRA Blackpool Fylde & Wyre was just an ordinary local branch with around 550 members.

Today, its membership stands at 2,444, making it the seventh largest branch (out of almost 215 branches) in the whole country. In 2014, we were presented with CAMRA’s prestigious National Membership Award at the Members’ Weekend in Scarborough.

Really we owe this award to YOU local members for joining this Great Consumer Organisation - particularly in Fleetwood, which seems to be our largest catchment area. So, a Great Big Thank You to you ALL!

People join up in various ways - eg. by picking up leafl ets or at our two annual festivals - and I daresay the offer of £ 20 worth of Wetherspoons’ discount vouchers helps to persuade them!

Until recently, Ian Shergold played a key part in this success as our long serving Membership Secretary. I only took over from him this year, so I cannot claim any credit, but here are some interesting facts and fi gures since then: 105 people have joined as new members - including 14 joint memberships and ONLY 6 Young Members (ie aged 18-30), all of whom were MALE! So, come on, you young ladies, give it a go! In addition, several established members have transferred in to this Branch. Everyone has received an introductory letter and been made most welcome.

Ages and types of new members vary quite a lot, with ages usually rangeing from early forties to late eighties. But one 98 year old “young gentleman” joined us in April - Richard Roper - and we paid him a visit (see below). He is our oldest Branch member, but not the oldest in CAMRA nationally. Apparently, there are 11 members over 100, including THREE who claim to be 106!

Here are some other fi gures about our overall Branch membership that may interest you: we have 38 Life members, 25 registered disabled, 92 “young members” and a staggering 1,085 “retired” members. CAMRA nationally wants to “activate” its older members, but it could really do with some more “activated” young ‘uns too - of both genders!

If you aren’t a member, why not join? If you are, tell your friends about CAMRA and invite them to join. Non-members can come and see what CAMRA is all about at our Branch meetings or on our many social trips (see “Events for Your Diary” for more details). I guarantee any new joiners won’t regret it. After all, I have lasted 33 years - so far!

Ray Jackson

JOIN THE CLUBSAYS JACKO

RICHARD ROPER - 99 AND COUNTING

It was a delight to meet up the

other day with one of our newest members, Richard Roper of Poulton-le-Fylde. Maybe not THE newest, but certainly the oldest - he’s just celebrated his 99th birthday.

So, what took him so long to join?! He’s been a beer lover all his life and remembers Greene King’s Audit Ale from his Cambridge University days with great affection. (All beers seem to taste better in retrospect, don’t they?) His eldest son, Jamie, is a long-standing CAMRA member and a founder of the Potteries Branch, so I suspect some fi lial persuasion may have been applied.

At any rate, he has been happily making up for lost time and spending his new bounty of ‘Spoons vouchers in the Poulton Elk, but, transport permitting, he enjoys drinking and dining in several other hostelries too - especially the Shovels in Hambleton and the Cartford Inn.

Monday lunchtime tends to be spent in the Thatched and that’s where we met. As you might expect, he’s had a fascinating life. He was brought up in Kirkby Lonsdale and read Modern Languages at Cambridge, where he rowed for his college (Clare) - with distinction (later, I saw the oars from college wins in his home). After spells in the Colonial Service in West Africa and the Fleet Air Arm, he joined the British Council and was posted to South America.

When he eventually returned to this country - by then a married man - he decided to pursue a more settled career in insurance. His work brought him to Poulton in the mid-1950’s and he’s been here ever since.

I had to ask him the obvious question: what’s the secret then? Without any hesitation, he said, ”Stay away from doctors!” An opinion immediately endorsed by a slightly less elderly gent on our left. As CAMRA now has a push on to activate us old ‘uns, I followed this up by suggesting he might like to come to some of our local meetings and beer fests - though, on refl ection, might it be better to avoid anything that could precipitate a medical call?!

Anyway, better late than never, Richard! It’s great to have you amongst us and we look forward to seeing more of you.

Neil Pascoe



This is the fi rst of what we hope will become a regular feature on pub news in the area. Of course, it can

only be as good as the info received, so please keep Fylde Ale informed on anything you think is worth sharing. With many thanks to the following for info in this issue: Phill Marquis, Rick Pickup, Ben Croston, Ian Ward and Neil Pascoe.

OPENINGS & RE-OPENINGSHot on the heels of Wetherspoons’ new Velvet

Coaster in Blackpool (see FA 90) comes another brand new pub in St Annes - the Water’s Edge on Heyhouses Lane. It cost £3 million and was opened in May by Foresight Restaurants, a retail partner of Joseph Holts brewery in Manchester, and is one of the early new builds on what used to be called the “Pre(mium) Bond” site (which has had various changes of ownership since “Ernie” left and is now largely rubble). Building is still going on around it, so it stands at present in splendid isolation. With an open plan layout and modern decor inside, pleasant patio area outside, its main focus seems to be on food (as you might expect from the ownership). Four hand pumps are in operation on the bar, offering mainly Holts’ beers and a guest (Spitfi re when visited). More details are available on “WhatPub”.

A welcome and imaginative re-opening, also in May, was the Running Pump in Catforth. (See the separate feature for our initial assessment.)

Another re-opening of sorts is Burlington’s below the Townhouse in St Annes. Alas, it will only be open “occasionally” for functions and events and will not be offering real ale. But, if you’re into pub architecture, it’s a must-see, if you can catch it when it is open. The Victorian ceramic bar counter is one of the longest of its kind in the country and in CAMRA’s National Inventory.

After its interesting and comprehensive refurb, the Victoria in St Annes has re-opened its public vault (see our Autumn POTS report).

We still await our fi rst pop-up pub! With so many fascinating examples of the genre in the North West, surely it can only be a matter of time. There’s an eminently suitable ex-cafe right next to Lytham library. So come on, you budding entrepreneurs! What better way to spend the necessary £400k that’s only burning a hole in your pocket! We’ll support you.

REFURBSIt would seem some other people have some

money. There’s been a spate of refurbishments going

on all over - either inside or outside or both. The Taps’ has been one of the most eagerly awaited, with so much slippage on start dates you’d have thought the project manager would have got the sack! Anyway, it’s been worth the wait, so go see - as we did, when we celebrated the pub’s recent Lancashire POTY award (see our report). Also in Lytham, the Ship & Royal has had a makeover, which seems to have restored a more “traditional” feel to the pub, especially behind the bar (though nothing can really beat those marvellous Victorian caryatids that sadly went some years ago). In Blackpool, the Albert & The Lion and the Ramsden Arms have both had a smarten-up; with the assurance from the “Rammie” that it hasn’t lost its character or, unfortunately, its characters!

The Dorbiere Pub Group have purchased the Bloomfi eld in Blackpool and are giving it a £500k uplift, inside and out. This will include its own brewery (developed as a joint venture with Lytham Brewery), which should explain the proposed new name of Bloomfi eld Brewhouse. Dorbiere promise it will be “a very old-feeling brewhouse with 8 cask ales, a range of craft beers and ciders, and a whole host of world beers”. Target date for reopening is 21st August. More news another time!

CLOSURE & DEPARTURENot all good news, alas. The Elletson Arms in Pilling is

now boarded up - despite getting publicity in the Summer edition of “Unicorn” (Robinsons’ house magazine) for their marvellous “glass walk” for charity (which raised £1,900 for Little Heroes). Landlords, Mick Keeler and Julie Kingham, have now departed for another Robinsons’ pub in Dalton and, as yet, Robinsons’ intentions for the pub are uncertain. The Branch is investigating further and we will keep you posted. Meantime, let us have any views, especially if it is (or was) your local.

Also sad is the departure of landlord Steve from the Fairhaven in Ansdell. He had worked hard to build up the business and provide a good range of real ales on his bar top, but he couldn’t afford the rent increase demanded by Enterprise Inns. Recent parliamentary legislation would possibly have given him the chance to push back on this and insist on a rent review, but he’d had enough. We wish him well in whatever he now decides to do. As we do his successors, who have just arrived.

PLANNINGSome of you may have heard the phrase “Asset of

Community Value” (or ACV for short). It is a relatively new device for safeguarding “assets” such as pubs against unapproved “development”. Without going into a lot of detail, anyone wanting to demolish or change the use of a pub that is registered as an ACV has to secure planning permission. When the residents of Hambleton

BOOZE NEWSON ALL THINGS LOCAL



got wind of Punch Tavern’s plans for the Shovels, they got it registered as an ACV with Wyre Borough Council, and this Branch supported them. Punch then appealed against the registration, but their appeal has now been dismissed by the tribunal judge. Another triumph for local people power!

Less happily, the Hole in One in Lytham has been closed now for over eight months. A pleasant estate pub and former entry in the Good Beer Guide, it used to belong to Thwaites Brewery but was sold last year to a private buyer, who has since applied for planning permission to replace it with housing. Although it has fi gured nostalgically on local Facebook pages, it has not aroused the same local commitment as the Shovels and has not been registered as an ACV. Nonetheless, several objections were raised against the planning application (including one by this Branch). One related to the residence of bats (a protected species). We gather that a bat report has now been produced and a decision on the planning application is imminent. If the future of the bats can be assured, the prospects for other species and the pub itself seem less good.

SUNDRY OTHERSFlanagans in Blackpool now has real ale - albeit

with only one handpump offering John Willie Lees’ beer. Well, it’s a move in the right direction.

Fifteens in St Annes now has a “happy hour” 3-7 pm Monday to Thursday, when a pint will only cost you £2 (without other discounts).

Mondays are Cask Ale days at the Castle Gardens in Carleton, with all cask ales at £ 2.49 a pint.

The Saddle in Blackpool and the Strawberry Gardens in Fleetwood have both been awarded 5 star ratings for Food Hygiene. On a similar note, according to the “Gazette”, public health will now be a factor in considering any future local licensing applications.

Well done to the Highfi eld Hotel for raising nearly £2.4k for Cancer Research. Their pubco, Sizzling Pubs, clocked up nearly £123k nationally. Just shows how generous pub-goers can be when they put their minds to it.

Not local news really but, if you fancy moving to Somerset, Butcombe Brewery is looking for a Beer Taster, though it’s unclear whether payment will be in cash or kind! (Sorry, Lynne, we can’t afford to lose you!)



shovels, 260 Common Edge Road, Marton Moss, Blackpool, Lancashire, FY4 5DH

• shovels •

www.flaminggrillpubs.com • t. 01253 762 702shovelsshovels

The Shovels is a flaming great local pub with a great atmosphere. We offer a wide range of dishes and are Famous for our chargrilled food served on sizzling skillets. great value food in a welcoming and friendly local pub.

• Beer Garden • Darts • POOL• entertainment • Disabled Facilities • Family Friendly• huge car park • Wifi

FLAMING GREAT DEALS EVERY DAY

6 Rotational cask ales from all around the country

Food served till 10pm daily

Quiz night Thursday from 8.30pm

All live sporting events shown on our range of televisions

PRINCE OF WALES- FOXFIELD -

Foxfield | Broughton in Furness | Cumbria | LA20 6BXTel. 01229 716238 (after 2pm)

www.princeofwalesfoxfield.co.uk

HOME TO THE FOXFIELD BREWERY

PRINCE OF WALES- FOXFIELD -

Foxfield | Broughton in Furness | Cumbria | LA20 6BXTel. 01229 716238 (after 2pm)

• TWO OPEN FIRES IN THE WINTER• BAR GAMES • DOMINOES • BAR BILLIARDS

• DARTS • PIANO • NO JUKE BOX A great venue for good conversation

• 4 En-Suite B&B Rooms plus sitting room & breakfast room

£36 Single Rooms, £54 Double Rooms(Discount for CAMRA Members - £30 Single, £48 Double)

One night bookings accepted

• Joint Winner CAMRA National Cider Pub of the Year 2010

• CAMRA Cumbria Pub of the Year 2014• West Pennines Pub of the Year 2014

• West Pennines Cider Pub of the Year 2015

The Duddon Valley & Black Coombe are on thedoorstep. Only 10 miles from Coniston with six more

real ale pubs nearby

www.princeofwalesfoxfield.co.uk

HOME TO THE FOXFIELD BREWERY



Another regular feature will be news updates on our local breweries. At the moment, there are only

three of them, but who knows what the future holds ? Maybe something will soon be stirring in the cellars of the Bloomfi eld (Brewhouse)! Many thanks to Alan, Rick and Julie for their contributions.

CHAPEL STREET BREWHOUSEwww.thatchedhousepoulton.co.uk

A little over a year ago, Poulton-le-Fylde gained a second brewery. Innovative and

hardworking landlord of the iconic Thatched House pub, Vin Hamer, opened his latest project, Chapel Street Brewhouse, designed by real-ale maestro, David Porter, and launched with the assistance of Lytham Brewery. The brewery, which is visible to customers of the Thatched, is in the former coach house and stables at the back of the pub.

Their fi rst birthday was celebrated with a party which included live music and various items aiming to raise money for the Brian House Charity (Brian House is a specialist unit within Trinity Hospice specialising in palliative care for children). Well over £600 was raised. Extra stillaging was erected and a full range of the Chapel Street brews was available. There are currently eight brews in the CSB portfolio, the best seller being the Gold; the latest addition is American Pale - my pick of the bunch, a beautifully balanced aromatic and fl avoursome beer, quite outstanding. Vin is always planning and sees his next brew as a “session” bitter; his intention is to name it after Brian House and the brewery will donate 10p from every pint sold to the charity.

The brewery has recently begun promoting a wonderful bargain offer called the Cask Ale Party Package. The brewery is offering you the chance to serve real ale to your family and friends from your own home. The package includes the delivery of a cask containing either 36 or 72 pints of cask-conditioned beer, which will be racked-off, bright beer ready to serve at once. It will be installed by trained staff together with a handpump and you will receive tuition in how to pull the perfect pint ! The hire of one case of glasses, delivery, set up and take down are all included in the ridiculously low price of £59 and £99 respectively - amazing value at a little over £1 per pint. For any celebration, birthday, wedding, christening, anniversary, Christmas, New Year. what a superb gift for a real ale fan! (But please note

that this offer is only available in the FY1 – FY6 postal code areas.) Alan Doggart

FUZZY DUCKBREWERYwww.fuzzyduckbrewery.co.uk

Things are pleasantly busy in the empire of Fuzzy Duck. Although the brewery still struggles to sell much

beer in our branch area, there are many regular clients in the Chorley area, in East Lancashire and even over in Yorkshire.

As well as all the standard beers, a pale, single-hopped beer, Aramis (3.7%), brewed with a French version of a lager hop, is proving to be very popular in the Summer months. This beer is part of the brewery’s single hop beer range - which also includes Equinox, Bramling Cross, Galaxy, Citra and, fi nally, Chieftain (3.8%). The brewery was very happy to have this last one selected to quench the thirsts of the folk down at the Great British Beer Festival (GBBF) in London in August.

Rick Pickup

LYTHAM BREWERYwww.lythambrewery.co.uk

Come rain or come shine, it’s proving to be a busy Summer at Lytham.

After its Regional SIBA Silver award, our Berry Blonde (4.1%) is selling very well. Our Head Brewer, Will, is half way through our new “Animal” range of themed beers (Golden Beast, Angry Bird, Ice King and Dingo amongst others) and Ice King will be appearing at CAMRA’s GBBF. Our August range will also include Summer Ale (a blonde 4% session ale with a hoppy and fruity aroma), Pilsner Radler (a 3.8% pale ale with a fruity strawberry twist), Golden Mild (a 4.3% golden ale with a sweet chocolate and caramel undertone) and British Pride (a rich 4.2% golden ale with English hops to celebrate British sporting achievement!).

We are also working with the Bloomfi eld, who, as part of their current refurbishment, are aiming to brew their own beer using a wort supplied by us - but will also be stocking our beers. We are also producing a special festival beer for the Lytham (Proms) Festival in August.

Our party casks are doing well and the new bar at the brewery is proving successful with brewery tours. To celebrate this, we are having our fi rst series of Open Days at the brewery from Thursday 27th August until Monday 31st August - with lots of cask beers and ciders on offer (see our website for details).

What else? We plan to start bottling our beers towards the end of October and commission an additional new fermenting room by the end of the year.

All of which promises to keep us very busy indeed for the rest of 2015! Julie Booker

BREWS NEWSYOUR LOCAL BREWERY NEWS



We’ve been very lucky so far here this Summer in Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre, as not only has the

weather been far better than in previous years, but there has been an increase in the number of pubs in our area selling great real cider and perry, ideal for drinking in the sunshine. Or inside when it’s raining – that’s fi ne too…

The newly refurbished Taps in Lytham has had a number of great ciders on so far this Summer, in addition to their regular Weston’s Old Rosie. My personal favourite so far has been Abrahall’s Lily the Pink, a medium-dry rose-coloured cider, which had a refreshing tartness but plenty of orchard and forest fruit fl avours. (To fi nd out which cider, perries and beers are currently available, check out their website: www.thetaps.net)

Fifteen’s in St Annes has regularly changing cider, sourced from small, traditional producers. Some recent examples are Biddenden Bushels, Minchew’s Stinking Bishop Perry and Tutts Clump Real Cider.

Wetherspoons had their cider festival on from 10 – 26 July, and some fantastic ciders and perries were available. I had Barbourne’s Painted Lady Perry in the Jolly Tars, Cleveleys, which was medium-sweet and very light and fruity. In the Trawlboat, St Annes, I tried Healeys’ Cloudy Cornish Scrumpy, which, at 7% ABV, is not for the faint hearted, and was impressed by its uncompromising ‘hardcore’ character. Gwynt Y Ddraig’s Welsh Gold Champion Perry was my tipple in the Layton Rakes, Blackpool, a satisfyingly rich, fruity medium perry.

CAMRA member Joe Wells (18) of Lytham St Annes, who also visited the Wetherspoons’ festival and particularly liked the Old Rosie Cloudy Cider with

Rhubarb, said “I really enjoyed trying the ciders and perries – lots of choice and good quality - pretty impressive!” Good news for CAMRA, as we are always looking

for ways to attract y o u n g members, and the c u r r e n t vogue for real cider and perry p r o v i d e s a great

way to connect with potential new members.

The Strawberry Gardens, Fleetwood, has an ever-changing range of several ciders on, as does the Pump and Truncheon in Blackpool. Many other pubs in the branch area sell real cider and perry, notably the Saddle, Marton, the Thatched House in Poulton and the Golden Eagle in Anchorsholme. Why not try a glass as a change from your usual beer? Real cider and perry are under threat in the same acute way that real ale was a few years ago, and, if we don’t support traditional cider making, these traditions will be lost forever.

To fi nd out more, come and visit the Cider and Perry Bar at the Lytham Beer and Cider Festival at the Lowther Pavilion, Lytham in October and explore the different styles available. For general information about real cider and perry, visit www.camra.org.uk/about-cider-perry. If you have any questions or news about real cider and perry in our branch area, click on my name on the Contact Us page of our local branch website www.blackpool.camra.org.uk to send me an email, and I’ll be happy to hear from you.

Vanessa Gledhill, Cider Pubs Offi cer

APPLE PRESSFYLDE COAST SUMMER OF CIDER

fylde ale - issue 91 - autumn 2015

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