Latest news with #Camra
BBC News
4 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Bilston's Swan pub could be demolished for Lidl car parking
A Wolverhampton pub which closed four years ago could soon be flattened for car Swan on Bilston High Street is surrounded on three sides by car parking for the neighbouring Lidl store and other retail supermarket has applied for permission to demolish the building, which the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) said was built in submitted to City of Wolverhampton Council this week show an extra 12 parking spaces would be created if permission were to be granted. Camra's website said the former Banks's pub previously avoided demolition when the surrounding area was redeveloped in 1992, and finally closed its doors in October demolition plan is currently open for public consultation on the city council website. Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
25-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Community-owned pub in Bethersden wins top real ale award
A community pub in Kent which reopened just two years ago has been crowned local pub of the year and is now through to the regional stage of the competition. The George, in Bethersden, closed for two-and-a-half years after the pandemic but relaunched in May 2023 after villagers raised the £300,000 they needed to buy Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) said it soon spotted The George was "taking real ale seriously" and has made it their pub of the year for the Ashford, Folkestone and Romney Marsh Draper, chair of The George Community Ltd, said: "Being awarded pub of the year is not just an accolade for the pub, it's for all our customers, friends and supporters." The pub said it prided itself on its choice of real ales and ciders, supporting local breweries and its regular rotation of guest George also holds two beer festivals a year and hosts live music and community events including quizzes, bingo nights, board game nights and knitting social Collyer, chairperson of Camra in the Ashford, Folkestone and Romney Marsh area, said: "When The George reopened in May 2023, we realised it was taking real ale seriously."Achieving this award for a pub covered by our branch area is recognition of that commitment to delivering the perfect pint."We are delighted that The George is in our patch and look forward to seeing it go from strength to strength."The George is now up against four other winning pubs from other local Camra branches for the overall award for the East Kent area.
Daily Mirror
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Comedians embark on gruelling 1,000-mile journey and will only stop at pubs
Drinks experts Tom Sandham and Ben McFarland are going from Land's End to John O'Groats on a tandem - and ONLY stopping at pubs Two comedians are embarking on a gruelling 1,000 mile plus journey on a tandem to toast the great British pub - and highlight the industry's crisis. Tom Sandham and Ben McFarland plan to cycle from Land's End to John O'Groats showcasing just how special the nation's watering holes are - by only eating, drinking, sleeping and stopping in boozers. To add to the challenge, the pair are doing the two-week pub pilgrimage on a tandem bike they have borrowed - appropriately enough - from a man they met down their local. Tom and Ben, who perform as the 'Thinking Drinkers', are also alcohol industry experts and writers and drinks presenters on ITV 's 'This Morning'. They were spurred into action by a seemingly relentless wave of pub closures. 'If we don't use pubs, we'll lose them – so that's what we're doing, by relying entirely on lovely 'locals' during our nationwide ride,' said Tom. 'No shops. No restaurants. No coffee chains or cafes. No petrol stations. Not even a Greggs.' Ben added: 'We've never ridden a tandem. It's a frighteningly long way and rather than a gentle pootle around some pretty pubs, it's going to be a brutal bike ride on behalf of the beleaguered British boozer - but it's nothing compared to the daily struggles facing pubs up and down the country.'. . A further 46 have been converted into other uses. It comes as Camra also confirmed that 1,062 pubs were left empty last year after closing. And 210 have been turned into uses, typically shops or housing. The Mirror is also championing the need for action with its Your Pub Needs You campaign. Friends Tom and Ben, both 48, will set off from Land's End on Friday June 20 and plan to arrive in John O'Groats on Thursday July 3 - having visited four pubs every day, a total of more than 60 pubs over the two weeks. They aim to give updates through their Thinking Drinkers YouTube channel, and have been working with trade body the British Beer and Pub Association's 'Long Live The Local' initiative, which campaigns for a reduction in the unfair burdens on pubs. Ben says: 'The costs for pubs to simply do business are far too high – no other business sector in the economy is taxed so heavily and unjustly. With even busy pubs struggling to survive and the average publican making just 12p profit on a £5 pint, we're calling for a reduction in business rates to give them a much-needed lifeline.' Tom adds: 'Pubs today are much more than just a place to drink. They are unique, historical national institutions, the cornerstones of our communities, the heartbeat of our high streets and proven antidotes to loneliness. They are essential in bringing communities together and do so much to improve our collective mental well-being.' Ben goes on: 'They provide crucial social respite to the people who live around them - from coffee mornings for new parents and pensioners; to live music, comedy nights, kids' parties, Pilates, hot-desking work spaces and, hopefully, somewhere safe to apply anti-chafing cream to very sore bottoms!'
Times
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Six of the best pale ales — tried and tasted by our expert
Long ago, when I started drinking beer, pale ale was a small, dusty bottle on the shelf behind the bar. A prim aunt might drink it on her annual pub visit, or your grandad might mix it with half a mild. It wasn't always like this. When glass became affordable in the 1840s, this bright, sparkling elixir — paler and clearer than porter — became the most fashionable drink of its time. Bass Pale Ale's red triangle was the first British trademark (awarded in 1876), and Bass arguably the first global brand. A century later Bass was still going strong, but if you talked about 'pale ale' in the late 1960s and early 1970s you were more likely to mean keg beers such as Double Diamond, which spent so much on ads there was no money left to brew decent beer. It was to counter brands like this that the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) began. Pale ale quietly started doing well in Camra competitions, then in the late 1980s a new beer emerged. Golden ale replaced pale as the brew that might win over lager drinkers: the same colour and brightness, with the flavour and fullness of a pale ale. Meanwhile, the American craft-beer movement seized on pale ale as the perfect vehicle to showcase the fruity, resiny hops coming out of the Pacific Northwest. Compared with the turbocharged IPAs emerging around this time, pale ale was their gentler, more sessionable cousin. And now we've come full circle. Because Double Diamond is back! The Seventies legend has been reanimated — its owner, Allsopp's, has worked wonders — while its erstwhile rival, Bass, has been stifled by lack of investment from owners who demonstrably have no interest in ale. So here's a mix of new, traditional and classic pale ales. Try them on draft in the pub if you can. If not, these are all perfect early-summer fridge-fillers. • What is an IPA? 43 beer questions answered by our expert Hop Back Summer Lightning (5%) 12x500ml, £35 A pioneer of 'golden ale'. If we lean into its name, Summer Lightning is the first taste of sunshine rather than drowsy mid-August, all clean and bright. Kelham Pale Rider (5.2%) 500ml, £2.70 Rescued by Thornbridge after the near-demise of Kelham Island Brewery, this former Camra champion is a perfect balance of fruity hops and biscuity malt. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (5%) Morrisons, 355ml, £2.50 The centre of gravity for American craft beer and a great introduction to ale. Piney resin from cascade hops is held in check by the chewy caramel backbone. Timothy Taylor's Landlord (4.1%) Sainsbury's, 500ml, £2.40 The bottle is good; on cask, Landlord is superlative, bucking the trend of long-term decline in cask ale. It was the first 'craft beer' and still is, in the truest sense. Double Diamond (3.8%) Tesco, 4x440ml, £5 Forget what DD tasted like first time round. This is a modern, zippy pale that is clean, refreshing and moreish. An exceptional blend of old and new-world styles. Track Sonoma (3.8%) 4x440ml, £14 Sonoma is a hazy pale for folk who don't love hazy pales, and folk who do. Fruity with a soft bitterness, it's a Manchester must-drink now, a sequel to dear, departed Boddingtons.
BBC News
07-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
New brew for Stoke-on-Trent's 100th anniversary celebrations
New brew for city's 100th anniversary celebrations Just now Share Save Richard Price BBC News, West Midlands Share Save Stoke-on-Trent City Council Lord Mayor Lyn Sharpe helped unveil the new brew which celebrates 100 years of Stoke-on-Trent A 40-year-old brewery in Stoke-on-Trent is preparing a special ale to help mark to the city's centenary. Titanic Brewery, based in Burslem, teamed up with the city council to produce the limited edition beer which will be available in bottles, cans and on cask in pubs across the county. Labels and pump clips for Century Anniversary Ale are set to feature the bottle kilns, which the city's skyline is famous for. A portion of the proceeds from each sale will go to the Titanic Brewery Foundation, which supports charities across the region. The celebrations mark 100 years since Stoke-on-Trent obtained city status from King George V in 1925, as the monarch recognised the area's contribution to the pottery industry. Events and activities planned to mark the anniversary include a parade, tea party, hunt to find 100 stories and a giant oatcake card. Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent Lyn Sharpe, who was named Campaign for Real Ale's (Camra) national campaigner of the year in 2017, used to work at Titanic Brewery as a tour guide. "Visitors loved learning about what happens to some simple ingredients in a brewery and how they're turned into a beautiful pint of beer for you to enjoy in your local pub," she said. Stoke-on-Trent City Council Lyn Sharpe was formerly a tour guide at Titanic Brewery Ms Sharpe added: "Stoke-on-Trent's brewing heritage has played a proud role in our first 100 years, and this ale is a fantastic way to toast our centenary. "The designs on the pump clips mean that pub goers across the region will learn about our centenary and be able to raise a glass to this historic year." The initial brewing process took about a day to complete, and involved bringing together the four key ingredients of beer - water, hops, malted barley and yeast. The yeast then fermented the liquid over several days. David Glenwright, from Titanic Brewing, said: "We are genuinely honoured to be working with the city council to produce this commemorative ale, celebrating both the city's centenary, and our own 40th anniversary." He said the centenary was a "momentous occasion" and they were excited to toast this "incredible city and its people". Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
