Raising a glass to the Pub of the Year award winner
Maidenhead: A Hoppy Place wins vote by members of Campaign for Real Ale
Maidenhead’s A Hoppy Place has been crowned pub of the year by the Slough, Windsor, and Maidenhead branch of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA).
The society’s members score pubs and clubs in the area by going into them and assessing the atmosphere, beer quality and general condition of the whole place.
The ten highest scoring pubs then go head-to-head in the ultimate vote in which members pick the best three.
A Hoppy Place, which, opened in Countryside’s Watermark development in June last year, came out on top.
Allan Willoughby, trustee at SWM CAMRA, who presented A Hoppy Place with their award, said: “They were not just the winner but a clear winner, so they deserve a pat on the back because it’s not been the easiest of times to open a new business. They’ve also won two other significant awards just after ours so they’re obviously on the right note in terms of running a modern-day pub.”
A Hoppy Place was founded by Dave and Naomi Hayward, a husband and wife with a passion for craft beer.
They opened the first A Hoppy Place in Windsor in August 2019 and survived through the global pandemic by selling their craft beers online and hosting virtual events to help keep their community together.
In a statement on their website, A Hoppy Place said: “We’re pretty proud of what we do.” The awards have increased their pride even more as they are getting confirmation of a job well done and Dave said he had ‘quite the week’ winning the awards.
Dave and Naomi are to open a new craft beer retail outlet in Windsor called The Indie Rabble Co and are excited by what the future holds.