Western Morning News (Saturday)
Guide toasts best pubs for beer in the Westcountry
FROM bars alongside railway stations to traditional town centre pubs and a converted community centre, a total of 33 new Devon pubs have been recognised in the Camra Good Beer Guide this year.
There are 125 Devon pubs in the guide, which has just been published for the 50th year by the Campaign for Real Ale.
As well as covering 520 of the best pubs in Cornwall, Devon, Gloucestershire, Bristol, Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire, it keeps track of brewery numbers, and notes a net loss of seven breweries across the counties in the past year.
Devon’s 125 pubs in the new edition of the guide give it more than any other South West region. Its 33 new entries also represents the highest number in the South West. They include the Ale Way, a micropub built into the railway station in Axminster. One reviewer wrote: “A great place, lovely people and fantastic drinks, all locally sourced ciders, beers and ales. Sit inside or out, just nice and relaxing and so much more.”
Also on the list is the Railway Brewhouse at Newton Abbot, a pub next door to the town’s railway station. The New Lion Brewery at Dartington, a taproom and bottle shop set up in the former Meadowbrook Community Centre, is another outlet to make the list for the first time.
A total of 59 Devon breweries are listed, but the guide also notes that three breweries have closed in the county in the past year.
Camra national chairman Nik Antona said: “We believe information gleaned from the Guide is absolutely vital in the drive to save our pubs from closure and campaign for policies that better support pubs, local brewers and their customers.
“Whilst we experienced a boom in the brewing industry over recent years, it’s clear that the effects of Covid-19 and subsequent cost of living and cost of goods crisis has been keenly felt.”
In Cornwall, the Camra guide recognises dozens of pubs as some of the very best establishments in the UK. Nineteen new Cornish pubs have been added and, in total, 62 pubs in Cornwall are now featured in the guide.
Writing in a foreword for the South West section of the guide, author Laura Hadland encouraged beer tourists to visit the Blue Anchor in Helston. She also highlighted St Austell’s Brewery which hosts the annual Celtic Beer Festival in November. Some of the other Cornish pubs included are the King’s Arms in Luxulyan, the Lanivet Inn in Lanivet, the Crown Inn in Lanlivery, the Royal Oak in Lostwithiel and the Victoria Inn in Roche.
Camra chairman Nik Antona added: “For nearly five decades, the Good Beer Guide has been a comprehensive guide to the UK’s breweries, their ales, and the best outlets to find them in across the country. It has always had an important role in acting as a barometer of the beer and pub industry. I’d encourage everyone to use this guide to seek out the very best examples of pub excellence and support these locals by visiting them.”