A year in the pub… I can think of worse ideas. Still, for most of us that is not a realistic ambition, we just have to do what we can.
As we approach the end of the year, I was inspired by a friend and colleague to think about how much time I’ve spent in the pub over the past year. Or, more accurately, how many pubs I’ve spent time in over the past year.
My friend, Scott, managed 100 different pubs. Very impressive. Not only that, he has photographed them all and shared them on Facebook with a brief summary of each. I’ve been enjoying reading through his lists and it got me wondering how many I’d visited. Of course, the idle wondering quickly turned into a overwhelming need to know the answer.
Luckily I’m a bit of a ticker and I record my drinking activities on Untappd. It took a bit of a trawl through, but I managed to come up with an answer. It may not be perfect: I may have missed some along the way for various reasons, but it’s probably close.
I wasn’t expecting it to be anywhere near 100 – sadly I don’t get to spend as much time in the pub as I’d like (or as much as many people assume!) – but it was better than I expected. Quite a reasonable tally really…
During 2023 I visited 69 different pubs.
I’m nothing like as organised as Scott, so I don’t have photos of them all. I also can’t remember the occasion for each of them – heck, I can’t even remember some of them at all! So what follows is basically just a list. Having resurrected this blog after just over 18 months of dormancy, it is therefore probably of little interest to anyone but me. Sorry about that.
In creating the list I had to make some decisions what I meant by a pub. In places that may be controversial but this is my blog – if you don’t like it write your own! I did include breweries and tap rooms. I did include clubs. I also included pubs that are heavily food oriented, but I didn’t include restaurants that serve beer. There are grey areas: for instance I did include the Golden Heart at Nettleton Bottom, but not the Beefeater.
But before we get into the list, some highlights/ headlines:
By far the most visited pub of the year – and the one in which I drank most beer – was the Pelican in Gloucester. Still, in my opinion, the finest pub in the land.
I visited 14 pubs in Gloucester, but I tend to stick to the same few as favourites these days – it’s a long time since my ‘every pub in Gloucester’ research trips! The most frequently visited apart from The Pelican is The Fountain. I also like the Drunken Duck and the newest addition to the Gloucester scene: the Hop Kettle in Gloucester Docks.
Untappd usefully told me which pubs I’d logged for the first time – I’ve marked these with an asterisk. There are 40 of them, but many of them are definitely not genuine first visits.
There are a few occasions that upped my tally: the East Bristol Brewery Trail on 29 April (6, all new) and various holidays and visits. My favourite from these was probably The Towy Bridge Inn in Llandovery, about a mile’s walk from our campsite and a little Gem of a pub!
So, without further ado…
The List:
The Pelican, Gloucester – 7 Jan
The Bath Brewhouse, Bath – 11 Jan *
Turks Head, Gloucester – 12 Jan
The Drunken Duck, Gloucester – 12 Jan
Golden Heart Inn, Nettleton Bottom – 14 Jan
The Miller, Cheltenham – 25 Jan
Gloucester Brewery, Gloucester – 3 Feb
The Fountain, Gloucester – 3 Feb
Brewhouse & Kitchen, Gloucester – 9 Feb
Tank, Gloucester – 9 Feb
The Lord High Constable of England, Gloucester – 9 Feb *
Harry Cook, Cheltenham – 16 Feb
Brewdog, Cheltenham – 16 Feb
Wootton Hall Club, Barnwood – 18 Feb
England’s Glory, Gloucester – 4 Mar *
The Barley Mow, London – 14 Mar *
Walls Club, Gloucester – 26 Mar *
The Castle, Porlock – 6 Apr
Ship Inn, Porlock – 6 Apr
Royal Oak, Porlock – 9 Apr
The Imperial, Gloucester- 22 Apr
The Tall Ship, Gloucester – 22 Apr *
Fierce & nNoble (brewery), Bristol – 29 Apr *
Arbor Ales (brewery), Bristol – 29 Apr *
Wiper & True (brewery), Bristol – 29 Apr *
New Bristol Brewery, Bristol – 29 Apr *
Basement Beer, Bristol – 29 Apr *
Moor Beer Company (brewery), Bristol – 29 Apr*
The Ale House, Stroud – 8 May
Planet Caravan, Cheltenham – 12 May *
The Towy Bridge Inn, Llandovery – 19 May *
The Bell Inn, Frampton on Severn – 29 May *
The Royal Oak, Keswick -10 Jun *
Oddfellows Arms, Keswick – 12 Jun *
The Fox Tap, Keswick – 14 Jun *
The Thatch, Croyde – 19 Jun *
The Pilchard Press, St Ives – 5 Jul
The Castle, St Ives – 5 Jul
Queens Hotel, St Ives – 5 Jul *
The Sloop, St Ives – 6 Jul
The Lifeboat Inn, St Ives – 6 Jul *
Bencoolen Pub, Bude – 17 Jul *
The Carriers Inn, Bude – 17 Jul *
Star Inn, Upton-upon-Severn – 20 Jul *
White Lion, Upton-upon-Severn – 21 Jul
Bar Severn, Upton-upon-Severn – 22 Jul *
Swan Hotel, Upton-upon-Severn – 23 Jul
Café Rene, Gloucester – 26 Jul
The Cheese Rollers, Shurdington – 11 Aug *
Deya (brewery), Cheltenham – 17 Aug *
The Clarence Social, Cheltenham – 24 Aug *
The Carpenters Arms, Miserden – 28 Aug *
Bottle of Sauce, Cheltenham – 31 Aug
Duke of Wellington, Bourton on the Water – 3Sep *
The Refectory, Godalming – 9 Sep
The Green Dragon, Stoke Fleming – 11 Sep *
Seven Stars, Dartmouth – 13 Sep *
Cherub Inn, Dartmouth – 14 Sep *
Steam Packet Inn, Kingswear – 15 Sep *
The Strand, Cheltenham- 24 Oct
Low Key Taproom, Ashford – 4 Nov *
Brewhouse & Kitchen, Cheltenham – 9 Nov
The Hop Kettle, Gloucester – 12 Nov *
Frog & Fiddle, Cheltenham – 7 Dec
St Ives Taproom, St Ives – 10 Dec *
The Tinners Arms, Zennor – 11 Dec *
The Hain Line, St Ives – 12 Dec *
Hub, St Ives – 12 Dec *
Bier Huis Grand Café, St Ives – 14 Dec
So now I know what I’m aiming to beat for 2024 – Happy New Year!
I will be using this blog to talk about my views on my home city of Gloucester, its pubs and anything else that comes into my head and seems important at the time.
Darrel Kirby's Blog 