Branch News
Here is the latest news about pubs and breweries in the branch area.
- Branch Pub and Brewery News (February 2019)
Tuesday 26 February 2019
Pub news:
- Residents of Crays Pond are celebrating a notable victory in a 5½ year campaign to recover their village pub, the White Lion, following success in the High Court on Thursday 21st February 2019. The judgement is the culmination of over five years of campaigning by the Crays Pond Action Group. South Oxfordshire District Council also deserve a lot of credit for pursuing this and we are grateful for their persistence. We hope that the village will be able to buy the White Lion and turn it back into the thriving community hub it once was. To find out more, download the following news article Persistence Rewarded - White Lion, Crays Pond, written by our Branch Chairman, David Cooper, for the next issue of What's Brewing.
- Sadly Patrick and Lucy Marples will not be renewing their tenancy of the Bear at Home when it expires at the end of March. We are also aware that the pub’s ACV expires at the end of March, so it is important that it is renewed. Our chairman, David Cooper, will be contacting North Moreton Parish council to check whether the intention is to renew the ACV.
- The Kidmore End Parish Council is in the process of renewing the ACV for the Reformation.
- The Plowden Arms closed on New Year’s Day – it is uncertain why.
- The Little Angel is currently closed for refurbishment, reopening in mid-March
Brewery news:
- Philsters Ales, Beehive Brewery has finally found a home for its new enlarged brewing kit.
- Branch Pub of the Season for Winter revealed
Friday 18 January 2019
Congratulations to Raymond and Suzanne Sexton, at The Red Lion, Chalgrove who are pictured here with Branch Chairman, David Cooper presenting them with our Winter Pub of the Season award. - Branch Pub and Brewery News (December 2018)
Monday 17 December 2018
Pub news:
- Unfortunately having reported last month that The Reformation had reopened, it is now once again closed.
- Renovation work continues on The Crown, South Moreton. Reopening is still planned for February 2019.
- The Crown, Stadhampton may have reopened.
- With particularly festive appropriateness, the third Crown in the Branch News this month - The Crown in Benson has a new manager.
Brewery news:
- Bell Street Brewery has two new seasonal beers. November: Sax on Fire, and December: Very Merry at 6%. 13 firkins have been brewed.
- 25 years at the Bird in Hand
Tuesday 6 November 2018
Graham and Celia Steward at the Bird in Hand in Henley have clocked up 25 years of owning/running the pub: the exact date was Saturday 3rd November. Marisa Francini, on behalf of the South Oxfordshire branch, presented them with a Special Award certificate to mark the occasion, and made a small speech, emphasising the following points:- It is a fantastic community pub with a huge number of regulars of all ages.
- They are open every day of the week, lunchtime and evening. (Not all of the pubs in town do so).
- They have appeared in 24 consecutive editions of the Good Beer Guide
- It is a credit to them that they have managed to stick to their initial plan to run the pub as a wet-led business for 25 years without having to resort to an extensive food offer in order to survive. They do serve snacks though!
- Their success is all the more remarkable, considering that the pub had been closed for a period of time before they took it on and brought it back from the dead. CAMRA estimates that 18 pubs a week are closing, but the Bird continues to thrive and prosper, and long may this continue!
- Branch Pub and Brewery News (October 2018)
Tuesday 23 October 2018
Pub news:
The Reformation has reopened.
The Three Tuns, Henley, has a new landlord.
Brewery news:
Bell Street Brewery’s recent seasonal was Henley on Toast (4.1% ABV) was created in collaboration with Toast Ale, uses surplus bread from Lawlor’s bakery in Henley.
- Branch Pub and Brewery News (September 2018)
Sunday 30 September 2018
Pub news:
The Chequers, Aston Tirrold has reopened as ‘The Fat Frog at the Chequers’.
The Cherry Tree, Stoke Row, has new licensees and is currently very busy. They are selling hand-pumped cider.
The Leatherne Bottel, Goring, has reopened as a restaurant.
Brakspear has delisted the Crown, Nuffield, from its pub list, is in the process of making the Four Horseshoes, Checkendon, fully residential, and is advertising for a new tenant at the Cross Keys, Wallingford. On a more positive note, Brakspear has indicated that the Rising Sun, Highmoor, is in the process of acquiring a new tenant.