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- Written by Mel James-Henry
- Category: March 2020
Influencing Pubs to stock more than just Bland National Brands
Do you get really disappointed, when on entering a new pub or even your local that you thought was going to have some interesting real ale on, that it is only selling National Brand beers?
What can you do about it?
If the pub is a part of a chain then you can lobby the manager/owner and ask them to stock something a bit more exciting. Many of the pub chains are restricted to what they can offer by their corporate rules and regulations but you can ask the manager, if they are willing, to let you view the list of real ales that they can order from. If they do let you see it then you may be able to request that they order something decent. These will be, in the main, real ales from their national stable but may include real ales from other independent brewers.
National pub companies can stock other real ales by using a third party vehicle. As an example, The Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) formed a company which acts as just that vehicle, named BeerFlex (formerly Direct Delivery Scheme).
BeerFlex currently buys over 3,500 draught and bottled beers from around 500 participating SIBA brewers and sells them on to 17 national pub companies and off-trade retailers.
Without such a vehicle, independent brewers would find it extremely difficult to trade with the nationals.
Examples of some of the companies BeerFlex work within the Liverpool & Districts branch are: Punch Taverns, EI Group, Admiral Taverns, Greene King and Star Pubs & Bars (Heinekan).
You do not have to be a national pub company to use BeerFlex-any pub can as long as you are a member of SIBA
There are a whole host of other wholesalers in the region who can supply real ale using this format.
There is another way to encourage pubs to stock something decent and that is to get them to sign up to the CAMRA LocAle accreditation scheme. The pub can then advertise their support by posting the window sticker in their pub. By local we mean brewed within 30 miles of the pub or club by road distance.
Some of the benefits of stocking locally produced real ale in local pubs include:
- Pubs can attract more visitors through their doors, including tourists.
- Consumers can enjoy greater beer choice and diversity.
- Local brewers are supported with increased sales.
- Local economy is supported as more money is generated and spent locally.
- Fewer “beer miles” means less impact on the environmental.
Breweries that may be considered as acceptable to being classified as falling within the criteria of the Liverpool & Districts Branch Pubs area are:
Liverpool & Districts Branch
Liverpool and Districts CAMRA Branch have agreed that a LocAle Beer is a Real Ale Brewed Within 30 miles from your pub to the LocAle brewery and that the real ale must have a local identity, therefore we would not expect real ale that is associated with London to be LocAle in Liverpool, even if its contract brewed locally.
Pubs should undertake an eligibility check by entering their pub postcode into a route map (i.e. Google, AA or RAC) to measure distance from their pub to proposed brewery to ensure it falls within the 30 miles criteria.
Don’t forget that some breweries now offer real ale in Pins (4.5 gallons, 36 pints) which will allow pubs to stock something a bit different without going to the expense of purchasing a Firkin (9 gallons, 72 pints) or even a Kilderkin (18 gallons, 144 pints).
More infomation on our locAle page
Graham Murray February 2020
- Details
- Written by Mel James-Henry
- Category: March 2020
Pub News Contributors: Rob Ashe, Steve Downing, Steven Mulholland, Tony Morgan
Cavern Pub, opposite the Cavern Club has two Ossett beers on cask at £4 a pint, one of which is a house beer named Cavern Ale
Carnival Brewery have opened a brew tap on their premises in King Edward industrial park, which is situated just off the dock road (Bath Street), a short walk from the IOM ferry terminal. Both cask and craft keg will be on sale and the brew tap will be open at weekends. Carnival brew speciality beers such as Macau Oat Cream Pistachio Pale.
Greene King are developing the large building between Lidl and the Crown on Lime Street as the Lime Street Tavern
Denbigh Castle, Hackins Hey, is due to open late March. Fiona and Dominic Hornsby who run the Bridewell and previously managed Doctor Duncan’s, Rigby’s, the Dispensary and the Fly in Loaf have bought a long lease on this pub situated next door to the Hole in Wall. They have reverted to the original name, Denbigh Castle, which dates back to the 1970’s. the pub then became Walters and then Jupiter’s. Expect a similar beer range to the Bridewell, with cask ales from Kirkstall, and bars on two floors. If anyone has old pictures or stories of the Denbigh Castle, Fiona and Dominic would love to see them, please send to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
The Masonic Hall bar on Hope Street, opposite the Pen Factory, is being run by the Liverpool Arts society and is now called the Liverpool Arts bar. Rock the Boat and Big Bog beers are often on sale on the four handpumps. Various arts events will be held in the bar including music, plays and open mic nights etc.
Turncoat gin (run by ex brewer of Liverpool Craft) have opened a bar in the Albert Dock called Turncoat, which has many craft keg beers on but unfortunately no cask.
The Pi Bar in Mossley Hill has closed, due to dispute over rent costs. The Pi had been one of the top ten pubs in the Liverpool branch from what pub scores, so had qualified as an entrant to the Pub of the Year.
The Little Tap Room, Micro Pub and Distillery, on Aigburth Rd opened on the 13th March.
A new micro pub called Jaxon’s opened on the 14th February. It's situated at 21 Longmoor Lane Fazakerley, Liverpool 9 and was much needed in this area of Liverpool where real ale outlets are sparse. Some CAMRA members turned up for the opening night when they had three very good cask ales on: Old School Mild, Panzer Pilz from 4T's Brewery and Think About It Pale from the local Brewery Black Lodge. There was also Two Lilley's ciders Cherries & Berries and Apple & Blackberry available at £3.50 a pint. Jaxon’s has very friendly staff, board games and a dart board.
Cask reopened on Wednesday 19th Feb. and is being leased by Patrick and Eric, a son and father team with prior experience in the trade. Nothing has changed (ex-cept the opening hours), they are still selling four real ales (including one dark) dur-ing the week, increasing to five (with the one dark) at the weekends, there will also be one real cider. As well as wine they are now selling champagne, and their range of bottled European beers may well change from what was on offer previously (Leffe is now sold, for example). The decor has remained unchanged, and they are continuing the successful acoustic nights on the first Tuesday of each month. The main change is they now open on Mondays and have extended their Opening hours to Mon-Fri 3pm to 10pm, Sat/Sun noon to 10pm.
Last year the Four Ashes had a charity rounders match against fellow micropub, The Corner Post. Customers of both pubs made up each team and thoroughly enjoyed the game. This year plans are being made for a return contest, this time in a game of Crown Green Bowls, bring it on! Their chosen charity is CHICS - Children's Cancer Support group - based in Alder Hey. They exist to support children with cancer and their families. All the volunteers who run the charity have all been personally affected by this issue. The money raised for them pays for days out, Christmas parties, theatre visits and time away in the Charity owned caravan in the Lake District. So far the fabulous customers of The Four Ashes have raised over £7,000 for this very worthwhile charity.
Volunteer Canteen. The “volly” gets a facelift. Over recent months, the Volunteer Canteen in East Street, Waterloo has had a bit of a makeover. The exterior has been repainted in a neat black, white and gold colour scheme. This includes the date panel on the first-floor front elevation. which originates from the 1924 refurbishment when Higson’s brewery took over the pub. Inside, a wood burning stove replaces the previous fireplace with the original surround being retained. The fireplace wall has been repainted in a pale blue which very effectively draws attention to the space. At the lounge servery entrance, much of the clutter has been removed from around the doorway, revealing the woodwork and the beautifully coloured glass panelling. It has also had the effect of brightening up the area by allowing more light through. The team running the “Volly” must be commended for this upgrade to the pub, especially at a time when many pubs show serious signs of neglect. It is very pleasing to see all the features which make the “Volly” a great pub are retained, the Higson’s branding is still evident on the exterior windows and on the internal glazing panels and if you visit, sit and take in the surroundings and look for the small details such as the Lancashire rose motifs on the 1924 seating, and the match strike panels near the fireplace surround. There are very few pubs like this with largely unaltered interiors. They deserve to be appreciated, preferably slowly over a pint.
- Details
- Written by Mel James-Henry
- Category: March 2020
You will have seen the reports that the Philharmonic Dining Rooms in Liverpool City centre has had its Listing status upgraded from Grade ll to Grade l, the highest rating that Historic England can bestow on a building in England. This will give it an extra layer of protection in planning terms.
Did you know that there are a number of other interesting listed pubs selling Real Ale in the Liverpool & Districts CAMRA area. So if you fancy a pint in a pub with characterful historic surroundings, knowing that not much has changed over the decades, then check out this list.
All the Listed Pubs can be viewed on the Historic England web site: historicengland.org.uk where you can review the details of why these pubs are so special and need to be preserved.
- Albert, Lark Lane - Listing No 1084204.
- Arkles, Arkles Lane, Anfield - Listing No 1356258.
- Baltic Fleet, Wapping, City Centre - Listing No 1218452.
- Belvedere, City Centre - Listing No 1068240.
- Black Bull, Gateacre – Listing No 1025015.
- Bridewell, City Centre - Listing No 1068393. (The Old Bridewell).
- Central, City Centre - Listing No 1209503.
- Childwall Abbey, Childwall Abbey Road, Childwall - Listing No 1280365.
- Crown, City Centre - Listing No 1208085.
- Doctor Duncans, City Centre - Listing No 1292419. (St John’s House)
- Edinburgh, Sandown Lane, Wavertree - Listing No 1363094.
- Elephant, Woolton - Listing No 1063 754.
- Lion Tavern, Moorfields, City Centre, - Listing No 1363074.
- North Western, City Centre, - Listing No 1084209. (North Western Hall).
- Old Bank, Aigburth - Listing No 1068400
- Peter Kavanaghs’, Egerton Street, City Centre - Listing No 1001636.
- Philharmonic, City Centre - Listing No 1207638.
- Pump House, Royal Albert Dock, City Centre - Listing No 1280849.
- Rigby’s, City Centre - Listing No 1206420.
- Vines, City Centre - Listing No 1084210 (does not sell real ale)
There are of course other Heritage Pubs which have not been listed but have been identified and recorded by CAMRA Pub Heritage Group as being of historic regional importance:
- Cracke, City Centre.
- Crows Nest, Crosby.
- Dealers Arms, Garston.
- Edinburgh, Crosby.
- Halton Castle, West Derby.
- Hole in Ye Wall, City Centre.
- Ma Egerton’s, City Centre.
- Roscoe Head, City Centre.
- Scotch Piper, Lydiate.
- Ship & Mitre, City Centre.
- Swan Hotel, Garston.
- Volunteer Canteen, Waterloo.
- White Horse, Woolton.
- White Star, City Centre.
There are a few others but sadly they do not sell real ale.
All the above pubs can be viewed at pubheritage.camra.org.uk where you will find some excellent photos.
Graham Murray March 2020.
