Wellington pub with its own brewery handed top award by real ale experts
A Wellington pub that has its own brewery has been handed a top award by real ale experts in the region.
The Pheasant Inn in Wellington is also home of Rowton Brewery, and it is something of a magnet for members of the Campaign for Real Ale locally.
And at last week's annual meeting of the Telford & East Shropshire CAMRA, the group's powers that be handed the prestigious County Pub of The Year 2022 title to the gobsmacked and delighted owners.
Father and son team Jim and Peter Preston received the accolade which celebrates both the quality of cask ale served at the pub and its fantastic, welcoming atmosphere.
"It's one of the biggest accolades Rowton Brewery has had," said Jim.
His son Peter agrees. "This is very special," he said. "The Pheasant Inn is a community pub and you can't have a pub without people, so we'd like to thank everyone who has dropped in this year."
Jim founded Rowton Brewery at the pub in 2008 and the family has been running the venue for the last six years. They serve Rowton Brewery beers as well as superb cask ale from some of the best-loved breweries from around the country.
The award is voted for by hundreds of local members of the Campaign for Real Ale and was presented by branch chairman Adrian Zawierka.
Dozens of real ale enthusiasts turned out for the presentation and the campaign meeting which followed it.
Telford & East Shropshire CAMRA's patch covers a huge area from Market Drayton in the north to Cleobury Mortimer in the south.
They fight to secure the long-term future of real ale, real cider and real perry by increasing their quality, availability and popularity, and promote pubs and clubs as social centres and part of the UK’s cultural heritage.
The branch runs beer festivals for the general public and socials for their members, as well as publishing a newsletter and taking part in local campaigns to support pubs and breweries.
They also log beer scores to help identify wonderful pubs serving well-kept ale that warrant inclusion in the Good Beer Guide, one of the most popular beer books in the UK. The latest Good Beer Guide will be published on October 27 2022 and is a celebratory 50th edition.
Anyone wishing to join CAMRA can find out more information on the national website. Details of Telford & East Shropshire CAMRA are also available online.
