Cambridge & District CAMRA

News for 2000

(with thanks to OTT)

(22-Dec): ALE Winter 2000 No. 300 is now out on the Web, with the print edition being distributed to pubs.
(19-Dec): congratulations to the Cambridge Blue (Gwydir St.) for being awarded Cask Marque.

(28-Nov): the Branch AGM elected the new committee.
(28-Nov): the Durham Ox reopened as the Chariots of Fire at the end of October and now has several real ales.
(28-Nov): Cambridgeshire Trading Standards have launched a very useful Self-Assessment Check List for pubs, which has attracted a lot of interest. It's part of a full-measures campaign for Christmas - press release.
(28-Nov): congratulations to the Free Press (Cambridge) and the White Horse (Oakington) for being awarded Cask Marque.

(14-Oct): Pub Watch Survey.
(7-Oct): The Graduate (Bass It's a Scream student pub) opened last weekend - no real ale. The Ancient Druids (Charles Wells) has reopened as Bar Citrus. Distribution of the printed edition of ALE 299 has begun.

(28-Sep) The Web edition of ALE 299 is out. The printed edition will be out in a week or so.
(20-Sep) The Good Beer Guide 2001 is now out
(8-Sep) Crisis in English brewing: the good, the bad and the bubbly by Roger Protz
(8-Sep) Cambridge news:
- GK have reopened the Castle and it can't avoid being an improvement over the old, dingy, regulars-only haunt! IPA, Abbot and County are the only real ales on.
- Everards' enlarged Tram Depot is just one large, bland shed. They've obliterated the character so carefully created in 1987.
(5-Sep) Cambridge news:
- the Tram Depot (Everards; Dover St, off East Road) is due to reopen tomorrow after its expansion
- a major refurb of the Ancient Druids (C. Wells; Napier St.) is under way
- the Fresher & Firkin (Bass; Chesterton Rd.) is due to reopen as an It's A Scream in October
- the Castle (GK; next door to the Regal) should be reopening after its major refurb soon

(6-Jun) Yesterday's Cambridge Evening News reported that planning permission for the demolition of the Cow & Calf has been given.

(29-May) 27th Cambridge Beer Festival Champion Beers and Cider.
(27-May) As expected, Whitbread have sold their breweries to Interbrew of Belgium. Now that's done, Bass are expected to sell soon.
(20-May) Updated the Festival programme: beers & cheeses.
(17-May) The Festival programme, ALE 27th Cambridge Beer Festival No. 298, is now on the Web.
(13-May) Branch Pub of the Year.
(13-May) The Kingston Brewhouse is now doing food at the weekend - highly recommended!
(13-May) We welcome the initiative from the AdHoc Guide to work with CAMRA to improve their Guide for Cambridge pubs.
(3-May) Update on Lidstone's Brewery. Peter hopes to move the existing plant to the Kingston later this year and then install new plant in the Wickhambrook brewery.
(1-May) ALE Spring 2000 no. 297 is out in Web form. We hope the printed edition will be out for the Beer Festival.

The May What's Brewing mentions there's a new brewery in the County: the Blue Bell at Whaplode St Catherine (which is ESE of Spalding and NW of Wisbech).
The Free Press will change hands on Star Wars Day - May 4th.
Updated Pub Churn 1998-1999 with national figures.
(28-Apr) The Kingston Arms is about to start doing food and the garden is now in use.

(20-Mar) Lidstones are relaunching the Kingston Arms on the 22nd (rescheduled from the 20th) - event starts at 5pm.
(19-Mar) Added pictures of the Cow & Calf now and of the finished Rat & Parrot II.
New Cask Marque page to track news of the award in the Branch area.

(15-Feb) We've heard that Lidstones have at last bought the Kingston Arms (see 28-Jan) and the official opening is planned for around mid-March. The former Howard Mallett Club on Sturton Street is open again as CC's Sports Venue Cafe (having been Cambridge Red Cafe Dec-98 to Sep-99).
(12-Feb) Added a link to The Dykes End Web site on the The Kings, Reach page. Chris & Debbie Lloyd will be leaving The Free Press in the next few months to concentrate on their own pub, The Cambridge Blue.
(9-Feb) The Hat & Feathers is under threat. The Cow & Calf may be demolished this year for flats. Local Pub Guide page launched - volunteers needed! Greene King are applying for planning permission to extend The Free Press (Prospect Row, ref. C/00/0014/FP) sideways. The Earl of Beaconsfield (Mill Road, Bass) has reopened. There was an arson attack on the derelict Racehorse (Newmarket Road, Mcdonalds) yesterday morning.

(28-Jan) Apparently Lidstone's attempt to buy The Kingston Arms is on again (see 10-Dec). The Rat & Parrot II has been breaching its planning permission conditions and seriously congesting Downing Street - see the article in Newsletter 28 of the Cambridge Cycling Campaign. Bass Leisure are applying for planning permission for a new cafe-bar on East Road [ref. no. C/00/0026/FP]. The idea seems to be to convert Willie Thorn's snooker club and the bed shop below it.
(22-Jan) Launched the 27th Cambridge Beer Festival page.
(15-Jan) Cambridge Winter Ale Festival 2000 - Champion Beer
(14-Jan) The Office of Fair Trading has at last announced a review of the Beer Orders. [See Guest beer in ALE 296.]
(12-Jan) The new Anglia TV series Some Like It Hot (which started on the 4th) featured the lead-up to the opening of the revamped Blue Boar (Yates Wine Lodges, Trinity Street) - as "Ha Ha Bar & Canteen at the Blue Boar". There seemed to be barrels of real ale being delivered (ones painted with blue bands - possibly City of Cambridge Brewery ones).
The Earl of Beaconsfield (Bass, Mill Road) has been gutted, presumably for a refurb.
(7-Jan) The Locomotive (Pubmaster, Mill Road) opened after its rapid refurb. over the holiday period. It's opened out, bright and smart-looking.
(6-Jan) The former British Queen pub on Histon Road, having been transformed into a naff "American" bar, has become a "Fat Jak's" - even more Americanised. No real ale of course.
Beer list updated.