Cambridge CAMRA in August

Congratulations to the Queen’s Head, Newton.

This year, as part of its 50th Anniversary celebrations, CAMRA is presenting Gold Awards to people and businesses that have made a significant contribution to CAMRA’s aims. The Queen’s Head in Newton is receiving its award for being one of the five pubs in the country to have appeared in every edition of the Good Beer Guide. On top of that the current licensee’s father, David, was the licence holder for most of our beer festivals. CAMRA’s East Anglian Regional Director, Andrea Briers, will be presenting the award at the Queen’s Head in a couple of weeks.

Pubs Fully Reopen.

From Monday the final pandemic restrictions on pubs will be lifted. Table service will no longer be required. But just because restrictions have gone it doesn’t mean that the pandemic is over. Publicans will still be keen to protect their customers and staff, many of whom will not be fully vaccinated. We have already seen a couple of our pubs having to close as one of their staff members tested positive. It is almost inevitable that it will happen to others. To try and lessen the risk of this happening some publicans may decide to continue some of the precautions that have been introduced over the last 18 months. This may be temporary or it might be “the new normal”. We shall see.

We assume that pub’s opening hours will gradually begin to return to what they were pre-Covid but this will depend on customer demand and staff availability. There are staff shortages in the hospitality industry with many of our pubs advertising vacancies. If we hear of opening hour changes we will update the information on our Covid-19: What Pubs Are Doing page. The information will also appear in the grey Updates box on each pub’s WhatPub entry. It’s a big task keeping this information up to date and your help is appreciated. If you spot inaccuracies or incomplete information please let us know either by email or via the Submit Updates function on WhatPub. Your feedback is valued at all times but especially so now.

Celebrating Our Pubs through the Summer.

We are still planning our celebration of pubs in our branch area but have decided to put it on hold until we see how pubs and drinkers respond to the removal of restrictions. There are also concerns that the spread of the delta variant may yet see restrictions return. It you feel safe to do so please support our pubs with your custom. Pubs matter!

Swavesey Cider & Gin Festival.

One of the most significant recent developments on the local cider scene was the creation of the Swavesey Cider Festival. It’s back again this year and is on now. Having opened on Thursday it will run until Sunday. It’s located on Swavesey Recreation Ground, features 33 ciders and perries (all sponsored) with the money raised going to local good causes. If you like your real ciders & perries, you know where to go. It’s not far from the Guided Busway.

This festival and others that might be of interest to you are listed on the Events page of our branch website.

Thinking of Starting a Brewery?

Robert Beardsmore of Stetchworth based Crafty Beers is giving a talk, Starting a Micro-Brewery, at his brewery on Wednesday 21 July, 6:30-8pm. The talk will cover: Regulatory and tax issues, from food hygiene to beer duty. Issues when brewing at scale including recipe considerations. The economics, from start-up costs to typical profit margins. Routes to market – the various ways to sell beer and make money from a micro-brewery. It costs £10 to attend the talk but, as that includes beer, we reckon that’s a bargain. To book your place, email Robert or call him on 01223 813938.

Beer Scoring.

Many thanks to all our members who have been scoring their beers recently. In the four weeks to 11 July we received 115 scores from 28 members. Of the pubs with multiple scores in those weeks the Elm Tree on Orchard Street and the Three Horseshoes in Stapleford are the city and rural pubs with the highest averages. Beer scoring is easy to do via the pub’s WhatPub entry. If you have a smart phone and internet access you can score while you drink. If not you can do it from home later. Your beer scores help us to discover which pubs are serving the best beer and also helps in selecting candidates for the Good Beer Guide.

Future Events.

Thursday 15 – Sunday 18 July. Swavesey Cider & Gin Festival at Swavesey Recreation Ground.

Monday 19 July. Final easing of social distancing restrictions.

Wednesday 21 July. Starting a Micro-Brewery. A talk by Robert Beardsmore of Crafty Beers.

Friday 23 – Sunday 25 July. Willingham Social Club Beer Festival.

Saturday 24 & Sunday 25 July. Ickleton Lion Beer Festival and Grand Opening.

Thursday 29 – Saturday 31 July. Sutton Beer Festival at St Andrew’s Church, Sutton.

Friday 30 July – Sunday 1 August. Tickell Beer Festival at the Tickell Arms, Whittlesford.

Friday 30 July – Sunday 1 August. Waggon & Horses (Milton) Beer Festival.

Tuesday 10 August from 8. Monthly Open Branch Meeting & Social at the Haymakers, Chesterton.

Thursday 19 – Sunday 22 August. Huntingdonshire CAMRA’s Booze on the Ouse at St Neots Rugby Club.

Wednesday 25 – Monday 30 August. West Suffolk & Borders CAMRA’s 29th East Anglian Beer & Cider Festival at St Edmundsbury Cathedral.

Thursday 26 – Monday 30 August. Six Bells (Fulbourn) Beer Festival.

Tuesday 14 September from 8. Monthly Open Branch Meeting & Social at the Boot, Dullingham.