It's bad enough when one pub in a village can't be bothered to open, but when both are stubbornly closed, what's a poor boy supposed to do?

The long Easter weekend was quite uneventful for me, especially in terms of both beer, and pubs visited, but it still provided a welcome break from work. Thursday and Friday were spent sorting things out in both house and garden, whilst Saturday was a shopping day. It was also the day when my filling fell out, as mentioned in the previous blog post. On Sunday, Matthew drove us over to Uckfield, in order to visit Eileen’s niece Heidi, for an extended family gathering. A nice buffet spread had laid on, and since I wasn’t driving, I was able to enjoy a beer or two. Unfortunately the beer selection left a lot to be desired, which was unusual as Heidi's husband Phil, normally has a good variety of bottles and cans available. 

Somehow, the couple had either drank it all or forgot to restock. I had to make do with a can of  Kronenbourg which, whilst refreshing, didn’t exactly inspire me to have another. However, as the cakes and other desserts were being served by then, I declined a second can. I would have done the same with a bitter or a pale ale, as I find the majority of beers, regardless of style, don’t go well with sweet things. In fact, it’s no exaggeration to say that cakes, puddings and chocolate ruin the taste of beer, making it, for me at least, virtually undrinkable.

On Easter Monday, Matthew had to go to work, and Eileen had some accounting work to do, so I decided to head out as a train enthusiast instead of taking the bus. After checking the train schedule, I found that my chosen destination of Marden was quite accessible, and despite it being a bank holiday, there was a half-hourly service between the village and Tonbridge. Marden is a pleasant village that is only two stops down the line from Tonbridge. Furthermore, the journey time is only 12 minutes. Geographically it is situated approximately 8 miles south of the County Town of Maidstone.

The Parish of Marden has a population of just over 5,000 souls and lies in an area renowned for the growing of apples and hops, as well as more general mixed farming. The village has a number of local shops including a Post Office, three Convenience Stores, a Butchers plus a Bakers. There are also two pubs, along with the famed Marden Village Club – national winner of CAMRA’s Club of the Year for 2022 and 2023.

It had been a long time since I last visited the village, and I’m guessing here it would have been back in 2010. That was when a small group of local CAMRA members attended a social event at the West End Tavern, a pub which lies to the west of the village centre. There is another pub in the Marden called the Unicorn at the opposite end to the aforementioned. Both pubs are just over five minutes' walk from the station, as I discovered during my visit, albeit at opposite ends of the village. I also recall another pub in Marden, which was the Rose & Crown. This rather basic pub, closed in 1981, despite a concerted campaign to keep it open, organised by the local CAMRA branch.

So far so good, and with spirits running high I alighted from the train and made my way towards the West End Tavern.  On the way I passed a local curry house that had all the hallmarks of a former pub. The name Taj of Kent curry house was a possible clue (Man of Kent, anyone?), but a search through the archives for lost pubs, subsequently failed to turn anything up. I continued on to the West End Tavern and was surprised to find both doors locked – rather unusually, in this day and age, the pub still has separate Public and Saloon bars. Undeterred, I headed back in the opposite direction to the Unicorn, a pub that I’d never been in before. 

On the way I stopped for a look at the rather attractive, parish church of St Michael & All Angels, which dates back to 1200. I didn’t venture inside, as I was rather thirsty at this stage, although had I known that the Unicorn would also be closed, I would have called in. The Unicorn’s website states “Closed Monday, except for Bank Holidays” so why on earth was the place shut, with no sign of life inside, when I tried to gain entry at 14:10? The usual lunchtime opening time is 12 noon, so on the final day of a traditionally busy, holiday weekend, this pub feels that it’s unnecessary to open its doors to the paying public.

I gave up in disgust and made my way back to the station. With hindsight I could have called in at the Marden Club, but unlike Pete Brown who wrote a book on the subject, I’ve never been a fan of clubs, political, workingman’s, or other so I gave up on that. I’m also not a member of any organisation that might permit me entrance, either, so it was the next train back to Tonbridge for me. It wasn’t a totally wasted day, as I’d enjoyed a pleasant stroll, around an equally pleasant Kent village, and there was always the prospect of a return visit, when I knew for certain that both pubs would be open.

There was also the immediate prospect of a pint when I arrived back in Tonbridge. The choice was between Fuggle’s and the Nelson Arms, and purely for the fact that the Nelson was running a “tap takeover”  over the weekend, Fuggle’s received my custom that afternoon. I’m really not a fan of these “takeovers” as I view them as just another gimmick in the aspiring licensee’s calendar – a “crowd pleaser” for beer-tickers and getting your pub in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide, if you like.  Also, what’s the point in keeping a pub with a large number of pumps available, if they’re all given over to the products of a single brewery? Langham was the company concerned, and whilst their beers are pleasant enough, they don’t exactly float my boat.

Fuggle’s on the other hand, had an interesting selection, of just four cask ales, and a truly excellent pint of Spring Protagonist, from Lost & Grounded provided that refreshing and welcoming pint that I’d been looking forward to all day. As for the two closed pubs, what on earth were they playing at? I know that seasoned pub tickers like Martin, Duncan and Simon come up against this issue all the time, but if you are running a hospitality business that by its nature is open to the public, for pity’s sake, keep people informed as to what is going on. I checked the pub’s websites, their social media pages, and saw nothing about them not opening on Easter Monday, so they are the losers, rather than me.  But please don’t come crying when customers stop visiting your outlet, because they never know whether or not you will be open!

A cracked tooth puts paid to a few pints at Fuggles

The best laid plans often have a habit of going astray, and Thursday afternoon was no exception. I spent a fun filled morning clearing out various kitchen cupboards and drawers, in preparation for our 30-year-old kitchen to be ripped out, in a few weeks’ time, and replaced by a shiny new one. We’re splashing the cash a bit, but it’s a job that is long overdue. If all goes according to plan, the lion’s share of the work will take place whilst Mrs PBT’s and I are away on our round-Britain cruise. My wife is an inveterate hoarder, although she won’t thank me for saying it, so I’m adopting the softly-softly approach of sifting through, and disposing of, the items that have accumulated during the last 30 years that we’ve lived in this house.

I then engaged in an hour-long conversation with an advisor, from Pension Wise, the UK Government backed advisory service, that helps people, like me, who are contemplating retirement, make the right choices, when it comes to choosing a pension. The process was a one-to-one, pre-booked phone call with a Pension Wise advisor, and such is the popularity of this service, that my call was booked almost a month ago. The advisor and I had a most useful conversation, regarding the various options available to me – purchasing an annuity, drawing down on my funds, over a period of time, withdrawing my entire pension pot as a lump sum, along with several other options. There is lots to think about, although hat the end of the day it comes down to a difficult balancing act between how long my combined pension pots last, and how long it is until I shuffle off this mortal coil. At the end of the consultation I was sent a summary document, full of useful links and advice. Something for a rainy day, methinks, but as I’m not planning to give up work for several years (how else will I fund those cruises?), I can digest this information at my leisure.  

After collecting Mrs PBT’s from the scaffolding company, where she does a weekly stint in the office, we drove home. I dropped the car off and then set off down the hill, and into Tonbridge, where I had a dental appointment, relating to a filling that unfortunately fell out from one of my upper molars, and nearly ended up being swallowed. That was Easter Saturday, and yesterday (Thursday) was the first convenient and available appointment. I was rather nonplussed, as the tooth was filled just under two months ago, so I took the filling along with me, in a small plastic bag, as evidence. 

The dentist’s initial conclusion was that the filling had fallen out, because in comparison with the tooth, it was on the large side, and there wasn’t really sufficient tooth for the material to bond to. I was tempted to ask, why had she filled it in the first place, when after numbing that area of my upper jaw she discovered that the tooth had cracked. After a spot of cleaning up, she took a photo and invited me to turn around for a look.  There was no doubting the large crack, right down the centre of the tooth, and no doubting either that it would have to come out. As my jaw was already partially numbed, it made sense to have it removed there and then.

My plans for a couple of pints at Fuggles, on the way home, went out of the window and so, following the advice of the practice nurse, I took the bus home, instead of walking.  What made matters worse was Eileen had ordered us a meal from our local Chinese-takeaway, and with young Matthew, round at his new girlfriend’s place for the evening, there would be more for us to enjoy. As things turned out, despite eating on right hand side of my mouth, I still manged to scoff a fair amount of chicken chow mein, rice, plus some crispy seaweed. There was no beer though, as I didn’t really feel like any, and I’m not sure that I’ll be having any tonight.

Tomorrow though, is another day, and we shall have to see what happens, but after the fiasco of Easter Monday, I shall be searching desperately for “beer nirvana.” (Teaser alert, you will have to wait until next time to find out what happened – or rather what didn’t!)

 

A Wateringbury breakfast

Continuing our search for the perfect breakfast venue, a search that is primary being driven and organised my son Matthew, Easter Saturday saw the pair of us drive over to the village of Wateringbury. Situated roughly two-thirds of the distance between Tonbridge and Maidstone, Wateringbury has a Victorian feel to it, as characterised by the many buildings from that era, but the village is considerably older than that and can trace its history back to the time of the Domesday Book. It is quite a large settlement, with the lower half of the village, running down to the river Medway, and the top part extending up to the A26 Tonbridge-Maidstone road.

There’s a fair amount of brewing history associated with Wateringbury, although nowadays, very little remains of this heritage. Yet, up until the mid-1980s, national brewer Whitbread had a substantial plant in the village, on a site overlooking the Medway. This rather attractive, and typical 19^th Century, tower brewery, was known as the Phoenix Brewery, and was home to Frederick Leney & Sons.  

Whitbread acquired the business as well as the site in 1927, as part of their initial expansion from their London home but Wateringbury continued brewing Leney’s ales for local pubs, until 1961 when the licensed premises were sold to Fremlin’s of Maidstone. The latter company joined the Whitbread group in 1967 and the day-to-day running of the Wateringbury brewery was then integrated into their Maidstone operation. Until fairly recently you could sometimes see the name of Frederick Leney etched into the windows of local pubs. The other Wateringbury brewery was that of Jude, Hanbury & Co Ltd, who moved to Canterbury in 1924 after acquiring the business of Ash & Co. Their brewery in Bow Road, was sold to the Yalding Soap Co. and was later demolished.

Production at the Phoenix Brewery, was then switched to brewing mainly bottled beers for the Whitbread group. Before its closure in 1984, beers such as light ale, and Gold Label barley wine were brewed at Wateringbury, although it’s interesting to note that this famed barley wine, started life as a Sheffield beer. Developed originally by Tennant's in 1951, it was a pale-coloured, sparkling barley wine of great strength, containing around 10.6% alcohol. Its golden colour was unusual, because the vast majority of high strength beers tended to be on the dark side, including Whitbread’s own Final Selection barley wine. The latter brew was replaced by Gold Label, which ended up being brewed elsewhere within the group, when Wateringbury ceased production. I’m assuming the beer is still available, although the advertising slogan used to sell it, “Strong as a double Scotch, less than half the price,” has long disappeared. 

Following closure, the attractive brewery buildings at Wateringbury were pulled down, and all that remains of this once thriving local enterprise is the Phoenix weather-vane atop of the nearby Wateringbury Hotel, which although now owned by Greene King, operates under the Chef & Brewer banner along with the adjoining Premier Inn. 

 There’s a bit of family history here, because the youngest of my two sisters, bought one of the houses on the former Phoenix site, and lived there for a while with her family, during the mid-90’s. Of slightly more interest, as well as relevance, is the story that a friend and I hopped over the fence, one weekend, whilst demolition of the brewery was in its initial stages. Despite the fact we were trespassing, and that parts of the site were potentially unsafe, we had a good look around. My friend ended up with a World War II ARP, steel helmet and I uncovered an old wooden beer crate. As is often the case when enterprises are closed down, a lot of seemingly worthless objects are just abandoned. Potentially there might have items, such as brewing logs, which would have been of interest to brewery historians, although somehow apart from my friend’s steel helmet, I don’t think there was much else of value remaining on the site.

In common with many other towns and villages, Wateringbury would at one time, have been well supplied with public houses, especially as it was a settlement with two thriving breweries. Sadly, nearly all of them have disappeared, either having been converted either for residential use, or demolished altogether. One such remaining survivor is the Railway, a white-painted late 19^th Century pub at the bottom of the hill, opposite Wateringbury station. The pub is almost in the neighbouring village of Nettlestead, but that’s one for the pedants. 

From memory, I’d only made one previous visit to the Railway, and that was around 20 years ago, at the end of one of Maidstone CAMRA’s, annual Good Friday rambles. As is often the case over Easter, that particular Good Friday was characterised by freezing cold conditions, and it might even have snowed. A friend and I dived into the Railway, whilst waiting for our train back to Tonbridge, and whilst I remember precious little from that visit, the pub certainly provided a warm and very welcome respite from the Arctic conditions outside. And there, the story might have ended, if Matthew hadn’t noticed a social media post about the Railway.

He discovered that on Saturday mornings, the Railway offers a buffet breakfast, of the “all you can eat” variety. The reason for the breakfast offer taking place on a Saturday, is because the Railway majors on roast dinners on Sundays with a carvery that is very popular with the punters.  Consequently, keeping the two meal occasions separate, makes a lot of sense for the pub management. Consequently, the pair of us pitched up just after 9am, and after leaving the car in the free (TMBC please take note) car park, at the top of the village, probably on the site of the former Jude Hanbury brewery, we walked down to towards the river, and the Railway public house.

After walking into the pub, we informed the lady behind the bar that we’d come to enjoy the breakfast offering, and after showing us to an empty table in the dining area, we were asked how would we like our eggs cooked. Eggs were the only things on the buffet menu that were cooked to order, the rest of the breakfast items being on a “help yourself” basis. A hot water urn was available for teas and coffees, with the hot drinks also being self-service. There was a good selection of typical breakfast goodies, such as bacon (back cuts, rather than streaky), sausages, tomatoes, beans, fried bread, hash browns etc, plus bread for toasting. 

All in all, a good choice of traditional breakfast fayre, and if you wanted to, you could return to the hot serving dishes, for seconds. A number of other customers turned up whist we were there, and it was obvious from the interaction between them and the staff, that they were regulars. As for the breakfast itself, the cost worked out at a very reasonable, £9.50 per head. If I’m honest, there was a touch of the “greasy spoon” about the presentation, but in mitigation the bacon, eggs and sausages were good quality, and definitely not your typical “cash & carry” catering option.

Once I’d finished my breakfast, a visit to the gents provided an excuse for a look around the rest of the pub. There is a large pool table to the right of the bar, but apart from that, nothing jumped out as unusual. In short, the Railway comes across as a basic, and down to earth local, catering to its own band of loyal regulars, many of whom seemed gave the appearance of ex-pat Londoners. This is not uncommon in this part of rural Kent, with many people having been acquainted with the county as itinerant fruit pickers and people whose parents or grandparents, came down to Kent in order to assist with the annual hop harvest.

Before walking back to the car, we crossed the road, and the railway, and took a look at the river. There, we noticed a café, in the form of the Riverside Restaurant, which seems worthy of further investigation. A boatyard, plus marina on the opposite bank of the Medway, is proof of the popularity of boating on this section of Kent’s largest river. I’m looking forward to seeing more of the riverside, at first hand, when I undertake my planned walk along the banks of the Medway, later in the year, and I shall also be on the look out for further breakfast opportunities, “greasy spoon” or otherwise!

 

A few more beery gems in Cologne

I was having a sort out earlier this morning, when I stumbled upon a pile of notes that I’d made in relation to the Rhineland city of Cologne. As you're no doubt aware, last month I published a quite lengthy piece consisting of reflections, looking back over my many visits to the city. I tried to make the post as comprehensive as possible but obviously couldn't include everything. Now, after looking back over these notes, it’s evident there are quite a few gaps, and so, in the interests of completeness, I've added them in here. But will this be the final word on Cologne? A city I have visited on eight separate occasions, which is more than any other overseas destinations. The answer is I don't know, although it certainly is for the time being, so sit back and relax as I describe a few more of Cologne’s beery gems.

Brauerei Päffgen is a place that is well-known to beer lovers; not only is its wonderfully hoppy Kölsch brewed at the rear of the premises, but it is also dispensed from wooden casks. A former school friend had taken me to Päffgen during my first visit to Cologne, way back in 1975. My friend was living and working in the city as part of the language degree he was taking. I was also a student, but at the time was travelling around Europe, by train, on an Inter-Rail ticket with a friend from university. Even back then I had a reputation for enjoying good beer so my host, knowing this fact, had taken me to Päffgen as he knew I would be impressed.

I didn’t plan on waiting 34 years before returning, but in 2009, on an evening out with a few colleagues, whilst attending the Cologne International Dental Show, I was finally able to make that return visit to Päffgen. With a sense of eager anticipation, my colleagues and I pushed open the door, and found ourselves in a central corridor with a small room leading off to the left, and a much larger one to the right. We opted for the latter and were soon seated at one of the many tables in the wood-panelled room. On the way in we noticed two up-ended wooden casks, tapped and ready for serving.

We ordered a Kölsch each and were pleasantly surprised by its hoppy flavour. I had a look round the rest of the pub to see if it would bring back any memories. I recognised the large back room at the end of the corridor as being the place where, on a damp July evening, my friend and I had sat enjoying several glasses of Päffgen Kölsch. It was great to be back, even if the memories were rather vague but sadly, as mentioned previously, I haven’t been back since then, despite several attempts during subsequent visits to IDS.

In May 2017, I made a non-work-related visit to Cologne, along with son Matthew. We were part of a group of beer enthusiasts drawn mainly from Maidstone CAMRA, plus a few neighbouring branches. Our visit to Cologne was a one-day interlude, that occurred during a stay in the neighbouring Rhineland city of Düsseldorf – basically what Americans would call a “side-trip.” The transit time between the two cities is around 35 minutes, so it’s a journey that’s well worth making.

We were in Cologne for a look around, and also to have a tour around a typical Kölsch brewery, in the guise of Brauerei Sünner. Our visit was not scheduled until later in the afternoon, so this gave us plenty of time for a look around Cologne and also to sample some Kölsch. We decided to make for Brauerei zur Malzmühle at Heumarkt; an old established former brewpub at the far end of the Alter Markt. This was a pub I had never managed to get to on previous visits to the city, so I was quite pleased with the opportunity to go there this time around.

Housed in a rather functional-looking building, replacing the original structure, which was destroyed in World War II, Malzmühle was every bit the traditional German beer house on the inside. With high ceilings and plenty of wood panelling, we made for the two tables at the far end of the room. One of the thoughtful waiters came over and fixed a “bridge” in between the two, thereby joining them and enabling us to all sit together.  

Malzmühle Kölsch was quite a bitter variant on the style. Being slightly away from the main tourist areas, Brauerei zur Malzmühle was very much a local’s pub, but we were nevertheless made very welcome. (I think the staff were glad of our presence during what seemed a slack period).

Our day in Cologne concluded with the aforementioned visit to Brauerei Sünner, a traditional brewery on the other side of the River Rhine, and one where the Kölsch style of beer is said to have originated. I’m rather surprised to discover, that I didn’t write anything about the brewery tour, at the time, but despite an extensive search cannot find anything. I did take quite a few photos, though, so you will have to make do with those. 

After our tour around the brewery concluded, we enjoyed an excellent evening meal, served in the small beer garden attached to the brewery. This area open to local residents, as well as visitors to the brewery, as evidenced by the photos, and if you look carefully, you will notice a small keg of Kölsch on one of the tables. A nice idea that saves on trips to the bar or trying to attract the attention of the waiting staff.  

One city centre Kölsch outlet that I visited, during one of my first business trips to Cologne, was Pfaffen. At the time, this was the only outlet for the beer of the same name, and story behind this establishment dates back to a fall out between owner, Max Päffgen, and other members of the Päffgen family. This led to Max starting a brewery of his own. I wrote at the time that the Pfaffen Kölsch served at Max’s pub, was probably the best version of the style I tasted during my stay in Cologne. It was so good that I stayed for several more glasses.

The Pfaffen tavern is a long, narrow building featuring some attractive carved, light-coloured woodwork and also some interesting contemporary stained glass. Regrettably, I haven’t been back since, but with beer that good I brought my colleagues there on our last night in the city, and they were well impressed. The beer was served direct from wooden casks, and such was the demand for this excellent Kölsch that we witnessed the cask being changed twice in less than an hour and saw the row of empties stacked up in the corridor.

I’m not sure as to when I first came across Schreckenskammer-Kölsch. It must have been prior to my penultimate visit to Cologne, which was in 2019. This was at a time when I believed I had drunk virtually every Kölsch available in the city, so stumbling upon Schreckenskammer came as something of a surprise. I bought a 500ml bottle during that 2019 trip but was determined to track down the Schreckenskammer pub on my next visit to Cologne, little thinking that, thanks to Covid, the trip wouldn’t be for another four years!

Situated to the north-west of Cologne’s imposing main rail station, or Hauptbahnhof, the pub was quite easy to find, particularly with the assistance of Google Maps, on my Smart Phone.  

The distinctive looking church tower of St Ursula, acted as my guide as I drew near to the pub. With the original Schreckenskammer beer house destroyed by Allied bombing, in 1943, today’s pub is a modern building, which dates from the 1960’s. It is still quite an attractive looking building, which overlooks a paved area at the entrance to the church. Pleased with myself for having found the place, I gingerly pushed the door open and stepped inside.

There was a small room over to the left, with its own serving counter, complete with some casks of beer, in full view of the customers. There was a handful of customers present, plus a member of staff behind the counter. It looked very much like a “private bar,” so I headed, instead, for the larger, and more spacious room to the right. It was laid out with plenty of tables and chairs, but very little in the way of empty places, as most seemed occupied with diners.  I sat myself down at the end of one such table, with my back to the window. I do this in most pubs, as I like to see what’s going on, rather than sit with my back to the action. 

When the waiter, or Kobe, passed, by with his tray of glasses, he uttered the word, “Kölsch,” and almost without waiting for an answer, placed a full glass on the table in front of me, whilst at the same time marking a fresh beer mat, with a tick. The beer was served in a badged glass – as per the photo and was rather good, with a deep golden colour and plenty of body. The pub itself was buzzing, with a lively mix of customers, spanning several different age groups. I got the impression that most of them were local, drawn from the nearby flats.

Finding Schreckenskammer left just one final, classic Cologne pub to tick off my list, and that outlet was the legendary Gaststätte Lommerzheim, which I visited on my final evening in Cologne. Known locally as Lommi’s, this establishment is a “must visit” Cologne institution, and one of those pubs you feel privileged to have experienced. Recommended by a wide assortment of different beer writers, including Matt from Stockport, Retired Martin, and Rob Sterowski, but still far enough off the beaten track to have escaped the notice of the more usual suspects, Lommerzheim is in a class of its own.

Described as a throwback to a bygone era, Lommi’s is a proper community local, catering to a wide age groups and a diverse range of customers. As well as serving one of the best glasses of Kölsch in Cologne - Päffgen, naturally, dispensed from a wooden cask behind the bar counter, the food looks really inviting as well, that’s if you can find space at table where you can sit down and get stuck in. On my visit, shortly after 6pm on a Thursday evening, the place was packed with people were enjoying themselves, either in small groups or conversing with friends and neighbours.

If you want to learn more, then click on the link here, but don’t just take my word for it, add Gaststätte Lommerzheim to your beer-bucket list, or make it an essential part of any visit to Cologne and the Rhineland, (there are some classic pubs in Düsseldorf as well, and like Cologne, the city has its own unique style of beer). If these accounts haven’t whetted your appetite, then I don’t know what will, but I do know I have spent some very happy times in this part of Germany, drank some truly amazing beers and enjoyed them in some equally wonderful pubs.