The Little Gem shines through, once more

Continuing with my theme of Friday pub outings, I decided to visit a pub that I remembered, from when I lived in Maidstone. This would have been from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s. The pub in question is the Little Gem in the village of Aylesford. As its name might suggest the Gem, is a smallish establishment, which at one time, was reputed to be the smallest pub in England.

I first became familiar with the Little Gem in the late 1970s, when I moved to Maidstone, from London, when I bought my first house. Not long after moving in, I made contact with the local CAMRA branch, and began going along to their social meetings. They were obviously short of volunteers, because within the space of a year, I was co-opted onto the branch committee and began playing a more active role within the organisation.

Now for some reason, several prominent members of the committee had rather a downer on the Little Gem, with some even accusing it of being a “beer exhibition” pub. By that, they meant the pub was stocking far too many cask ales, certainly in relation to its size, and there was a danger of then being unable to turn them all over, thereby compromising quality. I understand this argument far better today, than I did nearly 40 years ago, but it did mean that the Gem never reached the heady heights of appearing in the Good Beer Guide, and received precious little support from CAMRA.

I don’t think the management of the Little Gem were that bothered, as it continued to remain popular with its own band of devotees., and six years after joining the committee of Maidstone & mid-Kent CAMRA, I severed my official links to the branch, when I moved to Tonbridge. I kept in touch with several members, on a personal basis, as they had become good friends, but over time I became less and less familiar with the pub scene, in and around the country town.

This meant I was completely unaware the Little Gem had closed its doors for the last time, back in 2010, and to this day remain ignorant of the reason for its closure. Time though, marched steadily on, and the next decade the Gem remained empty, unloved, and uncared for. I discovered this for myself, in 2016, when I dropped my car off for a major service, at main Skoda dealer on the Quarry Wood Estate, just off the A20. 

Whilst the work was being carried out on my vehicle, I took a walk into nearby Aylesford, for a look around, and also to kill some time. I was also looking for a tearoom where I could grab some non-alcoholic refreshment, and it was then that I walked past the Little Gem. The doors and windows were all boarded up, and the place looked all sad and neglected (see above). I did a some digging, when I got home, and discovered that the building’s owner, who did not live locally, had applied to the local authority for change of use to a private dwelling. There was also an asking price of £230,000 on the building, as it stood.

Several months’ later, I was heartened to come across a Facebook campaign, called "Saving the Little Gem." Over the course of the following years, I kept an eye on the group, which had 900 followers at the time. Then, just when progress seemed to have ground to a halt, the Gem was bought at auction, in 2019. Even better was the news that owner had been granted permission, from the local authority, for the building to be turned back into a pub. A year down the line, and with no signs of work being done, the building once again changes hands, and this time it was bought by local brewers, Goacher’s, who are based at Tovil, just outside Maidstone.

With a substantial amount of renovation work to be carried out, to restore this 12^th Century pub in keeping with its Grade II listed status. The Little Gem finally reopened for trading 18 months or so ago, and after reading some good reports, but also with my own fond memories of the place in mind, a visit was long overdue. So, last Friday, I finally got round to ticking this aptly name “gem" off from my “must visit” list.

Although I have a bus pass, it was far easier to take the train to Aylesford, as there is a direct service from Paddock Wood (one stop away from Tonbridge). The train travels up along the picturesque Medway Valley Line, which follows the course of Kent’s largest river. I arrived at Aylesford station shortly after midday, and from there it was a 20-minute walk into Aylesford village. I experienced a short wait at the level crossing, before making my way across the ancient stone bridge, which fortunately is no longer used by traffic. Before turning right into the village, I paused briefly to look at the George – a former coaching inn which closed during the 1970s. I read recently that when the pub closed, its licence was passed to the Little Gem which, at the time, had been a tea room.

It wasn’t far from there to the Gem, and once inside, it was heart warming to see the pub restored to its former glory. The building dates from 1106 and has plenty of the exposed beams and low ceilings, one would expect from an early 12^th Century constriction. A step down into the pub, through a low doorway, leads directly into the main room and bar, situated on the ground floor. A large inglenook fireplace, adjacent to the entrance, provides a warm welcome in winter, although the fire was struggling to provide much in the way of heat, when I called in.

Upstairs there is a split-level balcony room, on a mezzanine floor, overlooking the ground floor bar. Although small, this upper seating area makes a good addition to the main bar area below. The bar counter is sited to the left of the fireplace, where cask ale is dispensed from two hand-pumps on the bar counter, and from two or three chilled casks on gravity dispense on the bar back shelf. The Little Gem represents the third tied house for Goacher's and serves a good selection of the company’s beers.  I started off with an excellent pint of Fine Light, followed by an equally acceptable pint of the brewery’s Old Ale. At 6.7 % abv, this rich, dark, and warming strong ale was a full three percentage points stronger than the Light, but in view of the weather, was just the thing.

There were just a handful of drinkers when I arrived, but it didn’t take long for the bar to fill up. The majority of customers were middle aged, but not exclusively male, and there were a number of canine companions in attendance as well. The seasoned barmaid took it all in her stride and manged to find time to answer some of my questions, along with listening to me enthusing about how well the pub had been restored, and how little it has changed.

The only criticism I would make was the temperature inside the place. On a freezing cold day, the open fire was always going to struggle to keep the pub warm, and whilst I did spot a radiator in the corner, I can understand why the management were reluctant to use the central heating. Putting my coat back on was sufficient to ward off the cold, and the purchase of one of the Gem’s homemade sausage rolls, also helped warm up the inner man.

I could have stayed for a third pint, but with the Old Ale almost equivalent to two pints of Fine Light, I allowed discretion be the better part of valour. I only just made it back to the station in time, as the level crossing barrier was once again closed. Fortunately, luck was on my side for once, and my train was running a few minutes behind schedule. I still haven’t worked out quite why the Victorian engineers, who constructed the Medway Valley Line, sited the station so far outside Aylesford itself, but there are plenty of other examples of this, throughout the south east.

Despite this conundrum, I’d managed to experience a pub that had been brought back from the dead, and enjoyed a brisk walk, both ways, in the process.

Use it or lose it

“Use it or lose it,” pub campaigners tell us and given the current cost of living crisis, with spiralling energy costs and the general feeling of malaise in the economy, it’s small wonder that pubs and bars are really feeling the pinch. We've heard these cries of doom and gloom before, and those of us who grew up in the 70s will already be familiar with high inflation, rocketing oil prices, industrial unrest, and other assorted ills. Unfortunately, I don't think we really expected to see them return, in quite the way they that they have.

Leaving these problems aside, the fact remains that, for many people, going to the pub, was already becoming much less a regular occurrence, irrespective of the problems outlined above. I’m as guilty of neglecting my local pubs as anyone, and whilst I live within 10 minutes walking distance of at least four pubs none of them particularly appeal to me in the same way, as they might have done 30 years ago. The reasons for this are complex, and I don’t intend to go into them here, but if you want to read more on this subject, then click on the link to an article I wrote 13 years ago, titled "The end of pub going."

Being semi-retired does mean I have more free time, even though my wife appears to be conspiring to use as much of it as she can! For example, she's switched her working away from home day, from Tuesday, when I would normally be at work, to Thursday. Consequently, I now have chauffeuring duties, taking her in to her office, and picking her up after, which regrettably impacts somewhat on trips to the pub.

To counter this and set in stone some much needed “me time”, I drew up a list of pubs towards the end of last year, that I was able to visit using public transport. The latter primarily means bus travel, as I have an old git’s pass that allows me to ride for free on buses, both locally and further afield. I also possess a Senior Rail Card, which entitles me to a one third discount off the price of rail travel. There are time restrictions, in both cases, but as my passes allow free or discounted travel after 9:30am weekdays, and anytime weekends and public holidays, I'm quid’s in.

It's early days, but I’m starting to work my way through the list, and as long as I don’t allow myself to be distracted, like I was in 2022, then I’ve a whole year of pub exploration ahead of me. Last year, started off fine, for the first three months, but then went downhill. In mitigation, I was hell-bent on completing the North Downs Way, and my self-imposed, but necessary, tight schedule, allowed very little time for lunchtime pub stops. 

I started 2023, with a trip by rail to Rye, although strictly speaking, that was a couple of days prior to the start of the New Year. A week later, I called into Fuggles Beer Café in Tonbridge, where I enjoyed a few pints in the company of a prominent member of the local CAMRA branch, plus a couple of his Tonbridge Angels football supporting mates. Yacht Rock Pale Ale from Only With Love Brewery, and Gadd’s Utopian Power-Cut Porter, were the cask ales I tried. Both were good, although if I’m brutally honest, there was a little too much coffee in the latter for my taste.

Then came my business trip to Scotland, which didn’t allow  many opportunities for pub going. Then, last Friday we had some family business to attend to that I want to go into at the moment, although I managed to swap Friday for Sunday lunchtime. This time, I visited the other of the two Tonbridge pubs that I tend to use, and the one that offers the widest selection of cask beers. This, of course, is the Nelson Arms, which by far, is the best traditional pub in the town. It offers the perfect mix of good beer, good food, and good company, all in pleasant and relaxing surroundings. I've written a lot about the Nelson over the past few years, and I'm pleased to report that the pub always seems to meet, and often exceed my expectations.

Sunday lunchtime was always going to be busy, and of course I was right, but noticing I was a single bloke on my own, the barmaid suggested I nipped along to the snug. There I would find some comfortable seats, in a quiet and out of the way, part of the pub, where I could enjoy my beer in a pleasant, and unhurried atmosphere. Those weren’t her exact words, but she was certainly correct about the snug having a number of comfy, high back chairs, each with its own small table, where one’s drinks could be placed.  There were a couple of other, unaccompanied fellas,  doing the same as me, chilling out reading a book, or a newspaper. I had my face stuck in my phone, catching up  on what was going on in the world – something Sir Humphrey would no doubt not have approved of, but each of us, for a while, wrapped up in our own little worlds.

It was pleasant just to enjoy couple of beers in quiet, comfortable surroundings, and being the Nelson, they were good beers, and ones not often seen either. I started off with Return to Flight, from Downland Brewery. I recall it being recommended by my friend in Fuggles, the previous week, and I'm pleased to report this 5% American-style pale ale ticked all the right boxes. I followed it with a glass of the 4.8% Lurcher Stout from Green Jack Brewery of Lowestoft, which was just the right beer for the cold conditions outside.

Away from the snug, the other parts of the pub were buzzing, with the area that acts as the Public Bar, packed. Some football game, or other was showing on the TV, but most of the people there were enjoying the Nelson’s ever popular Sunday roast. The same applied to the area in the right-hand corner of the bar, where customers can sit and chat whilst still keeping an eye on the ball being kicked around on the tele. It was Sunday lunchtime at its best and brought back pleasant memories of time spent in pubs, on the Sabbath, 30 or 40 years ago.  I was reluctant to leave but knowing that Mrs PBT’s had a beef stew cooking slowly away, at home, I drank up, slipped on my coat and hat, and headed for the door.