Heart of Warwickshire Branch

Between noon and 5pm, the village hall will host the beer festival with 15+ local ales from the Warwickshire, Purity, Slaughterhouse, Church End, Tunnel and Atomic local breweries. There will also be real cider available. As well as the beer festival, the village hall will host a fruit and vegetable show, a barbeque and a car boot sale. Then at 7pm, the beer festival will reopen at the Malt Shovel public house, and the produce from the fruit and vegetable show will be auctioned off with the proceeds going to charity. There will be no entrance fee to either venue, and ale will be from £2.00 per pint. For a great day out with some wonderful ale on Saturday 11th September, Bubbenhall should be your destination of choice!

Bubbenhall is served by the 529 bus service with departures from Coventry's Pool Meadow bus station stand L at 10:50, 12:50, 14:50, 16:15, 17:45, and from Kenilworth (Clock) at 09:55, 11:55, and 13:55. The last service from Bubbenhall to Coventry is 14:20; the last service to Kenilworth departs 18:04. The complete timetable can be downloaded: http://www.johnsonscoaches.co.uk/edit/files/bus-routes/539%20540%20541%20543%20June%202010.pdf

'I've been through the desert on a horse with no name', as the song by America goes, might have summed up Wythall a few years ago if one preferred cask ale to keg but thanks to the Wythall Community Club (known locally as Wythall House) the desert now has an oasis for real ale drinkers.

Wythall House sits in 37 acres of parkland which is privately run by the Wythall Community Association who have provided local people with access to greenery, sports facilities and children's play areas for many years. In 2006 the Community Club made a decision to break away from a somewhat restrictive drinks supply contract thus enabling them to offer cask ales to their members and guests. This first came to my attention just before Christmas 2006 when I popped into the club and spotted a festive ale on hand pump which came as a very pleasant surprise. Since then the club have added three more hand pumps and on most weekends offer four cask ales including regulars London Pride, locally produced Weatheroak (Royal Victoria Works Brewery, Studley) plus 2 rotating guests.

General Manager Alan Griffin and his team work hard to ensure the beer is always at it's best with Alan always taking the time to thoroughly flush the pipes through before putting a new barrel on, often followed by some good natured banter with the customers being made to guess what's on next before the appropriate pump clip is finally attached.

After the successful introduction of cask ales at Wythall House other pubs in Wythall followed their example albeit with a rather limited choice by comparison, a step in the right direction though. All we need now is a name for the horse!

Although the Wythall Community club is a private members club they welcome card carrying CAMRA members who should make themselves known to the bar staff (regulations and all that).

Wythall's 1st Beer Festival. - On the Friday 15th and Saturday 16th of October the club is holding it's first ever beer festival featuring up to 12 local cask ales from Worcestershire and Warwickshire breweries plus a couple of traditional ciders.

On Friday evening visitors will have the chance to 'meet the brewer' Dave Smith from the award winning Weatheroak Brewery in Studley. Dave has been a major contributor to making this festival possible.

Entrance fee to the festival is £2 which includes a festival glass (refundable) with all ales being priced at £2.50 a pint (£1.25 for a half) using the familiar "beer voucher" payment system. Food will also be on sale.

The event will be held in the Britannia function room attached to the Wythall Community Club.

Festival opening times

• Friday 15th October 5pm – 11pm
• Saturday 16th October 12 noon – 11pm

For further information please contact Alan Griffin on 01564 82 3281

Volunteers also needed to help out – please contact the above number.

1. Beacon Hotel, Sedgley.
2. Bell, Pensax.
3. Bell, Trysull.