Alan and Kate are leaving the Maypole, Yapton on Sunday November 4, after several award-winning years (including CAMRA Regional Pub of the Year 2004).

No official word yet on where they’re going, but hopefully they won’t be defecting to a neighbouring branch :)

If you like loud clattering noises, Alan will be pushing the charity 2p pile over on Friday night.

The Bull in Chichester has reopened after a refit, with up to three real ales on gravity (though apparently shorter barstaff may have difficulty reaching the taps :)

Not quite sure what beers are on at the moment, though our roving reporter wil probably have paid them a visit before too long.

The beer festival planned for Nov 2–4 at the Maypole, Yapton has been cancelled.

We’re having an extra social this month that didn’t make it to What’s Brewing: the Ship & Anchor, Ford, is having a beer festival from Sep 7-9 (that’s next weekend!) and we’ll be along on the Friday night. There should be around 15-20 beers on.

Michael Jackson, beer writer and presenter of the TV series The Beer Hunter, has died at 65.

Shocking. I saw him (well, turned round from the bar and nearly knocked him over!) at the White Horse, Parson’s Green during GBBF week and he looked fit and well then. A sad loss.

CAMRA’s story

Daily Telegraph obituary

Marston’s has bought Ringwood Brewery for £19.2 million pounds.

The company has said that it is committed to the brewery, and that it will continue to brew Ringwood beers at Ringwood. While Marston’s has (so far) kept a similar promise regarding Jennings, the fear is that other large brewers will start snapping up small breweries in order to keep up — and those small breweries may well end up going the same way as King & Barnes did…

Story at the Publican’s site

The Yapton Beerex Saturday lunchtime session is sold out — but there’s still hope. If the weather’s fine, a lot of people sit outside on the lawn. As the fire safety limit only restricts the number of people in the hall, and our licence has a higher limit, we can let more people in (though you may have to wait outside for a bit if it gets crowded).

Keep an eye on the five day weather forecast — if it’s going to be fine, you should be able to pay on the door and get in anyway!

(Looking at the forecast for this weekend: aren’t you glad the beerex is a week later this year? :)

Announcing the 2007 Yapton provisional beer list. This is what’s been ordered, and mostly confirmed, but there will almost certainly be last-minute changes…

All tickets for the Saturday lunchtime session have now been sold. We still have tickets available for Friday night and Saturday night.

We’ve got a trip to the Bowman Brewery in Hampshire coming up on Saturday June 23. More details from our branch contact, Max, at IfItRainsItIsA.NastyDay@virgin.net or phone (01243) 828394. Cost TBC.

We should be visiting the Hampshire Bowman in Dundridge afterwards, too — and possibly a few more surprises in store!

Coach pickup points are also TBC, but Littlehampton, Yapton (hopefully with a breakfast option at the Maypole) Barnham and Chichester all look likely…