A first-ever visit to Cheltenham, an elegant town in Gloucestershire, famed for horse racing and numerous festivals. It's also home to plenty of pubs and one of the country's most important breweries....
The train was pretty much on time as it pulled into Cheltenham Spa station on its way to Bristol Temple Meads, its station name reflecting one of its prime attributes. I had only once called here for a quick stop for fuel on my way to Gloucester a few years ago, whilst I had also been nearby when I'd been to the racing at the famous course on the edge of the Cotswolds, but we'd not come in to the town itself.
Cheltenham grew up as a spa town and tourist resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, becoming fashionable and succeeding in attracting the well-to-do who would come here to take the waters. The town often claims to be the finest Regency town in the country, with many of the elegant buildings and parks that are spread around parts of the town such as Montpelier emanating from the late 18th/early 19th century period. Horse racing also became popular from the 18th century and today it contributes a significant amount of income to the local economy, particularly during Gold Cup week which takes place in the middle of March. The town is also host to a number of festivals over the course of the year. And of course nearby there are the Cotswolds, with some gentle rolling countryside and lovely old villages with their mellow gold stone buildings. Meanwhile, Cheltenham nowadays, with a population just shy of 120,000, is the home of the Superdry fashion brand and GCHQ, the country's security centre.
I alighted from the train, and walked up from the platform to the sound of gentle lilting chatter from people waiting for the next train. Across the bridge was a pub where I could have a beer whilst I got my bearings. The pub was the Steam & Whistle where in the middle of a couple of fonts selling an array of craft beers and lagers from a number of big multi-national companies, there was a solitary hand pump serving Fortitude from the ever-dependable Bristol Beer Company. The place was quiet on this early Thursday afternoon, but it was a good few minutes before anyone appeared behind the bar to take my order. My only companions were a miserable-seeming couple at a neighbouring table. My beer was a decent enough pint to kick off my visit to Cheltenham (NBSS 3), which I sipped to the accompaniment of a pretty decent soundtrack whilst getting my bearings and sorting an Uber to get me to my Premier Inn in the centre of town.
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| Welcome to Cheltenham; Steam & Whistle |
My Uber duly arrived, and after a ride through busy streets I was dropped off at my Premier Inn, shrouded in scaffolding above a huge Go Outdoors in the so-called Brewery Quarter, in recognition of the former Flowers brewery that occupied the site and whose former tower forms part of what is otherwise the usual bland and amorphous leisure complex you can find anywhere in the country. I got checked in, dropped my bag off, and headed out. Premier Inns are of course owned by Whitbread, who were responsible for closing down Flowers and numerous other breweries across the country before ultimately pulling out of brewing to focus on hotels and chain eating places such as Brewer's Fayre and Beefeater.
I set off from the hotel, and found one of the Good Beer Guide-listed pubs not far away. Moon Under Water is a Wetherspoons pub on Bath Road which felt very much like a locals pub and had a warm and welcoming atmosphere. My pint of Cheltenham Gold, brewed by well-established local brewers Goffs, was in fine form, a well-balanced beer which belied its stated ABV of 4.5% (NBSS 3). I hung around here and nurtured the last of my pint as a sudden heavy downpour clattered on the roof of the pub.
The rain eased, I finished my pint, and I set off for the next pub, being diverted by an old pub on the corner of James Street and High Street with an attractive tiled exterior. The Vine was quite busy and with the bar being fairly tightly surrounded by customers, I couldn't see any of the cask beers that were on. There were a number of keg beers on a font right in front of me, so I went for a half of Wonderland from New Bristol Brewery, a refreshing and enjoyable juicy smooth 4% hazy session pale featuring Citra, Mosaic, and Sabro hops. The pub specialises in offering Thai food and despite the earliness of the evening there were already a number of tables occupied by diners. A pleasant pub that is well worth calling in.
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| The Vine, Cheltenham |
Next up, and just a little further along High Street was the best pub I found in Cheltenham. The Strand is a wine bar-type place which looks like it was a shop in an earlier life, with large windows looking over the street to give a light and airy feel to the interior. There was exposed brickwork, painted walls featuring the odd mural, and with seating at a mix of high and low tables. The bar dominated one wall at the side of the room with its attractive high back shelves featuring an array of bottles of spirits and liqueurs amongst assorted pub clutter. There were a number of hand pumps on the bar, unusually without any pump clips. It did confuse me when I walked in though as I thought no cask beer was on until the friendly girl behind the bar pointed me in the direction of a board on the wall to the side of the bar with the cask beers listed along with around a dozen keg beers, which with a number of ciders took the number of pours to almost 20. From the three cask beers listed I went for Flyin' Try, a rugby union-themed 4.3% session pale from Hop Union, another Bristol-based brewery which was quite pleasant (NBSS 3). The Bristolian-theme was continued with a pint of Saskadena, a delicious 4.5% NEIPA featuring Citra and Azacca hops from Arbor which was on keg. Best of all though, and also from Bristol, was the pint of cask Ruck It Up (they like their rugby in these parts!), a beautifully balanced bitter from Good Chemistry which I had when I called in the following lunch time which warranted a 4 on the NBSS scale. An essential pub to call in when in Cheltenham.
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| The Strand, Cheltenham |
A little further along High Street is the Sandford Park Ale House, which takes its name from the nearby park. A modern pub in an attractive white building, it was CAMRA National Pub Of The Year for 2015. Featuring a U-shaped bar with 10 hand pumps offering a range of real ales along with a number of craft beers and a selection of bottled foreign beers and lagers, the pub consists of a snug to the front and a larger room to the front of the bar, with an offshoot featuring a bar billiard table. There is also a function room upstairs and a garden to the rear for brighter days. A regular brewery on the bar here is Wye Valley, and I went for a pint of their best-selling Butty Bach, a 4.5% premium bitter with a well-balanced malty sweetness. Another very good pint (NBSS 3.5). The Sandford came over as a quite a relaxed place with a mixed crowd and is another recommended stop on any tour of Cheltenham.
I went for a burger at a place called Beefy Boys which was very busy but the food was absolutely spot on, and here I was able to drink my first DEYA beer of the trip, a trademark hazy pale brewed specially for the restaurant. DEYA are of course based in Cheltenham, and my plan was to visit their taproom the following day.
On my way back to the hotel I called in at the Bank House, the second Wetherspoons in the town that is included in the Good Beer Guide. This former bank has a striking and attractive exterior, many interesting internal features, and is Grade II-listed. The usual photos and local bits of information adorn the walls, whilst the 7 hand pumps on the bar feature the usual Wetherspoons selection along with a mix of local beers. And so to conclude the day's proceedings I went for another half of Cheltenham Gold which was pleasant enough (NBSS 3). The pub was still quite busy when I headed off home after a varied and interesting day and night.
The following morning whilst in search of breakfast I headed out in to the town and walked up the Montpelier area of the town, passing many elegant buildings and crescents along with a couple of extensive open areas which give this part of the town an open and spacious feel. High-class boutiques sit next to classy-looking restaurants like the Ivy with not a vape shop or a takeaway to be seen, whilst parked by the roadside were Range Rovers, Ferrari, and other expensive marques. At one point I had to wait for a lime-green Porsche to pass before I could cross the road. I found breakfast at a bar called Harry Cook's overlooking Montpelier Gardens, and breakfasted on Eggs Benedict.
I checked out of the hotel and with it being nearly 12 wandered around to the Brewhouse & Kitchen round the back of the hotel. This is one of 20 locations where the company have their brewpubs, which includes as the name suggests an onsite microbrewery along with a bar and kitchen. They are based chiefly in the south west and along the south coast, with a few sites in London, but their only location north of Nottingham is Chester. I had only been to their site in Gloucester before this one, and I walked in here to find it quite busy despite the early hour, with a few families enjoying an early lunch. From the cask range I ordered a pint of the 4% Session Pale, light and hoppy and brewed on the premises but ultimately rather bland (NBSS 3). It is an interesting concept and with brewery experience days, gin tastings, and various other events, there is plenty to keep people interested in what is an pleasant enough bar with gleaming brass and copper in abundance amidst an industrial looking modern bar.
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| Brewhouse & Kitchen |
It was a short walk to the only other pub I visited. The Cotswold is a small pub at a typically Cheltonian busy junction on the corner of an otherwise quiet street of Georgian buildings. It is owned by Wiltshire-based brewers Wadworth and it was decades since I'd last been in one of their pubs. I walked in to loud rock music which was blasting out to an empty pub save for a tattooed lady with coloured hair behind the bar and so the musical choice all made sense. She was very pleasant and I ordered a half of 6X and went to find a seat. Most of the chairs and tables were pushed against the wall so there was a big open space in the middle of the pub as if expecting a large crowd of lager-swilling lads, and so I had to move a table out so I could sit down. Most of the walls featured photos of horses and racing in general, whilst a sign declared Céad MÃle Fáilte, a reminder that many of the visitors to the upcoming Cheltenham Races head over from Ireland. My beer was in decent condition, but I have to say 6X is a little too sweet for my taste (NBSS 3).
My final destination was the main reason I had come to Cheltenham. Because of its location a matter of yards away from the railway station, I had decided to call at the DEYA Taproom last, hoping to end my trip on a high. I arrived outside at just before 2, just before the large pink gates with crocodile artwork to a large unit on a industrial estate opened to let myself and a waiting couple in. I wandered into a yard with a large tank with DEYA branding, empty pallets, and tables and benches which would be unlikely to be used on this wet Friday afternoon. The taproom itself was large with a huge mural on one wall with a sign exhorting us to Drink Fresh. There were rows of tables and a large listing on one wall of the beers available on hand pump and from the line of taps below. Down the full length of the room could be seen the impressive brewery with its gleaming stainless vessels with a capacity of 40 hectolitres.
DEYA was set up by Theo Freyne in 2016. He'd worked for legendary US brewer Doug Odell, and wanted to create something in the style of Odells here in the UK. So they began brewing a range of hop-forward beers which were unfined, unfiltered, unpasteurised, and highly drinkable. Things really took off when they launched the serial award-winning Steady Rolling Man, a 5.2% juicy hazy pale, which was of course available here and one of the beers I sampled. I also tried Magazine Cover, a 4.2% hazy session pale, Into the Haze, a 6.2% IPA featuring Simcoe and Citra, Brett Pale, a refreshing mixed fermentation beer with wild yeasts giving a slightly sour taste, and Glue, their 6% annual release IPA which this year contained Nelson Sauvin, Motueka, and Nectaron hops. All were halves, in case you were wondering, and all were delicious!
And then it was time to go for the train. I had enjoyed my visit to DEYA and to Cheltenham too. With plenty more pubs to go at as well there is plenty of scope for a return visit sometime in the future....
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