Shotton pub features in Campaign for Real Ale’s 50th anniversary Good Beer Guide

A Shotton pub has been included in Campaign for Real Ale’s (CAMRA) 50th anniversary Good Beer Guide.

The Guide, which surveys 4,500 of the best pubs across the UK, is the definitive beer drinker’s guide to the very best pints in the most picturesque and friendly pubs.

To be listed in CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide is a fantastic achievement for a pub.

The Guide is based entirely on personal recommendations made by local CAMRA members, which are rigorously reviewed by branches and editors.

Recommendations consider beer quality as well as the history and architecture of a pub and various aspects such as food, gardens, family and disabled facilities, and special events.

Six Flintshire pubs have made it into the 2023 Good Beer Guide including the Central Hotel in Shotton.

The entry for the Weatherspoons-owned pub says “this local landmark was built in the 1920s beside the railway station, and refurbished in 2008 when it reverted to its original name.”

“It stands on what was marshland, alongside the River Dee. Its interior is in typical Wetherspoon mock-Edwardian style, with a single large bar partially separated into three similarly furnished areas.”

“Two changing guest beers are served alongside three standard ales. Monthly events include Meet the Brewer evenings.”

Mold Ale House is once again included in the Good Beer Guide, the entry for Earl Chambers hostelry says: “Since opening in 2016, this micropub has won many CAMRA and gained a strong following based on sound principles of good beer, fellowship and conversation.”

Other Flintshire pubs in the 2023 Good Beer Guide include The Bridge Inn in Pontyblyddyn, the Cross Foxes at Nannerch, the Gold Cape in Mold and The Fox in Ysceifiog.

The guide 

The first edition in 1974 was just 96 pages in length and listed around 1,500 pubs with a brewery section covering just 105 brewing companies. Today, the Good Beer Guide features 1,864 breweries across the nation.

Just five pubs across the UK have made it into each edition of the Guide – known as the “famous five”. These pubs include the Star Tavern and the Buckingham Arms in London, the Roscoe Head in Liverpool, the Square & Compass in Dorset, and the Queen’s Head in Newton, Cambridgeshire.

CAMRA does not take any fees for listings to ensure the guide remains independent and unbiased, its National Chairman Nik Antona said:

“It is a huge achievement that we’re able to celebrate 50 years of publishing the Good Beer Guide, and a real testament to the hard work and dedication of our volunteers, who undertake the assessments.

“What makes the Guide unique is that all the entries are compiled and vetted by a huge volunteer team based around the country. ”

“We work hard to ensure that all areas of the country are covered and, unlike some competitor titles, inclusion in this book is dependent on merit – not on payment.”

“The last few years have been an incredibly difficult time for the industry, and we need more support than ever before to keep our nation’s pubs open and thriving. ”

“I’d encourage everyone to use this year’s Guide to visit the very best pubs across the UK and support them for generations to come.”

The Good Beer Guide, sponsored by Cask Marque, is set to be published on 27 October 2022. To order, visit: https://shop1.camra.org.uk/product/the-good-beer-guide-2023/