On 5th April, several of us popped down to Southampton to explore some local hostelries. A 20 minute walk from Southampton Central station brought us to our first stop, the Dancing Man Brewery and Taproom near the ferry and cruise ship terminals. This is set in a rejuvenated 14th Century building, and had an extensive range of excellent cask and craft keg beers. Just around the corner we sampled some Wadworth ales and great pub grub at the Duke of Wellington, again historic having been burnt down at least twice due to enemy action. Further into town centre we stopped at the London Hotel, beautifully glazed tile exterior and snazzy interior, with a couple of ales on.

After another decent walk through Palmerston Park. we stopped at the cavernous London Road Brewhouse. Unfortunately brew kit not in use, and only a couple of ales. However the next stop was a real gem, the wonderful Guide Dog, very homely local which features up to 11 ales, though on our visit a mere 8! All interesting, and knowledgeable landlord was keen for us to try an ale fresh on. Could have stayed all day, but tempus fugit. Next stop was the Bookshop Alehouse, a micro pub which doubles as a second hand bookshop, again some cracking ales. Final stop was the South Western Arms with 9 ales, and adjacent to St. Denys Station for the trip home.

A great day out, we raised a glass to our late friend Hugh Wood, thank you very much Andy D for organising.

New flavours, and a desire for more choice, helped stout consumption in UK increase by 23% between 2021 and 2022. There are now apparently more women drinking stout as well. For more, see an interesting article in the Guardian Higher stout consumption.

A dozen members attended our annual AGM, which was held in the excellent Thames Side Brewery in Staines. We were also joined by our Regional Director Paul Saunders, who despite the official sounding title, is a volunteer like us all. We received and discussed our report on last year, membership numbers and activity, adopted accounts and set next year's objectives. Our thanks to Leo for the photographic tips.

Final and important part of business, was election of of the committee. Most people stood again, but unfortunately our Secretary Anthony stood down as he has moved some distance out of Branch area. He was thanked by all present for a job well done, especially keeping the Chair in line, and presented with a CAMRA award certificate and some embarrassing photos in thanks.

So we are in urgent need of a Secretary. A link to responsibilities are shown on our Branch Roles page, along with other roles. If you'd like to find out more, and find out what we're like, come along to a meeting, or just contact me via Chair

Contacts shows this and other vacancies. Without volunteers, the Branch cannot function.

BAD NEWS: The Summer Great British Beer Festival aka the GBBF is taking a year off in 2024. The difficult decision not to go ahead next year was taken as Olympia could not secure the dates we required, impacting on our volunteers and potentially other events across the country. In addition, ongoing building works might also impact on ability to host our flagship festival to the usual high standard. Other venues have been explored, but due to timescales, costs and Festival requirements we have been unsuccessful.

GOOD NEWS: Well, a bit of a surprise, but at least plenty of notice given. GBBF volunteers are encouraged to look at other CAMRA events taking place across the country, where your expertise would no doubt be invaluable. If you're looking to attend a local Beer Festival, you may well find info on our Diary & What's On page, and for main CAMRA Festivals nationwide see CAMRA Beer Festivals.

On Saturday 25th November 2023, several members set out in bright if chilly sunshine to explore some Englefield Green pubs. See Englefield Green Walkabout to find out what happened.