The Elm Tree, Swanwick, 28th July 2016

The Elm Tree, Swanwick, 28th July 2016

This was a new venue for Pie Club so we set off for the short taxi ride to Swanwick.

 On arrival we were delighted to find that three of our favourite beers were available on handpump.

Most of us started on the Flowerpots Bitter - 3.8% and during the course of the lunch also sampled Doom Bar - 4.0% and the delightful but deceptively strong Goodens Gold - 4.8%. All the beers were in excellent condition, as was the Guinness - to the delight of our Guinness drinking member. Whilst enjoying the beer we had to make a choice between three pies on offer - Lamb and Vegetable, Chicken Ham and Leek and Steak and Stilton. Now having already chosen our beer to have to make another decision so quickly was beyond most of us, so by the time we had decided the last Lamb and Vegetable pie had gone, but we still had  two to choose from.

Both the pies on offer were individual pies with shortcrust pastry tops and came with either chips or new potatoes with an excellent selection of vegetables, thus ensuring that we all got our '5 a day' which is important to healthy eating gents like us!

The pies were also accompanied by extra gravy in jugs, just as we like it. Both pies had good fillings with plenty of meat and the overall opinion was that they were good pies. A special mention for the chips that were excellent.

All plates were cleared so it was a surprise that most of us elected to have a pudding. But the pudding selection was very tempting, so it just had to be done!

By the time we had finished the puddings most of us felt like having a snooze, but the taxi was beckoning to take us back to Bishops Waltham.

Scores (max. 5 in each category, 25 overall): 

• Pastry 3.91
• Filling 4.44
• Beer 4.53
• Ambience 4.21
• Value 4.15
• Overall 21.24

A very enjoyable first visit to the Elm Tree and our thanks to Lorraine and all the staff for their service and for making us so welcome.

The Rising Sun, Swanmore, 30th October 2014

We had previously visited The Rising Sun, Swanmore, as our fifth outing back in 2011 when we were but a fledgling group with just 5 members. So we felt it was time to revisit this excellent pub.

As we are all in to fitness and health matters we decided to walk the 2 miles to the pub - this also helps to build up a thirst and offset the expected pie and possibly pudding intake. So in various groups, Nick, Trevor, Gordon, Stephen, Paul (Lord North) and Eric set off from Bishops Waltham, joined by Doug at Swanmore and at the pub by Joe who had elected to cycle over.

On arrival at the Rising Sun we were greeted by the welcome sight of four beers on hand pump and were informed that there was also a beer in the barrel we could also sample - so a busy afternoon was anticipated!

We were all very impressed with the selection of beers, some that we had never tasted before. There was Sharp's Doom Bar 4%, Irving Best Irving Type 42 Best 4.2% from Portsmouth, That Old Chestnut 5.2% from  Weltons Brewery in Horsham, Tom Cat 4.7% from Red Cat Brewing, Winchester, and Golden Arrow 4.5% from Cottage Brewing in Somerset, so we got tucked in!

After a couple of pints we decided it was time for the pie which was a steak and ale pie served up with peas, separate chips and gravy with additional jugs of gravy - just as we like it. It was served with a sprig of greenery on top which was soon removed!

Overall, everyone felt it was a good pie with a nice short crust pastry and plenty of filling. Despite generous helpings some of us still had room for puddings! Those that participated chose:

Rice pudding with clotted cream

Lemon Cheesecake

Chocolate Brownie

Treacle pudding

Again all the puddings were well received and all plates cleared!

We then slowly finished off our beers, the last one very kindly on the house - thank you!

Overall a very good return to the Rising Sun and many commented that it was one of our best meetings in terms of the ambience and excellent discussion created by good food and good beer.

We then headed back to Bishops Waltham stopping off for some refreshment enroute at the Brickmakers!

The scores for the Rising Sun, gratefully compiled by Nick are:

Scores (max of 5 in each category, 25 overall):

• Pastry 4.25
• Filling 4.06
• Beer 4.53
• Ambience 4.04
• Value 4.20
• Overall 21.08

The Rising Sun is currently in 5th place out of the 9 visits this year in what is proving to be a very close contest.

The Kings Head, Hursley, 29th May 2014

This was Eric's first time to choose the venue, and he surprised us all by choosing to go to The Kings Head at Hursley, described by Google as an "Ivy-clad Georgian inn with classy bedrooms and a rustic-chic restaurant with a Modern British menu", so ... maybe not in the same league as the pubs we usually go to, and maybe a bit too classy for the likes of us. Still, "onwards and upwards" we said to each other as we waited in our customary position outside the Bishops Waltham Tandoori  for our taxi, working up a healthy appetite by breathing deeply in the curry aromas wafting from the nearby kitchen. Once again we were let down by the pre-booked taxi, but Chase Cars came to our rescue, and soon we found ourselves in the unfamiliar surroundings of Hursley, outside the Kings Head.

On our best behaviour, we ventured inside, to be met by a very welcome sight:

In no time at all we cast aside our inhibitions as we surveyed the choice of ales and settled into our first pints of Itchen Valley Belgarum 3.9%, except for Tall Paul, who, as usual, preferred Guinness.  As we enjoyed our Belgarum, we checked out the other ales that were available: Andwell's King John Ale 4.2%,
the ever-popular Bowman Ales' Wallops Wood 4.0%, Ringwood Ales Best Bitter 3.8%, and the ubiquitous Sharp's Doom Bar 4%. All in all, a fine selection of ales which some of us did our best to sample, but others were content to stay with the Belgarum for the whole session as it was such a fine ale and in very good condition.

Eric had already discussed the menu with his friend Jimmy (current owner of the Kings Head), so we knew in advance what we would be getting. Jimmy explained to us that we weren't in the pie season so he'd had to provide something special for us. No complaints there! We had a choice of Beef Bourgignon Pie or Rabbit & Prune Pie. This put us all in a bit of a pickle as we'd never had either of those pies before on any of our outings. After some discussion we realised that "Beef Bourgignon" means "Beef with Mushrooms and Red Wine", which we all agreed sounded rather good. On the other hand some of us have digestive systems which have seen better days (it happens to men as they get older) and were rather concerned about the effects that prunes might have on them*. In the end, after a lot of discussion, 2 of us decided to try the Beef Bourgignon, 4 of us decided to live dangerously and try the Rabbit & Prune, and none of us was disappointed. The pies all came with "greens and mash" - no choice - but the Beef Bougignon pies were served with plain Mash and a red wine gravy, and the Rabbit & Prune pies came with Mustard Mash and a mustard gravy. The "greens" were broccoli. 

At first glance the portions looked to us to be a bit on the small side, but in fact they were ample. The pies were individually made, with a rich shortcrust pastry that literally melted in the mouth. The pie fillings were full of tender moist meat, and just the right degree of moisture. Even the prunes tasted good. In fact rabbit & prune is a partnership made in heaven. The sauce/gravy was served separately, in a jug, just the way we like it, and complemented the pies perfectly.  The mash and greens were done very nicely.  After we had all (without exception) cleared our plates, some of us found that we still had room for a pudding. The pudding menu lacked any of what we would call the old school favourites (which gentlemen of a certain age seem to relish), but the puddings that we tried were presented very nicely and were very tasty.

This is a very clean and tidy place to eat. Dining here is a very pleasant, refined experience, quite outside what we usually experience on other outings. We ate in a separate dining room, away from the bar, and the room was less than half full, so it was quiet and we had very few distractions, although when we first sat down we found ourselves sitting directly beneath a loudspeaker from which musak (one of our pet hates) could be heard loudly enough to make it difficult for us to hear what others were saying, but when we mentioned this to a nice waitress it was turned down (not off!) straight away, so it wasn't really a problem.  The service was excellent - actually maybe a little over-attentive at times, as we were asked several times if we were ready to order our puddings. 

Our final bill for the food came to £38 each,  (The pies were £12.50 each, puddings £6.50 each, ale £3.80/pint), so it wasn't a cheap meal (compare with our previous outing, to the Brewery Bar, where the final bill was only £28 each), but the quality of the whole experience was outstanding, .

Scores for The Kings Head, Hursley (Max 5 in each category - total 25 overall)

Pastry - 4.42

Filling -  4.48

Beer   -  4.26

Ambience - 4.22

Value  - 4.23

Overall  - 21.59

These scores are in some ways quite curious as the pastry and filling were rated less good that those at the Brewery Bar, but the Beer and Ambience were scored much higher. As it is, the overall score of 21.59 is just high enough to nudge The Kings Head into first place in our rankings of pubs visited this year, ahead of the Brewery Bar by a mere 0.04 points. It just goes to show that we gentlemen appreciate a bit of class from time to time. Congratulations to Jimmy and the staff at the Kings Head, who looked after us very well, and thoroughly deserve this high score. 

* Regarding the prunes, at the time of writing, no ill-effects have been reported.

The Fox and Hounds, Fair Oak, 31st October 2013

After a few outings that involved getting a taxi to far-flung places, we felt it was time to revert to tradition and try out a local pub that we could get to on the bus, so for the October outing we decided to try the Fox and Hounds at Fair Oak. We'd been past it often enough on the 69 bus, and we thought "let's give it a go", so off we went. We had quite a good turnout for this trip: there was Lord North, Stephen, Nick, Si, Tall Paul, Doug, and the whole event was very well organised by Joe. We were also joined by Eric, who is seeking to become a full member of the Pie Club, but currently has candidate status.

The weather wasn't being very kind to us, but luckily the bus stop is right outside the pub, so we didn't have far to walk. When we found our way in we were given a warm welcome, and a choice of 3 ales.  Rather a limited choice, we thought.

Unfortunately the Directors was off, so we were left with Sharp's Doombar 4%, or Purity Ales Mad Goose IPA 4.7%. The Mad Goose looked a bit strong at 4.7% so we thought we'd save it for later. As usual Tall Paul had Guinness, which was OK, and the rest of us all had a pint of Doom Bar, which most of us thought was very good, although perhaps a little overchilled, but Nick complained that his beer smelled of bleach. He got a replacement pint without any trouble, and everone else was happy, so this was  probably an isolated incident.

As we drank our pints we took stock of our surroundings, and started to worry. The place is huge. There was a big conservatory in the distance, used as a dining room, which seemed to be empty. The main bar area was large and empty, except for us, and the TV/snooker room next door was inhabited to two sad-looking gentlemen who seemed to be very interested in the bottoms of their beer glasses and not much else. The TV was on, but nobody was watching it. There was was a fruit machine there. There was background music on in the conservatory. Sadly, even though a few more customers turned up as the session continued, the ambience failed to improve.

On the Specials board there was a choice of 2  pies: Steak & Stilton, or Baked Steak, Mushroom & Stout, both at £10.95. Steak or Steak we thought.

Luckily, there were 2 more pies available on the standard menu: Chicken Ham & Leek, or Steak & Kidney Pudding with suet pastry. All at £9.95. Now you're talking!  Most of us couldn't resist the chance of having an Steak & Kidney Pudding with Suet Pastry, but Tall Paul (who always enjoys being different) opted for the Steak & Stilton Pie, and why shouldn't he?  The pies came with mixed vegetables and a choice of potatoes: new, mashed, or chipped. 

The pies looked good, and actually tasted okay, but we suspect they were mass-produced in a factory somewhere, not home-made. There was a difference of opinion about the suet pastry: it seems some people like their suet pastry crisp, and others like it soft.  This is obviously a contentious issue, and one which we need to discuss at great length.  These Steak & Kidney puddings came with crisp suet pastry. The chips probably came from frozen, and weren't cooked very well. The vegetables (cauliflower, carrots and brocolli) were cooked from fresh and were okay, although a bit tasteless. The gravy was good, and served the way it should be, in a separate jug, and there was plenty of it, which was just as well.

Several of us still had room for pudding.

Two of us wanted to have the Toffee Crunch Slice, but there was only one portion left. The lucky person who had this pudding found that it wasn't very good, and left half of it. Someone else had the Lemon Meringue Pie, and felt that that wasn't very good either. Someone else had the Cheesecake, which was okay.

By this time some of us wanted to try the Mad Goose IPA, brewed by Purity Ales, in Warwickshire. This is an ale that we hadn't come across before. It looked cloudy, but (benefit of the doubt) maybe that's the way it's supposed to look. Those who tried it said that it was okay, but nobody went back for a second pint.

The loos looked clean, but there was no paper in the towel dispenser, and no hot water in the hot water tap. The service was good - beer was brought to our table just as we like it. Whatever faults we found with this pub were not the fault of the bar staff.

Scores (max. 5 in each category, 25 overall): 

• Pastry 3.84

• Filling 3.97

• Beer 3.84

• Ambience 2.75

• Value 3.98

• Overall 18.38

With this score the Fox and Hounds leaps straight into 8th place out of the 9 pubs that we've visited so far this year. The only pub worse that this was The Crown, which we visited in May and was really bad. Despite this poor score we all actually quite enjoyed our meal, and happily went on to consider our verdict in the lush confines of ... The Crown (the beer in The Crown is good - it was the food and service which was bad).

On reflection, perhaps it does us good to have a bad experience from time to time. After a long run of excellent pies, it helps us maintain our perspective.

The Bunch of Grapes, Bishops Waltham, 26th August 2012

To help us celebrate the first anniversary of  the founding of the Pie Club we invited spouses, friends, and hangers-on to join us at a very special venue, our favourite pub of all time, The Bunch of Grapes in Bishops Waltham.

As usual, we were warmly greeted by Stuart, the landlord, who immediately offered us a choice of Goddards Ale of Wight 3.7%, or Sharps Doom Bar 4%. Two very acceptable ales.

 This was also the first occasion on which all members of the Pie Club managed to turn up for a meeting, and here is (very nearly) the proof (Doug was present, but too busy chatting with some ladies to make himself available for this historic photo). Here we (nearly) all are, proudly wearing our Pie Club badges:

The Bunch of Grapes is well-known as a beer-drinker's pub, but not so well known for its ability to serve up food. In fact they don't serve food at all, generally. But we Pie Club members are a resourceful lot, and Trev ordered a special delivery of pies from the Manydown Butchery, an award-winning butchery and farm shop near Basingstoke. Not just one pie, but two. For starters we had a Traditional Pork Pie, recent winner at the recent Butches Q Guild Awards Ceremony:

This was an excellent cold pork pie, very tasty, though maybe a little on the large side, as it didn't leave a lot of room for what was to follow. What could possibly follow a pie starter? Well obviously, a pie main course.  This was a hot Beef & Burgundy Pie (also a recent winner at the recent Butches Q Guild Awards Ceremony), served with delicious mashed potato and peas:

This was a very tasty pie, and the mashed potatoes were very good too. In a pub which doesn't normally do any catering, it took a lot of effort and organisation to serve more than 40 hot pies out all at the same time, so our thanks go to Mandy, the lovely landlady, and her helpers, who did an excellent job. In recognition of her efforts, Mandy was duly elected an honorary member of the Pie Club, and here she is proudly showing off her badges:

To round off the evening there was a pie-themed quiz, in which, contrary to expectations, the Pie Club members seemed to do very badly, but at least that shows that it was all fair and above-board, which is more than can be said, perhaps, for the raffle, in which some Pie Club members did very well. In spite of that, the raffle raised a substantial sum in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital. 

Trev expressed the thoughts of all of us when he thanked Stuart & Mandy and all the other people who helped to make this a memorable evening. And finally Pieman (who had been  observing the evening's proceedings from his secret bunker somewhere in Bishops Waltham) got in touch to give special thanks to Trev, who had organised the whole evening.

As we made our weary way home amid the gathering dark, most of the guests seemed to be quite pie-eyed, showing that they had had a good evening.

As the Pie Club members seemed to be among the most pie-eyed of them all, it proved to be impossible for them to formally score the session in the usual way. In any case, this was so different from our normal outings that the normal scoring system probably shouldn't apply. But an informal poll undertaken later by Pieman showed the following scores for The Bunch of Grapes, Bishops Waltham (Max 5 in each category - total 25 overall)

Pastry - 5

Filling -  5

Beer   -  5

Ambience - 5

Value  - 5

Overall  - 25