AGM at The Wheatsheaf, Shedfield, 11th December 2014

After another year of dedicated devotion to duty in 2014, the gentlemen members of the Pie Club gathered together at The Wheatsheaf Inn, Shedfield for their annual general meeting.  Our choice of venue was, of course, an acknowledgement of the very special place in our hearts occupied by the Wheatsheaf.  We will never forget that momentous pie we were served in 2012 which won the Pie of the Year Award that year. Add to that the excellent range of Flowerpots Ales available here at very low prices and we have what has become the spiritual home of the Pie Club and the gold standard against which all other pubs are measured.  Knowing that our hosts, Tim and Sally, had laid on another very special pie for us, we were eager to get the formal business of the day completed quickly so that we could get on with the much more important business of tackling another Wheatsheaf pie.

We agreed that in future our annual award for excellence would be "The Pie Club Pub of the Year" rather than "The Pie of the Year". This is a more accurate reflection of the fact that our award is based not just on the quality of the pie, but also on the overall experience of the pub visit.

We then went on to consider which pub should receive this coveted award for 2014. Here are the scores for each of the pubs that we visited this year:

1. The Black Dog, Waltham Chase (27/11/2014): 22.34
2. The Bucks Head, Meonstoke (25/09/2014): 22.32
3. The Kings Head, Hursley (29/05/2014): 21.59
4. The Brewery Bar, Botley (24/04/2014): 21.54
5. The Ship Inn, Owslebury (23/01/2014): 21.13
6. The Rising Sun, Swanmore (30/10/2014): 21.07
7. The Hampshire Bowman, Dundridge (26/06/2014): 20.70
8. The Queen Inn, Winchester (24/07/2014): 20.58
9. The Brickmakers, Swanmore (27/03/2014): 19.98
10. The Hurdles, Droxford (28/08/2014): 19.20

It was a very close contest, with the Black Dog in Waltham Chase winning by a very narrow margin. Our hearts go out to Nicki and Shaun at The Bucks Head, who must have thought that with their bold imaginative move of serving us 2 pies each they had the award in the bag, and perhaps in any other year they would have won, but they were just pipped at the post by Peter and Kathy at the Black Dog with their equally bold and innovative idea of offering us a Sausage, Bacon & Black Pudding Pie. Commiserations are due to all the other venues - there were no bad pies here, and everyone did very well.  

Congratulations to Peter and Sally at The Black Dog for a well-deserved win. We are looking forward to our next visit to The Black Dog, in March, when we will present the award.

Now on to more important matters.  While we were deliberating over our AGM, we were well assisted by the excellent range of beers which were available:

We found that these ales were a great help in our decision making. Meanwhile, Sally had prepared a special Steak & Kidney Pie for us. When it was brought out for us there was a moment of respectful silence followed by a buzz of appreciation as we saw just how good it was. 

We helped ourselves.  Made with short crust pastry, and served with perfectly cooked carrots, brocolli and new potatoes, with a jug of gravy on the side, this was as near perfect as a pie can possibly be.

The end result was inevitable - a full set of empty plates and very happy gentlemen:

To use our usual methods to evaluate this experience would be an insult to all concerned. This experience is sublime. It is beyond evaluation. Suffice to say, this pub will continue to be the spiritual home of the Pie Club, and sets the standard by which all other pubs are measured. We are looking forward to our next visit to The Wheatsheaf, which will probably be in December for our next AGM, unless we can think of some excuse for not waiting as long as that. 

The Hurdles, Droxford, 28th August 2014

As Pieman was unable to attend this month's trip to The Hurdles in Droxford, mini Pieman (also known as Porky Pie) stepped into the breach to bring to you news of our latest venture!

The Hurdles has a very good reputation in the area as an excellent Bar/Restaurant so we felt it was about time we paid them a visit to savour their pies.

So, Nick, Paul (tall), Paul (Lord North), Doug, Eric and Trev met outside the BW Tandoori to board our taxi for the short trip to Droxford. The taxi was spot on time, thank you driver Tony, so we arrived at the Hurdles in plenty of time to sample their beers before the main event. Gordon, a new member, who has recently moved to Meonstoke joined us there. There was some discussion between some of the members whether Gordon should be allowed to join as he does not live in Bishops Waltham but if nothing else we are a fair bunch and respect equal opportunities for all so we welcomed Gordon into the fold. Also 2 other members live out of the area!

We received a friendly welcome when entering the pub and we were all highly impressed by the pleasant ambience.

There were two real ales on offer, Bowman Ales Wallops Wood 4%  and Goddard's Fuggle Dee Dum 4.8%. Tall Paul went for his usual Guinness and the rest of us opted for the Wallops Wood, a beer we were all very familiar with and always in good 'nick'. Unfortunately, the beer was not in good 'nick' and after much patience by the barmaid it was discovered that it was the end of the barrel and she scuttled off to put a new one on. In the meantime we settled for a pint of Fuggle Dee Dum which was fine. The new barrel of Wallops Wood was also fine.

We were very pleased to be offered a choice of pies, a Steak and Kidney Suet Pudding or Chicken and Chorizo. Three of us went for the former and four the latter. The pies came with cabbage and mashed potato or you could opt for large chips or french fries as an alternative to the potatoes. Additionally, individual jugs of gravy were provided, which we like.

Steak and Kidney Pudding

Chicken and Chorizo

Both pies were substantial with very good fillings. The Chicken and Chorizo pie had a short crust pastry bottom and sides with a flaky pastry top which was excellent. When you cut into the pie it was a bit surprising to see a 'flood' of gravy pour out of the pie! However, this did not have a detrimental effect on the taste of this pie which was very good indeed. Those who opted for the Steak and Kidney Pudding were rather surprised to see it arrive with a baked suet crust rather than the traditional soft suet casing and felt it did not really work with this type of pie. However, most of the plates were cleared and after a beer break we duly moved on to the pudding menu.

There were a good choice of puddings and the group went for the following selection:

Bakewell Tart with Clotted Cream

Banana Crumble with Ice Cream

Cheese and Biscuits

....and especially for Nick a very interesting looking Mint & Chocolate Chip Ice Cream!

Everyone agreed the puddings were excellent and we just had time to finish up our beer, pay the bill as our taxi arrived. On returning to Bishops Waltham some of us retired to the Crown to contemplate life!

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

• Pastry 3.5
• Filling 4.15
• Beer 3.25
• Ambience 4
• Value 4.25
• Overall 19.15

An enjoyable time was had by all with excellent service. The score of 19.15 out of a possible 25 is a good score and may well have been higher if there had not been for an initial hiccup with the beer and the steak and kidney pudding had had a traditional casing. However, as always, this is down to personal taste. The lunchtime offer of 2 courses for £13. 50 is excellent value for money.