2012 Pie of the Year Award Presentation

After a year of dedicated devotion to duty in 2012, the gentlemen members of the Pie Club gathered together on 28th February 2013 for a formal presentation to the Landlord and Landlady at The Wheatsheaf Inn, Shedfield  in honour of the truly exceptional pie which they presented to us there on  29th May 2012 (a momentous occasion which will be long remembered by all who were present). 

Several members were seen to be dewy-eyed as they entered the hallowed premises, and noticed some familiar signs which brought back cherished memories of that famous day. Of course,  the excellent Flowerpots Ales, and a fine selection of other ales and ciders, are still available, all at prices which are but a dim memory for people who frequent other pubs. 

 It would have been rude for us to refuse the offer of ales at such prices, so we started at the top of the list, as is natural, and worked our way down.  We had already arranged for a replica Steak and Ale pie to be served on this occasion, but as there were 8 of us present this time our hosts had prepared two pies for us.  What could be better than that? Before the pies were served we presented our hosts with a commemorative certificate, which they were very pleased to receive. In fact, they seemed moved to tears:

Within minutes the certificate was proudly on display in prime position by the bar:

When the pies were served, we were not disappointed. Look at the size of the pie (this is one pie, for 4 people). Admire the colour and texture of the pastry:

When served out you are better able to appreciate the size of the helping:

The pies were accompanied by side dishes of freshly cooked vegetables, new potatoes in butter, and lashings of gravy served separately (our hosts had apparently taken note of the only criticism we made on our first visit).

This was a celebratory occasion, not a normal Pie Club outing, so we didn't do the usual formal assessment (we wouldn't subject The Wheatsheaf to such an indignity). Suffice to say, everything about this visit lived up to expectations, and we still think that this pie is a deserving winner of our sought-after Pie of the Year award. Congratulations once again to our hosts - may you long continue to maintain such high standards (and such low prices).

The Wheatsheaf has set such a high standard that challenge now for the Pie Club members is to seek out and sample worthy contenders for the title. We are undaunted. We will continue  devote ourselves with renewed vigour to the search for the perfect Pie & Pint.

The Queen Inn, St Cross, 31st January 2013

For our first outing of 2013 Nick suggested a visit to The Queen Inn, in St Cross, Winchester. This would be our first outing to Winchester. Unfortunately, due to travel and other commitments, only a few gentlemen were able to join Nick on this venture, so only Doug, Si, and Paul E were able to meet up with Nick in the square at Bishops Waltham on a cold but sunny winter day to catch the 69 bus to Winchester.  We had to rely on Nick to tell us when to get off the bus, as nobody else had any idea, but we managed okay, despite an unseemly squabble about who should press the bell to tell the bus driver when to stop. After a short walk we soon arrived at our destination:

This is a fine looking pub near Winchester College, and directly opposite the college cricket ground (although sadly a fence obscures the view, otherwise we'd be able to sit watching cricket while eating our pie and quaffing our ale, and it doesn't get any better than that). We were given a warm welcome by the bar staff and immediately confronted by a difficult choice of which ale to drink. This being a Greene King pub there were Greene King IPA 3.6% @ £3.40/pint, and Abbott Ale 5.0% @ £3.90/pint to choose from, and also a couple of guest ales: Elgoods EP (Pageant Ale) 4.3% @ £3.70/pint, and  York Brewery Yorkshire Terrier 4.2% @ £3.70/pint. Most of us chose to start with the weakest ale, with the clear intention of working up to the strongest. The IPA and the Yorkshire Terrier were both served well, at the right temperature, and very good.

As we were supping our first pint our attention was drawn to the extensive selection of whiskies on offer (at very reasonable prices) and some of us made a mental note to sample some of them later:

There was only one pie available on the menu, a deep-filled chicken & leek pie served with freshly-cooked seasonal vegetables and either mashed potatoes or chips, all for £9.50. So after not a lot of thought, we all ordered deep-filled chicken & leek pie served with freshly-cooked seasonal vegetables and either mashed potatoes or chips. When it arrived it looked fabulous:

The vegetables were perfectly cooked. The mashed potatoes and chips were very good. The gravy was pre-applied (no separate jug, so at least 0.1 point deducted) and a bit thin and watery, but still good enough. The pie was massive, at least 8cm deep, and packed solid with big chunks of well-cooked chicken and thick creamy sauce, and some greenish bits which we assumed were leek, but we couldn't really taste them. The pastry was thick and generous. Instead of our preferred short-crust pastry we determined that the pastry was actually Hot Water Crust Pastry, as used traditionally for pork pies, game pies, and other hand-raised savoury pies. Strictly speaking, this is the correct type of pastry to use for this type of pie (see cookipedia), and we liked it, although we found that the pastry (and the near-solid pie filling) were very filling. In fact, we felt so stuffed after eating the pie that we could only manage 2 puddings between us:

We felt obliged to try the Bread Pudding with Custard, and it was lovely, but we felt so stuffed that we  couldn't really appreciate it. At this point we realised that we'd overdone it, and despite only having had 3 pints of ale, we decided it was time to leave.  As we were settling up we noticed that there are plans afoot to improve the pub:

 We felt that the pub was fine as it was, although a little more room to stand at the bar would be appreciated, and obviously the addition of a new mini-brewery will be of great interest to us, so it's quite likely that we will want to make another visit to this pub some time soon.  There's also a good reason for coming later in the afternoon:

Someone suggested that a short walk to The Wykeham Arms, just down the road, might help the pie settle in our stomachs and make room for a few more pints, so off we went. When we got there we tried a pint of the always excellent Flowerpots Perridge Pale 3.6%, but even this didn't do the trick so we gave up and went home. Interestingly, we noted that a shot of Talisker Whisky is £5.25 in The Wykeham Arms, but only £3.20 in The Queen Inn (same size shot - we checked).

For the first time ever the gentlemen were defeated by a pie!

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

• Pastry 3.825
• Filling 4.375
• Beer 3.625
• Ambience 4.5
• Value 4.5
• Overall 20.825

 Congratulations to the landlord, Clive. I'm sure we will want to make a return visit to this pub after the renovations have been completed and when the new brewery is in full production. You got the better of us this time, but next time we'll come prepared, and we'll be sure to want to take full advantage of your "buy 10 get one free" deal!  

The Hampshire Bowman, Dundridge, 28th November 2012

Since our last visit to one of our favourite local pubs,  The Hampshire Bowman, there has been mounting consternation among Pie Club members since we heard that the pub had closed. You will doubtless recall that when we visited there on 21st April 2011 the pie was rated very highly indeed, and in fact went on to win the coveted Pie of the Year award for 2011. So when we heard that the pub had reopened under new management, we felt obliged to pay a visit as soon as possible, but there was a problem.

After the wettest summer in a million years it still hasn't stopped raining, and conditions underfoot are really bad, making it virtually impossible for us to walk there. It's a delightful walk when conditions are good - not too far, but far enough to allow the walker to work up a decent thirst and a bit of an appetite - but under these conditions we decided for once to abandon our principles and go by taxi. So we met up outside The Bishops Waltham Tandoori (a fine curry house, by the way, but unfortunately they don't do pies there) and waited patiently for the taxi to arrive. Having ordered an 8-seater, a 6-seater came; the driver offered to do 2 trips instead of one, so some of us had a wait a little longer.

This was the first occasion on which all Pie Club members were present.

On arrival, things looked reassuringly unchanged:

 And as you walk into the pub the first thing to see is a sight to gladden the heart of any serious ale drinker:

A glance at the beer board confirmed that the ales available here are up to the usual high standard that we've come to expect from this pub (or at least most of them are):

When faced with such a choice of beers it was difficult to know where to start, so some of us took the easy option and decided to work our way down the list from top to bottom. Those who tried it all agreed that the Bushy's Ruby Mild was poor, probably getting near the end of the barrel, and had been reduced in price for a good reason. The other ales were all excellent, with special commendation for the South Sea Spice 3.9%, which has a subtle touch of ginger in it. The Guinness drinker remarked that the Guinness tasted a bit metallic.

We spoke to Mark, the new landlord

who did his best to allay all our concerns about the future of this pub by telling us that the only thing he plans to change is the service and staff morale, which seems fare enough. He confirmed that there will always be at least 5 ales available, and, being a free house, he intends to introduce new beers on a regular basis. And  there was evidence for this:

We'll see. He looks a bit young to be a pub landlord.

The menu looked very interesting, although smaller than we're used to, but allowances should be made for this being mid-week in winter:

 There being only one pie on the menu, Lamb & Leek, we all chose to have Lamb & Leek Pie. When it arrived it looked magnificent:

Short-crust pastry all around, holding a filling crammed with vegetables and succulent pieces of lean tender lamb and plenty of tasty gravy. The only slight criticism was that the gravy had been pre-applied, whereas we prefer it to be served separately in a jug. The accompanying vegetables, chips, and mashed potato were very nicely cooked, and there were plenty of them:

Judging by all the empty plates at the end of the meal, we all found it very satisfactory. Some of us even had room for a pudding, but there was NO CUSTARD! We had to make do with ice cream instead:

(Strictly speaking, puddings do not form part of our assessment as we are concerned only with pies and ales). 

The ambience of the pub was generally very good, although it was a quiet mid-week lunchtime so there weren't many other customers around. Mark gave us a nice welcome when we arrived; the pub was busy but not too crowded; it was easy to get served at the bar; the table service was excellent; the pub was clean; and there were still no unnecessary distractions such as music or fruit machines. A  problem for some is that this pub is a country pub and therefore attracts a number of people with dogs. In fact the new landlord owns dogs himself. On this occasion the dogs were all well behaved - no barking, scrapping, begging for food, and no dog mess on the floor. But all the same, some people don't like there being so many dogs in the pub, and our score for ambience reflects this.

On value for money the score was good. The pie was only £9. The beers are all very reasonably priced.

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

• Pastry 4.16
• Filling 4.28
• Beer 4.03
• Ambience 3.72
• Value 4.41
• Overall 20.6

Congratulations to Mark. This was a very enjoyable outing for us all. The score of 20.6 is not far off our previous score for the Bowman, which was 21.5, and is highly commendable. Some of us were surprised with the final outcome, which is that the Bowman ranks only 4th in the pubs we have visited this year. With a score of 22.7, the winner of the prestigious Pie of the Year Award for 2012 is The Wheatsheaf Inn, Shedfield, which we visited on 29th May.

Congratulations and thanks to all Pie Club members for another year of devotion to the cause. There will be no formal Pie Club meeting in December because of something called Christmas, but Pieman expects that there will be a number of informal gatherings, and reminds all members that Mince Pies are actually a form of pie and expects you all to do your duty.

The next meeting is arranged for 31st January 2013.

The Dog and Crook, Brambridge, 25th October 2012

For this outing it was Si's choice of venue, and he allowed himself to be lured by sound reviews on Tripadvisor, and the prospect of a choice of several types of pie, including, for the first time, a fish pie. Si was joined by Nick, Trev, Joe and Paul T on the No. 69 bus bound for The Dog and Crook, which is a fine looking pub in the hamlet of Brambridge, between Colden Common and Otterbourne. 

We successfully managed to get off the bus at the correct stop, which is just a few hundred yards from the pub, although judging by the way that several of the gentlemen complained about having to walk so far anyone would have thought it was a major hike. As we arrived we noticed that there was a No. 8 bus stop just outside the pub, and someone observed that we could all have caught the No. 8 instead of the No. 69, thereby saving ourselves quite a long walk. At this point Si was duly contrite, and apologised for failing to carry out adequate research before organising this outing. 

As we walked in we were warmly greeted by Paul E, who had just driven back from Wales especially to be with us, and by Louise, the lovely landlady, who (seeing the state we were in after such an arduous trek) immediately offered us refreshments.

This being a pub tied to Enterprise Inns, the choice of ales was limited, but nevertheless quite satisfactory: There was Ringwood Best 3.8%, Sharp's Doom Bar 4%, and Fullers HSB 4.8%. Knowing that we might possibly have a long session ahead of us we mostly opted for Ringwood Best or Doom Bar (apart from the confirmed Guinness drinkers among us), and we found these both to be very satisfactory.

From the extensive lunchtime menu there were 3 pies available. Two of us chose the Steak & Kidney Pie, two chose the Chicken Leak & Mushroom Pie, and two chose the Fish Pie (all at £9.95, and all with a choice of new, chipped or saute potatoes, and mixed vegetables or salad). Whilst our meals were being prepared we had another beer or two, and discussed important matters of the day. 

When the food was served we were surprised to see that the pies were rather unconventional, being in the form of a puff pastry bap, sliced in half horizontally, containing the filling. To be fair to Louise, she had described to us exactly what form the pies were in, but the idea was so unconventional that we all failed to fully comprehend it. 

The Fish Pie had loads of filling, and plenty of sauce (although this was not altogether to Trev's liking):

The Steak and Kidney Pie was served in a similar style, with lots of filling and plenty of gravy:

Likewise the Chicken, Leak and Mushroom Pie:

The vegetables (carrots, broccoli and red cabbage) and potatoes came in huge portions, and were served separately:

By the time we had all helped ourselves to the accompaniments, there was certainly a good-sized plateful for us to get through. The vegetables were very nicely cooked, and there were lots of them. This shows just how much filling there was in the Fish Pie:

This also shows the curious nature of the puff-pastry case, which some of us thought was more like a bread bap, made from the sort of bread that the French use to make croissants. Not everyone was very impressed by this, as it sort of melted in the mouth and didn't add very much to the meal. Call us old-fashioned, but we really do prefer short-crust pastry. Still, we all finished our meals with gusto, although we didn't manage to finish off the potatoes and vegetables. Then Louise sprang a surprise on us by offering us free puddings! We were mostly so full that we couldn't face any pudding, but noblesse oblige and some of us forced ourselves.

This was the Apple & Rhubarb Crumble with Ice Cream:

Afterwards, we all felt replete. The bill came to £30 each, which, considering the number of drinks we had, is good value for money. The bill was presented to us with some accompanying mint chocolates (always much appreciated). The service throughout was very good. The ambience of the pub was also generally very good - we were particularly impressed by the array of items for sale in the Gents toilets (Louise had to explain to us what some of them were for). Unfortunately the pub closes at 3.00pm, so we had to leave before we were ready. When it came to assessing the scores for this outing, there were some heated discussions and differences of opinion. Regrettably the unusual pastry cast a long shadow over the whole proceedings, and as a result the final scores were low.

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

• Pastry 1.39

• Filling 3.43

• Beer 3.75

• Ambience 3.57

• Value 3.97

• Overall 16.11

As we left the Dog and Crook someone suggested catching the No. 8 bus back to Bishops Waltham, as the bus stop was just outside the pub. Thus started another adventure: The No. 8 bus does a tour of the whole of southern Hampshire, taking forever to get to Bishops Waltham via Colden Common, Fair Oak, Horton Heath, Moat Park, Hedge End, Grange Park, Marks & Spencer Hedge End, Botley, Curdridge, Waltham Chase, and Swanmore before arriving at Bishops Waltham. This was despite a lot of encouragement from us to the driver, urging him to go faster and take a few short cuts. The driver did his best to oblige, but really, we could almost have walked home more quickly. When we arrived in Bishops Waltham after more than an hour on the bus, obviously some of us were close to bursting and felt the need to make full and immediate use of the facilities offered by The Crown, so in we went. And then some of us went on and made full and immediate use of the facilities offered by The Bunch of Grapes.

The Black Dog Inn, Waltham Chase, 27th September 2012

In a rare break with tradition we decided to re-visit the scene of one of our earlier outings,  The Black Dog Inn at Waltham Chase.  Our previous visit on 28th July 2011 was not altogether unenjoyable and the pies scored a commendable 19.65.  We'd heard that the pub had gone through a recent change of ownership, employed a new chef, and had a new menu, so we thought it was worth a return visit.

It being a pleasant autumnal day we thought that a good walk there and back would help us all to work up a good thirst and a healthy appetite, so off we all went.  Joe and Paul E met up at at  The Crown (if they had a quick pint there first they're keeping quiet about it) then set off at a brisk pace on the 2.1 mile walk to The Black Dog. Nick & Si set off from their homes at about the same time, saw Joe & Paul a few yards ahead, and struggled to catch up with them as they seemed to be doing some power-walking. Or were they just thirsty? Certainly they seemed to speed up as we got closer to the pub. We all walked straight past  The Chase Inn without any hesitation as it seems to be a particularly uninviting pub. We met up with Doug near his home in Swanmore, and met Paul T joined us in the Black Dog.

This is still a very pleasant pub, with large well looked-after gardens, two covered heated gazebos for the smokers, lots of beautiful hanging baskets, and a warm welcome inside from Peter, the new landlord, who has obviously made a considerable effort to improve the place.

This being a Greene King pub, there was, of course, Greene King IPA 3.6% available on tap. Tempted as we were by this fine ale, we couldn't help noticing some other interesting ales on offer.   There were two another Greene King ales, Abbott Ale 5%, which we felt was probably a bit strong for a session ale, and Bonkers Conkers IPA 4.1%, a seasonal ale. The guest ale was Everards Equinox 4.2%. The ales were all priced at around £3.40/pint, which is reasonable. 

We decided to start by sampling The Equinox and the Bonkers Conkers out in the garden, then, as we were getting a bit peckish, we moved indoors and had another one while we waited patiently for the food to arrive.

As we were waiting, and without any asking, the delightful waitress, Chelsea, brought us a warm baguette with butter for us a share as an appetiser. We thought this was a nice touch.  As there was only one pie available on the menu, we all ordered the same food: Steak & Stilton Pie with chips, watercress garnish, and mixed vegetables, at £7.95 each. Again, the price seemed very reasonable.  When the food arrived, the pie looked very appetising.

The pastry was a lovely golden short-crust on top, with a thin layer underneath that was perhaps a bit too thin as it had gone a bit soggy, although some people like it that way. There was plenty of filling, with large pieces of lean tender steak, plenty of juice with onions and mushrooms, and a thin layer of Stilton on top. Some of us felt that there could have been more Stilton, but there was just enough to add a subtle extra taste to the filling - any more might have been over-powering. Instead of the usual salad garnish, there was a generous helping of watercress, which was much appreciated: Pie Club members are well-known for their liking of healthy foods, and watercress is certainly good for you.

We were presented with two large platters of assorted freshly-cooked vegetables (carrots, cauliflower, mangetout) and chips. These were ample for the 6 of us, nicely cooked, and tasty. We were also given an extra jug of gravy, just as we like.


We all managed to clear our plates with gusto. The servings were generous, but we felt we still had room for a bit more - maybe it was the walk that did it, or maybe we felt we needed to build up our strength in readiness for the long walk back home, or maybe we were just too easily tempted by the pudding boards:

We chose a selection of puddings, all brought to our table by the delightful Chelsea:

Afterwards, we all felt replete. The bill came to £30 each, which, considering the number of drinks we had, is good value for money.

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

• Pastry 3.7

• Filling 4.55

• Beer 4.31

• Ambience 4.15

• Value 4.27

• Overall 20.98

Our congratulations go to Peter, the new landlord. Compared with the scores from our previous visit, these scores show a considerable improvement, and we wish you well in your new venture.

Unlike our previous visit, this time we all managed to walk back home without resorting to public transport. We walked straight past The Chase Inn without any hesitation again, but stumbled at the next hurdle, The Barleycorn. Then some of us went on and stumbled again at The Crown. And then some of us went on and stumbled again at The Bunch of Grapes.

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

Wickham Festival, 3rd August 2012

Pieman  was at the Wickham Festival this weekend. Always on the lookout for pies, he happened to notice a fine-looking Chicken Balti Pie, which he couldn't resist trying. It was not bad for a £5 festival pie.

The vendor also does a good-looking range of other pies.

These pies are recommended. If you see them, try them!

Please note that Pieman visited the pub without any other members of the Club, so opinions expressed above are purely personal and not representative of the Club.