King William IV, Braintree

This is a pub I remember well from it's Ridley Brewery days as it used to sell their beer straight from the cask. Back then it was a small country pub on the main road from Braintree to Chelmsford, Great Notley didn't exist and there were no bypasses for Braintree at all, the only way you could go was straight through the town centre, The bad news on my visit was that the main bar was closed so all they were selling from the small side bar was mainstream keg products and soft drinks. The good news was that the reason for this was that a beer festival was in progress in the large garden with forty beers and twenty six ciders. I decided to revise my plans for the day and stayed for a few hours. It was the first day of the festival so the beer was coming up with lots of conditioning, possibly too much in some cases. I tried five beers, four local Essex ones including two from the on site Moody Goose Brewery and ended up with Dark Star Six Hop Ale which was the best of the lot. All beers were £3.20 and ciders £3.60 so the Dark Star beer was good value. I didn't get to see much of the inside of the pub but from what I could see it probably hasn't changed too much. It's difficult to give it a mark, but I'll go for a 9, but 10 for the festival. I would highly recommend a visit and will return myself just to see the pub interior. The half hourly 70 bus from Chelmsford to Colchester via Braintree is probably the best way to get here.

A very well run freehouse, winning most improved pub 2010. It is about a 15 min walk from Braintree Town centre, or a £5 taxi ride. The owners are very welcoming and attracts friendly and chatty locals. All of their beers are served by gravity from the side cellar. The interior of the the pub has a very relaxing and comfortable feel about it. Has beer fests in a marquee twice a year. I enjoyed the Colchester Brewery Red Diesel, Dark Star Partridge, Mauldons Mid-Summer Gold and Saffron Ramblers Tipple.

Official site of the King William IV - www.kingwilliamiv.co.uk

Official site of the King William IV - www.kingwilliamiv.co.uk