Ye Olde Black Bear, Tewkesbury

At the northern end of the High Street, close to a stone bridge over the River Avon, is Ye Olde Black Bear Inn, an ancient coaching inn, reputedly the oldest inn in Gloucestershire and established in 1308. It’s a large black and white timber framed inn which mostly overlooks the High Street, but which extends down the side towards the bridge with a riverside beer garden for sunny days. Moorings are available. A central bar serves a warren of adjoining rooms with the usual low dark beams ( mainly 16th century apparently ) , some flagstoned floors and, despite the usual Spirit Group chain pub embellishments such as TV’s, fruit machines etc, still a reasonably attractive olde worlde feel. Pleasingly, a series of blackboards dotted around the interior tell us more about the history of the pub and each individual area. For instance, we learn that one of the back rooms was built for stabling around 1422. Horses would be stabled for 3s 1d per day. Legend has it that, perhaps inevitably, Dick Turpin rested his horse here. During the battle of Tewkesbury in 1471, it is supposed to have been used as a hospital. Also worthy of note is the ceiling in the front room with plasterwork depicting roses and green fishes. The usual ceramic tiled West Country Ales logo of a castle remains by the door, but the pub is now part of the Spirit Group empire. On my recent afternoon visit, 5 handpumps – not immediately seen as they’re on the bar back, not the counter – were serving Broadside, Doom Bar, Bombardier, London Pride and Camerons Harvest ale, the latter being seemingly the only guest. The Broadside – at a reasonable £ 2.81p – was in reasonable nick. The pub is in the 2011 CAMRA Good Beer Guide. This isn’t a pub worth travelling any real distance for, and the beer range is unlikely to set the pulses racing, but it’s definitely worth calling in if passing.

This advertises itself as the oldest pub in Tewkesbury. It is clearly old - it certainly has the timbered, staged, black and white exterior of a Tudor building. Internally, it is full of nooks and crannies. There is a network of small rooms. It is decorated in white with beams. I felt very comfortable in here and could have stayed all afternoon. It has the usual tap stuff and I was initially disappointed because I couldn't see any real ale handpulls - but they are there at the back of the bar. They had on - Lancaster Red, Adnams Broadside, Wells Bombardier and Greene King IPA. A fifth handpull had a sign on it stating that beer was settling and I was advised it was a 'Piddle' beer. The Lancaster Red and Broadside were superb. The barmaid was very friendly and the food looked and smelled delicious - but I didn't try it. I would recommend this pub.