The Elm Tree, Cambridge

I remember first visiting this pub almost forty years ago when Charles Wells beers were unheard of in London, and this one was noted as it had their beers served without top pressure. It was in the very first GBG back in 1974 but was subsequently omitted. In modern times it's back in the Guide and as noted below is a joint venture between Wells and B&T breweries. As you enter the bar is on the left in a square room with a narrow carpeted room further back. Numerous old brewery signs decorate the walls. On the bar there were ten hand pumps with one unused and Charles Wells represented by Directors and their Good Stuffing beer. I also noticed two B&T beers, two from Crouch Vale and two from the Colchester brewery. I went for the Crouch Vale Anchor Street Porter (£3.50) which was in excellent nick. After numerous visits here over the years it remains one that is well worth a look.

Another Cambridge back street pub, this time a joint enterprise between Charles Wells and the enterprising B&T Brewery. The pub is an absolute beer paradise with the long bank of handpulls supplemented by a vast Belgian beer focussed menu that several customers seemed totally overwhelmed by. The ale options on my visit were Wells Eagle IPA, Youngs Special and Waggledance, B&T Shefford Bitter, Midsummers Ale and Dark Mild, Colchester Trinovantes Gold and London Porter, Elgoods EP and Castle Rock Harvest Pale. I tried the Dark Mild and found it a great example of the style that I could barely keep in the glass. The bottled range is detailed in a menu, which is worth perusing as many options are kept in a back room, rather than displayed in the limited fridge space behind the bar. The bar staff seemed very clued up on the range and were able to help guide the daunted towards the type of beer they were looking for. The pub has two notional rooms, essentially opened out into one long space, but each with its own feel. The front half is the bare boarded main bar area with the servery running down the left and a simple seating area opposite focussed around a nice fireplace. The room is decorated with a vast array of brewery signs, mirrors and the like, much of which is from Belgian breweries. A few pump clips are dotted around, mixed in with photos of the locals enjoying themselves. Beer bottles run around a high shelf and there are collections of coins and heraldic emblems on the ceiling. Past the bar, you enter a cosier, carpeted lounge style area with padded benches, nicely upholstered chairs and low stools. The space is also chock full of brewery signs and adverts including two huge enamel signs for Oakhill Stout and Allsopp's Milk Stout. Any gaps on the walls have been filled in with various photos and a most impressive collection of branded glassware runs along another high shelf. There are shelves full of books and board games that are worth a look through and a very quiet heavy metal soundtrack played throughout my stay. I really loved this place and would have happily stayed here much longer had my itinerary not demanded more pub research elsewhere. Anywhere else in the country a Charles Wells house next to a Greene King house would sound like an unappealing prospect, but here, alongside the excellent 'Free Press' a few doors down, we have a double header that should not be missed.

There's a heavy concentration of pubs in this corner of Cambridge, but The Elm Tree is certainly one that is going to be sought out by fans of British & Belgian beer. B & T Brewery of Shefford lease the pub from Wells (hence the sign) and offer 3 of their own ales, along with a few from Wells and other microbreweries. Lager drinkers can select Red Stripe & Estrella Dam among others. A beer menu lists a large selection of Belgian brews - not something we were inclined to try early afternoon, although it was an interesting read. The pub itself is little more than a single room, with tables squeezed in amongst the breweriana, bric-a-brac and board games. A large selection of photos adorning every spare spot of wall suggests a lively social scene here. Towards the front there is a raised area which lends itself to occasional gigs. Bar service was up with the best: a knowledgeable barman was more than happy to discuss the beers on offer. Certainly one to spend some time in and I can see why the regulars like it.