Eastcote Arms, Towcester

A charming stone-built country pub in the sticks, which had a clutch of locals enjoying a Sunday lunchtime pint or two and a convivial Scottish landlady in residence. An entrance-facing bar serves an L-shaped, carpeted room, with an ante-room to the right and smaller room to the right of that, partly-hidden. Out back is a narrow patio and beer garden next to a gravelled car park. GK IPA, Sharp's Doom Bar, Adnam's Southwold Bitter and locAles Phipps IPA on the four handpumps, with latter good, but probably not the drink of choice on a very hot day indeed. There's the odd decent pub to be found either side of the A43 outside Northampton and this is one of them.