The Swan with Two Necks, Clitheroe

Small three-roomed pub in the quiet village of Pendleton. I walked here from Clitheroe, which is about two miles with the only difficulty the crossing of the busy A59. I was greeted warmly by the landlord, standing behind a row of hand pumps. The pub was very busy with lunch time diners, but it closes at 2:30 every weekday (except Monday when there's no lunch opening) and reopens in the evening. There are five real ales and two ciders. The beers were from all over: I was surprised to see Harveys Old Ale, there was also Jarl from Fyne in Scotland, Zenith from Cross Bay in Morecambe and two from local Black Edge brewery. The Zenith ran out while I was here and replaced by Ossett Excelcius, another very pale beer. (The process of cleaning the lines took quite some time, the sort of thoroughness that leads to top quality beer.) The landlord told me he always has one dark beer on, usually a mild, so I was doubly lucky to find Harveys Old on, as one of the Black Edge beers was their Autumn ruby mild. I had a half of each and both were in excellent condition. The Camra discount was offered (I always forget to ask). All tables were occupied by diners, so I stayed at the bar where there are a few stools. One of two fires was providing some welcome heat to my left elbow. Looking around I could see numerous Camra awards: this pub is currently a finalist for national pub of the year, having won previously in 2013. The two front rooms have been opened out into one, with the third room (labelled The Vault) behind the bar. Gents toilets are in a small yard at the back. My only gripes would be the foody smells, particularly what I would guess was the fish pie that Ray had (below), and the background music, though neither were overpowering. A worthy finalist, and I wished the landlord well for the final judging as I left.

This recent winner of the CAMRA National Pub of the Year award is a lovely stone-built freehouse situated opposite a picturesque stream in a charming village, about 30 minutes brisk walk from Clitheroe. You enter through a small porch directly into the main bar area with the servery opposite, running to the left hand wall and decorated with a vase of fresh flowers. There is some comfortable banquette seating opposite the bar, underneath the front window, with a coal fire lit in the fireplace on the left hand wall - the last thing I needed after working up quite a sweat whilst walking here! To the right, there is a similarly furnished seating area with wide comfortable looking banquettes and a stone fireplace on the far wall. Both areas have high shelves which display an impressive collection of plates, jugs, figurines and other such porcelain items. Behind the bar there is a further room, which appeared a bit dingy to me, although this could have been the result of me having been sat out in the bright sunshine for too long. There's a few more seating options back here, a collection of trophies in a cabinet and a TV screen which remained switched off throughout a mid-week lunch service. The pub is practically wallpapered with CAMRA certificates and I noticed my drinks were served in National Pub of the Year' glasses, whilst the mantelpiece of one fireplace was stacked with various bits of CAMRA literature. Out the back there is a lovely, grassy garden with a dovecote and outdoor toilet block for the gents. I spent most of my visit sat at one of the picnic benches outside the front of the pub, where I was able to catch the midday rays whilst watching village life slowly carry on around me. A two-necked-swan shaped blackboard lists the pub's food options and it seemed that just about everyone present was enjoying something from the menu which priced most mains at a little over a tenner. I decided to get stuck in too, and enjoyed a very tasty chicken and stilton dish that was huge and certainly fuelled the long walk back into town. The big story when the pub won the national award was that the landlord attributes his excellent ales to the fact that he regularly talks to the casks. That seems a bit daft to me, but whatever he does seems to be doing the trick as the beers I sampled were in great shape. The options on my visit were George Wright Green Bullet, Prospect Nutty Slack, Reedley Hallows New Laund Dark, Copper Dragon Golden Pippen and Dark Star Hophead, with Ribble Valley Gold cider also on handpull and other Ribble Valley ciders available in bottles. I tried the Green Bullet and the Nutty Slack, both of which were very hard to fault. The staff were all very friendly and helpful and I was prompted for a CAMRA card so I could take advantage of the 20p discount on a pint for members. This is quite a small pub which was already getting short for room on my mid-week visit, so I have to wonder how all this publicity is going to affect them on a weekend. They certainly deserve some success and the attention of a wider audience as this is a very well run, attractive and characterful pub serving up great food and outstanding beer. Sometimes the hype is worth believing.