The Hawkshead Beer Hall, Kendal

Stuck out on a small industrial estate in the pleasant village of Stavely, this is a large, modern beer hall that acts as the taproom for the Hawkshead Brewery. Two-storey high, glass frontage allows lots of light into the ground floor bar area, which has nice floorboards, walls painted in a neutral colour scheme with brewery logos painted across them and a servery down the right-hand wall. The bar has an angular, backlit counter with a large bar back, half of which is covered by very helpful beer boards, whilst the other half has a brewery branded window that looks through to the cellar room. High stools to the front serve a drinking ledge, an upturned barrel and some high tables, whilst further back, very comfortable padded chairs fill the space opposite the bar. The rear part of the room is mostly unfurnished, except for a table with long backless benches, which are in front of a bottle shop area, with a display of their full bottled range and a board to one side listing all of the options and the corresponding prices. A staircase to the front leads up to a first floor seating area, which I didn't explore. The brewing side of things is discretely hidden away, although some of the kit is visible through windows to the left of the stairs. A set of shelves under the staircase hold a number of board games and a mini ring the bull game. Picnic bench seating out the front and down the side of the building offers some options for warmer days that I'm sure are much appreciated by the numerous hikers and cyclists that seem to call in here. Cutlery was provided on all of the tables but I didn't see any menus, so I'm not sure what sort of food options are available. A long row of handpulls offered a good showcase of the brewery's range, with options on this visit comprising Windermere Pale, Red, Bitter, Little Vienna, Lakeland Gold, Iti, Eukanot Simcoe, Five Hop and Dry Stone Stout, with the latter costing a very reasonable £4.20 for a pint. Ten other Hawkshead beers could be found on keg dispense, so all styles and strengths were covered in one form or another. The barman was a friendly sort and my Dry Stone Stout was in great shape - an excellent start to a long day in the field. I arrived just before the place opened on a Sunday morning and having killed some time by stuffing my face with tasty treats from the neighbouring bakery, I eventually entrered to find quite a few customers already in situ, with many more joining us as time went by. I'm a big fan of Hawkshead's beers, so was really looking forward to checking this place out and it didn't disappoint. I like the modern, beer hall feel of the place and thought it was much nicer than your typical industrial estate taproom. The beer range was outstanding,the beer itself was in great shape and the place seems welcoming and popular. A great showcase for this fine brewery and somewhere I'll definitely head back to the next time I'm in the area. Date of visit - 14th January 2024