Sandbanks Brewery Tap, Nuffield Industrial Estate, Poole

Official site of Bournemouth Brewing Company - www.bournemouthbrewery.co.uk

Official site of Bournemouth Brewing Company - www.bournemouthbrewery.co.uk

The Brewery and its brewery tap are housed in a nondescript industrial unit - formerly a car repair workshop - in a sprawling industrial estate, but it's worth the effort to find. The bar is a small square room sectioned off from the brewing plant and has a proper bar counter, tables and chairs and even a dartboard. It's basic but made to feel a little homely with various memorabilia on the walls, including a framed copy of the original recipe used for their signature beer, Wobble, which comes from a French brewer and is dated from 1928. The barman is highly knowledgeable, not just about the Brewery's own products - of which there are many - but of the industry in general. There is a try-before-you-buy policy, and the hospitality was excellent. The four hand pumps and 2 gas pumps on the bar were dispensing two real lagers and three ales. I sampled the pale lager, Wobble, Pirate Porter and Tatnam Bitter, all superb (as you'd expect), and I wish I could have stayed for more. The tap is open some afternoons and holds darts evenings on Tuedays, but they will do ad hoc tours with drinks if you ask. Well worth deviating from the beaten track to find, but call first to check they're open.