Renegade Taproom, Thatcham

Situated just outside of the village of Yattendon on the lane heading towards Frilsham and the excellent Pot Kiln pub, this brewery and taproom are set on a massive plot of land that seems to include a working farm. I was really surprised as to the size of the premises, but was left thinking that there is a lot of unused commercial potential here. The car park was very busy. In fact, I couldn't work out why there was so many cars (possibly 40-50). These weren't all belonging to customers and despite a fair number of bar and kitchen staff inside, the remainder surely all couldn't belong to people working in the brewery? The Taproom space is large with a shop area as you enter at the one end, selling the full range of beers from the brewery in bottles and cans, as well as other merchandise. Beyond that is the seating area which has a tall ceiling and feels bright and airy with the huge items of brewery equipment to one side and a popular outdoor patio overlooking the West Berkshire countryside on the other side. The bar is at the rear left and had 3 of their beers on cask - Good Old Boy, Mister Chubb's & Maharaja IPA. In addition, there was a larger range of their keg beers with further taps on the back of the bar. Beers on were Renegade Blackguard, Snake Oil, Detour, Solo, Hazy Rider & Queensbury Jack. The cider was Mallets Dry. To the rear right was a small, open kitchen preparing items such as burgers and pizzas. Menus were located on each table to discern. Dogs must also be welcome, as there was a selection of dog treats/meals at one end of the bar. As brewery bars go, this is certainly an impressive one in a rather obscure location. But I can't say I was too impressed with my Maharaja.

Official site of Renegade Taproom & Kitchen - www.renegadebrewery.co.uk

Official site of Renegade Taproom & Kitchen - www.renegadebrewery.co.uk

Large modern taproom with a clever use of the space and building to create a light and airy feel. Well-done inside with some genuine attempts to make it feel clean and comfortable with a bit of character – I especially liked the bar and back. A late Wednesday evening visit meant that we were the only customers but the friendly lads behind the bar were happy to serve us (unlike the Pot Kiln up the road!). 10 cask pumps but some were doubles so I think it was six on total with a surprise guest from Bond Brews. My West Berks Maharaja was a decent drop given they clearly hadn’t shifted much over the previous few hours (NBSS 3). I’d be happy to drop by again. 6.5