The Prince of Wales, Chippenham

Micropub close to Chippenham station that was holding a pub quiz early on my Sunday evening visit. All tables were taken. So, I managed to grab the last stool at the bar where the landlord was doing a good job of serving drinks, hosting the quiz and consuming a pint of the craft sour beer! I'm not sure what the history of this place is, but I noticed that it appeared in the 2021 Good Beer Guide and had actually won the local CAMRA pub of the year competition in 2020. However, it does not appear in the latest Good Beer Guide. So, perhaps a falling out with the local CAMRA outfit, perhaps due to the 2021 change of ownership mentioned by Quinno below? WhatPub mentions that ownership changed again earlier this month. Maybe that will put it back in favour? On this showing, I would imagine so. The pub was due to close by 8pm on my Sunday visit and not re-opening until 4pm on a Tuesday, it was no surprise to see just the 2 handpulls in use. These had Broadtown Fettler's Finest & East London Quadrant. I'd tried a Barrel Aged version of the Quadrant at the Ealing Beer Festival only a couple of days previous. So, I thought I'd give that a go. Ciders were listed on a board above the toilets. They were the local Iford New Tradition & Somerset Sahara, along with Lilley's Rhubarb Cider. Locals doing the quiz were raving about the rhubarb cider. Craft beers were Brew By Numbers #11 Mosaic (seemingly the most popular beer choice amongst the quiz teams), Verdant Headband, Wild Beer/Salt Zest A-Peel & New Bristol Lime & Raspberry Crumble Sour. You can often feel like you're intruding a little when you stumble across a pub full of people doing a quiz. But this visit was not too bad at all.

A micropub handily near the station. Fairly white and bare inside, it does need a bit of character adding. Four pumps with two ales on; Three Castles Best (NBSS 3) and Twisted Canteen Cowboy (3) both a tad over-vented but drinkable enough, which for Chippenham is a miracle in itself. Friendly mature barmaid who revealed that there had been a recent change of ownership. Got chatting to another couple of punters though things got a bit icy when, upon being asked, I told them what I thought of my visit to the Three Crowns an hour earlier! In a town severely lacking beer quality, this place is a default stop.

Formerly a florist, this micro-pub has a light, modern interior with just five small tables. Four handpumps can be found on the compact counter, dispensing Spitting Feathers Rush Hour, Mighty Monk from Flying Monk, Severn Brewing Golden IPA (£3.40) and Daggers Black from Three Daggers. Overall, slightly disappointing, with no real atmosphere, a seemingly disinterested barman and beer in slightly sub-optimal condition, but perhaps I just caught it on a bad day?

Official site of The Prince of Wales Micropub - princeofwalesmicropub.com

Official site of The Prince of Wales Micropub - princeofwalesmicropub.com