Pilgrim Brewery Tap Room, Reigate

Came here years ago when it was just the brewery so a technical tick for me - brewery has been in situ since 1984. Located in a courtyard down a not-too-lovely alleyway. Inside, they've used the leftover paint from the Hatch but luckily in moderation, in the main it retains a rustic barn feel, with quarry tiled floor and chunky wood furniture. Tight in the main bar, uncomfortably so at times. Two cask (that all??) and 11 keg. Having done both cask offerings in the Redhill sister pub I went keg, Saxon and Saracen, coming in at a touch over 6 quid for two halves which I suppose in this area is about average. GBG listed and very busy on a warm Saturday evening, clearly a hit with the locals. But a brewery tap with only two cask on at the busiest time of the week seems a bit half-arsed to me. 6.5

The Pilgrim Brewery and is Tap Room are approached from a non-too inspiring passageway lined with bins on the left-hand side. The building looks a little ramshackle on approach, but things start to look up when you pass into the canopy-covered outdoor seating area to the right-hand side of the building. The Tap Room itself is located to the front of the building. With only 2 or 3 tables, it is quite cramped inside. But there is an impressive range of both cask and keg beers. Cask ales were all from Pilgrim - Surrey, Quench, Session IPA, 40 Years of Progress & BC-S103-1. Keg beers from Pilgrim were Liberty IPA, Pioneer, Saxon & Saracen, along with their lager. Cloak & Dagger Big IPA & Gigantic Antics were also on, along with Garden Cider Original. The covered outdoor area is the real highlight here. Despite the tap room not long having opened, there was quite a lively atmosphere amongst its customers. The brewery itself, which is behind the tap room, can be admired from this area, whilst the back wall also has views of the cricket pitch, making it almost as rewarding as the Blue Anchor along the street. This place certainly has one of the best beer selections in Reigate. Whilst my stout (keg) was a little too cold for my liking, as I wasn't sure what was cask and what was keg when ordering, I still enjoyed my brief visit here.

This is a small brewery bar and garden set in a pleasant courtyard just off the High Street. The premises has one dedicated bar area in the front room of the brewery building – a tile-floored space with the servery on the back wall and a few tables served by bench seating. However, given the current situation, I thought it best to take a seat in the garden area to the right of the brewery building. This is a very nice space with two rows of upturned barrels with high stools and an additional row of canteen-style tables and benches, which ensures there are plenty of seating options for what might otherwise have been somewhere quite limited in how many customers they could accommodate. Around half of the outdoor seating was under shelter of one form or another and the space has been brightened up by climbing plants, some nice flint flooring and a fine view out to the quintessentially English cricket pitch behind the brewery. The brewery can be accessed via double door to the rear of the garden and I noticed that more benches and chairs were available in here, so they are really doing their best to maximise space. An R&B/Soul soundtrack played throughout the course of my visit and the staff were all very friendly and chatty, making me, as the first customer of the day, feel very welcome. Table service is the order of the day here, so the barmaid provided me with a very detailed and helpful disposable beer menu which listed cask options as Pilgrim Surrey, Progress, Session IPA, Quest, Pioneer, Gold Spice, Longhorn and Somers plus two guests from Abyss Brewing – Super Pale and Future V West Coast. I tried a pint of the Pioneer, my first pint of cask ale since lockdown began, and thought it was a great, flavoursome juicy APA. Pints ranged in price from £3,80 for the Surrey to £5.50 for the Longhorn and the beers are also available in half and two-third measures. Use of hand sanitiser and the collation of track and trace data is carefully observed before you can take a seat. I was really impressed with this place which I thought was a great spot to try a few decent beers straight from the source. The friendly welcome, helpful staff and attractive outdoor space won me over and whilst I might feel differently were I confined to a table in the brewery on a wet day, I would definitely head straight back here the next time I’m in Reigate.

The Pilgrim Brewery Tap is a cosy room adjoining the brewery. A minibus party would comfortably fill the place, but there's more seating under cover outside. Given the small size, there's very much a micropub feel about it, with 5 or 6 tables and a couple of stools at the bar. You'll likely get talking to your neighbours and with fresh beer on hand, I'm sure that you'll enjoy your visit.

Official site of Pilgrim Brewery Tap Room - pilgrim.co.uk