Barleywood Orchard, Bristol

This is certainly not a pub in the traditional sense in terms of either appearance or location. It’s located on a quiet country lane, but it is not at all visible from the road, with very little signage indicating it’s presence. It’s located at the back of a walled garden behind the former Ethicurean restaurant, and is the tap room for the Barleywood Orchard cider company. That in itself is a very small scale operation, and the appearance is, shall we say, rustic, it’s basically just a small barn. Much like many brewery taps, opening hours are also quite limited, so do check before travelling. The pub/cidery is an unusual circular building constructed from wood, but not planed or machined wood, simply sawn off bits of tree trunk by the looks of things. It’s quite compact inside with no room for tables or chairs, so the options are either standing, or sitting outside on the picnic benches. Décor wise it’s very rustic as mentioned, with old wooden joists and boards on the ceiling and some sort of concrete screed on the floor. The apple press was off to the left, with much of the remaining space being taken up with barrels and boxes of glassware. A small bar counter was at the front, along with a table of bottles and cans. Ciders on tap were all their own as would be expected and consisted of Sparkling, Harvest Gold and Free Spirit. The board also listed Mayday and Redstreak & Crimson King, but these had run out. I didn’t spot any beers although their website does say they have some. Presumably these are bottled only. I really liked this, it’s an idyllic spot set amongst the fields and I enjoyed the cider, but obviously if beer is more your thing it may not appeal.

Official site of Barleywood Orchard - barleywoodorchard.co.uk