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Beer of the Week (w/e 27th April 2025) with Thuck Phat
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The Wainwright, Keswick
Keswick
CA12 5BZ
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 7½ of 10) see review guidelines
Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Wainwright
The Wainwright has become a regular in the Good Beer Guide and I was eager to pay it a visit whilst spending an evening in Keswick. It is very much a walkers pub with lots of pictures and maps of wainwrights and other bits of countryside on the walls. Even the TV was showing pictures of mountains.
The pub has quite a traditional feel with bare boards. Music was playing reasonably loud in the background. Food service was just stopping when I arrived, but the pub was starting to fill up with drinkers. Dogs are welcome.
Fell Tinderbox is the regular ale. Appropriately, Marston's Wainwright Gold also appears to be a regular. Guest beers were Eden River Emperor, Carlisle Cushty Peeve, Barngates Goodhew's Dry Stout, Langdale Bowfell Bitter, Ennerdale Blonde & Theakston Summit. A CAMRA discount is offered. Although, the barmaid went to great lengths to inspect my CAMRA card, in particular the expiry date. With a discount, it was £5 for a pint.
WhatPub suggested that real cider would be available from some local producers, but on enquiring, I was given a choice of fizzy varieties instead. So, they have clearly discontinued their sales of real cider. Nevertheless, my Cushty Peeve was adequate.
On 9th September 2024
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3040 recommendations about 3038 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Wainwright
Loving this pub - easily the best in Keswick.
Busy but on my two post mountain walk visits, I managed to squeeze into the back bars, blocking access for others (soz) but making it real easy for me to get into conversations.
Beer selection of independant Cumbrian breweries was impressive. I tried two - Fell Brewery Tinderbox and Heskett Market Black Sail stout. Both amazing.
Would I change anything? They dont allow you to order a sandwich when sat at the bar, which is a shame as a solo visitor. Even if I had got a table, it would have been gone by the time I hard got to the bar to place my order.
On 8th December 2023
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1563 recommendations about 1543 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about The Wainwright
A definite change for the better since my last visit here in 2012. There are eight hand pumps, with Wainwright (of course) as a regular, plus five other ales at the time of my visit, with one gone off, plus a seasonal cider. (See photos for pump clips.) It was good to see that all the beers (with the exception of Wainwright) were from local breweries. The pub was lively and busy, though a slight annoyance was a group of lager drinkers sat on stools right in front of the hand pumps. There was a screen showing climbing videos, and drawings of Lakeland fells in the style of A Wainwright, done by Mark Richards (http://www.markrichards.info/about-me.html). With all this good stuff going for it, I was prepared to cheerfully ignore the fake fire and chimney breast on this occasion. I'll certainly call again when next in Keswick, but I hope they get rid of the stools in front of the bar.
Date of visit: 17th December 2017
On 5th April 2018
- rating: 7
[User has posted 4273 recommendations about 3935 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Aqualung . left this review about The Wainwright
The Wainwright which shows in my old Cumbria beer guide as the Lake Hotel has clearly had a load of money thrown at it as it is completely modernised. It was busy on my Wednesday afternoon visit but not oppressively so like the Dog & Gun. It is an open plan room with the bar on the right.
I didn't have a lot of time to spend here but think I counted eight hand pumps which included Fell Scree & Tinderbox IPA, Carlisle Carlisle Bell, Kirby Lonsdale Radical, Hardknott Intergalactic Space Hopper, Chadwick's Miller Bridge and Thwaite's Wainwright. I went for the Hardknott beer which was reasonably priced with the discount and in first class condition.
I thought this was a good pub and suspect it may be the best one in Keswick.
On 5th November 2016
- rating: 8
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Wainwright
New Good Beer Guide entry for 2017.
Does everything you would expect. Clean, great beer, good atmosphere.
Photos at my walking blog - http://bit.ly/2ebKnG3
On 11th October 2016
- rating: 8
[User has posted 277 recommendations about 276 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about Four In Hand
The flat roof of the extension to the building suggests that it's a modern addition, and more evidence is found inside where a fireplace has been installed in an outside wall with a window, rather than a chimney, above it. All the wood panelling and stained glass is, I would guess, modern too.
It was very quiet for my visit on a Sunday night in January - I was the only customer. Of the five hand pumps on the bar, only one had an ale on: Marstons Double Drop, an undistinguished pint at the best of times, and this one was nothing to write home about. Some subdued pop music was being played, and although there were some quite interesting pictures on the walls, mostly featuring horses, they were not so interesting that I would go out of my way to come here again.
On 17th February 2012
- rating: 4
[User has posted 4273 recommendations about 3935 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Graham Coombs left this review about Four In Hand
Old pub just out of the town centre (so stays a bit quieter) with a good range of food. Front room is more for eating, while the large rear has a more pubby feel. Also quite handy for nearby car park.
On 7th September 2011
- rating: 8
[User has posted 3641 recommendations about 3576 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
BEN UNSWORTH left this review about Four In Hand
a good pub with a good range of Jennings cask beers which were on form when we visited.
On 9th July 2010
- rating: 8
[User has posted 75 recommendations about 69 pubs]