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In Search Of The Best Guinness In Cambridge: Part 4 - A New Hope?

 With so many venues owned by the big empire (Greene King), finding Guinness away from said empire is getting harder and harder. Luckily this band of rebels are well versed at both avoiding these places or sneaking in quickly, to sample the Guinness. This latest instalment of the Guinness challenge, brings a mixture of both empire bases and other venues. 

We kick things off at The Maypole, which is one of my favourite pubs. The beer selection here is one of the best around, with a focus on local breweries. The food is up there with my favourite food in Cambridge. This was my first time trying a Guinness here. 



The offer of a Guinness challenge tick was even too much for Nathan to resist, a man who normally drinks ciders and sours. The Maypole Guinness was a solid effort, 3.5/5. 


Recently I got an offer that I couldn’t refuse. Friend of the blog, DJ, got me into an exclusive club. Guinness seemed to be the most popular drink, at The Cambridge United Supporters club. I was able to enjoy a 2.5/5 Guinness whilst looking at Cambridge United memorabilia. 

I would love all that stuff in my house….


Sadly, it was then time to sneak into a couple of venues, owned by the empire. 

Starting at The Rock, a miserable GK pub. Miserable Guinness as well, I scored it a perhaps generous 2.25/5. 
Continuing the walk up Cherry Hinton Road, our next stop was the Earl Of Derby. 

I forgot to take a photo of the Guinness here, so the above is a photo of me feeling ashamed. This place was the new hope, the Guinness was a solid 4.25/5. A very good pint. 

Next up we visited the oldest licensed inn, in Cambridge. 

The Pickerel is one of the few Greene King pubs I like, mostly because it doesn’t feel like a Greene King pub. The Guinness here was an above average 3/5. 

The plan from here was to visit The Baron of Beef, upon arrival they had no Guinness. We fled to The Mitre. 

Positives first. I think this is the first time, certainly in Cambridge, that I’ve had something drawn in my Guinness. It’s shame this pint looked a lot better than it tasted. 2/5. 

That concludes part 4! A few of the empire bases ticked off and a new hope discovered, in The Earl of Derby. I wonder where part 5 will take me and who I’ll drag along for the ride….



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Comments

  1. retiredmartinFebruary 8, 2024 at 3:52 PM

    A noble quest. Surprised the Rock was disappointing as it's always seemed the sort of place where Guinness is a big seller.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Beer MooseFebruary 8, 2024 at 10:04 PM

    Oh it was selling alright. Just tasted meh

    ReplyDelete

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