The following awards were presented during the Press and Trade Preview at the St Neots 'Booze on the Ouse' Beer and Cider Festival 2014. Congratulations to all winners and nominees.

Overall Branch Pub of the Year

King of the Belgians, Hartford

The King of the Belgians subsequently went onto win the title 2014 Cambridgeshire Pub of the Year

Rural Pub of the Year

Nominees: Pig and Abbot, Abington Pigotts; Addison Arms, Glatton; Chequers, Little Gransden; White Horse, Tilbrook

Winner: Addison Arms, Glatton

Urban Pub of the Year

Nominees: King of the Belgians, Hartford; Royal Oak, St Ives; Olde Sun, St Neots; Pig n Falcon, St Neots

Winner: King of the Belgians, Hartford

Most Improved Rural Pub of the Year

Nominees: Belle, Bassingbourn; Vine, Buckden; Bell, Great Paxton; Rose and Crown, Somersham

Winner: Rose and Crown, Somersham

Most Improved Urban Pub of the Year

Nominees: Victoria, Huntingdon; Royal Oak, St Ives; Hog and Partridge, St Neots

Winner: Royal Oak, St Ives

Cider & Perry Pub of the Year

Nominees: Chequers, Little Gransden; Pig n Falcon, St Neots

Winner: Pig n Falcon, St Neots

Club of the Year

Nominees: Buckden Village Club; St Neots Conservative Club; Yelling Village Club

Winner: Yelling Village Club

The following awards were presented during the Press and Trade Preview at the St Ives 'Booze on the Ouse' Beer and Cider Festival 2014. Congratulations to all winners and nominees.

Community Pub of the Year

Nominees: Barley Mow. Eaton Socon; Bell, Great Paxton; King of the Belgians, Hartford

Winner: Bell, Great Paxton
The Bell has been owned and run as a family partnership by the Black family since the pub was sold by Greene King in June 2013. The Bell is very family friendly and has a large garden with exciting play equipment. The pub regularly runs events like live music, a radio play by the Offord Players, and a children’s Halloween party. In the future they plan to add a village shop and café.

Mild/Dark Ale Pub of the Year

Nominees: Chequers, Little Gransden; Pig 'n' Falcon, St Neots; Ye Olde Sun, St Neots

Winner: Ye Olde Sun, St Neots
Pete Butler offers 6 regularly changing real ales at Ye Olde Sun, and typically two of those six are dark ales, with a mild regularly being available, as well as porters, stouts, and old ales in the winter.

LocAle Pub of the Year

Nominees: Addison Arms, Glatton; Chequers, Little Gransden; White Horse, Tilbrook

Winner: Addison Arms, Glatton
Mick Soulsby and his wife Katy offer four different real ales at the Addison Arms, and typically at least two are from local breweries that qualify for CAMRA’s LocAle promotion - the pub’s house beer, Addison Ale, is Digfield Shacklebush, and beers from Digfield, Oakham, Tydd Steam and Grainstore are regularly stocked.

Pub Champion of the Year

Nominees: Oliver Reynaulds (of the White Horse, Eaton Socon); Jim Taylor (of the King of the Belgians, Hartford); Bob Mitchell (of the Chequers, Little Gransden)

Winner: Oliver Reynaulds (of the White Horse, Eaton Socon)
Oliver Reynalds took over the lease on the Enterprise Inns owned White Horse, Eaton Socon several years ago after the pub had been run by temporary managers for over two years. At this point the pub was run down and not trading viably. Within six months the White Horse had become one of the best pubs in Eaton Socon, by careful management and giving customers what they wanted. A year later when the lease of the Vine at Buckden was available, Oliver took it from Enterprise Inns, installed a manager, and within a few months, the pub was trading successfully again. Oliver has since repeated this process with the Rose & Crown, Somersham, the Eight Bells, Abbotsley and is soon to reopen the Millers Arms, Eaton Socon. All of these pubs were failing to trade viably, and could easily have closed permanently, each with the loss of an important asset to their local communities. The Huntingdonshire branch of CAMRA has awarded Oliver Reynalds Pub Champion of the Year because he saves pubs from closure, and we hope that he continues to do this with many more pubs in the future.

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