Harrogate and Ripon Campaign for Real Ale
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We hold monthly branch meetings and social events in Harrogate, Knaresborough, Ripon and beyond.
BRANCH DIARY
Beer festivals and events
Find out about upcoming beer festivals and beer related events in our area.
EVENTS
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Latest branch news
Harrogate news
Shepherd’s Dog (Mitchells & Butlers) has re-opened under new tenants, Pub Leisure Group. Three or four cask ales are served, recently TT Landlord, Daleside and Rooster’s have been seen.
The Stone Beck at Jennyfields (Punch, no real ale) which reopened briefly in March before closing again, is now ‘tinned up’.
Knaresborough
Old Royal Oak (Stonegate) has reopened with new tenants. TT Landlord remains the regular beer together with a pale, currently Ossett Blonde.
Ripon
The Portly Pig, our town Pub of the Year, has extended into the next door premises doubling the size of its ground floor with lots more seating. Three local cask ales are served, note that the pub is closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
Photo shows owners Stuart and Katie accepting their Pub of the Year 2026 award.
Other towns and villages
As we present The Tap on the Tutt in Boroughbridge with their Country Pub of the Year certificate, there is the news that this heritage pub has been sold by Simon Wade to Punch, presumably to finance his purchase of The Punch Bowl Inn at Marton cum Grafton from Provenance Inns & Hotels.
Photo shows manager Emma Ward accepting the Country Pub of the Year award from CAMRA branch member Allan Gauld. Craig from Rudgate Brewery was also in attendance.
The Black a Moor Inn at Bridge Hewick has closed and will re-open under new ownership as The Furlong & Furrow on 23rd May.
The Kestrel at Plompton (Mitchells & Butlers / Vintage Inns) has reopened following a month long refurbishment.
The Buck Inn at Thornton Watlass is up for sale at £495k. This pub near Bedale, at the very north of our branch area, serving five local cask ales, has been a regular Good Beer Guide entry since the 1990s including the last eight years in a row. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/748043968866593
Brewery news
Rooster’s Brewing Co 'Suds with Buds' beer festival is to be held again this year on July 4th , 2-8pm. Tickets are available at https://www.roosters.co.uk/pages/suds-with-buds-info
Plan a local pub crawl...
KNARESBOROUGH
This small market town boasts a diverse selection of great real ale pubs.
HARROGATE
RIPON
The spa town with victorian inns, modern bars and micropubs.
From one-eyed rats to unicorns, this cathedral city has a variety of real ale watering holes.
Branch boundary map
You may be surprised by how large an area Harrogate and Ripon Camra covers, from Thornton Watlass, near Bedale in the north, to Pool in Wharfedale on the edge of Otley in the south. The map below shows the branch boundary.
Branch diary
MEETINGS
SOCIAL EVENTS
PRESENTATIONS
6th June 2026
Regional Meeting at the Winter Gardens, Harrogate (Wetherspoons), from noon, meeting starts 12:30pm. It will be held in the smaller room on the lower level beside the car park. The car park / The Ginnel entrance has level access.
Monday 22 June 2026
Branch meeting
Cross Keys, Knaresborough, including presentation
19:30
13th June
Skipton Walkabout by the 11:50am X59 bus (or train via Leeds if you prefer)
Saturday 25th July 2026
Bingley and Saltaire by train.
Details to follow
Saturday 08 Aug 2026
Mini-bus trip TBC
Saturday 22nd August
Pateley Bridge by #24 bus
(see Pub News) TBC
Beer festivals and events
Beer scoring and the Good Beer Guide
You are probably aware of the ‘Good Beer Guide’, National CAMRA’s flagship publication which lists the best real ale pubs in the UK. But what you may not know is how those pubs are selected to appear in the Guide. The answer is that it is largely via beer scores submitted by CAMRA members from all over the country. If you are a CAMRA member you can send in beer scores. If you’ve ever wondered why your favourite pub isn’t in the Guide, this may well be because you, and others, haven’t entered scores rating the quality of beer there. By beer scoring, you can contribute to the process of selection of pubs that go in the Good Beer Guide. Here's how...
So how do I score the quality of the beer?
It's really simple. Go to any pub on https://camra.org.uk/pubs then click or tap on ‘Beer Score’. You just pick a rating that best describes the quality of your beer. We've also given some potential reactions (see below) to help you pick the best rating for your beer. You'll enter the date and rate the quality of the beer served, and add the price if you want. It's a great way to share your experiences and guide fellow beer lovers.
An added bonus is that a record of your scores is kept so you can look back to see the beers you’ve had and how and when you rated them. Find out more about beer scoring at https://camra.org.uk/nbss
How do I edit my scores?
If you submit an incorrect score by mistake or decide you want to change a score, you can edit them here
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For more information about CAMRA, or to become a member visit camra.org.uk