Rising Sun, Epsom

David wrote:

I think it'll be a real shame if this happens. I only discovered the Rising Sun a couple of months ago, but always drink there when in Epsom now. The beer is great, the food is good, and the atmosphere is nice. (I also think the fact that it is a no smoking pub is great too).

I certainly won't drink there again if they stop selling beer from the Pilgrim Brewery - there are plenty of Youngs pubs around and it seems crazy of them to want to destroy this wonderful pub.

Mark

BH wrote:

Why 'crazy'? Youngs are a deeply conservative regional brewer who have never entertained any kind of guest beer policy, even immediately after taking over Smiles, and seem reluctant to stock anything other than ordinary and special in most of the pubs.

About 90% of the total range of beers brewed by Youngs are unavailable in cask form at any one time, and the persisting myth that they are 'committed to real ale' dates from a situation in very different times.

BTN

'Crazy' in that they risk damaging a good local pub, frequented by people that enjoy good local beer.

Young's make some nice beer it is true, but there are loads of Young's pubs around. While I would rather it was Young's taking over some of the pubs in Epsom, this is not one of them!

As far as I'm aware (and I've not done an extensive hunt), this is the only place that sells Pilgrim beer, and I enjoy the fact that it is different from all the other pubs around. It is crazy that young's would want to risk destroying this, although I understand they are primarily in the business of selling their own beer ;-)

Sir Benjam> >I think it'll be a real shame if this happens. I only discovered the

Absolutely, and it's a crying shame, but it's in no way unexpected. This is Youngs, after all.

From Youngs point of view, a popular pub full of people drinking non-Youngs ales is an abomination. I'm sure John Young would love to turn every popular, profitable pub in the country into a Youngs tied house if he could.

I don't think it's crazy at all, nor is it any 'risk' to their little empire. I dislike Youngs and everything they stand for, and this is exactly why. They have never given a damn about the discerning drinker, and never will.

If it was one microbrewery buying the pub of another, then there would be a shared understanding of how important choice is, and a desire to maintain the existing range, particularly if it was relatively uncommon, like Pilgrim beers.

But it's not. It's bloody Youngs, who don't even care about customer choice within their own pubs. And if they take over the Rising Sun, they'll drop all the Pilgrim beers, and replace them with Ordinary, Special and an infrequent seasonal if you're lucky in a heartbeat.

BTN

There is a petition to Youngs, they were visible and active at Kingston Beer Festival last week;

Savetheriser in Google UK will bring you their site.

TC

Sir Benjam> > 'Crazy' in that they risk damaging a good local pub, frequented by

On Tue, 27 Jun 2006 15:58:58 +0100, Sir Benjamin Nunn wrote (in message ):

It's nice to see someone else ripping into Youngs. FWIW I think the other regionals are as bad.

Well, it appears to be all over - Dave and Ruth have apparently concluded a deal that allows them to leave in August. See

I do wonder how busy it will be as a Youngs pub; I suspect many of the current regulars will boycott it, and there is at least one Youngs pub in Epsom already, and many other pubs selling a Youngs beer. Whereas at the moment it's something of a destination pub.

Well, if it doesn't work out, I guess they could always sell it for housing.