Time for a Pint – A Pictorial Pub Crawl: April 2013

When I think of Kent, two things spring to mind; hops and oast houses. Kent is renowned for its hops, in particular the East Kent Golding which provides traditional English ale with its distinctive flavour and aroma. Oast houses are those quirky, circular buildings, with a conical roof reminiscent of a drunken witches’ hat, that dot the Kentish countryside. Oast houses go back 500 years and were specifically designed to dry hops prior to their journey to the brewery. Today the drying process has been industrialised and most oast houses have been converted into residential properties.

The Red Lion, Snargate, Romney Marsh, Kent

The Red Lion, which sits alone at a remote crossroads on the Romney Marsh, is quite possibly my favourite Kentish pub.

The Red Lion dates back to the early 16th century and the pub has been in the same family since 1911. When I first visited in 2005, the landlady was Doris Jepson, who left London during WWII to work as a Landgirl in Kent. She married the landlord’s son and they took over the pub when her father-in-law died. As soon as you walk in the front door, you feel you have been transported back to a previous century. Even though there is plenty of WWII memorabilia, this pub has hardly changed since 1890. The painted wood bar front is topped with a marble counter and four handpumps with clips advertising Goacher’s beer from Maidstone in Kent. There are three small rooms, a range of traditional pub games and a very pleasant beer garden.

Doris Jepson, Landgirl and Landlady

My son and daughter, Greg and Vicki, in front of the bar at the Red Lion

The Shipwright's Arms, Hollow Shore, Faversham, Kent

Pokey Parkes, GTG, Hugh and Jones the Beer anticipating the first pint of the day

The Shipwright’s Arms must be one of the most isolated pubs in the country, but one well-worth seeking out. I was taken there by an old friend of mine, John Greene, who lives in Kent and has an extensive knowledge of this county’s watering-holes. The pub is situated at the junction of the Faversham and Oare creeks, a strange corner of the county that the world appears to have forgotten. The building is of white-painted weatherboard and dates back to the 17th century. There is no mains electricity - for cooking, they use Calor gas. When we visited, there was good range of Kentish ales, served directly from the barrel, and we were tempted to try them all. We gave in to temptation. With an open fire, nautical memorabilia and lots of nooks and crannies, this is the sort of pub that makes leaving difficult.

The Rose and Crown, High Street, Elham, Kent

The Rose and Crown is an early 16th century timber-framed coaching inn, owned by Britain’s oldest brewer, Shepherd Neame.

The author of “The Scarlet Pimpernel”, Baroness Orczy, allegedly based her hero on a man who regularly dined at the Rose and Crown in Elham, while waiting for a fresh horse before continuing his journey to France to rescue aristocrats living under the threat of the guillotine.

The King’s Arms, The Square, Elham, Kent

This fine pub dates back to the early 15th century when it was a grain store and then a brewery, before becoming a pub. The pub was earlier known as The Cock as cock fights were once held at the rear of the pub.

Elham's Post Office was closed in 2010, but in 2011, The King’s Arms officially took over this function to become Britain’s smallest Post Office.