Category: Awards

There has been a pub in the village of Litton since three cottages were knocked together in 1787. In more recent times, a late 1970’s Sheffield CAMRA “Real Beer” guide  described the Red Lion in Litton as a “stone built free house in an idyllic setting overlooking the village green, upon which stand the stocks and an ancient stone cross of unknown origin. Its cosy interior has open fires and ‘olde-worlde’ charm. The only beer mentioned was Theakston’s ‘Best Bitter’ and the pub was closed weekday lunchtimes.

Although the pub retains its olde-worlde comfort and charm to this day, it’s now open weekday lunchtimes through to the early evenings and serves excellent meals and beers. It can get very busy especially at weekends when, according to its website ‘it pays to book’ and offers a very fulsome range of excellent homemade food using quality produce from local suppliers .

It now offers anything up to five hand pulled real ales on the bar, mostly local sourced – Peak Ales from Bakewell, Eyam brewed beers and Abbeydale Beers from Sheffield, with occasional beers from further away such as a Porter from Bolton.

It regularly and deservedly features in CAMRA’s annual ‘Good Beer Guide’ and recently achieved top marks in the Cask Marque assessment scheme. It also hosts a beer festival in June as part of the local Wakes Week.

And if you need a base to explore the beautiful surrounding countryside it also offers accommodation either in its own rooms or in a nearby cottage for longer stays. Its also on the 65 (Sheffield-Buxton) and 173 (Bakewell-Castleton) bus routes.

Much praise for making and keeping it this way must go to Jeanne Mason, who has been in charge since 2014, and her excellent bar and kitchen staff. Every day they offer what every village pub should be offering in the choice and quality of the beer and food and surroundings, making the Red Lion a very worthy winner of this year’s District Pub of the Year award from the Sheffield & District CAMRA Members.

As our district winner the pub went forward into the North Derbyshire round of the national competition and achieved runner up.

The award was made at the end of our 5 mile July RambAle walk which had started earlier at Eyam, calling in at the Bulls Head in Foolow and the Three Stags Heads in Wardlow Mires on the way. Not letting the high number of stiles and gates and the inclement weather encountered on the way preventing us from delivering the certificates to the Red Lion intact (if slightly late).

Situated conveniently on Platform 1b of Sheffield Station, the Sheffield Tap has become a destination in its own right. – popular with locals as well as those travelling to or through Sheffield. And it is a very deserved winner (again) of our Sheffield (Central) Pub of the Year as voted by our local CAMRA Members.

The station refreshment rooms were refurbished and restored by Jamie Hawksworth and Jon Holdsworth, following years of them being closed and disused. Ever since it was re-opened in 2009 it has proved a popular pub and a worthy star in their chain of ‘Taps’ at York, Harrogate, Leeds and Newcastle.

It has always had a good choice and variety of well kept cask beers many originally from Thornbridge and other regional breweries, though since January 2013 many more produced in the on-site Tapped Brewery to be found in what was the First Class Dining Room. They have always had a good selection of foreign and keg beers – possibly due to their relationship with the Pivovar specialist beer importing business

The Tapped Brewer, Ben Tysoe, got his grounding in brewing and running pubs both locally and with spells abroad including in Belgium and he continues to produce a range of beers including various Pale Ales, Stouts and an excellent Porter. He continues to experiment with using different hops as they become available producing one-off specials He also has done some collaborations with other brewers.

The pub has come through being closed for long periods during Covid and having intermittent interruptions to business due to rail strikes but has survived and remains busy most sessions most days and is always worth a visit whether you are passing through or just want somewhere to have a good quality drink in delightful surroundings. It was an ideal and popular location for our ‘Meet and Greet’ sessions for CAMRA Members attending the recent Members Weekend.

Full credit to Manager Craig and his bar team and brewer Ben and their hard work. They will be presented with their ‘City Centre Pub of the Year’ award during our July Branch Meeting on Tuesday July 4^th. Do join us.

Malcolm Dixon
(Additional Notes & photos Dave Pickersgill)

The Gardener’s Rest on Neepsend Lane has been voted Pub of The Year for Sheffield North by the Sheffield & District branch of CAMRA. This is the third time this friendly well-run community-owned pub has won the award and in 2019 they were also Sheffield & District CAMRA’s overall Pub of The Year.

The pub has been through many changes in the last couple of decades. After extensive flood damage in 2007, the pub finally reopened in 2009, and steadily built back it’s reputation and customer base under the guidance of previous owner Eddy Munnelly, who sadly died earlier this year. A tribute to Eddy appears on the News page of the Sheffield CAMRA website.

A turning point in the Gardeners’ history came when Eddy decided to retire in 2016. Keen to keep the pub in all its glory, a group of regulars formed the Gardeners Rest Community Society and took over the running of it. A subsequent share issue saw nearly 400 investors raise enough money to buy the pub outright in 2017. As they say – “more than a pub, a community hub”.

8 handpulls on the bar serve a regularly changing line up of great real ales, as well as real ciders, often from small independent breweries and producers.

Regular live music has been a feature of the pub for some time, featuring local musicians as well as drop-in sessions for anyone who wants to join in. There are also occasional art exhibitions in the main bar; frequent beer festivals; a bar billiards table in the snug; and possibly the quirkiest beer garden in Sheffield.

We will be presenting the award on Tuesday 20^th June at 9pm. Everyone is welcome to join us to celebrate and the pub has kindly agreed to provide sandwiches!

The Sheaf View at Heeley has been voted as CAMRA Sheffield & District Pub of the Year 2023 (Sheffield South) by our members.

The 19th century pub, near Heeley City Farm became a real ale oasis since reopening as a free house in 2000. The walls and shelves are adorned with breweriana and provide an ideal background for good drinking and conversations.

The pub changed ownership becoming part of the Trust Inns estate (along with the Blake Hotel) in 2022. Day to day management however has remained unchanged. They now provide eight casks ales, 4 from Neepsend Brewery and 4 guest ales. A wide range of Belgian and other continental beers, an incredible selection of malt whiskies and traditional cider are also available.

They also have occasional events such as their Spring Time Vegan Beer Festival held over the 1st May Bank Holiday this year.

This is a popular local pub and especially so on Wednesday quiz nights and Sheffield United match days.

The Sheaf View has now won the Sheffield South Pub of the Year award 4 times (every time it has been awarded since the area awards were started in 2019)

We are presenting their award on the evening of Thursday 18th May, all are welcome to join us there from 8pm for a beer or two!

The Sheaf View can be found at 25 Gleadless Road, Heeley, Sheffield S2 3AA. Buses 20, 24, 25, 43, 44 and X17 stop nearby on London Road by the railway bridge / Ponsfords furniture store. Car park also available.

The Chantry Inn (400 Handsworth Road, S13 9BZ) has been voted as Sheffield and District CAMRA East Area Pub of the Year for 2023 and third overall in the city wide competition.

This historic pub which was built around 1250 is uniquely one of only four pubs in the UK set in consecrated grounds being within the grounds of St Mary’s parish church in Handsworth.

It comprises of three different rooms each with some original and unique features including real fireplaces, beamed low ceilings and even the bell pushes used in previous days to order the ale. There are also claims of various tunnels and passageways from the cellar to the church. 

It has had a varied past originally being a chantry and safe house for nuns, then a washhouse and a school before being a pub for much of the later years from the early 1800’s.

Chantry Brewery acquired the pub in early 2019 and undertook a tasteful restoration and deliver real quality beers. There are always 5 cask ales on tap from Chantry brewery with a rotating special including Steelos, Kaldos, Full Moon alongside the regulars of New York pale, Iron and Steel bitter, Special Reserve and Diamond Stout. There are also changing keg beers available often from Tiny Rebel or Beavertown as well as real cider and Chantry brewery’s own Helles lager. 

Their recent special Parkgate 200 has been on the members bar at the Houses of Parliament in London ensuring our elected leaders get to taste the excellent Chantry Ales.

Congratulations to all involved with the Chantry Inn including the brewery and the pub manager Terry and his partner Alison. The area pub of the year award presentation is planned for the evening of Tuesday 30th May from around 8pm onwards and all are welcome to join the celebration.