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History: Home > Far from the Madding Crowd
Far from the Madding Crowd (Strathclyde Pension Fund)
We believe this building is NO LONGER a pub
| Beer (sort) | Average Score (sort) | No. Samples (sort) |
|---|---|---|
| Altarnum (formerly Penpont) - Stormer IPA |  | 1 |
| Coastal - Morning Mist | | 1 |
| Great Oakley - Tiffield Winter Brew | | 1 |
| Mighty Oak - Oyster Catcher | | 1 |
| Salopian - Blackwater Art Nouveau | | 1 |
| Six Bells - Christmas Cracker | | 1 |
| Windsor Castle (see also Sadler's entry) - Sadler's Lady Bison | | 1 |
| Abbeydale - Beer Works Dr Morton's Turkey Surprise |  | 1 |
| Cottage - MGA | | 1 |
| Grafton - Green Duck Brewing Co. - What's A Duck Doo | | 1 |
| Holden's - Shag Boss | | 1 |
| North Yorkshire - Dizzy Dick | | 1 |
| Salopian - Sleigh Rider | | 1 |
| Towcester Mill (formerly Whittlebury) - Nomad Mirage | | 1 |
| Vale - Long Dark Nights | | 1 |
| Backyard - Kris Kringle |  | 1 |
| Bird's - Natural Blonde | | 1 |
| Elgood's - Cambridge Bitter | | 1 |
| Hopping Mad - Hopnotch | | 1 |
| Kelham Island (probably brewed by Thornbridge now) - Fairytale of New York | | 1 |
| Nightjar (formerly Slightly Foxed) - Howlin' Fox | | 1 |
| North Cotswold - Shagweaver | | 1 |
| Six Bells - Big Nev's Glittery Balls | | 1 |
| Wood Street - Sassafrass | | 1 |
| Abbeydale - White Xmas |  | 1 |
| Rudgate - Brew No. 5 Belgian Golden Ale | | 1 |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood) - Bitter | Not Tried | 0 |
| Broughton - Dark Dunter | Not Tried | 0 |
| Castle Rock - Mistletoe | Not Tried | 0 |
| Freeminer - Bitter | Not Tried | 0 |
| Goffs - Guinevere | Not Tried | 0 |
| Mad Squirrel (formerly Red Squirrel) - Redwood Colorado American IPA | Not Tried | 0 |
| Spire - Sovereign Escort IPA | Not Tried | 0 |
| Titanic - Wreckage | Not Tried | 0 |
| Tower - Winter Spirit | Not Tried | 0 |
| Triple fff - Pressed Rat & Warthog | Not Tried | 0 |
Visits Details
01 Jun 2014 (Stephen Harris)
Fairly quiet in the early evening – I was surprised to note that this pub is no longer listed in the Good Beer Guide.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Altarnum (formerly Penpont) - Stormer IPA | 5.20 | | A US-style IPA. Golden-coloured. Lots of ‘tropical fruit’ hop flavours. |
| Windsor Castle (see also Sadler's entry) - Sadler's Lady Bison | 4.60 | | Pale golden in colour. Citrussy US hop tastes. I know I’m a sucker for this sort of thing, but this was really lovely. |
| Rudgate - Brew No. 5 Belgian Golden Ale | 4.40 | | Described as a ‘Belgian Golden Ale’. Amber-coloured. Strange malt and yeasty tastes – I didn’t like it very much I’m afraid. |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood) - Bitter | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Triple fff - Pressed Rat & Warthog | 3.80 | Not Tried | |
| Freeminer - Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Goffs - Guinevere | 4.10 | Not Tried | Came on to replace the Rudgate Brew No. 5 |
26 Jan 2013 (Martin the Mildman)
Fairly busy at the start of lunchtime on a Saturday.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cottage - MGA | 4.00 | | Amber brew with lots of sweet toffee malt flavours but little else. My score 15/20. |
13 Dec 2012 (Martin the Mildman)
Winter Beer Festival in progress here with ales from handpump and cellar.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Great Oakley - Tiffield Winter Brew | 4.80 | | Reddish brown winter warmer style with toffee malt dominating and hints of berry fruits in the finish. My score 16/20. |
| Six Bells - Christmas Cracker | 4.20 | | Deep golden in colour with a good balance of biscuity malt and slightly spicy hop that works well. Full flavoured with a warming finish. My score 16/20. |
| Kelham Island (probably brewed by Thornbridge now) - Fairytale of New York | 4.20 | | Mahogany coloured bitter with dry citrus hoppiness and a little dry maltiness. Dry citrus finish. My score 14/20. |
| Wood Street - Sassafrass | 4.70 | | A rather harshly hopped strong golden bitter with dry citrus hop and a dry finish. My score 14/20. |
| Tower - Winter Spirit | 5.00 | Not Tried | |
| Mad Squirrel (formerly Red Squirrel) - Redwood Colorado American IPA | 5.40 | Not Tried | |
| Titanic - Wreckage | 7.20 | Not Tried | |
| Broughton - Dark Dunter | 4.80 | Not Tried |
22 Sep 2012 (Martin the Mildman)
Autumn Beer festival, a steady stream of punters arriving.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mighty Oak - Oyster Catcher | 4.00 | | Black stout with good roast malt flavour and some hop for balance. Dry, roasty finish with coffee notes. My score 16/20. |
| Coastal - Morning Mist | 4.20 | | Amber beer with a distinct vanilla flavour. There is some hoppiness but the dominant taste is vanilla. My score 16/20. |
| Grafton - Green Duck Brewing Co. - What's A Duck Doo | 4.20 | | The answer is waddle not hop. Golden bitter with a sweet cereal malt character and little hoppiness. Sweet, fruity and biscuity finish. My score 15/20. |
| Nightjar (formerly Slightly Foxed) - Howlin' Fox | 3.50 | | Definitely 3.5% from pumpclip. Very pale with a sharp hoppiness bordering on phenolic. Not really to my taste. My score 13/20. |
| Hopping Mad - Hopnotch | 3.60 | | Amber in colour, fairly sweet and malty but little hop bitterness to speak of. Fruity finish. My score 14/20. |
| Bird's - Natural Blonde | 4.00 | | Pale bitter with moderate hop character and a dryish finish. My score 14/20. |
16 Dec 2011 (Martin the Mildman)
Winter beer festival in progress with additional ales from the cellar as well as from the pumps.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salopian - Sleigh Rider | 4.80 | | Premium amber bitter with good citrus hop character and reasonable malt balance. My score 15/20. |
| Backyard - Kris Kringle | 4.30 | | Quite a bitter beer with a little fruity hoppiness. Dryish bitter finish. My score 14/20. |
| Triple fff - Pressed Rat & Warthog | 3.80 | Not Tried | |
| Castle Rock - Mistletoe | 5.20 | Not Tried | |
| Spire - Sovereign Escort IPA | 5.00 | Not Tried |
11 Jun 2011 (Martin the Mildman)
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salopian - Blackwater Art Nouveau | 4.00 | | Well balanced hoppy pale ale with good citrus hop flavour and a good malt base. My score 16/20. |
01 Jan 2011 (Martin the Mildman)
Quiet on New Year's Day despite other nearby pubs being closed.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elgood's - Cambridge Bitter | 3.80 | | Traditional bitter with more malt than hop flavour. My score 14/20. |
| North Cotswold - Shagweaver | 4.50 | | Dryish amber bitter, fairly hoppy with a dryish finish. My score 14/20. |
17 Dec 2010 (Martin the Mildman)
Winter Beer Festival in progress. Got off to a quiet start on a snowy Friday lunchtime but numbers soon swelled with pre-christmas groups.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Towcester Mill (formerly Whittlebury) - Nomad Mirage | 4.20 | | An amber coloured malty beer, quite sweet with fairly low hopping. My score 15/20. |
| Vale - Long Dark Nights | 4.30 | | Dark red/brown beer with a fruity flavour and a dryish malty finish. My score 15/20. |
| Six Bells - Big Nev's Glittery Balls | 4.40 | | Amber bitter with a dry, bitter character with an astringent hoppy finish. My score 13/20. |
06 Mar 2010 (Martin the Mildman)
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Yorkshire - Dizzy Dick | 4.80 | | Now 5.0% according to the pumpclip. Strong golden bitter with well rounded hop and malt flavours. My score 15/20. |
| Holden's - Shag Boss | 4.20 | | Interesting complex golden ale that starts off quite bitter and hoppy, then biscuity malt comes through towards the finish. My score 15/20. |
11 Dec 2009 (Martin the Mildman)
Winter Beer Festival in progress.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abbeydale - Beer Works Dr Morton's Turkey Surprise | 4.00 | | Very strong citrus hop taste to this pale bitter. Dry, hoppy finish. My score 15/20. |
| Abbeydale - White Xmas | 5.20 | | Very bitter with little other balancing flavours and a rather earthy finish. My score 11/20. |
About the Far from the Madding Crowd
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
 | - |
| 8 |
| 8 |
| 13 |
| 2 |
The pub is found in Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX1 2BY.
Down an alleyway, Friars Entry, off one of the main shopping streets, this is a modern bar style pub. Newish feel to it. Good beer line up and a good mix of guest beers. Oxford Drinker CAMRA magazine August / September 2015 reports the pub being converted into a Caribbean themed restaurant for Turtle Bay.
We have visited this pub 14 times, seen 42 different beers and tried 31 of them.
Postcode: OX1 2BY