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Kingston Beer Festival 2026 (CAMRA Beer Festival)
| Beer (sort) | Average Score (sort) | No. Samples (sort) |
|---|---|---|
| Wimbledon - Brother Frater |  | 1 |
| Brentwood - Chockwork Orange |  | 1 |
| Burning Sky - Complete (collaboration with Ideal Day) | | 1 |
| Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - ESB | | 1 |
| Milestone - Raspberry Wheat Beer | | 1 |
| Three Acre - 500th Brew | | 1 |
| Titanic - Maidan Run | | 1 |
| Wharf - Golden Boar | | 1 |
| Windsor & Eton - Independence | | 1 |
Visits Details
13 Jun 2026 (Hogan Sampling)
Arrived mid-afternoon on its last day, Saturday, and it was comfortably busy. The majority of beers had already been supped since its opening on Thursday. Only my second visit, the last being about 4 or so years ago, and really not too busy to navigate around. Thanks must go to all the volunteers who made it possible and helped me discover quite a few new beers I had never tried before.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wimbledon - Brother Frater | 6.70 | | 7th beer of this festival: Good head and lacing and almost hanging in there on this cask-conditioned vintage IPA ale from Merton, South West London, and where the 2015 reincarnation with commercial production starting then pays homage to the original 1832 Wimbledon High Street tower brewery. A very dry hoppy first bite from its traditional English and aromatic hops with hints of pithy orange peel, woody spices, marmalade and pine. Not overly fruited for my taste buds despite fruit notes of nectarines, raisins, and dried apricots assaulting my taste buds and mixed with Quartermaine marmalade. A mildly fruited hoppiness prevailing. A sweetened hoppiness paddling out with a subtle touch of biscuit emerging from its English Maris Otter and Extra Pale malts, built up with Crystal and Vienna malts to climax with a rich, fruit-cake offering lingering. Just the merest traces for me of Armagnac brandy and oak tannins. Served in top notch condition. |
| Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - ESB | 5.50 | | 4th beer of this festival: It came with good head and lacing and almost lasting on this copper-amber hued Fuller’s Extra Special Bitter that was first launched in 1971 and brewed at the historic Griffin Brewery in Chiswick, West London. A fruited hoppiness in the first bite of citrus peel from grapefruit and lemon. Its four classic British hop varieties, Target, Challenger, Northdown, and East Kent Goldings, giving rise to its spice, grass and citrus flavourings. A maltiness winning over with hints on my taste buddies of orange marmalade, soft malty toffee, caramel, and hints of dark cherry and orangey fruitcake. Its mix of Pale Ale malt, Crystal malt, and a touch of Chocolate malt aiding its biscuit-toffee sweetness. A dry fruited bitterness with a sweet, biscuity, and bready maltiness paddling out. Presented in good nick. |
| Brentwood - Chockwork Orange | 6.50 | | 2nd beer of this festival: Some head and lacing on being poured but did not hang about on this chestnut brown-hued Essex old ale from Calcott Hall Farm, Pilgrims Hatch, Brentwood. A sweet fruited first hit emanating from its British hop varieties lending a lightly floral and spicy touch. A chocolatey bitterness rising from its dark chocolate, light roasted coffee and zesty oranges in the flavouring. A marmalade-infused note detected in its sweet roasted malt flavours from its malted barley such as Maris Otter. This proved to be the only dark ale remaining at the festival at the time of my arrival mid-afternoon. Presented in top-notch form with no off-flavours and as recommended by fellow real ale enthusiasts I was with. |
| Milestone - Raspberry Wheat Beer | 5.60 | | 5th beer of this festival: Some head and lacing but not lasting and presented as clear as a bell despite being described as hazy on this golden hued Nottinghamshire wheat beer brewed just off the Great North Road in the village of Cromwell, near Newark, and founded in 2004. A dry hoppy first hit with hints of wild, summer berries and a subtle breadiness. A hoppiness prevailing with just the merest hint of a sweet raspberry. Lots of continental-style wheat malt mixed with pale barley malt aiding its soft mouthfeel. A mildly fruited outflow from its fresh wild raspberries added to the brewing process to extract their natural oils and authentic fruit sugars. A lingering hoppy dryness from the use of traditional, mild European hop varieties selected for low bitterness and so as not to compete with the beer’s fruit flavours. Served in top form with good conditioning. |
| Windsor & Eton - Independence | 4.00 | | 9th and final beer of this festival: Good head and lacing presented and lasting most of the way on this Windsor-brewed American-style session pale ale and where in 2010 Windsor in Berkshire witnessed the reincarnation of commercial brewing for the first time in 79 years. A dry hoppy first hit with hints of gentle citrus, zesty grapefruit and faint tea flavours. A bitter fruitiness rising with hints of raisin cake from its US Chinook, Cascade, Simcoe and Centennial hops. A pithy citrus rind aftertaste lingering. In top form. |
| Burning Sky - Complete (collaboration with Ideal Day) | 5.20 | | 3rd beer of this festival: Some head and lacing presented and almost lasting on this collaboration pale ale from Burning Sky set up in late 2013 and located in refurbished farm buildings in the small village of Firle, East Sussex, nestled in the foothills of the South Downs, and Ideal Day Family Brewery based at Lostwithiel, Cornwall, on the banks of the River Fowey, and focused on traditional brewing methods and with their very first brew in late 2022. A dry fruited first hit. A hoppiness rising from its Perle and Spalt Select originating from Germany, and with the former behind its distinct notes of cedarwood, fresh mint, and mild pepper, alongside delicate citrus (orange zest) and floral flavours, and with the second hop behind its earthy spice, dried herbs like thyme, and grass, and subtle notes of apple blossom, black tea and sweet citrus. A subtle fruited sweetness from its British heritage malted barley, Maris Otter, spelt - an ancient, un-hybridised cousin of modern wheat that adds a unique rustic character to beer, lending typically nutty, earthy and spicy flavours, raw wheat, and rye behind its spicy peppery notes. A hoppy fruited dryness sailing out and aided by the addition of whole-flower Hukins Goldings lending a sharp, cleansing hop bitterness. Served in top form. |
| Three Acre - 500th Brew | 5.50 | | 1st beer of this festival: Good head and lacing to begin with on this slightly hazy East Sussex pale ale from a working farm at Little Goldsmiths Farm at Blackboys, East Sussex, and where commercial brewing began in 2019 after starting as a garden shed home-brewing project the year before. A dry fruity first hit. A hoppiness rising from its Lemon Drop hop from the US and its German Mandarina Bavaria hop and where both are citrus-forward varieties released commercially in 2012 to meet the global craft beer demand. Not overly fruited in the least despite the first aforementioned hop being behind lemon zest, lime, mint, green tea, and subtle melon notes, and the second behind sweet tangerine, mandarin orange and clementine. A gentle fruited hoppiness sailing out with hints of lemon and orange citrus. Fermented using lager yeast to achieve its crisp touches. Served in good nick. |
| Titanic - Maidan Run | 4.70 | | 6th beer of this festival: Some head and lacing observed on first being poured on this Staffordshire IPA from Stoke-on-Trent. A dry hoppy first hit. A fruited dry hoppiness rising from its US Columbus and Summit hops lending it resinous notes, and New Zealand’s Nelson Sauvin hop aiding its fruity Kiwi flavours. Definitely a hint of white grape fresh off the vine in the flavouring for my taste buds. A dry fruitiness prevailing in its outflow downwards with a mild bitterness mixed with a hint of maltiness aided by its traditional Barley and Wheat malts. Served in good nick with plenty of conditioning. |
| Wharf - Golden Boar | 5.00 | | 8th beer of this festival: Presented with head and lacing visible at first on this Essex premium golden ale from Upp Hall Farm, Coggeshall, Colchester and where brewing was set up in 2023. A dry and slightly fruited first bite from its orange-like citrus fruitiness. Bittered and aromatised with a blend of English and North American hops, its US Cascade hops lending for me a pine and grapefruity flavouring. A malty moment from its sweet honey malt alongside its traditional pale malt and amber malt lending a biscuity flavouring. A white wine fruited hoppiness rising with a procession of floral notes. A dry fruity outflow lingering and contrasted for me with a somewhat astringent bitterness. Served in good nick. |
About the Kingston Beer Festival 2026
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
 | - |
| 1 |
| 8 |
 | - |
 | - |
The pub is found in Kingston upon Thames, Greater London, KT2 6ND.
The 25th Kingston Beer Festival took place from Thursday 11th June to Saturday 13th June 2026 and put on by the Kingston & Leatherhead branch of CAMRA. Held inside the Kingston Workmen’s Club & Institute, just 5 minutes from Kingston railway station at 25 Old London Road, Kingston upon Thames. The beers were kept at a suitably cool temperature in their cooling jackets. Plenty of seating available in the bar of the social club itself and outside.
We have visited this pub once, seen 9 different beers and tried them all.
Postcode: KT2 6ND