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The George (Free House)
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| Beer (sort) | Average Score (sort) | No. Samples (sort) |
|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter |  | 4 |
| Harvey's - Armada Ale | | 1 |
| Adnams - Southwold Bitter | | 1 |
| Hop Back - Entire Stout | | 1 |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | | 2 |
| Old Dairy (being contract brewed after it closed) - Copper Top | | 1 |
| Moorhouse's - Pendle Witches Brew |  | 1 |
| Plain Ales - Sheep Dip | | 1 |
| B&T (Banks & Taylor's) - Dragon Slayer | | 1 |
| Plain Ales - Arty Farty | | 1 |
| Adnams - Broadside | | 2 |
| B&T (Banks & Taylor's) - Black Dragon Mild | | 1 |
| St. George's - Shakesbeer | | 1 |
| Mallard - Duck n Dive | | 1 |
| York (now brewed by and at Black Sheep) - Centurion's Ghost Ale | | 1 |
| Woodforde's - Nelson's Revenge | | 1 |
| Arundel - Hairy Mary | | 1 |
| Wadworth - St. George & the Dragon | | 1 |
| Woodforde's - Wherry |  | 1 |
| Arundel - St Georges | | 1 |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Hooray Henley (superseded by 4% version) | | 1 |
| Harviestoun - Bitter & Twisted | | 1 |
| Skinner's (now brewed by Goodh) - Keelover | | 1 |
| Hanlons (formerly O'Hanlon's) - Firefly | | 1 |
| Wadworth - Summersault | | 1 |
| Hadrian and Border - Flotsam | | 1 |
| Coach House - Farrier's Best Bitter | | 1 |
| Oakham - JHB | | 1 |
| Jarrow - Rivet Catcher | | 1 |
| Coach House - St George's Ale | | 1 |
| Hook Norton - Haymaker | | 1 |
| Titanic - Port & Starboard | | 1 |
| Highgate - Fox's Nob |  | 1 |
| White Star - Dark Destroyer | | 1 |
| Coach House - Gunpowder Strong Mild | | 1 |
| Kelham Island (probably brewed by Thornbridge now) - Pale Rider | | 1 |
| Westerham - British Bulldog "BB" (was 4.3%) | Not Tried | 0 |
| Gale's - Trafalgar Ale | Not Tried | 0 |
| Everards (see entries against Joule's & Robinsons whilst its new brewery was being built) - Beacon Hill (was Beacon) | Not Tried | 0 |
| Hook Norton - 303AD (aka Generation) | Not Tried | 0 |
| Greene King - Morland Old Speckled Hen | Not Tried | 0 |
| Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - London Pride | Not Tried | 0 |
Visits Details
06 Feb 2013 (ChrisE)
Mid afternoon visit, I sat in the public bar and chatted with a few of the regulars.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plain Ales - Arty Farty | 3.90 | | |
| Greene King - Morland Old Speckled Hen | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | 3.40 | Not Tried |
14 Nov 2012 (Trevor)
Only a few in when we visited at lunchtime. However the OAP meal was very good with pleasant service too.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plain Ales - Sheep Dip | 3.80 | | Thought that I ought to try this and it was nothing like its name might suggest with a zesty start tending to a dry hoppy finish. |
| Greene King - Morland Old Speckled Hen | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | 3.40 | Not Tried |
19 Oct 2012 (Trevor)
Only 3 others in when we arrived for our lunchtime celebration meal with a friend on this very wet Friday. We all had the Dover Sole special which was excellent and the service was good as well.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old Dairy (being contract brewed after it closed) - Copper Top | 4.10 | | Very good condition rich dark brown bitter with a smooth toffee flavour. |
| Greene King - Morland Old Speckled Hen | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | 3.40 | Not Tried |
30 Jan 2011 (ChrisE)
Opening time on a Sunday lunch time, the pub soon became quite busy. We enjoyed some very hot roast potatoes.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | | |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | 3.40 | | A tasty session ale. |
| Greene King - Morland Old Speckled Hen | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - London Pride | 4.10 | Not Tried |
30 Jan 2011 (Ian)
Here with a minibus of local Camra chaps. Pub opened a bit early for us and supplied us with roast potatoes. Relaxed village local.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | 3.40 | | Fresh yeasty and hoppy and enormously drinkable |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | | Lovely Harveys aroma. Good flavour. Decent condition |
| Greene King - Morland Old Speckled Hen | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - London Pride | 4.10 | Not Tried |
09 Dec 2010 (ChrisE)
Early afternoon, a good crowd of locals at the bar, and music from the 1950s and 1960s being played on the juke box. The landlord placed a large bowl of chips on the bar for general consumption.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | | Harveys as it should be. |
| Adnams - Southwold Bitter | 3.70 | | In very good condition. |
| Greene King - Morland Old Speckled Hen | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | 3.40 | Not Tried |
09 Mar 2010 (Wittenden)
Good village pub, with reputation for excellent food. The locals invited me into their conversations.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | | All this talk of gold and hoppy-this knocks most of them into a cocked hat! |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Bitter | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Adnams - Southwold Bitter | 3.70 | Not Tried |
20 Apr 2007 (Ian)
Their 4th St George's Day festival. I hadn't been on the first day before and the beers were very fresh and all in excellent condition. It was a lovely spring evening with the marquee in the garden containing the stillage and beer plus some seating and the area for the band.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| B&T (Banks & Taylor's) - Dragon Slayer | 4.50 | | I thought this used to be stronger than 4.5%. On its day one of my favourite golden beers. This was a little muted and hazy, but still with decent hop kick. Drinkable. |
| B&T (Banks & Taylor's) - Black Dragon Mild | 4.30 | | Ruby with disappearing beige head. Not so much a mild, more a dark best bitter. Bit more roasted malt, touch of charcoal and decent hop finish. Very nice mild although it isn't a mild. |
| St. George's - Shakesbeer | 4.30 | | Sherberty hop aroma, standard bitter in mouth, some spice/herb/sherbert hop on end. Fresh tasting and I rather liked it. |
| Wadworth - St. George & the Dragon | 4.50 | | Amber with lasting beige creamy head. Herby earthy hop, slighty yeasty. Hey, it's an English bitter. Some good hedgerow fruit. I would miss this type of beer though if I couldn't have it again. |
| Adnams - Broadside | 4.70 | | Very yeasty fruity version. Fruits are christmas cakey, but lifted by the yeastiness. But still the malty fruit comes through. Just lacks something. |
| Coach House - St George's Ale | 4.90 | | Straw coloured with bubbly white head. Slightly sweet golden ale. Bit sickly. Hop is citrusy and pleasing, but the pale malts are a bit sickly. I mean it's fine and in decent condition. Sub Hop Back Summer Lightning. |
| Arundel - St Georges | 4.60 | | I mean I don't have anything against English bitters and this is a not bad version, some decent malt fruit, but seriously, give it a bit more character fellas. |
21 Oct 2006 (Ian)
I've been to the St George's Day and Summer beer festivals here and enjoyed them both, so I decided to come out here for their Trafalgar Day beer festival. The 400 bus conveniently goes from Ashford town centre and drops off right outside this pretty pub in the very attractive village of Bethersden. After a brief stroll around the churchyard, I settled myself into the saloon bar as the weather looked a bit grim and the beers were out in a marquee in the garden. 14 beers on offer from Waverley TBS. Music, Morris men and a BBQ were also on offer across the weekend. The marquee had hay bales to sit on and this created a very nice atmosphere. A group of cyclists from West Kent arrived to have lunch too. A good festival at a pub that does something a bit different.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey's - Armada Ale | 4.50 | | One of my favourite Harvey's beers. I love the mix of Harvey's yeast with the marmalade fruit and dry hop finish. Excellent. |
| Adnams - Broadside | 4.70 | | Bit yeastier than I remember. Good fruity malt in mouth still. Hoppy finish. Not as full or with such dominant flavours as I remember. |
| Woodforde's - Nelson's Revenge | 4.50 | | Clear copper colour, thin off white head. Yeast and herby hop aroma. Lovely hop actually. Moderate malt juicyness in mouth. Earthy hop finish. Nice mix of yeasty aroma, malt fruit in mouth and hop dryness on end. Good bitter. |
| Moorhouse's - Pendle Witches Brew | 5.10 | | Copper colour with lasting off white head. Attractive malt/hop balanced aroma. Full in mouth, juicy, moderate malty fruit. Balanced drying hop finish. Excellent premium bitter. Very drinakble. |
| York (now brewed by and at Black Sheep) - Centurion's Ghost Ale | 5.40 | | Deep dark brown/ruby with tan head. Dark malt aroma, choc, but also hop too. Nicely full in mouth. Nicely roasted malt. Doesn't drink it's strength. Good dark strong beer. |
| Coach House - Farrier's Best Bitter | 3.90 | | Orange/copper colour with no head. Some bitterness, bit watery, some dry hop on finish. Fine, if not exciting |
| Skinner's (now brewed by Goodh) - Keelover | 4.20 | | Clear copper colour, thin off white head. Flowery earthy hop aroma. Bit of fruit. Fine in mouth. Bit of muddy dryness on end. OK bitter, with nice subtle aroma. |
| Hadrian and Border - Flotsam | 4.00 | | I believe that this is my first beer from this brewery. Pale copper with beige head. Bit rubbery on aroma, bit of smoke. Earthy bitter. Fine. OK, slightly citrusy. Hop finish is quite nice. |
| Titanic - Port & Starboard | 4.20 | | Hazy gold, lasting bubbly white head. Decent hop aroma, but then just a bit muddied, maybe not quite ready yet. Quite rich in mouth, like a lot of Titanic beers, but a bit of green apple too. Decent hop finish. Will be very drinkable in a day or two. |
| Coach House - Gunpowder Strong Mild | 3.80 | | Bit of diacetyl spoils what is a good mild. Butter/caramel over a bitter burnt malt. |
| Westerham - British Bulldog "BB" (was 4.3%) | 4.10 | Not Tried | |
| Gale's - Trafalgar Ale | 4.20 | Not Tried | |
| Everards (see entries against Joule's & Robinsons whilst its new brewery was being built) - Beacon Hill (was Beacon) | 3.80 | Not Tried | |
| Hook Norton - 303AD (aka Generation) | 4.00 | Not Tried |
29 Jul 2006 (Ian)
It was their 3rd Annual Summer Beer Festival that included nearly 30 beers on a gravity stillage in a marquee in the garden and live music every day. Cracking site for a BF. Beautiful village pub opposite cottages and the church with the number 400 bus conveniently dropping you outside the pub. The marquee was on one side as you entered the garden with a BBQ and seating on either side of an open area with a stage for the music at the end. Lovely summer's day as I sat at a table in the shade trying as many different beers as I could. The heat may have affected some of the delicate aromas/flavours on some of the lighter beers. The next festival is for Trafalgar Day in October and I will certainly be here for that.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hop Back - Entire Stout | 4.50 | | Deep ruby/black beer with thin beige head. Attractive aroma of smokey chocolate and roasted malts. Smooth in mouth with creamy choc finish. Bit of dryness. Stunning stout. Even some sourness too. |
| Mallard - Duck n Dive | 3.70 | | Gold coloured beer with disappearing white head. Slightly hay/hop on aroma. Bit of lemon/lime citrus. Nice enough in mouth, astringent hoppy, tingly finish. Nice golden summer beer. |
| Arundel - Hairy Mary | 4.70 | | Chestnut colour with thin beige head. Juicy in mouth. Strawberry and cherry sticky fruit flavours. Dryish finish. Good depth to the fruit/malt flavours. Really good ESB style malty fruity beer. Another good beer from Arundel. |
| Oakham - JHB | 3.80 | | Pale gold, thin white head. Soapy hop. Yeasty aroma. Thin in mouth. Some distinctive grapefruit hop on end. None of the depty you would expect. Compared to the Bowl Inn, Charing 2 weeks ago, this pint is a pale imitation |
| Woodforde's - Wherry | 3.80 | | This is almost there. Distinctive aroma and flavour, but lacks depth. |
| Harviestoun - Bitter & Twisted | 3.80 | | Nettley hop aroma. Citrus, nettle, astringent hop dominate. Bit of tea flavour. Bit like the JHB, this is normally better, but under the weather circumstances I can understand it. |
| Wadworth - Summersault | 4.00 | | Golden with thin white head. Piney Saaz hop aroma. Malts are quite juicy and then dusty Saaz distinctive hop finish. Smells like a lager, tastes like an ale, finishes like a lager. The finish of sweetness and tongue tingly hops is very enticing. |
| Hook Norton - Haymaker | 5.00 | | Hazy deep copper colour with no head. Not a very good aroma, but sweet sticky hops in mouth are good. Mangoish fruit and hop aroma. Even a bit of farty yeast. It’s either not ready or past it’s best I would guess. Sticky strong hop flavour on end. In fact the sweet sticky hop is just too mcuh for me. |
| Brakspear (at Marston's Wychwood then at Banks's) - Hooray Henley (superseded by 4% version) | 4.60 | | Pale copper with thin lasting off white head. Yeasty, hoppy, citrus aroma. Fine in mouth, malts are there but understated. Very dry hoppy finish. Earthy, spritzey finish. Overall, a yeasty, citric bitter. |
| Hanlons (formerly O'Hanlon's) - Firefly | 3.70 | | Copper colour with thin off white head. Yeasty aroma, some cascade hop aroma. Earthy in mouth, dry earthy hop finish. Very drying finish. Malts are quite juicy. Bit of spiciness. Oddly moreish bitter. |
| Jarrow - Rivet Catcher | 4.00 | | Pale copper colour with thin lasting white head. Caramel/hop aroma. Bit soapy. OK in mouth. Herby hop flavours come through on the end. Underlying caramel. Yes, not bad. Could do with being either maltier or hoppier, or indeed both. |
| Kelham Island (probably brewed by Thornbridge now) - Pale Rider | 5.20 | | Pale gold, thin white head. Astringent hop aroma. Too citric to be pleasant. I think the heat may have been too much for some of the delicate flavours. Bit of alcoholic sweetness, but otherwise disappointing |
| White Star - Dark Destroyer | 4.70 | | Deep ruby colour, no head. I’ve not had good experiences with White Star beers, so I approached this with some trepidation. This one is sour, with dark malt aroma. Liquorice/choc/coffee in mouth. Not a great deal of depth. Sour liquorice finish. Again, I am afraid, not my favourite. |
| Highgate - Fox's Nob | 4.40 | | Amber colour, slightly hazy. No head. Sweetish malt/hop aroma. More fruity malt than hop. Not overly impressed. Bit of rubber on the malt. Poor bitter, slightly citric/lemoney and edgey. |
About The George
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
 | 3 |
| 9 |
| 27 |
| 26 |
| 5 |
The pub is found in Bethersden, Kent, TN26 3AG.
Two bar pub in The Street, in a pretty Kent village south of Ashford, located not far from the C of E church. Lounge bar on the left has tables for food as well as seating at the bar. Public bar has the stillage for the gravity dispense beers and also a pool table and juke box. Low ceilings lined with hops add to the cosy feel. Large beer garden to the side. Three handpumps plus the gravity beer. Selection of regional brewers. This pub closed for business on Sunday 18th October 2020. Future unknown. Good news December 2022 - successful local community buy-out with hope to reopen late spring 2023 and did re-open on Friday 26th May 2023 to great local fanfare. Local CAMRA branch Pub of the Year 2025.
We have visited this pub 22 times, seen 71 different beers and tried 56 of them.
Postcode: TN26 3AG