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The Royal Oak (Free House)
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| Beer (sort) | Average Score (sort) | No. Samples (sort) |
|---|---|---|
| Larkins - Porter |  | 2 |
| Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's) | | 4 |
| Dark Star - Hylder Blonde |  | 2 |
| Dark Star - Oktoberfest | | 1 |
| Royal Tunbridge Wells - Royal Best Bitter | | 1 |
| Dark Star - Festival | | 1 |
| Dark Star - Smoked Porter | | 1 |
| Larkins - Traditional |  | 1 |
| Dark Star - Winter Solstice |  | 1 |
| Wychwood (now brewed at Banks's) - Dirty Tackle |  | 1 |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | Not Tried | 0 |
| Cottage - Hurricane Ale | Not Tried | 0 |
| Belhaven - Caledonian Deuchars IPA | Not Tried | 0 |
| Adnams - Broadside | Not Tried | 0 |
Visits Details
08 Dec 2010 (thebrewingman)
A cheery welcome (even though we do not visit regularly). Food was again good and my wife really enjoyed the ice cream fritters. Beer was, as always, excellent and, where possible, served in the appropriate branded glasses. Makes all the difference.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Star - Hylder Blonde | 4.20 | | I'm not a great lover of golden beers but this one hit the spot. |
| Royal Tunbridge Wells - Royal Best Bitter | 4.10 | | A bitter that tastes like bitter used to taste. |
| Adnams - Broadside | 4.70 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried |
06 Nov 2010 (Alenomore)
Late afternoon visit and the second pub stop on our vintage bus trip today. Our final stop and I think most of our party enjoyed this pub too. And a bonus, with a new ale found as well.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Star - Hylder Blonde | 4.20 | | New to me, and went down really well. |
| Dark Star - Oktoberfest | 5.20 | | In excellent condition here. |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Belhaven - Caledonian Deuchars IPA | 3.80 | Not Tried |
20 Sep 2010 (BF)
Early afternoon visit, so really quiet.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Star - Smoked Porter | 5.40 | | Excellent condition, although was somewhat unimpressed by the beer itself. I expected much more from this collaborative brew, especially bearing in mind the reputation of 2 of my most favourite breweries. |
| Larkins - Traditional | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Cottage - Hurricane Ale | 4.70 | Not Tried |
28 Apr 2010 (thebrewingman)
Called in today for a couple of pints and lunch. The food is very good value and homemade (ie it is made on the premises and does not come out of a packet from the freezer that says homemade on it).
As usual the beer was in excellent condition.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's) | 3.40 | | Up to its normal standard - excellent. |
| Dark Star - Festival | 5.00 | | A nice pint with a bit more body and a proper bitter colour. |
15 Jan 2010 (Ian)
This was the reason I came to Tunbridge Wells was that I saw that the Larkins Porter was on. I missed it by about an hour. Still, glad I came as I haven't been to the town for some time and this pub is glorious. Lots of dark wood panelling, good landlord, lots of space to sit. I had a chat with one of the regulars about cycling. I will be back
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's) | 3.40 | | Brilliant hop. My favourite beer in the world. |
| Larkins - Traditional | 3.40 | | Always surprised how good this is. Great bitter, with lovely finishing satsuma hops. Good bitterness for a 3.4% beer. |
| Dark Star - Winter Solstice | 4.20 | | Great condition, really well served, but too much dry mixed spice for me. |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried |
13 Jan 2010 (thebrewingman)
This was my first visit so I was pleasantly surprised at the size of the pub.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Larkins - Porter | 5.20 | | In excellent condition. It just slipped down. A shame I was driving or else I would have had another one. |
| Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's) | 3.40 | | As good as I've tasted. Deep and intensive hoppy flavour. |
| Larkins - Traditional | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried |
14 Feb 2009 (JeffnJo)
Larkins Porter sold out for the season
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's) | 3.40 | | Proving very popular - it was the fave tipple of West Kent CAMRA group who happened to be on a tour. |
| Wychwood (now brewed at Banks's) - Dirty Tackle | 4.00 | | Not sure the ABV is correct. Jo hated the aroma on this beer and decided not to drink it. I didn't suffer so much in the nasal dept but didn't like it too much either. It was clearly named to coincide with the 6 Nations rugby. Why do some brewers become so commercially minded? All that effort (branding, marketing etc) for basically a beer no better than their others? |
| Larkins - Traditional | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried |
10 Feb 2009 (JeffnJo)
Welcoming, warm, carpeted throughout. Central bar. Beers on were Harveys Sussex, Larkins Trad and Larkins Porter. They also have Wychwood beers and Dark Star Hophead settling in the cellar. They clearly have a commitment to ales, singing the praises of Larkins and pondering the array of Dark Star beers for the future (we gave them a few pointers). This may be chinese whispers but the barman stated that the DStar deliveryman said DStar are "under the wing of Harveys". Is this how they are providing the currently popular and expanding Hophead market??
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Larkins - Porter | 5.20 | | Well served, smooth, creamy, tasteful as ever. |
| Larkins - Traditional | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried |
About The Royal Oak
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
| 6 |
| 29 |
| 7 |
| 1 |
| 1 |
The pub is found in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN2 4SY.
Just outside the town centre in Prospect Road, this is not the typical Tunbridge Wells pub in that it has some good ales! Carpeted throughout with warm feel it has an active darts team, book swap, quiz on Thursdays and jazz on Sunday lunchtimes. Friendly welcome and a keen interest in real beers and likely to be in future Good Beer Guides. 6 handpumps.
We have visited this pub 18 times, seen 38 different beers and tried 32 of them.
Postcode: TN2 4SY