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The Butchers Arms (Free House)

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Beer (sort)Average Score (sort)No. Samples (sort)
Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's)Exceptional2
Thornbridge / Thornbridge Hall - JaipurExceptional3
Dark Star - FestivalExceptional2
Harvey's - Sussex Best BitterExceptional2
Larkins - Best BitterExceptional3
Dark Star - Mild for MayExcellent2
Larkins - TraditionalExcellent2
Dark Star - MildExcellent2
Larkins - ChiddingstoneGood1
Adnams - BroadsideNot Tried0
Dark Star - American Pale Ale (some has also been brewed by Fuller's)Not Tried0
Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - London PrideNot Tried0
Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - ESBNot Tried0
Picture 1. The Butchers Arms, Herne, Kent
Picture 2. The Butchers Arms, Herne, Kent

Visits Details

10 Jun 2009 (Andrew)
The board that displays the beers on offer said Hop Head and London Pride but all manner of different beers were coming out the back. Ian and I tried making our own beer to add to the list by mixing Jaipur and Hop Head (50-50). Very nice it was. As well as top class beer you can get a free education at this pub. Who'd have guessed that archaeology isn't really a subject. But the most exciting development was the possibility of a Butcher's Wives calendar!
BeerABVScoreNotes
Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's)3.40ExceptionalThe best beer? ... in Kent's best pub? I think so.
Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter4.00Not Tried
Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - London Pride4.10Not Tried
Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - ESB5.50Not Tried
Thornbridge / Thornbridge Hall - Jaipur5.90Not Tried
10 Jun 2009 (Glyn)
Well done to Martyn for picking up yet another local area Camra award! The pub was full of hard core regulars enjoying the usual quality ale and bonhomie.New barrel of Harveys on which was excellent, far better than you will get anywhere in Sussex!
BeerABVScoreNotes
Larkins - Best Bitter4.40Exceptional
05 Jun 2009 (KB)
Busy again tonight with lots of regulars and locals. Some new faces which is good to see. It means the gospel is spreading far and wide converting the L**** drinkers to the real stuff. Goodness me I'm beginning to feel like a missionary !! Lots of banter and Dave the Wave jokes - another good night.
BeerABVScoreNotes
Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter4.00Exceptionalas ever this is first class because Martyn knows how to keep and serve it. A tradesman knows his stuff.
Dark Star - Festival5.00Exceptionalwhat a good pint this is - its from the Dark Star brewery and what we've come to expect
29 May 2009 (Andrew)
Damn it! The Larkin's had gone. Damn it. My own stupid fault for not getting down here earlier. So I got my bottle of Mild and sat and had a chat to Mick and Rosemary and the other locals who were in. It felt really nice and relaxed with only a handful of people in. By now I guess it'll be packed.
BeerABVScoreNotes
Dark Star - Mild for May3.60ExcellentDamn fine stuff this. Big roasted coffee flavours dominate with a milky, slightly sour/tart bitterness to the finish.
Adnams - Broadside4.70Not Tried
Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter4.00Not Tried
Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's)3.40Not Tried
Dark Star - Festival5.00Not Tried
28 May 2009 (Mick)
Very busy for a Thursday, mostly locals.
BeerABVScoreNotes
Larkins - Traditional3.40ExcellentSuperb, a golden/copper bitter, tastes more like a 4%. Tastes better with each pint, a good session bitter.
Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter4.00Not Tried
Dark Star - American Pale Ale (some has also been brewed by Fuller's)4.70Not Tried
Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's)3.40Not Tried
26 May 2009 (Glyn)
By anybodys standards a quiet start to the evening,with half a dozen regulars in attendance.For those with any electrical queries it was an opportunity missed as resident experts Andy the Onion and KB(63) were on hand to answer any sparkey questions. It was therefore fortunate for local hero Tommo who can now mend his solar powered unit on Whitstables lifeboat. Next week Scotty will be answering all those awkward questions you've been dying to ask on embroidery and upholstery!! Beer excellent as usual.
BeerABVScoreNotes
Dark Star - Festival5.00ExceptionalAnother stunning beer from one of the south east's best breweries
Larkins - Traditional3.40ExcellentGreat session bitter, with clean crisp taste
21 May 2009 (Blair)
Usual bunch of characters in tonight. There's talk of a cricket/beer trip which sounds interesting. Great beer lineup tonight, as Glyn has sais, the beer just seems to be getting better and better.
BeerABVScoreNotes
Thornbridge / Thornbridge Hall - Jaipur5.90ExceptionalFantastic, light and intensely hoppy yet easy to drink.
Dark Star - Mild for May3.60ExcellentVery dark slightly thin mild. Very good roasted malt and slight chocolate flavour. With just a little smke in there too, very good mild.
Larkins - Chiddingstone4.00GoodThis one tastes more like a traditional best than their own best does. Malty yeasty bitter, good solid beer.
Adnams - Broadside4.70Not Tried
Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter4.00Not Tried
Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - ESB5.50Not Tried
20 May 2009 (Glyn)
It is no exaggeration to say that the beer just keeps on getting better and better! Since our trip to the Harveys brewery it is nice to be drinking Sussex Best at its very best.The quality of beer in Lewes must be variable when Splitter resorted to drinking white wine!! What a tart. A new beer to the Arms to get excited about is Larkins best bitter. What a find, sorry Mike you'll have to wait until next time. Apparently there is new flange on the scene but i've not seen it yet but K.B.(63) is getting quite unnecessary.Possible events in the future could be a day at the cricket and a visit to Westerham Brewery, early days though.
BeerABVScoreNotes
Larkins - Best Bitter4.40ExceptionalWhat a find, fruity and full of flavour with a bit of a kick
Dark Star - Mild3.60ExcellentAnother great beer from Dark Star
16 May 2009 (Mick)
Usual Butchers evening, Ken, Glyn and a few others, the Whitstable bunch came later.
BeerABVScoreNotes
Thornbridge / Thornbridge Hall - Jaipur5.90ExceptionalWhat can I say, one of my favourites and in perfect condition here, very hoppy but so smooth.
Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter4.00ExcellentVery nice, a new cask perhaps? That distinctive Harveys taste and aroma.
Dark Star - Mild3.60ExcellentDeep amber and a bit hopppy for a mild but very nice.
Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - ESB5.50Not Tried
14 May 2009 (Blair)
Seem to be getting here more and more regularly these days, can only be a good thing. Fantastic night, possibly the best beer lineup I've seen since I've been coming here. I don't think I stopped laughing from the moment I got in until the moment I left!
BeerABVScoreNotes
Larkins - Best Bitter4.40ExceptionalThis blew me away. Easily the best bitter I've ever tasted. Fantastically rich and complex. Malty, fruity, chocolatey, it's got it all.
Dark Star - Hophead was 3.8% (some has also been brewed by Fuller's)3.40ExceptionalStunning as ever.
Thornbridge / Thornbridge Hall - Jaipur5.90ExceptionalThird time I've tried this and it seems 3 really is a chamr. I finally see what everyone else sees in this beer. Beautifully light and hoppy.
Harvey's - Sussex Best Bitter4.00Not Tried
Fuller's (part of Asahi Europe) - ESB5.50Not Tried

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About The Butchers Arms

The pub sign. The Butchers Arms, Herne, Kent

Summary of Beer Scores

 Total
Exceptional239
Excellent424
Good92
Acceptable14
Poor-

Website.

The pub is found in Herne, Kent, CT6 7HL.

In the middle of Herne village in Herne Street, once the Canterbury Beer Shop selling beer straight from the cask. It is now a pub (with the same owner as before) and still does off-sales which is fantastic! Voted CAMRA Kent Pub of the Year in 2008 and East Kent CAMRA Pub of the Year in 2009 (...and not surprisingly). Regarded universally as the first micropub, which has spawned many similar ventures in East Kent and throughout the UK. Real ales are kept on gravity dispense in a cold room to the right and you will view this when you walk through it to the unisex toilet at the rear. Displays a Micropub Association Certificate of Registration warranting, annually, that it adheres to the tenets and ethics of the Association's definition of a micropub. Since post-Covid re-opening in October 2021 now open 5-8 Tuesday to Friday only. The landlord and founder of the Micropub Association, Martyn Hillier, was awarded an MBE in the 2024 New Years Honours list for services to Business and to Hospitality.

We have visited this pub 378 times, seen 164 different beers and tried 135 of them.

Map location

Postcode: CT6 7HL