“Just good beer!” That’s the secret of the success of Ruddington’s Frame Breakers pub according to manager Amy Cameron – as staff and customers celebrate a prestigious place in the 2018 Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) Good Beer Guide, published TODAY.
It’s the first time in five years that ANY of our village pubs has featured in the real ale almanac – since both The Three Crowns and The White Horse were dropped after the 2013 edition following changes in management. Now in its 45th year, the Good Beer Guide features 4,500 pubs across the United Kingdom that serve the best real ale. It boasts being completely independent, with its listings based entirely on nomination and evaluation by local CAMRA members.
Historically called The Bricklayers Arms the struggling pub (at the corner of High Street and Kirk Lane) was refurbished, renamed and relaunched by new owners The Nottingham Brewery in November 2015 as the Frame Breakers– in tribute to Ruddington’s framework knitting and Luddite heritage. Amy (pictured top with bar supervisor Owen Downs) has been managing the inn for 18 months. In that time it has had a turnaround in fortunes to become something of a magnet for real ale drinkers from our village and beyond – taking part in RuddFest and also reintroducing food and staging regular “live” music, pub quizzes and other events.
“It’s a massive achievement – we’re really happy to be in the new guide” says Amy. “We have our ‘house’ beers, EPA, Frame Breaker and Legend, always a mild or a stout available, and rotating guests on hand-pulls every week. So there’s up to seven cask ales available at any point, as well as our real cider wall – with a perry, variants of mediums and drys and a ‘fruity’! Our next project is to see if we can upgrade the cellar so we can increase the range even further. It’s a work in progress!”
Their inclusion in the latest Good Beer Guide comes after Nottingham’s Branch of The Campaign for Real Ale announced back in March that the Frame Breakers was one of the two runners-up in its “Village Pub of the Year 2017” awards.
Nick Tegerdine of the Nottingham CAMRA branch committee told RUDDINGTON.info:
“The inclusion of the Frame Breakers in the GBG is great news for Ruddington. The GBG is what is says, a ‘good beer guide’, so the committee firstly considers the ratings of beer quality submitted by members, then other factors including how much of the beer sold is local, how many ratings have been submitted, the absence of national brands of shouting lager, and so on.”
Nick is a regular at the Frame Breakers and adds: “For the record, I am delighted that the pub is in the GBG although I did not participate in the discussion as it could be argued that I have an interest. Nevertheless, the decision was agreed by everyone else on the committee without exception and that’s testimony to the quality of the cask beer, the range they sell, and the way that the pub has contributed to Ruddington’s reputation as a destination to visit.”
