It may have been a stormy night, but hardly dark, though that wasn't holding back the modest celebrations in the back streets of Belgravia.
A miscellany of regulars, head brewers George Young (Fuller's) and Paddy Johnson (Windsor and Eton Brewery), others from the Griffin brewery team headed by Fuller's Inns MD Jonathon Swaine, and members from across thronged the Star Tavern in late June. For it was the evening that CAMRA West London was to present Marta with the certificate recording the pub's first place as branch Pub of the Year 2017!
Supported by a strong team branch chair Les Maggs got straight to nitty gritty. While some stragglers were still arriving, shaking off the rain, and making sure that they had a glass of the '1845', we all saluted the success of Marta and her team. With over real ale 600 pubs across three London boroughs, and an array of excellent pubs in the running, it is a magnificent achievement to reach the short-list let alone to beat the the other contenders.
(Thanks to Dominic Pinto for this article, and thanks to Gill Shaw/Fuller's for the photo)
