Desert Island Pubs – Ben Stackhouse, founder of PubLove
Beer Insider is pleased to bring you the latest Desert Island Pubs column, supported by Sunrise Beverages. So settle in and enjoy reading the stories behind the selection of pubs from…
Ben Stackhouse, founder, PubLove
1. Earliest Memory of a Pub
My family owned a pub when I was born, The Nags Head in Northend, but I have no memories of it as we left before I was two. We then had a hotel in Torquay and its bar provided me with many early ‘pub’ experiences, from propping up the bar to pouring my first pint. All before I turned five. One favourite, yet hazy, memory involves my younger brother and I taking advantage of a temporary absence of supervision to work our way along the optics, to see which one we disliked the most. I think we would have been around six to eight years old at the time.
2. Most Inspirational Pub to my Career
The Lambeth Sportsman on Lambeth Walk. My old boss built a backpackers hostel upstairs but closed the pub. This always seemed like a big shame and a huge missed opportunity to me. When I chose The Green man in Paddington, as my first pub I was determined to make the hostel became an asset to the pub downstairs, rather than its replacement.
3. My Current Local
I try to spread (hide!) my drinking across our PubLove estate, but The Queens Head in Clerkenwell, being the newest of our pubs, is my current ‘office of choice’. It’s a beautiful pub that we’re really proud of and getting to know a whole new bunch of locals is surely one of our industry’s great joys.
4. My Favourite Pub
There a little gem of a freehouse about two minutes’ walk from my home, The Rose & Crown in Trowley Bottom, Flamstead. It’s been pretty much untouched for decades and is an absolute treasure in our little corner of the world. From live music in the garden on long summer’s days (Chesney Hawkes even sang his One and Only hit for us last summer) to cold winter evenings with the roaring fire and pop-out back for a firework display, it’s been the centre of my non-work pub-life on so many of my most special family days.
5. The Pub you’d like to take to the Island
Having grown up in Torquay, any pub on or near the sea is a winner for me so I’m going to take the wonderful Cary Arms in Babbacombe to my island. It has a cosy pub with local ales, a lovely restaurant serving great food from homemade pies to fresh seafood, and has some lovely converted fisherman’s cottages and beach huts so people can come to visit me on the island. It also comes with the added benefit of a spa.
6. The beer (unlimited supply) you’d take to the desert island?
Can I choose a rotational tap? Assuming not. I’m going to pick Ichnusa Non Filtrata (from Sardinia) if my island is sunny or Titanic Plum Porter if it’s cold. But I reserve the right to change my mind next week. Cheers.
Glynn Davis, editor, Beer Insider
Supported by:
