GeoGuessr – Colchester (The Odd One Out)

This is part of the GEOGUESSR 1 series of posts.

We had an hour in Colchester whilst waiting to get the train from Colchester Town to Colchester railway station, so that was enough time to visit a pub in the Good Beer Guide. This one sounded excellent from the description and it’s now run by Colchester Brewery as their first pub.

My first impressions were very positive, an extensive selection of real ales and some dark options were available. It felt old-fashioned, which pleased me enormously, and everything felt calm, welcoming and just as it should be. There were no gimmicks, disturbances or pointless distractions, all very lovely.

Some of the beer selection and there wasn’t much need for me to hesitate as there was a porter available, the Old King Coel London Porter from Colchester Brewery.

Here it is in its glory and I thought that it was better than the reviews on-line suggest it is (not that they’re at all bad, they just don’t rate it as exceptional). I thought it was delightful though, a rich roasted malty taste and very drinkable.

I didn’t even try to work out why this was here, but despite it not really matching any of the decor, it still seemed to fit in.

Above the bar. And I’m delighted that the Good Beer Guide brought me here and I’ve also found out that it has been in the book for over thirty years, the longest run of any pub in Essex. It’s all very well deserved, every town (and village) should have a pub like this. Friendly, welcoming, decent beer and calm surroundings. So very lovely.