Colchester – Abbey Arms

Just for clarity, this visit is from a couple of months ago, this isn’t a pub serving illegally during the lockdown. This was our penultimate pub of the evening and it was busy inside, as well as outside by the time we left. The pub was modernised a few years ago and I do like what they’re done with the exterior, it’s much improved from what was here before.

For some reason I’ve failed to note what I ordered in this pub, although knowing Nathan, he can probably still remember. So, it’s not ideal I can’t comment on that, although I do know that the choice wasn’t overly exciting in terms of there being no darker options, but the beer quality was fine (I’d have remembered if it wasn’t) and the primary selection is from the Colchester Brewery.

I wasn’t overly impressed at the acoustics of the pub, it’s a large single bar affair with no room divisions and a more modern design which just seemed soulless to me. The pub staff were friendly, although were perhaps unfortunately distracted by some of the pub’s more vibrant customers. There was a community feel to the whole arrangement though, I suspect someone new to the area would find the environment welcoming in terms of meeting new people and feeling welcome.

I wasn’t quite sure who the pub’s target clientele were, there was what I felt to be a slightly uneasy mix between the bright beer fonts and the real ales perched next to them. I’m more used to sports bars putting craft beer in alongside lagers to try and keep on trend (or just sell lagers and sod all else), and that’s something that is potentially quite exciting to me (well, not the sports bar or lagers bit obviously). But, I can’t complain that they’ve made an effort to sell real ale and it’s rather lovely that it’s working for them. The pub had also made an effort to stock a wide variety of spirits, so it wasn’t all generic and bland.

There was nothing wrong with the pub, but I’ll mark this one as not being for me (in fairness to them, very few sports bars are, so I was never their target market), I think I’d have rather it was the old fashioned local it was a few years ago, or something more modern in terms of craft beer or innovative and exciting real ales. But, the pub was busy, so I hope it’s doing well and that’s all that matters in these challenging times….