Great West Way Travel Magazine | Issue 07

ALCO-TOURISM

ON THE WAY

Slow down, fill your boots and quench your thirst while enjoying the

thriving trend of alco-tourism – with plenty of places along the Great

West Way to learn the crafts behind some delicious homegrown tipples.

Words | Susan Wright

With so many impressive drink establishments

along the Great West Way route, from beer

and real ales to wine and spirits, you could base

your entire journey – east to west or west to

east – learning the crafts behind some of the finest beverages

in southern England, while also sampling a few along the

way too. Here are some of the best distilleries, breweries and

vineyards you can visit along the way.

Breweries

Beer has been brewed in this area of England for thousands

of years. Many delicious craft beers, IPAs and real ales are

still produced right here on the Great West Way. From tiny

microbreweries with their own taprooms to Great West

Way institutions like Wadworth Brewery and West Berkshire

Brewery, there are lots of opportunities to try our local beers.

Before you leave London learn what goes into making

Fuller's ales taste so good at the Griffin Brewery, or for live

music and cocktails pop into The Tap on the Line, Kew on the

second Thursday of the month. For a night of jazz Fuller's host

a different trio or quartet at The Old Fish Market, Bristol on

Sunday evenings.

One of the oldest steam breweries still in existence and

one of the finest examples of a Victorian steam brewery

anywhere in the world, Arkell's Brewery is a fully-functioning

brewery today and Swindon's oldest established company.

The ten-acre site is located in Kingsdown on the outskirts

of the town behind the original Kingsdown Inn. Actual tours

of the site are very limited and usually by invitation only,

however you can enjoy a virtual tour from the link here. You

can also visit many Arkell's along the route including The

Cross Keys in Newbury, The Downgate in Hungerford and The

Lansdowne in Calne.

At Wadworth Brewery Visitor Centre you can sample the

delights and learn about the traditional brewing methods used

at the site since 1875. Take yourself on a self-guided tour →

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