Good Beer Guide: The eight Hartlepool and East Durham pubs that made the cut

Trevor and Debra Wilding at the Jacksons Arms.

Eight pubs in Hartlepool and East Durham have made it into a prestigious beer guide.

The Jackson’s Arms and the King John’s Tavern, both in Hartlepool, have been added to the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) Good Beer Guide.

The Jackson’s Arms has been included in the guide again after a short break and pub landlord, Trevor Wilding said: “It’s excellent news. We were in it about 10 years and I’m over the moon to be back in it. It’s where we should be.

“It did make a difference before being in it and being able to say to people that we are in the guide.”

Anthony Lee, manager of the Wetherspoons pub, said: “I am delighted that The King John’s Tavern has been recognised for the quality of its real ales by Camra members.

“We offer our customers an excellent range of real ales at all times, including those from regional brewers and microbrewers, as well as hosting our own beer festivals.

“Staff at the pub work hard to ensure that the real ales on offer are kept in first-class condition at all times and the pub’s inclusion in the guide highlights this.”

Alan Davies, Good Beer Guide co-ordinator for Camra, said: “All we are looking for is excellent beer, served in an excellent condition, all the time, every time. The pubs that feature in this, the 43nd edition of the Guide, maintain these high standards.”

Alan Davies adds that choosing the best of the best is a pleasant task. All of the above pubs have gone through a rigorous assessment process conducted by members of CAMRA over the last 12 months.

The pubs from the Cleveland Branch of Camra, which covers Hartlepool and East Durham, include:

• Hartlepool: Brewery Tap;

• Hartlepool: The Causeway;

• Hartlepool: Jackson’s Arms;

• Hartlepool: King John’s Tavern;

• Hartlepool: Rat Race Ale House;

• Hartlepool Headland: The Globe;

• High Hesleden: Ship Inn;

• Billingham: Greenholme Catholic Club.

Camra’s Cleveland Branch has an allocation of 43 pubs for inclusion into the 2016 edition of the Guide which lists over 4,500 of the best pubs in the UK and which is now in its 43rd edition.

The branch stretches from High Hesleden in the north to Robin Hoods Bay in the south and westwards towards Darlington.

The Cleveland Branch of CAMRA, which was established in the 1970s, has over 700 local members, while nationally, membership is 170,000, making Camra the biggest single issue support group in the country.