The Good Beer Guide sees 20 new pub entries and two new brewery entries for Hampshire

The beer group has the published the 49th edition of annual guide, with contributors encouraging readers to support their local pubs and breweries in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.

The guide features 17 pubs across Portsmouth and 118 in Hampshire, including almost two dozen new entries for the region.

Nationally, the 2022 Guide has found the total number of independent UK breweries has risen to 1,902 in 2021 – up from 1,816 in 2020.

This is the highest number of breweries recorded in the Guide since publication began in 1974.

Across Hampshire, a total of 40 breweries are listed – with two new entries, Drop The Anchor in Hinton and Gilbert White’s in Selborne.

CAMRA National Chairman Nik Antona said: ‘After the struggles of the past 18 months for the industry, it is great that The Good Beer Guide figures are showing the resilience of pubs and brewers in the face of strife – a national increase in brewery numbers after they dipped last year for the first time, as well as over 500 new pub entries.

‘However, the industry is still vulnerable in the aftermath of COVID-19 lockdowns. Breweries still face issues around costs of goods, lack of business rate relief and silence from the government on Small Brewers’ Relief reform.

‘We are calling on the Government to make sure the new draught duty rate applies to containers 20L and up so that all our small and independent brewers can benefit.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

You can subscribe here for unlimited access to our online coverage, including Pompey, for 26p a day.