As well as campaigning to save real ale and the UK's unique pub heritage, CAMRA also provides a number of ways that drinkers can find real beers, ciders and perries.

Firstly, there is CAMRA's Good Beer Guide (GBG), the UK’s best-selling beer and pub guide which continues to represent the best of the best in the brewing and hospitality industry.

With 4500 pubs, bars, and clubs selected by unpaid volunteers up and down the country, this is the best guide for pubgoers interested in good beer as well as those who wish to find a welcoming local near them.

Each entry contains a short description as well as details of regular beers that can be linked to the brewery section to discover local beers, as well as some treasured national favourites.

This guide is compiled by beer lovers for beer lovers and is the most independent and complete guide to find good beer. Unlike some other guides, pubs cannot pay to be included.

CAMRA has also developed a Good Beer Guide app which places all the information in the book at your fingertips on a browser on your phone, pc or tablet. It costs 99p a month or £4.99 for year. You can find more information at: tinyurl.com/yfec28dw.

However, there are many more fine pubs serving real ale across the UK that are not included in the GBG book and app. To discover these, you can use the WhatPub website (whatpub.com) which is also compiled by unpaid volunteers across the UK with no funding from the brewing and pub industries.

It is very simple to use: in the 'search' box, type in a place name, postcode, pub name, railway station or similar and the site will throw up a list of pubs starting with the closest to the place you mentioned then moving further away, giving the distance from your starting point.

The entries will list the regular beers and whether there are guest ales; it will also mention if there is cider and perry. Other features include: food (lunchtime, evening or both); disability access; parking; garden; sports TV; events such as music or quiz nights; traditional pub games; wifi; whether it is family and dog friendly; and much more. It's very useful if you're away from home on business or holiday in the UK.

Happy hunting!

Neville Grundy
Southport & West Lancashire Branch