On 15 November, Cornwall CAMRA members travelled to the historic village of St Germans for a branch business meeting. The damp and dull weather was not the best for appreciating the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Conservation Area. The walk from the station passed St Germanus Priory church, the exceptional Norman building with asymmetrical towers, replacing the original cathedral for Cornwall built between 926 and 1030.

The famous Port Eliot mansion with its garden sits behind the church. The eponymous St Germanus is believed to have visited the area about 429, but he would have arrived by boat on the nearby River Tiddy because the railway did not exist for another 1,430 years (so he missed it). The Eliot family bought the estate after 1540 but not long after King Henry VIII had dissolved the monastery. The Eliot family still live there (but not the same individuals). The Eliot Arms pub forms part of the Eliot Estate and bears the heraldry of the family.

We arrived at the attractive stone pub and were glad to get inside out of the late autumn weather and the walk that was longer than some expected!

The bar was a welcome sight with three handpumps carrying Firebrand beers from Pennygillam, Launceston. Thanks to Roger Webster, there were three extra beers on the bar in tubs. These were three of the Otter Brewery range from Luppitt including Head, a lovely malty strong bitter (I am biassed). The pub also offered an excellent range of meals to go with the beer.

We enjoyed a good meeting followed by networking and socialising. We voted the Beerwolf Books in Falmouth as our Autumn Pub of the Month out of five nominations. Before we left, Acting Chairman Dave Pedlar thanked the licensee and staff for accommodating us. We expect to be back in the future.

Cheers, Steve Barber