August 22, 2009
Visited on a hot Friday evening in mid-August, this heritage site is certainly worth touring and soaking up the history if you have time. Our tour guide was funny and informative, showing us the Mill and the Cooper’s buildings before taking us to the brewery. The brewer was on site to give us a run-down of the old ways of brewing and how they use a similar process to make the four beers they have on cask today. Unfortunately the porter was not ready (our friends picked up a growler instead), but the brown, IPA and stout were all excellent and interesting to try. There is a restaurant just across the hall downstairs where we tried a Ploughman’s lunch (not served with bread), a tourtiere, and a chilli, all tasty and simple and filling. Would recommend visiting if you can get there.

July 24, 2009
Business lunch here. If you do that, you can park for free and stroll the grounds, those ar pluses. You eat at a family restaurant in the basement. The brewery itself is small and by a side room, and its only casks. They only serve contract made on-taps from their partner Trafalgar. Unfortunately a weaker reputation for those. Go to the tasting, try the casks. I do not know how long the growlers will last as nothing is added to these. But I was happy with the casks. Come for that, the restaurant is rather ordinary, though service was good.