Campaign for Real Ale

Pub Of The Year

Pub Of The Year Competition

The branch runs five categories within the main Pub of The Year (POTY) competition. These are City POTY, Country POTY, Cider & Perry POTY and Club of The Year, with the pub scoring the most votes being named as the overall Branch Pub Of The Year. This then goes forward to the Regional POTY Competition, and subsequently, the National Pub of the Year Competition should it be successful at a regional level.

The competition runs as follows: Each Plymouth branch member who appears on the CAMRA national Membership System on 18th November will be contacted by the branch Membership Secretary. Each member will be entitled to vote for their choice of cask ale pub, plus a cider & perry pub (which may be one they have already voted for), and a club. Members are advised to include the address of the pub they are voting for, as there are numerous pubs called King’s/Queen’s Head/Arms, etc. Votes without the address will be excluded if there is any doubt! Voting will open on 1st December and will close at midnight on 31st December each year. PLEASE NOTE Earlier voting period than has been the case previously.

Votes can be cast via email or letter. In either case, your name AND membership number MUST be clearly stated – joint members MUST state that they are joint members.

Members can only vote once! Only those pubs listed on the Pub Guide are eligible.

The Branch Committee will ensure that all winners comply with current CAMRA policy. When voting, members may want to take into account of not only the quality of all real ales available, but also the atmosphere/style/décor of the pub, the service/welcome they receive, community focus of the pub, any sympathy with CAMRA aims, and good overall value. The pub with the overall highest score will be the branch Pub Of The Year and the city/country POTY as appropriate, and the others as required by their status.

Please note: POTY voting criteria has now changed following unanimous approval at September 2019 Branch Social Meeting for the POTY 2020 competition.

New Voting Criteria for POTY 2020

Following discussions since the 2019 branch AGM, the branch, at an open branch meeting held in September 2019, voted unanimously to amend the POTY voting criteria.

FIRST ROUND – Shortlist Voting

1) Each member of the branch, as listed on the National Membership Database on 1 December, can submit POTY votes either via email or by post, between 1st and 31st December. Members can vote for their Best City Pub, Best Country Pub, Best Cider Pub and Best Club, by downloading the voting form below.

2) The NBSS Coordinator will download and analyse data for the period 1st January to 31st December, on a date in early January. This will determine the highest averaging pub and club in each category, except cider. The NBSS Coordinator will also use the Confidence Rating part of the software. This will determine the best city pub, country pub and club, by beer score.

3) The highest voted pub in each category in 1) above, and highest averaging pub in each category in 2) above will be nominated. If they are same establishment, then the second-placed establishment from NBSS will be selected.

4) These results will be announced at the January Branch Social Meeting.

SECOND ROUND – Selection Surveys

4) The top two establishments from the FIRST ROUND in each category above – City Pub, Country Pub, Cider Pub and Club – will be surveyed by Branch Members using the standard CAMRA POTY Judging Form. Marks out of 10 are awarded for:-Quality of Beer/Cider/Perry (X weighting factor (2)) ; Style/Décor/Furnishing and Cleanliness; Service, Welcome & Offering; Community Focus and Atmosphere (X weighting factor (2)); Alignment with CAMRA principles; & Overall Impression; to give the venue a score out of 80.

5) Members do not have to survey each category of pub; however, they MUST visit each pub in a category that they do wish to judge form their vote to count.

6) Surveys MUST take place between the January Branch Meeting and the February Meeting/Social – roughly four weeks should be sufficient time. Judging forms may be submitted electronically or by post; paper forms MUST arrive prior to the February Social Meeting.

THIRD ROUND – Winner Selection

7) The establishment receiving the highest average score in each category will be the winner of that category. The establishment achieving the highest average score will be the Branch Overall Pub Of The Year.

8) In the event of a tie, the Branch Chair will have a casting vote.

Committee Responsibility

9) The Branch Committee reserves the right to exclude any suspect documentation from the process, suspend, or cancel all or part of the competition, and will have the final decision on the awards presented.

Example Timetable – Example for POTY 2020

1st to 31st December 2019 – voting by all eligible members via email or post
8th January to 5th February 2020 – conduct surveys of Round One winners (as announced at January meeting)
2020 AGM – announce winners at Branch AGM

2019 Winners

  • Overall Branch Pub Of The Year 2019 is Fortescue Hotel, Mutley Plain, Plymouth PL4 6JQ.
  • City Pub Of The Year 2019 is the Fortescue Hotel, Mutley Plain, Plymouth PL4 6JQ and Runner-Up is the Dolphin Hotel, 14, The Barbican, Plymouth, PL1 2LS.
  • Country Pub Of The Year 2019 is Royal Oak Inn, Meavy PL20 6PJ, and the Runner Up is Foxhound Inn, Kingsbridge Road, Brixton PL8 2AH.
  • The Cider and Perry Pub Of The Year 2019 is the Fortescue Hotel, Mutley Plain, Plymouth.
  • The Club Of The Year 2019 is the Fawn Private Members Club, 39, Prospect Street, Greenbank, Plymouth PL4.

2019 Top 10 Pubs

Pub of The Year 2020 Voting and Judging Forms

Voting for the branch Pub Of The Year 2020 will open on Sunday 1st December 2019 and close at midnight on Tuesday 31st December 2019. Members may submit their votes either by post or via email to ku.gro.armac.htuomylp@ytophtuomylp. Please use your full name and your membership number to validate your vote. Voting is not yet open and is CLOSED!

POTY Voting and Judging Forms

Branch Members MUST sign in to be able to download the forms.

Download the WORD or PDF POTY Voting Form (when available) - Voting closed at midnight on Thursday 31 January 2019.

Download the WORD or PDF CAMRA POTY Judging Form (when available) - Voting closed at midnight on Thursday 31 January 2019

Download the WORD of PDF CAMRA POTY Judging Form Guidelines (when available) - Voting closed at midnight on Thursday 31 January 2019