I have finally been to the Cotswolds, and what an experience it was. I love England, and I love the English countryside. It took covid for me to realise how much I did. The Cotswolds has been a dream location for me for a while, and I finally had the perfect excuse to visit. I was to take a tour of Hawkstone Brewery. 

This wasn’t a press invite, I booked (and paid for) a ticket for myself. I actually did it months in advance, but decided the perfect date would be December 28th. That sweet spot where you’re still reeling from the cheery turmoil of Christmas and just waiting patiently for New Year’s to come along. I booked it as a surprise present for my stepdad. We were both fans of Hawkstone Beer, so it made the perfect gift for him, and something I could enjoy too, win-win! 

Hawkstone Brewery has become the centre of attention thanks to the media. Since Clarkson’s Farm aired on our TVs it’s encouraged us Brits to shop local and support British farming. 

Hawkstone started life as the Cotswold Brewing Company by Rick and Emma. The company was thrown into the limelight when they partnered with Jeremy Clarkson’s Diddly Squat Farm to create Hawkstone Beer. 

Due to the immense popularity of the lager, the decision was made to unite all of their beers under the Hawkstone brand, to ensure that they get the attention they deserve. 

This was a smart decision, although the Cotswolds are a famous part of the UK, there are so many brands that use the location in its name, that it’s hard to stand out.

I’ve been to a few breweries now, from the Home of Carlsberg in Copenhagen to the Guinness Factory in Dublin. Now there are a lot of breweries in England, however very few of them make lagers, making Hawkstone unique.

The reason for this is time. Lagers take longer to ferment, and time is money. This means most breweries here tend to create IPA instead (Indian Pale Ale) as they can get more products to the shelves quicker. Still, some things are worth waiting for.

Walking into the Hawkstone Arms itself, it’s essentially a giant tent, and it’s brilliant. Despite the fact that I arrived at the end of December and it’s freezing cold outside, inside the tent is warm and cosy. 

The furniture looks like it’s been picked from a jumble sale. Nothing quite matches, every table it’s different, every chair is different, they are sofas, there’s a stage that looks like it’s been made at a palate, and it’s just fantastic. It isn’t pretentious or stuffy, if anything, it gives a sense of coming together and enjoying a great beer.

The tasting session took place in a small room to the left of the bar. We all sat together on stalls, and after introducing herself, our guide asked if any of us were driving. Sadly, on this occasion that included me. But we were assured that the generous tasting would still be available and we would be given half instead of full pints so that we would be okay to drive. But to make up for it, we would be given two bottles of our favourite choices to take home. 

Over the next two hours, we learned everything from the brewing process of beer to the history of brewing in the UK. Hawkstone started out as the Cotswolds Brewing Company when they partnered with Jeremy Clarkson to make Hawkstone Lager The beer became so popular that they decided to unite all their products under the Hawkstone Brand. The name Hawkstone itself comes from the field that the barley grew in.

You can’t bet a cold crisp beer in a warm bar in winter. I’ve always been a lager drinker, and I’ve enjoyed Hawkstone before. Being able to try more of their sampling. Helped me discover a few new favourites from their collection. The lighter session for when I want something light, and their Hedgerow Cider when I want something fruity. 

About halfway through our session, we were taken into the brewery itself. Now I’ve been to a few in the past, but the equipment in those have been cleaned and shined because they’re now museum pieces. Hawkstone’s equipment was still in place and actively brewing as we stood there. The floor was muddy and dirty, this isn’t a place you want to be wearing a brand new pair of white trainers (Thank god I didn’t) But it is nice to know that the beer you were drinking a few seconds ago has literally only moved about fifty yards.

And that’s really what Hawkstone and Jeremy Clarkson’s Diddly Squat brand is all about. It’s all about getting things locally sourced, supporting British farming and supporting British brewers. And if that involves me drinking more delicious beer, then I’m all for it!

Soon after the talk had come to an end, during our visit, most of the people in the room had consumed about five to six pints. We were told that afterwards, we would be given a discount for the Gift shop. So we decided we were going to take a few crates with us as well as a book from Kaleb Cooper. 

I liked the tongue-in-cheek humour in the Hawkstone Arms, from the signs saying “Unaccompanied children will be given a Red Bull and taught to swear” to the fact that the toilets are named after rival beer companies. 

Myself and my Stepdad opted for one more drink in the bar, I chose a Coke this time. We grabbed the chair and listened to the live singer as started his set. I noticed in the corner vending machine I thought I stood out a little bit. Being much bigger than most normal vending machines, I wandered over to check it out.

It was actually two in one, the first one had glass bottles and local cheeses. The second had a tap inside which unit would put the glass bottles in. And it would fill up with locally produced milk (or as they labelled it “Cow Juice”) and milkshakes. I had been warned that this was really expensive, but looking into it myself, it wasn’t actually that bad. 

You get a reusable glass bottle which only costs I believe around two pounds and to fill up cost another two. You can reuse the glass bottle anytime you return. I thought this was rather reasonable, and opted for the chocolate milk myself.

It always makes sense when you’re drinking to eat. You don’t want to do it on an empty stomach, which is why we got some food on the way to the Cotswolds. But that was just a little takeaway, we wanted to make sure got something proper before we drove home and since on the way we’d pass the farmer’s dog Jeremy Clarkson’s associated pub, we thought we would try and pop in on the way back. 

I had tried and booked it in advance, but we weren’t able to get a seat. So I thought we’d just try our luck park up and see how busy it was when we arrived. It was full and we were told it was going to be at least an hour. But considering how far we’d driven and how far we had to drive back, I decided it was worth the wait.

There has been a lot in the news about the farmer’s dog. It seems the media have taken a dislike to it and want to take any sort of disgruntlement they can and voice it publicly as if it’s a nation’s opinion, they’ve been articles about it being too expensive and about how they didn’t have certain amenities such as ketchup or Coke. But I didn’t find this to be an issue. 

The reason they don’t have ketchup or coke is because you can’t get those produced within the UK, so instead they stopped hawkstone, beer with them. They’re low-alcohol spa lager. They also had locally produced flavoured drinks that actually turned out to be low in calories and much more enjoyable than Coke anyway.

I ended up ordering two flavoured waters, a mushroom and poached egg on toast for starters and the beef and vegetables for mains. The total for the meal came to around forty-five pounds, including service. Considering how everything’s locally sourced and comparing the price to a meal in London or Essex, I didn’t think it was an unreasonable price. 

There were a lot of little touches that I really appreciated. First of all, I really like the décor but other things such as the staff seem genuinely happy to be there. Atmospheres like that are really infectious. On the wall, there was a chalkboard which detailed the cuts of meat such as beef, pork and turkey, and which were the local farms that had produced those cuts.

Unfortunately for me, It was time for me to go. It would be two and a half hours to drive home, so I had to pay the bill and leave. I’d had a great day, and I will have to return to the Cotswolds soon. The streets and area are beautiful, so it would be perfect for a weekend away, in both the Summer and Winter. As for Hawkstone and the Farmers Dog, it’s a day I’ll be raving about for a long time.