A Real Pub ~ Local and Proud

FROM THE BARLEY FIELD TO OUR BAR!

Here at the Three Greyhounds Inn we are building a great reputation for serving an excellent range of local craft cask ales. We only buy ales for our six pumps from micro-breweries except during special weeks.

In the main these breweries are Weetwood, Storm, Wincle, Dunham Massey, Tatton, Merlin, Redwillow and Salopian to name just a few. We also feature House Ales brewed by Weetwood namely ‘Three Greyhounds Bitter’ and Almighty Allostock Ale also known as Triple ‘A’ or simply ‘Almighty’ which are our most popular ales. We also feature our famous ale ‘Byley Bomber’ and the summer ale Byley Blonde.

Our ale enthusiasts chose their ‘blonde’

With the summer approaching James our landlord and deputy Ben (who has joined the team from the Cholmondeley Arms) have been running a competition to find the ‘Byley Blonde’ Ale!! Three Brewers were asked to present a Blonde Ale (which had already been narrowed down from seven ales by James) to the Three Greyhounds Inn and our customers decided who the victor should be on a blind tasting. The date for the launch of the taste challenge was Thursday 18th April 2013 and lasted until the first barrel went!! The beers were badged with our specially designed badges with pop art versions of iconic ‘blondes’. (See below)

The three brewers can now be revealed!! Tatton Brewery from Knutsford represent by Debbie Harry, Merlin Brewery from near Sandbach represented by Kate Moss and Weetwood Brewery in Tarporley represented by Marilyn Monroe!!! All brewers are within the 30 mile radius of the pub and all are craft brewers.

I am not sure whether our older clientele were influenced by the Marilyn Monroe badge but the winning Blonde came from Weetwood Brewery!!! All of the ales were excellent and were thoroughly enjoyed!! So our seasonal summer blonde ale has been agreed and will badged as BYLEY BLONDE!!

We are currently working on the badge design and the beer will be launched later in May! So please allow us a ‘blonde moment’ or two!!
Thank you to all our customers who helped choose the ale!!

Since we opened the doors of the new Three Greyhounds Inn we have had a really great response to our ‘house ales’ and our seasonal ales too. On centre pump is our resident ale (unless James sells out of course) Three Greyhounds Bitter a traditional 4.5% bitter smooth and creamy and rich in flavour. The second of our resident ales is Almighty Allostock Ale otherwise known as ‘Almighty’ or Triple ‘A’, this is a malty 4.2% bitter’!!! Finally there is Byley Bomber a celebration ale in recognition of the Wellington Bomber built at Byley and flown out of RAF Cranage during WW2. The badge also recognises 96 Squadron who flew Hurricanes out of Cranage defending the north west from German air attack in WW2.

Tim Bird

Byley Bomber fly’s in for Christmas!!!

James our landlord has chatted with a few regulars here at the Three Greyhounds Inn and done a little research and has come up with a commemorative Ale to recognise the great history of the local area around our pub.

“Byley Bomber” is a great 3.8% abv session Ale which will feature as a guest ale for many years to come. It celebrates firstly RAF Cranage which was a Royal Air Force station during the Second World War. The airfield was located just to the North of Middlewich.

Byley Bomber beer badge

The site at Cranage was chosen for use as a training base and aircraft maintenance unit in August 1939. Originally just a grass airfield, three runways were later built from American metal plank. The airfield unusually had eight blister hangars for maintenance use.

The first flying unit was No. 2 School of Air Navigation which was formed on 21 October 1940. It operated the twin-engined Avro Anson for training navigators. In 1942 the unit was renamed the Central Navigation School and the strength was increased to 58 Ansons, they were joined two years later by a number of Vickers Wellingtons in the same role. It is the Wellington bomber that is celebrated on the badge and names the beer.

A Vickers-Armstrong shadow factory assembling Wellingtons, was situated at Byley but close to the Cranage airfield. The completed aircraft would be towed from the factory to the airfield for their first flight and onward delivery.

The beer badge also reflects the formation of 96 Squadron in December 1940 at RAF Cranage, which was equipped with Hawker Hurricanes. This unit operated in the night air-defence role, mainly in the protection of the industrial and port areas of Liverpool.

The only flying unit on the airfield after the war was No. 190 Gliding School which was formed in May 1945 and operated from the site for two years. With their departure, flying ceased at Cranage. The airfield was used for storage and maintenance until it closed in 1958.

Great history indeed and what a great beer too!!

96 SQUADRON

RAF

Vickers Wellington