Harwich is well-served for places to drink for it’s size, and two of it’s establishments have been vying for Tendring CAMRA Pub of the Year in recent years – the Alma Inn and The New Bell Inn. I’ve been meaning to visit The Hanover Inn for some time, but only finally got round to it today, having dropped off a cask of Watsons Brewery ‘Mosaic’ at the nearby Harwich Town Brewery, ready for next week’s Harwich and Parkeston Winter Beer Festival.

Before going to the pub we popped into a fish and chip shop and had an al fresco lunch sitting in the peace and quiet of the shore, with an amazing view.

The Hanover Inn is an old pub, with a characterful front bar running across the width of the pub, decorated nicely (cushions on a bench seat under the windows), and a pub parrot rather than a pub dog for that extra bit of character. The back of the pub is slightly newer looking, and had a) a roaring fire b) several people partaking of lunch.

It was just a cheeky half for us – Crouch Vale’s ‘Anchor Porter’ (always great to see a dark beer on tap), which was sitting alongside a couple of other local brews. Definitely one to seek out if you’re in the town (it’s a small town and all three pubs are about 1 minute walk from each other!)

More articles about Harwich on Essex Real Ale : here.