A special bus tour will give beer lovers a chance to taste the joys of the Stewartry on Saturday.
The Dumfries and Stewartry Sub Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is going on the trip to experience four of the region’s top watering holes.
It’s been organised by the branch’s Mark and Pauline Bethell, who live in Dalbeattie.
And they’re hoping that as well as being fun for drinkers, it will provide a much-needed boost to the pubs involved.
Mark said: “We’re going in January because pubs are under a lot of pressure and this time of year is a particularly hard time.
“Getting 14 people into four pubs hopefully works well for them.
“We’ll be introducing people to these pubs who might not have been before so it’ll hopefully make them go again.
“We’ll be taking some CAMRA literature along to spread the word and it talks about the kind of beers you have and what CAMRA does.
“We had a little bit of trouble finding a bus but we went on a trip with Galloway Community Transport and asked them if they would do it.
“CAMRA like to be involved with community organisations so it’s a nice bit of synergy.
“They’ve been great, Sue McMinn has been who we’ve dealt with mostly. I asked if her husband would like to come as it’s for members and non-members but unfortunately he’s had to drop out.
“Our driver sounds quite a character, he’s looking forward to “facilitating this critical social cohesion activity” as he put it!”
The last spot on the bus was taken on Monday, with two of the passengers also celebrating their birthdays on the same day as the trip.
The journey starts and finishes from Sulwath Brewery in Castle Douglas and visits The Ken Bridge Hotel in New Galloway, The Clachan in Dalry and The Laurie Arms in Haugh of Urr.
Mark added: “They all do real ales. It is hard for pubs to serve real ale because they’ve got to have a reasonable turnover, which makes it difficult to do – especially at this time of year.
“They all have a different story – Sulwath Brewery has all their beers the Laurie Arms has been owned by Sandra Yates for quite a long time, it’s a hub of the community.
“The Clachan is a youngish couple who’ve had it for a few years and built it up really well.
“And The Ken Bridge was only taken over at the end of last year and they’re doing a lot of work so it’ll be interesting to see how far they’ve got with that.”
If the tour is a success it is hoped to have more throughout the year.
