A RURAL Ceredigion pub has been presented with a certificate naming it pub of the year.

Members of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) have selected the Rhos yr Hafod in Cross Inn (Llanon) as the Bae Ceredigion CAMRA pub of the year 2023.

A special presentation of the award to publicans Angharad Hywel and Paul Jacobs was held in the pub on Friday evening.

Accepting the award, Angharad said: “Thank you very much Camra for supporting us.

“The last time got awarded with this, we closed the next day for a global pandemic. But then I did meet a husband and got myself pregnant, so Camra has a lot to answer for.

“Jesting aside, looking around it’s quite emotional. There’s so many people in here who have supported us.”

Local CAMRA members nominate pubs for this award and then judges visit the shortlisted pubs anonymously to evaluate each one against CAMRA’s pub of the year criteria. The quality of the real ale is the most important single factor, but judges also look at how well beer is promoted, the role a pub plays in its local community, the atmosphere, décor and welcome.

Camra pub of the year Rhos yr Hafod
Angharad Hywel and Paul Jacobs receive their award from Camra chair Mary Galliers (centre) (Camra Bae Ceredigion)

“This is the third time that the Rhos yr Hafod has won the Bae Ceredigion CAMRA pub of the award which is an outstanding achievement for a small pub in a very rural location,” said Bae Ceredigion Chair Mary Galliers.

“The award recognises the commitment that publicans Angharad Hywel and Paul Jacobs put into running the pub and the consistently excellent quality of real ale on offer. Judges particularly praised the support that the pub gives to and receives from its local community, and they stated that the Rhos yr Hafod a true community asset that is welcoming to all.”

The range of real ale at the Rhos yr Hafod is constantly changing but the two hand pumps usually offer beer from Welsh breweries. Angharad is knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the real ale on offer and a jaunty display of pump clips adorns the bar to promote the barrels waiting in the cellar. The pub has several drinking areas including a lively front bar, a quieter back bar to relax in, a function room, a large rear garden and a sunny front terrace.

The runner-up the Ship and Castle in Aberystwyth, which won the award in 2022, and the other finalist was the Bottle & Barrel also in Aberystwyth.