NINETEEN pubs in Salisbury and south Wiltshire have been voted into the 50th edition of the Good Beer Guide published by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA). They were selected for the Good Beer Guide by local CAMRA members with personal experience of pubs in the area.
The pubs include The Pheasant Inn in Salt Lane, Salisbury whose landlord, Martin Crane and his wife Julie were presented with their Good Beer Guide certificate by Ian Turner, chairman of the Salisbury & South Wilts branch of CAMRA.
“We are delighted to be voted into the Good Beer Guide,” said Martin, who has been at The Pheasant for three years. “I go to a lot of trouble to keep my beers just right. Freshness, a minimal stock and regular cleaning are all crucial.”

The Pheasant also serves a range of excellent traditional English food from its kitchen, which is run by Julie. Martin is a hugely experienced landlord having been in the pub trade for 29 years, 14 of them in Salisbury. The Cranes took over The Pheasant in November 2019, just four months before the Covid-19 pandemic began. He admits that running a pub has been tough going, first with the periods of lockdown resulting from Covid and now with soaring energy prices.

Ian Turner, chairman of the Salisbury & South Wilts branch of CAMRA, said: “We are lucky to have so many good pubs in the area and inclusion in the Good Beer Guide is a tremendous accolade for the very best of them. The Pheasant is an excellent example of a really cracking good local with a selection of well-kept real ales.”
Altogether, 140 pubs in the area covered by the Salisbury & South Wilts Branch of CAMRA were eligible for inclusion in Britain’s premier guide to real ale, with CAMRA members choosing only the top 19.
The full list of south Wiltshire pubs can be found in the 2023 edition of the Good Beer Guide. The 50th edition of the guide has been updated to make it more user-friendly and accessible. As well as 4,500 of the best real ale pubs in Great Britain, it includes a comprehensive breweries section. The guide costs £16.99 plus postage and packing and is available from the CAMRA website.
https://shop1.camra.org.uk/product/the-good-beer-guide-2023/