Cuckoo Inn landlord Nik Amplianitis, centre, receives the award from CAMRA Salisbury & South Wiltshire branch regional director Norman Clinnick, and cider champion Jane Foster

Village inn near Salisbury crowned regional cider pub of the year

Paul JonesJuly 22, 20260 Comment0

A VILLAGE inn near Salisbury will represent southern England at a national awards later this year.

The 150-year-old Cuckoo Inn, at Hamptworth on the edge of the New Forest, has been chosen as the best cider pub across the region by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA).

Now, the venue will go forward to the national championships to be decided later this year.

Greek-born landlord Nik Amplianitis, who admits he knew very little about cider when he took over the pub four years ago, said he is “over the moon” at becoming CAMRA’s South Central Region Cider Pub of the Year.

He was presented with his regional winner’s certificate and Wiltshire county certificates for two years running by Norman Clinnick, regional director of CAMRA, and Jane Foster, cider dhampion of the Salisbury & South Wiltshire branch.

CAMRA’s South Central Region covers the four mainland counties of Wiltshire, Berkshire, Hampshire, and Dorset plus the Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands.

Since taking over in 2022, when The Cuckoo stocked only four ciders, Nik has turned it into a destination pub for cider-lovers from all over the United Kingdom and Ireland.

“I have one couple who come all the way down from Scotland, others from Wales and Ireland,” he said.

“We have established quite a reputation and winning this regional CAMRA trophy is a huge help for us.

“I am from Greece and we don’t really do cider there,” Nik added. “I initially said that we are going to have 14 ciders and everybody said I was mad.

“Now we have increased the number of still ciders from 25 to 45 and we also have zero alcohol ciders. What I want to do is embrace the whole cider world covering all types.”

Cuckoo Inn landlord Nik Amplianitis, centre, receives the award from CAMRA Salisbury & South Wiltshire branch regional director Norman Clinnick, and cider champion Jane Foster

He said receiving the CAMRA award was recognition of the fact the pub – and Nik himself – “take cider very, very seriously”.

“I am constantly looking for ciders and cidermakers that I have not come across before to provide our customers with new choices,” he said.

Jane added: “I became the cider champion of the Salisbury & South Wiltshire branch of CAMRA in 2022 and started visiting our local pubs that served cider.

“The Cuckoo really stood out above the rest, serving a wide range of real ciders and perry. It won our branch Cider Pub of the Year award in 2023 and has repeated this three times since then as well as winning the county trophy.

“Nik truly deserves this recognition. His success is the result of hard work, dedication and passion for cider. He works hard to make sure that his ciders are served in the best possible condition.

“The Cuckoo has now been put forward for the national competition giving it the chance to be chosen as the best cider pub in the entire country.”

The Cuckoo is owned by the Hamptworth Estate and Nik, who has lived in the UK for 13 years, was invited by the estate’s owner to take over the pub with wife Sofia, as it was lying empty and in need of renovation.