A beer for all seasons!

With 14 hand pumps, a good range of regular and guest traditional beers are always available. Why not have a 'virtual look' at our cellars while you're here?

In addition to our superb range of real ales the Malt Shovel Tavern also carries an extensive stock of well-known (and some less well-known) continental lagers, Belgian bottled beers and a variety of other popular drinks.
 

Natterjack

The Frog Island Brewery is Northampton's only independent producer of traditional ale. Natterjack is deceptively robust; fruit and hop aromas abound, giving way to a satisfying strong dry taste. A superb premium strength ale. ABV 4.8%

Tetley Bitter

Tetley's refreshing pale brown session bitter, light and malty with a slight malt and hop aroma that leads to a moderate bitterness and a dry finish. ABV 3.7%.

London Pride

Fuller's award-winning London Pride is an aptly named beer that enjoys a good malty base and a rich balance of well developed hop flavours. ABV 4.1%.

The Malt Shovel Tavern is dedicated to the supply of high quality hand-pumped real ales. There are fourteen handpumps of which generally four or five are used for the pub's regular real ales and the rest for the guest beers. All this is in addition to the range of lagers and speciality beers always on sale.

In the course of a year the pub has literally hundreds of different beers from dozens of breweries around the United Kingdom.

Famous names such as Timothy Taylor, Adnams, Hook Norton, Brakspear and Fullers share bar space with slightly less well known breweries like 'Old Bog'! There's something for everybody, ranging from low strength session beers to mind-blowers like 'Seriously Bad Elf' at around 9% (though admittedly you won't see those too often).

Once or twice year we also hold our own beer festivals: read more...   

With our extensive range of other drinks you can be sure that whatever your taste there'll be something here for you.

In the next few months we hope to feature a guest beers' database on this site which will enable you to see just how varied our choice has been in the previous twelve months.

The "Brewery Tap" Beers

As you may have seen from our home page we now have our own micro-brewery, The Great Oakley Brewery, which is producing five traditional cask-conditioned ales.

Wot's Occurring

A well received mid- golden session bitter. It has a bitter sweet mouth feel with a subtle hop finish. ABV 3.9%

Harpers

Named after the Harpers brook which flows behind the brewery Harpers is a traditional English mid- brown bitter with a malty taste and slight hints of chocolate and citrus in the finish. ABV 4.3%    

Tailshaker

A complex,full bodied golden ale with a great depth of flavour and a floral hop finish. ABV 5.0%

Gobble

A straw-coloured beer with a large smack of hops at the end, giving a fantastic mouth feel.
ABV 4.5%

Delapre Dark

A black old ale with full flavour made from 5 different malts. It won a Bronze Award at the SIBA  Beer Competition held in Nottingham on 19^th October 2006.

The award was in the section for Porters,Strong Milds, Old Ales & Stouts.

ABV 4.6%

Belgium is a country famous for its many types of outstandingly different beers. A cross section is always available at the Malt Shovel Tavern.

		Chimay Red - one of three styles from the monks of Scormont Abbey; dark and smooth with a comforting taste.				Chimay Blue - a true classic; dark, smooth and one of the best 9% beers you will taste.

Chimay White - an excellent aperitif with a hop bitterness that belies its strength.

Westmalle Dubbel - brown-amber colour, subtle dark-malt aroma balanced by Belgian yeast character. Deeply malty, with a subtle and dry finish that hints at tropical fruit.

Orval - a superb beer, orangey in colour with an aromatic dry finish.

Corsendonk Angus - light in colour and pleasantly dry with gentle fruit tones.

Forbidden Fruit - a well-balanced, dark, rich and sweet beer with distinct flavours of vanilla, chocolate and coriander.

Riva Blanche / Dentergem Wit - wheat beer is undergoing a massive revival. This beer is cloudy and like all Belgian wheat beers is flavoured with curacao and coriander.

Duvel - a "devil" of a beer with an initial sweetness followed by a really dry hop finish.

Hoegaarden Gran Cru - a classic strong golden ale with an unmistakable Belgian character.

Delirium Tremens - a strong beer served chilled; clean and smooth and not at all sweet.

Kwak - an amber beer with lots of fruity flavours; served in its own "foot of ale" glass in a wooden stand.

Leffe Brune - a spicy dark brown beer, sweet with hints of apple.

Straffe Hendrick - a blonde pale ale with pungent bitterness from heavy hopping.

Barbar (Honey) - a bottle conditioned blonde beer, smooth and mellow.

Cantillon - a Gueuze beer, Lambic without the fruit.

Gordons Scotch Ale - you can't get Scotch Ale direct in the UK any more, so this sweet, rich, dark beer is re-imported from Belgium!

English Country Wines and other drinks page