The UK city that is home to the headquarters of real-ale campaigners CAMRA, the oldest pub in the UK and the most pubs per square mile is gearing up to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the UK's first-ever beer festival.
 

The Hertfordshire cathedral city of St Albans hosted the UK's first beer festival back in 1974, so with this, the 40th anniversary of the inaugural event, the organisers are looking forward to welcoming more visitors to this must-attend event in the real-ale calendar, which takes place from 24-27 September at the Alban Arena.

There will be more than 350 real ales, ciders, perries and foreign beers to sample including festival specials from Tring Brewery, 16 different beers from Oakham Ales and three new beers from the new Leighton Buzzard Brewing Company. There will be many new other beers and new breweries across the festival's six bars, which will available for the first time at this event.

Roger Protz, one of the world's leading beer writers and editor of the Good Beer Guide, will also be hosting a beer-tasting session, which will include six beers, ranging from mild through to bitter, IPA, golden ale, porter and barley wine, will feature. He will also be signing copies of the 2015 Good Beer Guide and his new book 300 More Beers to Try Before You Die.
 

Potz, who is also a St Albans resident, said it is incredible that in this day and age, a city such as St Albans still has so many pubs. "We have 50 pubs in St Albans. And what a selection we have. From one of the oldest pubs in England, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, which will have 20 real ales on tap during the festival, to some of the most haunted, such as The Boot and the White Hart Inn, – we truly are spoilt for choice.”
 

In 1972 the first CAMRA Branch was formed at The Farriers Arms, St Albans.  Iain Loe, former research and information manager for CAMRA for 25 years, and is now the social secretary for the South Herts CAMRA branch, says: "St Albans is very well pubbed; the legacy of its coaching heritage and having such a long established market.  As well as Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, many of the other pubs in St Albans have histories that go back hundreds of years. The Boot in the Market Place for instance was in business when the first battle of St Albans took place – the start of the War of the Roses."

 
For more information, go to www.stalbansbeerfestival.org.uk  

 

Where to stay during the festival:

The Clarion Collection Hotel. Prices start at £92 per room.

www.stalbanshotel.co.uk 
 

St Michael's Manor Hotel, Fishpool Street, St Albans (0.5 miles from city centre) 
www.stmichaelsmanor.com 
 

Sopwell House Hotel & Country Club in Sopwell Lane, St Albans (1.5 miles from city centre) 
www.sopwellhouse.co.uk 
 

• St Albans is one of the best-kept secrets in UK tourism: a historic gem of an English Cathedral City, just a stone's throw from London. The city's colourful history can be seen in the Roman remains and the beautiful medieval architecture.
• There are lush green parks and countryside, a buzzing metropolis, excellent attractions and interesting and ancient history.
• St Albans has fabulous shopping with many small independent shops amongst the high street stores and a fantastic range of eating and drinking establishments.
• It's easy to get to as well: just 22 minutes from London St Pancras, a short hop off the M1 and M25 motorways, within easy reach of London Luton and Heathrow airports.
• There is a packed calendar of special events throughout the year in the City, many of them family friendly.

 

1. The 11th-century St Albans Cathedral is the oldest place of continual Christian worship in the UK, and has the longest nave of any Cathedral, including St Paul's and Westminster Abbey. 

2. The city is named after Britain's first Saint, Alban, who was executed at the site of the 11th-century Cathedral. 

3. St Albans Abbey (now Cathedral) was at one time the principal Abbey in England and was the location of the first meeting (in 1213) which ultimately led to the sealing of the Magna Carta (in 1215). 

4. The city is home to the Roman Theatre of Verulamium. Built around 140AD, it is the oldest and only surviving example of its kind in Britain as it was a theatre with a stage rather than an amphitheatre. 

5. According to the Guinness Book of Records, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks in the city's Verulamium Park is the oldest pub in Britain.

6. St Albans has the oldest working medieval clock tower in the country built between 1403 and 1412. The tower is located in the square where the first battle of the Wars of the Roses took place in 1455.

7. The city also has the oldest public school in Britain where Pope Adrian IV, the only Englishman to occupy the papal chair, and scientist Stephen Hawking were educated. 

8. St Albans has more pubs per square mile than any other town in the country

9. The city has one of the oldest regular street markets in the UK, dating back to the 9th Century,