| Status: | Active, open to new members |
| Coordinator: | |
| When: | Monthly on Fridays 12:00 pm First Friday of the Month plus one other day |
| Venue: | Brickmakers Arms |
The aim of the Group is to meet regularly to shoot the breeze over a decent pint of Ale or Cider.
We will meet locally from 12:00 on The First Friday of each month (POETS Day through all my working life) at The Brickmakers Arms, Station Road, Balsall Common. The reason for supporting The Brickmakers is because it offers the best ales in the village .
We continue to go somewhere different once each month with a simple theme of beer and/or cider. Often this will just be a pub at a given lunchtime and there will often be a suggested train or bus to catch (normally in the West Midlands free travel area). We choose a different day of the week each month to allow any person with other commitments to join us when the day is suitable for them.
The group is open to all U3A members and for each trip you just have to email a reply to the invitation message to secure your place. You will receive a response normally the same day to confirm a place as these are available on a first come first served basis up to the limit set for that visit.
If you would like to join the group, please send an e-mail to Stew Moffatt and you will be added to the distribution list.
To send an email to the Stew click on the underlined name and an email contact form will appear.
The photograph on the left was taken on 23 October 2025. The Beer And Cider Appreciation Group had its monthly meeting at The Railway Inn in Balsall Common. This pub reopened in August after six or so months of closure due to the financial squeeze that has hit hospitality hard in recent years. The new landlord, Mark, has a great knowledge of the real ale business and was able to offer us 7 real ales especially for our visit. 28 members attended and we had pre-ordered our lunch from Bosworths who provided pork and stuffing batches which were well received. All told a very sociable lunchtime and a great chance to compare a wide range of real ales. Thanks Mark, see you again soon!