Royal Standard? I'll have two of 'em!

Returning to the South Bucks region, my itinerary today included a couple of Good Beer Guide entries and two Royal Standards, one of which claims to date back to at least 1213. 

I set out from Beaconsfield station, through the suburbs and onto footpaths in Hogback Wood.

Ambling along these woodland tracks seemed an appropriate approach to a pub that's purportedly one of the oldest in the land. 

Hogback wood.

The Royal Standard of England is located among a handful of houses at the edge of the village of Forty Green.
The enormous car park to the side of the pub is indicative of it's popularity.  And that most people rock-up here in their cars rather than walk through the woods.

The Royal Standard of England (Forty Green, Beaconsfield, HP9 1XT - web)
This pub exceeded all my expectations.  Loads of little snugs and nooks and crannies.  Real fires.  Grand hall-like rooms, with all manner of odd decorations.
The disappointment was having to follow the rules and remain at my table in somewhere that I I was itching to wander around exploring all corners.

There was a good choice of beers on offer, all nicely listed on a drinks menu brought to the table.  Chiltern pale, Old Trip bitter, Rebellion and Brakspear were all available, whilst I opted for the black IPA, 'Conqueror' brewed by Windsor & Eton Brewery.  Heftily priced at £4.90, but absolutely delicious. 

Leaving the pub, I followed footpaths east across peaceful fields, taking the picturesque route to Loudwater.

Whilst I'd been in the Royal Standard the clouds parted and sunshine beamed in through the windows.  So it's just typical that it changed again 10-minutes into the walk, tipping it down with rain when I was in the middle of nowhere.

The sun came out again as I reached my destination, just to taunt me.
Still, at least it brightened up the pub photo...

Derehams Inn (5 Derehams Lane, Loudwater, HP10 9RH - web)
Tucked just off the busy main road, this lovely little pub is in a building that was originally two 18th century farm workers cottages.  There's something cosy and satisfying about the Derehams Inn - the L-shaped layout kinda split into three areas, with cushioned bench seating along the walls, pewter mugs hanging from the beams and a ton of pictures adorning the walls.

There was a decent crowd in on a weekday lunchtime, contrary to my indoor photograph featuring empty tables.

There were two real ales on the bar: Loddon 'Hullabaloo' or Woodford 'Wherry', the latter of which was served in good condition, with a nice landlady popping over to check it was okay (or possibly keeping an eye on me to ensure I didn't disobey the one-way system to get to the loos).

So, time for Royal Standard No.2. 
This one was at Woodburn Common to the south of Beaconsfield.

As the bus times didn't quite work out, I traipsed along the road, under the M40 into Woodburn Green, then across some more woodland footpaths.

Royal Standard (Woodburn Common, HP10 0JS - web)
This proved to be a lovely rural pub, with one  long room divided into two sections, plus plenty of outdoor tables and a sheltered drinking area.

The bar featured a very busy display of pump clips, offering a choice of 5 ales and 4 ciders which all seemed to be poured on gravity somewhere in a back room.

The only available indoor seats were to the left of the front door, away from the locals who'd occupied the tables in front of the bar.
As with the previous two pubs today, there was no piped music at the Royal Standard.  Instead I got to listen to a chap around the corner having a heated conversation with the customer service department of his phone supplier.  By the time I'd reached the bottom of my Oakham 'Inferno' there was little I didn't know about his billing frustrations.

I decided to stay for a second - I wanted to know how the phone saga panned out.
And I couldn't resist a fool-hardy switch to cider to try the 6.8% Grumpy Farmer...

It was a helluva long way back to the final pub of the day.
It's listed under Loudwater in the Beer Guide, but is technically in Wycombe Marsh, well on the way to High Wycombe.

The General Havelock (114 Kingsmead Road, Wycombe Marsh, HP11 1HZ - web)

A Fullers house, this has graced the Guide for a number of years.
There were four beers available from the six hand pumps - two Fullers and two Gales.
This was the first pub of the day with some music - a veritable indie selection, with Supergrass and the Libertines in the background as I sipped a decent pint of Seafarers ale.

The General Havelock seemed to be a thoroughly nice local; lots of shiny polished wood surfaces, well kept beers and a cheery landlord.
All four of the days pubs had been very different, altogether making for a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon of pub explorations.

Wouldn't it be nice to finish the day with a lovely rainbow over the suburbs of High Wycombe?

Ah, there you go...