Category Archives: General News

It’s been delayed but not cancelled! The Paisley Beer Festival is finally coming back in September 2013 … from Wednesday 11th till Saturday 14th to be exact. It will be returning with its usual great selection of ales and ciders from across Scotland and England (this year the English bar will be sourced from the Yorkshire area), as well as offering foreign bottled beers and draughts from across Europe.

We’d encourage anyone interested in ales, or anyone who has never been to previous years Paisley Beer Festivals, to attend and sample the wide variety of real ales available, particularly since only a handful of pubs across Renfrewshire currently sell real ale.

Many of the ales, ciders and beers on offer won’t be available in local stores either, so it’s quite literally a real ale experience that’s not to missed.

When and where?

The 2013 Paisley Beer Festival will be held in Paisley town hall as before, with opening dates / times this year being:

Wednesday 11th – 5pm till 11pm
Thursday 12th – 12pm till 11 pm
Friday 13th – 12pm till 12 am
Saturday 14th – 12pm till 9pm

What does it cost to attend?

As with previous years, entry will cost £5 (for which you normally also get a free pint glass, and free entry on other days as long as you turn up with your glass!). For CAMRA members the entry cost is £3.

Volunteer to help at the Beer Festival

Like any reasonable sized event, the Paisley Beer Festival could always do with some helping hands. If you’d be interested in volunteering some of your time to help, let the organisers know!

Find out more on festival website, on their volunteers page.

RBS 6 Nations 2012 starts this weekend!

February 3, 2012 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

It’s that time of year again for some fantastic RBS 6 Nations rugby action. We’ve not heard from many pubs that are showing it yet, but we’ll post updates as and when they let us know. We assume several will be showing the games, so watch this space.

What a fixture list to get us started though, with Scotland v England, followed on Sunday by Ireland v Wales. Certainly worth re-organising the weekend for!

Pubs in Renfrewshire showing the games:

– The Cellar Bar, Paisley
– The Craig Dhu, Paisley
– Gabriels, Paisley
– The Viscount, Renfrew

RBS 6 Nations 2012 Fixtures / Results:

For those who don’t already know, or can’t find, the full list of fixtures, here it is (and we’ll try and keep the scores up to date throughout:

Sat 4th Feb  —  14:30  —  France 30 v 23 Italy
Sat 4th Feb  —  17:00  —  SCOTLAND 6 v 13 England
Sun 5th Feb  —  15:00  —  Ireland 21 v 23 Wales
Sat 11th Feb  —  16:00  —  Italy 15 v 19 England
Sun 12th Feb  —  15:00  —  Wales 27 v 13 SCOTLAND
Sat 25th Feb  —  13:30  —  Ireland 42 v 10 Italy
Sat 25th Feb  —  16:00  —  England 12 v 19 Wales
Sun 26th Feb  —  15:00  —  SCOTLAND v France
Sat 10th Mar  —  14:30  —  Wales v Italy
Sat 10th Mar  —  17:00  —  Ireland v SCOTLAND
Sun 11th Mar  —  15:00  —  France v England
Sat 17th Mar  —  12:30  —  Italy v SCOTLAND
Sat 17th Mar  —  14:45  —  Wales v France
Sat 17th Mar  —  17:00  —  England v Ireland

Is your pub showing any of the games?

If so, contact us and let us know and we’ll let everyone else know!

Houston Brewery Celebrates CAMRA Award with a Houston Ale Passport!

October 5, 2011 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

We’re sure many of you are aware that Renfrewshire is home to one of Scotlands finest Real Ale Brewerys – The Houston Brewery. What you may not be aware of is that it’s sister pub, The Fox and Hounds in Houston, has won the CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale) Pub of Year award for 2011!

As part of the celebration of this award, the Houston Brewery have launched a Houston Ale Passport, to try and encourage non-ale drinkers to try something different. The passport will be available throughout October in a number of Renfrewshire Pubs, with prizes available for various achievements.

The process is fairly simple. Try a Houston Ale and get your Houston Ale Passport stamped. All fully stamped passports will be entered into a prize draw with some fantastic prizes on offer.

Prizes on Offer

The main prize on offer is Houston Brewery Tour for four people, followed by a meal with their choice of Houston Ale.

In addition, each of the pubs taking part in the Passport Scheme are putting forward prizes of meals for 2, wines and of course, the brewery will supply some Houston Ale

Renfrewshire Pubs Selling Houston Ale

Fancy tasting some Real Ale produced right here in Renfrewshire? Then get along to one of the several pubs taking part:

– The Fox and Hounds, Houston
– Trust Inn, Kilbarchan
– Callums Bar, Johnstone
– The Howwood Inn, Howwood
– Hamish’s Hoose, Paisley

To keep up with news and developments of the Houston Ale Passport, follow the Houston Brewery on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/houstonbrewery

Who are CAMRA?

CAMRA campaigns for real ale, real pubs and consumer rights. They’re an independent, voluntary organisation with over 100,000 members and have been described as the most successful consumer group in Europe. CAMRA promotes good-quality real ale and pubs, as well as acting as the consumer’s champion in relation to the UK and European beer and drinks industry. They aim to:

– Protect and improve consumer rights
– Promote quality, choice and value for money
– Support the public house as a focus of community life
– Campaign for greater appreciation of traditional beers, ciders and perries as part of our national heritage and culture
– Seek improvements in all licensed premises and throughout the brewing industry

Getting Unplugged with the Swan, a Fantasy Football Challenge and more!

August 12, 2011 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

It’s all about the winning this week on Renfrewshire Pubs! Not deliberate of course, but the 3 main topics on this weeks post see us mentioning events where prizes are up for grabs. So whether it’s a bragging rights, a £75 cash prize, or even a bottle of wine with dinner that you’re after, it’s time to get your competitive hat on!

Getting Unplugged at The Old Swan

OK, so the bands are already booked for this, but you can head down and influence the winner of week 2 of The Old Swann Inn Unplugged Competition. Week 1 saw Stephen Henry win, after stuff competition from John Rush and Absent-Friends.

The competition lasts for 6 weeks (now in week 2) and 3 bands or solo artists will battle it out each Friday night for the first 4 weeks for a place in the semis, with only 2 acts getting through to the final where a cash prize of £500 is up for grabs!!

Get the dates in your diary via our Renfrewshire Pubs Events page.

A game of Fantasy Football anyone?

We’re not going to let the Renfrewshire Pubs site become over run with Football talk, but since Football is such a big part of our lives, we’ve decided to setup a Fantasy Football League for folks in Renfrewshire to join. It’s completely free, is based on the English Premier and it’s easy to signup for.

The prize on this one? Bragging Rights! And the announcement on Renfrewshire Pubs that you were the winner, along with the title of Renfrewshire Pubs League Champion 2011 / 2012.

Find out more about signing up: http://www.facebook.com/RenfrewshirePubs/posts/116932175071273 (and tell your friends to join)

A bottle of wine with dinner?

Indeed! That’s what you’ll get if you’re the winner of our August Competition. Hamishes Hoose have kindly offered a free bottle of wine to the competition winners if they go have a meal for 2. Entries are already flooding in, so make sure your name is in the hat! Just answer 3 simple questions. Head over to our competition page to take part …

Whuppity Scourie Quiz Rollover

Need some extra cash? Then get yourself over to the Whuppity Scourie in Erskine this Sunday. Their pub quiz has moved from Wednesday nights to Sunday nights, and this week there is a rollover cash prize, meaning you could walk away with £75!

Remember, follow us on Facebook to keep up with more news and events across Renfrewshire Pubs!

Only One Week until Paisley Beer Festival 2011 Opens

April 19, 2011 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

It’s that time of year again when the Paisley Beer Festival returns to bring you the opportunity to sample a huge selection of beers from around the UK and abroad, all in one place!

And the Paisley Beer Festival 2011 is set to be every bit as good as its previous 23 years, with organisers expecting around 5000 visitors attending to sample the 170 different beers that will be available.

The festival starts at 5pm on Wednesday 27th April, running until 11pm. It then runs noon until 11pm, noon until midnight and noon until 9pm, on Thursday 28th, Friday 29th and Saturday 30th respectively.

Entry cost is just £5, which not only gets you your own festival glass and program, but also allows you to attend free on other days, as long as you bring the glass along with you.

As well as the huge selection of beers and ciders available, the organisers – CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale) – have also organised plenty of food options and entertainment over the days.

Renfrewshire Pubs will be heading to the Paisley Beer Festival 2011 on one of the days. We’re not sure which day yet, but we’ll let you know as soon as we’ve decided. We hope to catch up with some of the local landlords as well as some of our site followers and Facebook fans.

If you’re going to be attending the Beer Festival, why not let us know on Facebook!

More details of the festival can be found on the official website: www.paisleybeerfestival.org.uk

RenfrewshirePubs.co.uk Given Permission to use Drinkaware Logo

March 28, 2011 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

As many of our followers will already know, our purpose is to promote the many events that take place each week and month across Renfrewshires Pubs, Bars and Inns, on behalf of those Pubs, Bars and Inns.

What we continually push is that we’re not here to promote or encourage binge or excessive drinking, but rather we’re here to help promote the sociable aspect of visiting your local pub, focusing on events such as Live Music nights, Open Mic Nights, Pub Quiz nights, Karaoke evenings, Poker nights, Comedy nights, charity nights and more.

Today we’ve been given a boost that our efforts are indeed being noticed … we’ve been given permission to use the Drinksware logo on our site. We applied hoping that they’d appreciate our intentions, and they’ve accepted.

For those who do not know, Drinkaware “aims to increase awareness and understanding of the role of alcohol in society, enabling individuals to make informed choices about their drinking.”

They do this by running a variety of campaigns, offering a significant number of facts and figures and generally providing information and advice on the impact of excessive drinking.

We’d like to thank Drinkaware for allowing us to use the logo, as well as thanking the many people we talk to as a result of the RenfrewshirePubs.co.uk website and all those who support our effort by providing regular updates, event information and news relating to their Pub, Bar or Inn.

More developments to follow!

4 Live Music Acts and the V-Factor Grand Final!

March 25, 2011 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

This weekend there certainly is something for everyone, although if you like some live music as part of your night out, you’ve got more options that those that don’t! 6 different pubs have let it be known they have live music entertainment, so there are no excuses for those who say they’ve nothing to do this weekend.

Starting things off is the final of the popular V-Factor competition, being run by the guys over at The Viscount (Renfrew). Running for several weeks now, tonight the final 6 contenders compete for big cash prizes. It’s sure to be busy, but from what we’ve heard, it’s been excellent so far, so get along!

It’s also Open Mic night again tonight at Caffe Luna (Paisley). We’ve experienced this for ourselves and that chap Michael Cassidy certainly does have a good song in him. We’ll definitely be spotted at the Caffe Luna Open Mic night again in the near future.

We’ve also heard that the refurbished Crown Bar (Paisley) has an Open Mic night this evening.

As for Live Music, where to begin? The popular Vendetta and Unkle Remus are both back in Renfrewshire this weekend. We’ve listed them a couple of times now and both seem to get top-notch reviews each time they play.

You’ll find Vendetta playing The Kelburne (Paisley) tonight while Unkle Remus can be found tomorrow night over at The Glenleven in Kilbarchan.

Elsewhere, we’ve been informed via our Facebook page that Paisley girl Nicole Cameron is playing an acoustic folk/indie set over at The Burgh Bar (Paisley) from 7:30pm. While the Happy Ever After can be found playing the ever popular Hamishes Hoose (Paisley) on Saturday night.

Remember we’re trying to build our list of events across Renfrewshire, so if you know of any Poker events, Karaoke Events, Pub Quiz Nights, Live Music nights or any other sort of afternoon / night even happening in one of the Pubs, Bars or Inns in Renfrewshire, let us know!

February was a good month, March is going to be better!

February 24, 2011 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

Most news posts on the Renfrewshire Pubs website are going to be related to events and entertainment being offered by Pubs, Bars and Inns across Renfrewshire. However, we wanted to take this opportunity to thank people for their contributions and to point out some of the benefits of further contribution.

With 4 days of February still to go, we can already see a 50% increase in traffic compared with January and have more than doubled our Facebook following compared to the end of January.

We’ve also got to the stage we can tell you about pub quiz nights available 6 of the 7 nights of the week across Renfrewshire and can give you details of live music within pubs every weekend of March.

So, a big thank you to all the Pubs, Bars, Inns that have contributed so far, and an equally big thank you to the bands who have been sending us gig information when they are playing in Renfrewshire Pubs.

Remember, if you know live music, quiz nights, comedy nights, psychic nights, charity nights or any other news worthy event going on within a Pub, Bar or Inn in Renfrewshire, let us know.

Havock Road, V-Factor, 6 Nations and Comedy … another busy weekend in Renfrewshire Pubs

February 11, 2011 adm1n1strat0r Leave a comment

Each week seems to get busier and busier. With more contributions and information being sent our way from Pubs, bars and Inns, we can begin to send out more details updates on what’s available for everyone this weekend, if you fancy something a little different.

And this weekend definitely has variety!

Friday 11th February 2011:
It’s round 2 of the Viscount (Renfrew) V-Factor competition. Yes, think X-factor, but it’s in the Viscount Bar. Running every Friday through February and March and a final at the end of March, with big money prizes, there is no entry fee. Starts at 8:30pm, so get along for a sing song. Follow the Viscount on Facebook to keep up to date.

It’s also Pub Quiz night over at The Houston Inn, Houston. A relaxed evening with some brain teasers.

Saturday 12th February 2011:
Scotland host Wales in the RBS 6 Nations 2011. Let’s hope Scotland can build on last weeks performance. If you want to watch it, head over to the Howwood Inn or The Wee Howff, who’ve both confirmed they are showing 6 Nations games on TV. If you know other pubs showing the games, let us know.

Your live music this Saturday can be found at The Brown Bull, Lochwinnoch. Havock Road have been invited in to play and the evening kicks off at 9:30pm. Get along and support them!

If Poker is more you’re thing, then the regular MTT Poker League is on at the Station Bar (Paisley) at 2:30pm.

Sunday 13th February 2011:
The highlight of Sunday, apart from you all being out buying gifts for your Valentine (obviously!), has to be the Comedy Night over at Brodies Farmhouse, Houston. 4 great comedy acts compered by Raymond Mearns. Starts at 8:30pm and tickets are £5.

Alternatively, the weekly pub quiz is on at 9pm over at Harrys Bar, Renfrew or you can join in with more Poker at the Wallace Tavern (Elderslie), Hazel Arms (Johnstone) or Bankhouse (Paisley).

As always, please contact each Pub, Bar and Inn prior to attending just to make sure each event is definitely on. We try our best to be accurate but some times / dates may change from time to time.

Find out more about events across Renfrewshire by visiting the following sections of the website:

– Live Music in Renfrewshire
– Poker in Renfrewshire
– Pub Quiz Nights in Renfrewshire