The Buddle Inn

Although safely back stateside, I've got a few more adventures from the Isle of Wight...

When I spoke with David Yates about finding a good pub serving his beer, he suggested The Buddle Inn.  So, armed with the Buddle as our destination, we arranged a hike through the "Back of the Wight" to preface our beer destination.

We started of at St. Catherine's Oratory, or the Pepperpot as known by the locals, dating back to 1313 AD it is Britain's oldest medieval lighthouse.  It was built as penance for a man who stole wine.  Let that be a lesson to you.  

From there, we walked to the current lighthouse at St. Catherine' s Point.  Built in 1837 it replaced the Pepperpot, in part due to the wreck of the Clarendon in the previous year.  

Although normally open for tours, sadly, the lighthouse was closed.  In order to make up for it, we walked the nearby fields and snacked on sandwiches while taking in its grounds.

After working up a fairly good thirst, not sustained by the bottles of water we brought, we finally stopped at The Buddle Inn.

The Buddle is not only a local pub, it's a destination pub.  It is well out of the way.  Feat not though, as it is well worth the trip.  

With a spacious beer garden out front and a large compartmentalized dining area inside, the Buddle has tons of character.  

They also had Yates.  Just as David promised.

In fact, the real ale selection at the Buddle was one of the best I'd seen.

Fuller's, Yates, Goddard's, Island Brewery.  The Buddle had them all covered.

Arriving a little after 11, the place was still fairly empty.

For those who had sojourned out at the early hour, they were in the beer garden soaking up some rare English sun.  We followed their lead and certainly had no complaints as we polished off our drinks.

The Buddle is a pretty amazing spot and what made our outdoor perch even better, was the beautiful view of the English Channel, just over the tree tops of the garden.  Definitely a destination pub, no matter what distance needs traveling.