TOURING LITTLEBOURNE'S COUNTRY PUBS - A PUB CRAWL TO BE PROUD OF

The British pub is one of those national institutions we tend to take for granted. Foreigners don't. Fancy hotels they can get at home. Ancient watering holes going back hundreds of years are unique to Britain.

The problem, as we all know, is in finding a good one. We all have our favourites close to home but on holiday or when further afield on business or a short break, you simply have to take pot luck don't you? Not necessarily, at least if your travels take you to Kent.

Perhaps they should. From the gentle, wooded hills of the Weald to the historic splendour of Canterbury, this forgotten country is full of undiscovered treasures. Here lie some of the country's most celebrated country houses and castles as well as some of the most attractive and unspoilt landscapes in Britain. Plus, it should be added, some of the very best pubs.



But here at least, there's no need to resort to pot luck before choosing one. Kent's longest (and Britain's oldest) brewer Shepherd Neame has bought up and developed ten of the country's finest hostelries so that they're able not only to provide fine local food and ales but also excellent accommodation. We've seen this kind of thing before of course. Huge company moves in and redevelops characterful country pub into something more resembling a chain hotel. Except that this isn't like that. In each case, there are only a few rooms and all of them have a feel that is distinctly country pub in style.



Or at least that's what I was told. To put the PR to the test, we stayed at The Evenhill Inn in Littlebourne near Canterbury, this one of the more recent additions to the Shepherd Neame p...