The Bell is a Georgian coaching inn which stands atop The Square in the rather exceptional Wiltshire village of Ramsbury. From its prime position as you enter (ooh-ing and ahh-ing at the picturesque streets), it feels as it all roads lead to the pub.
However, this is no run-of-the-mill village pub. The Bell at Ramsbury houses not just a bar stocked with any number of independent ales and spirits, but also boasts 10 boutique rooms, the New England-style daytime Café Bella, and a Michelin-and-Good Food Guide-acclaimed restaurant. All of which relates to the fact it forms part of the Ramsbury Estate which surrounds the village and operates as a sort of self-sufficient eco system including farmland, woodland, a distillery and trout fishing along the chalk streams of the River Kennet.
Head Chef and General Manager, James Graham is something of a Cotswolds-superstar and here at the Bell he is spoiled for choice when it comes to locally and sustainably sourced produce with which to craft his seasonal farm-to-fork dining. Previously, he has headed up kitchens at gastro-destinations including The Three Daggers at Edington (AA Pub of the Year 2019 – 2020), The Pointer at Brill (Michelin Pub of the Year 2018) and was also Chef Proprietor of his own restaurant, Allium in Fairford, for 10 years. Unsurprisingly perhaps, his training was completed at august venues including Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons, Walton’s, the OXO Tower and Nico at 90 Park Lane.
Spend time chatting to James and his passion for responsible, nose-to-tail dining becomes apparent, and this is met equally by a passion to educate, inform and inspire. We chatted to him as we digested the pub’s generous Full English, after having spent the night in one of the well-appointed bedrooms. What a lovely chap. Our conversation encompassed a potted history of his back story (including a childhood in Brixham where he learned to respect community and abhor waste) and discussion about the responsibility he feels in training his young staff. They’d all been out foraging for mushrooms across the Estate the day before, and James told us how he insists at all of his team have to understand the entire process by which ingredients arrive at their kitchens; whether that’s visiting the abattoir where their meat is slaughtered to be butchered on site, or spending time in the Estate’s Priory Farm kitchen garden, which delivers seasonal fresh produce daily.
He's clearly eager to tempt punters to experiment with food and, although the menu features pub classics (gloriously meaty ham hock terrine with a warmed beer muffin, steak and chips with a rich unctuous peppercorn sauce, billowing towers of ale-battered haddock and chips, a gourmet pizza menu and The Bell burger with its signature sauce), there is culinary wizardry to try here. We were lucky enough to catch the last sitting of roasted duck served with pickled cherries, which contrasted beautifully with fresh flavours from a starter of ceviche of scallop with popping hits of lime, coriander and julienned fennel.
The pudding menu was equally crowd-pleasing: traditionalists will be delighted by option of treacle tart and clotted cream, and those seeking out something a little different will love the banana souffle, married up with a ball of rum and raisin ice cream served on gooey caramel with chopped nuts adding crunch.
All of which is reason enough to book a room in one of The Bell’s oversized Hypnos beds where breakfast is included in the room rate. Top marks to that full English (which you might be pleased to hear includes both black pudding and hash browns) but do leave room for the patisserie; we’re still ruminating on the hazelnut notes in their pain-au-chocolate, like a decadent Nutella croissant. Delish.
Not only is Ramsbury itself a picture-perfect village to explore, with its higgledy piggledy mixture of Georgian terraces and Hansel and Gretel-style Flanders brick cottages, but it sits in the glorious Ramsbury Estate so, if you can bear to leave the bar at The Bell, there are plenty of things to do in the local area and the friendly staff at the pub are more than happy to arrange this for you. When you’re booking your room, you can also take up the opportunity to book in to forage or simply tour the Estate and the distillery (more of which below), but there are many other ways to fill your weekend: a handful of miles along the River Kennet lies Malborough (aka the poshest town in Wiltshire) and to the east just across the border into Berkshire is Hungerford. Lacock Country House, Swindon Steam Railway, the White Horse at Uffington and Littlecote Roman Villa are all within easy reach.
However, visiting the Estate is most highly recommended and for any gin connoisseurs, the Bespoke Gin Experience is an opportunity not to be missed. For around £85 per head, you get three and a half hours of full immersion and as many world-class G&Ts as you can manage (book a cab/arrange a driver if you plan to take full advantage). The event starts with friendly introductions and then a walk through to the distillery to learn about the distilling process.
Ramsbury’s foray into alcohol production started twenty years ago with an award-winning vodka, followed by a classic London dry gin. They are one of only a couple of distilleries in the UK which make their own base spirit from their fields of Horatio wheat, to which they add aromatics (mainly grown on site) to create a variety of blends. As you tour the estate (we were guided by the enthusiastic and supremely well-informed Tash) you cannot fail to be impressed by a 360° commitment to sustainability: trees become wood to be used for furniture and décor, or are chipped and used for power to supplement the solar panels, which – on a sunny day – provide not only enough energy to ensure the Estate is self-sufficient; and water is filtered through planted reed beds before running to the chalk stream of the Kennet to provide a home for otters who can be spotted playing in the shallows.
On our return to the ‘classroom’ (an airy space housing benches furnished with individual copper stills plus a well-stocked bar) and having gained a clear understanding on how gin acquires its flavour, Tash gave advice on choosing a balanced blend of botanicals to create our own unique recipes – and kept our glasses topped up with drinks from the bar. There were over 60 glass jars of aromatics to select from, including those you might expect (juniper, angelica, coriander seed and orris root) and some you may not (tomato flakes, pistachio, bee pollen and chipotle). We made our choices, mixed and then added them to the base spirit before waiting as the correct temperature was reached in the stills and liquid started to drip out. Further, as we waited, we were offered tasting glasses of Ramsbury’s full range of gin and vodka, so in all honesty, the time passed almost too easily.
At the end of the experience, you’ll leave with a large bottle of your very own gin and the most arduous thing you will have done all day is decide upon a name. There’s also a shop on site, selling not only Ramsbury’s spirits but also their award-winning beers and the Estate's Black Gold extra virgin cold pressed rapeseed oil from its own oil press.
If you are reading this with pressies in mind, you couldn’t choose better whether that’s a weekend mini-break, a class at ‘gin school’ or even simply a gift from the shop also can be found online at ramsburyestates.co.uk.
The Bell at Ramsbury, The Square, Ramsbury, Near Marlborough, Wiltshire, SN8 2PE
