After a record number of votes and hundreds of nominations the public has crowned White Horse Farm Inn as Yorkshire’s Favourite Pub 2012.
The pub in Rosedale Abbey, North York Moors, was announced as the winner today (Tuesday 10 July 2012) at the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate.
The competition – run by tourism agency Welcome to Yorkshire – began in April and the first round of voting saw the public nominate more than 600 different pubs, casting over 3,500 votes in the process.
The top 30 most popular were then narrowed down by a judging panel to a final 15 for the public to vote for an overall winner – and after another 4,000 plus votes, a winner was found.
ITV presenter Jon Mitchell was on hand to present the trophy to White Horse Farm Inn, and congratulate Town Hall Tavern, Leeds, who came second and The Durham Ox, Crayke, North Yorkshire, who came third.
Gary Verity, Chief Executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said:
The response to the competition this year has been nothing short of incredible, with more than 7,500 votes cast over the two rounds and we really have a worthy winner in this fabulous country inn.
The many thousands of votes that have poured in during the last few months just goes to show that not only do we have an unrivalled mix of pubs here in Yorkshire, but the passion and interest in them is incredibly strong.
Our aim for this competition is to celebrate and promote pubs across Yorkshire – and every pub involved should be rightly proud of the excellent service they provide and their important contribution to the economy in Yorkshire.
The 30 most popular pubs, as voted for by the public, will feature in the new Ale Trail being launched by Welcome to Yorkshire and supported by the famous Black Sheep Brewery.
The trail includes a guide map, a range of festivals to see and breweries to visit.
Jo Theakston, Marketing Director of Black Sheep Brewery, said:
Yorkshire can be rightly proud of the huge numbers of fantastic pubs that offer a warm and memorable welcome to visitors. This trail is a great way of giving people some real inspiration for pubs to visit, whether they’re after some award-winning ale or great food. Pubs play a key role in the local economy and we’re delighted to be supporting this trail.
Ale Trails are available from Tourist Information Centres, events, attractions and can be ordered at www.yorkshire.com and the trail can be seen online at www.yorkshire.com/pub
