Places where the passion for what they do just shines through. One of those places is The Hop Inn on Devizes Road in Swindon which is a little slice of heaven for anyone who celebrates real ale. Oh, and pizza. You can’t forget their pizza. The handmade pizzas that are seen as the best in Swindon and probably Wiltshire and probably beyond. I would recommend the Calabrese if you fancy something with a bit of chilli spice. Approaching their fifth birthday fast, they are now established as one of the premier real ale free houses in the area. Apart from their “house” bitter (Hop Inn Ale from Ramsbury Brewery) they change beers every barrel. They do repeat beers but not very often. There are thousands of beers out there for them to choose from so the punters regard The Hop as an ongoing beer festival where you can try a different beer on every visit. You don’t get that in a Greene King do you? Add to that a great selection of lagers, imported beers, ciders, wines, quality spirits and their very special hand-made pizzas you have a great little venue to come and enjoy a convivial get together. The pub is the brainchild of Jason and Karen Putt, who after 30 years in sales and nursing respectively wanted to open something that didn’t just offer more the same, same old. in five years they have put on over 2000 different cask ales! They wanted a place that offered something different not just mass produced pap that is brewed today and sold tomorrow. In the opinion of us humble lot at The Ocelot, they’ve definitely got it right. www.hopinnswindon.co.uk