Your chance to vote for Yorkshire’s favourite pub

Now the search is on to find Yorkshire’s Favourite Pub, with readers invited to nominate their favourite taverns throughout the county.

The region’s official tourism agency Welcome to Yorkshire, in partnership with the Yorkshire Post and the BBC, is launching the Yorkshire’s Favourite Pub competition, with the public now being encouraged to vote for the preferred watering hole.

As well as celebrating the fantastic tradition of Yorkshire pubs, the contest also aims to provide much-deserved support and backing to the industry, currently going through a difficult period.

Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “It could be a warm welcome, great ale or historic surroundings – whatever makes your local your favourite, we want you to vote.

“We can be rightly proud of the fabulous pubs we have across Yorkshire and this is a celebration of that.”

From all of the votes, the top 10 will then feature in a special Yorkshire Ale Trail campaign, produced by Welcome to Yorkshire.

A panel of judges will then select three pubs and the public will have the chance to vote for an overall winner from May 31.

The winning venue will be announced at this year’s Great Yorkshire Show between July 12 and 14 and presented with the “Yorkshire’s Favourite Pub 2011” trophy.

Already nominations have been coming in thick and fast, with The Adelphi in Leeds and Brandesburton’s The Black Swan, among those which have been put forward by the public so far.

Michael Ibbotson, recently voted the UK’s Publican of the Year 2011 and landlord of the Durham Ox at Crayke, North Yorkshire, said the competition would highlight the many fantastic pubs the region had to offer.

“Pubs in the region come in all shapes, sizes and types,” he told the Yorkshire Post.

“Some offer food while some don’t, some offer accommodation while some don’t, some are based in beautiful places while some are not, some offer 10 beers while others offer just two.

“It is the diversity that makes the Great British pub what it is and I would encourage everybody to support it.

“Yorkshire’s pubs have great standards – if you look at the awards handed out in Yorkshire a large concentration of them go to pubs...

“Pubs have had a tough time of late, but we have a real abundance of quality establishments providing a quality service and warm welcome so this will help raise their profile and give people the chance to support their local pub.”

To register your vote look for the link on the home page of this website. Voting for the initial round ends on May 8.