THE Green Dragon at Bish-ops Frome has been named Herefordshire's country pub of the year by the local branch of CAMRA.

Members felt the pub fully merited the award, its first, and said that since new owners Simon and Alison Durrant took over in 2005, this landmark 17th century inn has undergone a quiet but determined revolution.

Publican Simon Durrant said: "It's fantastic news, we were taken completely by surprise. When we bought the Green Dragon, we felt we had found a little gem. All it needed was a bit of TLC to get the place warm, inviting and welcoming.

"Our passion for real beer has been matched by our customers - whose opinions we value in helping us to select a varied and interesting selection of beers to suit most tastes."

Mark Haslam, of Here-fordshire CAMRA, said: "The range, quality and price of the beer has caught everyone's imagination at the Green Dragon. It is evident people are now returning to this wonderful old inn in their droves. This will probably come as little surprise to the pub's locals and I suspect it will not be the last award for this excellent pub." Town pub of the year was the Barrels, Hereford, which also won the overall competition. Both pubs will be presented with their certificates during CAMRA's Community Pubs Week in February.

For more details visit www.camra.co.uk