Beer - a jewel on the Jurassic Coast

PUBLISHED: 07:00 10 February 2019 | UPDATED: 10:21 11 February 2019

One of the fishing boats at Beer Village. Ref edr 39 18TI 2013. Picture: Terry Ife

Archant

Beer Village. Ref edr 39 18TI 1988. Picture: Terry Ife

Nestling on the Jurassic Coast is the village of Beer and it is one of the places that many tourists will take time to visit in East Devon.

With its small fleet of fishing boats and the white chalk cliffs that shelter the cove from the prevailing winds, the picturesque village is well worth a visit.

The name of Beer is an unusual one, and one that over the years has seen the village signs stolen at different times.

According to the village website, the name is not inspired by the drink but is derived but from the old Anglo Saxon word ‘bearu’ meaning grove, which it said refers to the forest that surrounded the settlement.

Beer Village. Ref edr 39 18TI 2045. Picture: Terry Ife

Although its main industry has been fishing, the village has been a popular destination with tourists for centuries.

It was the Romans who first visited and planted vines.

Not only that, but they also opened up the Beer Quarry Caves, from which much stone has been extracted over the centuries.

Visitors today can still take the opportunity to tour the various chambers.

Beer Village. Ref edr 39 18TI 2019. Picture: Terry Ife

In Devon, by W G Hoskins, which was first published in 1954, it said: “To anyone who is historically minded, this quarry, out of which have come Roman villas and public buildings, cathedrals, parish churches, country houses and cottages, right down to recent times, is one of the most exciting things in Devon. One passes through the dark hole in the rock face into a Roman ante-chamber, in which the tool-marks are still visible on the walls.”

Take a look at the quarries website, at www.beerquarrycaves.co.uk to find out more about when you can visit them.

There are plenty of places to explore within the village, where notable Devon smuggler Jack Rattenbury was based in the 18th and 19th centuries, so why not take the opportunity to see what it has to offer, the next time you get the chance.

To read more features from East Devon Resident, click here.