Many people will remember when the Portcullis dispensed its beer under a thatched roof. As long as it remained the property of the Duke of Beaufort the roof was kept in immaculate order by the estate thatchers. When, in 1920, George's bought the inn the roof was never maintained so well. They lost heart in thatching and tiles superseded the straw.
I do not know how many generations of the Hopkins family were licensees of the Portcullis. Mr. John Hopkins was landlord when I was a schoolboy. A busy man, he spent his days grinding at Hillesley Mill. He also kept a small herd of cows which supplied the village with milk, and when milking and grinding were done, he became the much respected host at the inn. The Fleece Inn held the notice over its door for very many years that Mary Ann Jotcham was licensed to sell 'Beer, Wines and Spirits'. Both houses had their respective supporters and each of them was always well conducted.
The Portcullis was a 'free' house and the Fleece belonged to Warn and Sons of Tetbury. All beer was delivered by horse drays and as children we examined critically the various 'turn outs' which came from the many local breweries. Warn's of Tetbury was a small brewery with ordinary horses but Arnold Perrett's of Wickwar had very fine well fed 'pairs' for their gaily painted wagons. At that time the lesser brewers were closing or being absorbed by the bigger ones, but John Arnold still had a brewery in Wickwar High Street and Perrett's of Old Sodbury were still delivering beer to Hillesley. The horses which really cut a dash were those on the pop wagons. At Coombe Valley the brewery had closed but they carried on a flourishing trade with mineral waters. In the thick glass bottles, sealed by marbles, there were bright red, green and yellow fizzy drinks. Given the possession of a penny, with what ecstatic joy we 'popped' the marble and let the bubbly mixture run down our throats. The stone ginger in earthenware bottles was more popular with our parents - they suspected the colouring in the 'pop'! Both Coombe Valley and Arnold Perrett's delivered these minerals on spring wagons. They were drawn by a pair of light-legged horses which covered the country at a rattling pace. It was a fine sight to see Arnold Perrett's pair dash through the village with their shining wagon and load of jingling bottles.