The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) reckons that a lot of pubs in the UK are so historic that their cultural worthiness is equal to that of any statue or tourist attraction. And who are we to argue?
Now, CAMRA has included some of them in their list of Scotland’s 120 best 'True Heritage Pubs’.
Take a look through our photo gallery to see 14 of the Edinburgh pubs listed in the CAMRA guide – and find out why they were included.
13. The Oxford Bar - 8 Young Street EH2 4JB
CAMRA says: This small basic pub built in 1811 is the least altered pub in Edinburgh – it is much as it was in the late 19th century. Can you spot those customers and people behind the bar on whom Ian Rankin based his characters in the Inspector Rebus novels? Photo: Third Party
14. The Kenilworth - 152–4 Rose Street EH2 3JD
CAMRA says: Built c.1780, the Thomas Purves Marwick interior dates from 1899 and was subject to a very costly renovation by Alloa Brewery in 1966 using the architects Covell Matthews. One of Edinburgh’s four impressive ‘single-room with island-bar’ pubs. Photo: Third Party
15. Bennets of Morningside - 1 Maxwell Street EH10 5HT
CAMRA says: The Second World War knocked the British economy for six and there was little or no money available for pub developments for a decade after 1945. When they did start up again, they were usually low key and built of economical materials. Most have now been swept away, so Wee Bennet’s is, in its way, an interesting survivor of c.1960 Photo: Bennets of Morningside