Merryfields News

Spring is here - availability update for 2012

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 07:17:00 +0000

The warmer than usual February weather has led to birds on Ffawyddog already getting territorial and some are even gathering nesting materials. Daffodils in front and to the side of the barn are almost in flower and the moles have been having a field day - well, garden day, at least!

Merryfields Barn is about 80% booked until the end of the summer, but there's availability in the second half of March and the following other weeks are still available:
20th April
4th May (bank holiday week)
8th June
10th August
24th August (bank holiday week)
14th September - 5th October

Please contact us for prices and up-to-date availability.

Thanks
Steve and Angie Sharp

Happy New Year 2011!

Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:13:00 +0000

As owners of Merryfields Barn, we would like to wish all our guests a very Happy New Year. 2011 has been another record for barn bookings, with an occupancy rate of between 85% and 90%, so thanks for your custom.

The year was pretty good weather-wise and the new solar panels on the rear barn roof benefitted from the autumn sun. The snows of the last two years haven't materialised yet this winter, so the blackbirds, thrushes and even blue tits are still busy devouringing our windfall apples and the moles are making the most of the soft soil to create hills the size of small mountains. A red kite swooped low over a mole hill yesterday but didn't seem to be interested in a snack!

We wish you all the best for 2012 and we look forward to seeing some of you again next year.

Steve and Angie
Merryfields Barn

Crickhowell business 'Best local shop in Britain'

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:15:00 +0000

Crickhowell is a small, bustling Georgian town with bucket loads of character and atmosphere and lots of original shops and eating places. There are two great butchers, both of which double as delis, a bakery with a café which bakes lots of good bread and cakes daily, a family-owned supermarket, clothes shops, galleries, a hiking store, etc.

Probably the two most surprising businesses located in the town are Nicholls (http://www.nichollscrickhowell.com/), a large department store which sells upmarket branded clothes, footwear and jewellery and Webbs (http://www.webbscrickhowell.com/), which sells everything from beds to garden furniture to cooking pots and things for the house. Webbs was founded in 1936 and has recently been voted 'Best independent business in Wales' and 'Best local shop in Britain' by readers of Which? magazine.

If you stay in Merryfields Barn or just visit the area, why not put some time aside to discover Crickhowell, this jewel in Wales' crown?

Best place to wine and dine in Wales!

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 09:54:00 +0000

It's official! Abergavenny, near Crickhowell, is the best place to wine and dine in Wales, according to a recent article by a leading contemporary food magazine Olive.

Abergavenny beat the Welsh capital Cardiff hands down to make it into the top 10 UK foodie towns in 6th place, just one place behind London. The judges selected Abergavenny (which is only 10 minutes from Crickhowell, itself a foodie paradise) for being 'a town which really celebrates its food', and for punching above its weight with its 'friendly welcome' and 'excellent food'.

One local business in particular was highlighted for its 'outstanding market produce', the prize-winning Black Mountain Smokery (www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo92rLet6cw), which is based in Crickhowell. Also praised were the excellent local restaurants, including Michelin-starred Walnut Tree, and the world-famous Abergavenny Food Festival, which takes places annually in September.

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Solar-powered accommodation in Crickhowell

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:01:00 +0000

We're excited to report that, at the end of September, Merryfields Barn went solar! There are now 10 gleaming solar PV panels on the back of the barn, fixed onto the tiles, and they have already generated over 100kW of electricity.

After much consideration, we chose SHARP solar PV panels, not just because it's our surname(!) but because they are assembled in Wales, so we're doing our bit for the Welsh economy (and we in Wales need a boost after the team's loss in the Rugby World Cup - it was never a spear tackle!). The panels are 245w, so the peak output of the 10-panel system is 2.45kW, and any electricity generated during the daytime which isn't used is fed back into the National Grid.

We're excited about our new solar power, so hope you will be too!

Llangattock Greenest Village in UK!

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 10:55:00 +0000

Llangattock Green Valleys has been named winner of the British Gas-sponsored UK Green Streets Challenge, meaning that the village at the foot of our hill and the surrounding area is officially the greenest community in the UK!

As well as bringing home a framed certificate and recycled glass trophy, the Llangattock Green Valleys team won a huge £100,000 prize for community projects - and this is in addition to the £137,000 award for winning the Wales section of the heats.

The initial awarded money went towards:
- creating an allotment area and installing a borehole and solar-powered pump for irrigation
- providing a professional energy assessment for the local school and community hall, and installing PV solar panels on the school roof to generate electricity
- the work of a woodlands group, which is bringing our local woodland areas back to life and building up a community wood store
- a Biodiesel club, responsible for bringing quality biodiesel to Llangattock
- a Litter Picking project, which keeps our area cleaner and tidier
- a Micro-Hydro project, aimed at installing a community-owned micro-hydro scheme in the village.

New projects include a Solar club, aimed at reducing the price of solar PV panels by joint-purchase initiatives.

Green Man Festival 2011 gets underway

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 10:18:00 +0000

The 2011 Green Man Festival, which takes place in the Glanusk Estate, less than a mile from Merryfields Barn, is just getting underway with a varied weather forecast to welcome the 13,000 festival goers.

The Green Man festival won Best medium size Festival in 2010 and this year's folky line-up includes Fleet Foxes, Laura Marling, Explosions in the Sky, Iron & Wine, Bellowhead and Noah & the Whale.

Despite uncertainty at other festivals, Green Man has again sold out prior to the start of the festival, and it promises to bring a lot of hungry shoppers to the Crickhowell area.

Merryfields Barn grading

Mon, 25 Apr 2011 08:23:00 +0000

Merryfields Barn was regraded by Visit Wales this week and we were delighted the property was awarded 5 stars in all seven sections and a total of 92% overall (including 100% for cleanliness), which is in the middle of the 5 star grading band. The report commented that the accommodation is 'presented to an excellent standard' and 'the views from all over the property and the patio are really outstanding'.

However, Merryfields Barn was only given a 4-star grading because the property doesn't have a stand-alone freezer (although the refrigerator has a freezer compartment).

Happy New Year!

Sat, 01 Jan 2011 15:19:00 +0000

Angie and I would like to wish all our guests a very Happy New Year.

Having snowed quite hard earlier in December, the barn looked very festive as Christmas approached, with about 6 inches of snow still on the ground and icicles over 3 feet long hanging from the gutters. With the milder weather, all the snow has now gone apart from on the mountains tops, which look fabulous when the sun comes out.

We hope you have a good 2011, and we look forward to seeing some of you again later this year.

Best wishes
Steve and Angie
Merryfields Barn

Abergavenny Food Festival 2010 - best ever!

Sun, 26 Sep 2010 11:07:00 +0000

The 2010 Abergavenny Food Festival was again blessed with sunny and warm autumnal weather, as 37,000 people descended on this lovely Monmouthshire market town, which is only 10 minutes drive from Merryfields Barn.

This year�s event had six venues, 200 stalls and around 80 individually ticketed events which featured some of the most knowledgeable and engaging stars of the food world.

The fringe events in the run-up to the festival included Wine, Walking and Wildlife and Food Festival Fanfare Feast in the market hall. Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and National Poet of Wales Gillian Clarke gave readings and discussed their work at the Angel Hotel, and this year�s Big Food debate was on Fair Trade, Sustainable Food and Climate Change.

This year, the festival organisers are also putting on their first Christmas Food and Drink Fair on Sunday 5th December. At the time of writing, Merryfields Barn is still available � why not spend the weekend with us and enjoy what�s on offer in Abergavenny?