The 300-year-old inn, run by landlord Sam Beard, beat off competition from over 5,000 UK pubs to take the title.
The Good Pub Guide described the inn as having ‘all the character that goes with great age but with inventive food, lovely service, cosy bedrooms and a lush garden’.
Historic former coaching inn The Lion Inn in Winchcombe won New Pub of the Year, while The Red Lion in East Chisenbury was named Dining Pub of the Year.
Cheshire Cat Pubs and Bars – which operates seven pubs across Cheshire, Staffordshire and Dorset - won Pub Group of the Year.
Tim Bird, who owns Cheshire Cat Pubs & Bars, said: “This is a true accolade and we are very, very proud indeed.
“[This award] recognises our collective efforts in rescuing pubs that were previously closed down or lost causes. Our pubs and Inns now shine brightly for our many loyal customers to enjoy for many years to come.”
The full list of winners is as follows:
- Pub of the Year Horse Guards Inn, Tillington, West Sussex
- Dining Pub of the Year Red Lion, East Chisenbury, Wiltshire
- New Pub of the Year Lion Inn, Winchcombe, Gloucestershire
- Value Pub of the Year Queens Head, Kirkby la Thorpe, Lincolnshire
- Landlady of the Year Judith Fish of the Applecross Inn, Applecross, Scotland
- Brewery of the Year Hook Norton Brewery, Hook Norton, Oxfordshire
- Pub Group of the Year Cheshire Cat Pubs and Bars
- Own-Brew Pub of the Year Watermill, Ings, Kendal, Cumbria
- Beer Pub of the Year Fat Cat, Norwich, Norfolk
- Whisky Pub of the Year Sligachan hotel, Sligachan, Isle of Skye
- Wine Pub of the Year Woods, Dulverton, Somerset
- Unspoilt Pub of the Year Olde Gate, Brassington, Derbyshire
- Town Pub of the Year Bank House, King’s Lynn, Norfolk
- Country Pub of the Year Cottage of Content, Carey, Herefordshire
- Inn of the Year Inn at Whitewell, Whitewell, Lancashire