Part 2 of last Friday’s Levy trail, as we “headz to Fred’s” (potential slogan there).
Then we saw this;
In years to come, future generations of pub tickers will debate, “JFK”-style, which of us actually suggested a detour from our CAMRA approved crawl to this unassuming backstreet Irish pub.
“It’s a secret new craft bar” I probably said.
“Go on. Go on. Go on” said Duncan
“Will there be a pub cat ?” said Mudgie.
The lack of photos tells you all you need to know. That and the visit of what we call a “peripatetic salesman”. We already had all the kitchen gloves we needed, thank you.
It was a “proper” pub, pleasant enough and ideal for folk who go out to watch horse racing and drink proper beer. The John Smiths Smooth is mine, by the way. Duncan and Mudgie went for some foreign muck. Alan is right about the Smooth.
Confident that the Horseshoe will be eligible for the GBG once CAMRA ratify the proposed extension of what constitutes “good beer” , Duncan added the pub to his spreadsheet and we rounded the corner to Fred’s Ale House.
Now this looks less like a proper pub than the Horseshoe or Blue Bell, but a return visit confirmed it as one of my favourite places in Manchester, and therefore the world.
A rather younger crowd, confirmed by banter entirely about “Dennis the Menace“, and rather less traditional seating. I couldn’t get the jukebox to work, no doubt it had been commandeered for the afternoon.
So lots of chat (non-political, thank goodness), and some of the best beer anywhere. Blackjack and a black IPA served cool and in top condition, NBSS 4 both.
And that’s all he wrote about Levenshulme. Great place, and the coffee in St Mary’s Parish Centre beats any of your Cambridge independent cafes all day long.
retiredmartin 
John Smiths Extra Smooth – deep admiration for your resilience. Had one once, in a pub in Swindon, where the only other offering that wasn’t lager was Caffrey’s. No idea, to this day, whether made the right choice.
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Clearly the wrong choice, Caffreys is gorgeous.Had it in the Boot in Kings Cross not long ago, much creamier than JS. JS has better pump though.
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Can you still get Caffreys on tap? The beer that could give me the most horrendous chemical hangovers ever, if I drank more than a couple of pints.
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Sure I’ve seen it in last couple of years, and certainly still in cans, though possibly in Dublin.
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“That and the visit of what we call a “peripatetic salesman”.”
I had to look that up. Learn something new every day. 🙂
“Fred’s a recycled photo before you ask”
The fellow on the right looks like he’s auditioning for Assassin’s Creed; the movie. 😉
“I couldn’t get the jukebox to work, no doubt it had been commandeered for the afternoon.”
If it had been a Monday I’d say they’d reserved it for the Music Quiz. But it was a Friday, yes?
“And that’s all he wrote about Levenshulme.”
Sounds like it was a great outing. 🙂
Cheers
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Full marks for Led Zeppelin reference in the title.
For the record, in the Horseshoe I had Guinness, while Duncan had Open Gate Amber Pale Ale, which is about as craft as it gets in there. That plus John Smith’s was the sum total of the ale offer – there wasn’t even the long-forgotten brand of keg mild you sometimes come across.
The pub was also playing some contemporary R&B music with those horrible metallic-sounding treated vocals. I mean, it’s not exactly Jethro Tull, is it? 😦
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Well done, you remembered more than I did !
Are you going to be scoring the Guinness once WhatPub is updated to reflect the more inclusive and diverse CAMRA ?
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You may have noticed I suggested this on Discord in response to the woman who was asking why we shouldn’t be scoring craft kegs 😉
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You are both wading into deep waters there. Pity there was no 80/- othwerwise you could have had Heavy in the Levy.
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I presume Hurricane Katrina and the Waves on the jukebox is what caused the levy to break.
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Was it Katrina and the Waves on the jukebox that caused the levy to break ?
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I preferred your previous answer.
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I gave two versions to give Russ a chance to GET.THE.JOKE.
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“I gave two versions to give Russ a chance to GET.THE.JOKE.”
Apologies Prof P. T. It’s been a busy day as Casa Russtovich.*
Cheers
* But then again, I still didn’t get the joke. (blush) 🙂
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THAT’S the joke !
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By the by, do you know if Caffreys is still served in Ireland ?
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Haven’t seen it in donkey’s years.
In fact I haven’t see any of those knock-off smooth Irish thingies in yonks.
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I loved your line, “one of my favourite places in Manchester, and therefore the world.” I want to say a place that’s attempting to be a real ale pub, a coffee shop, and an art gallery all at once is not going to be great at all three, but maybe I need to be a little more open minded. : )
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You’re so right, and so wrong, Mark ! It shouldn’t work, and it’s not a classic pub shape, but there’s loads of chat. The tremendous beer is a bonus.
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