More good pubs, more excellent beer. Dryanuary seems to be a roaring success so far. Rushcliffe is one of those boroughs that exist for the sole purpose of confusion when Members of Parliament have their constituencies flashed up on PMQs. See also: Haltemprice and Spen I’d call it posh Notts, but there’s plenty of plain… Continue reading ROCKIN’ RUSHCLIFFE STICKS IT TO DRYANUARY
Month: January 2018
ALTON SOURS
Well, we got some nice photos, anyway. And a decent title. It’s a start. I’ve always wondered why the Staffordshire Moorlands between Stoke, Uttoxeter and Ashbourne is so poorly represented in the Beer Guide, bar the Yew Tree of course. There’s plenty of pubs, 5 in Alton alone, so I guess it all comes down… Continue reading ALTON SOURS
BLYTHE SPIRIT
I could tell you this was the 27th micro pub I’ve visited this Guide year, and you’d believe me. Russ wouldn’t. He’s checked and it’s the 28th. What an exciting place Blythe Bridge is. Home to a steam railway with a recent Beer Guide entry, one of four recent GBG entries if I generously count… Continue reading BLYTHE SPIRIT
MORE CASTLE, M’DUCK
A return to Newcastle-under-Lyme can mean only one thing. Underpass street art. Folk fuss about Bristol and Manchester, but N-u-L is the place to go to see images of people you actually recognise. The tourist office (is there one ?) should do a leaflet showing these artistic high points, interspersed with Oatcake shops and micro… Continue reading MORE CASTLE, M’DUCK
BEARTOWN GETS A JOULE
Mrs RM is working up near Melrose at the moment. This is her office; Some exciting “Tales From the Borders” coming up, though I suspect stories of General Ledger Upgrades and Password approval protocols would be more exciting to you. 20 years ago Mrs RM was staying in Eaton, just outside Congleton, and drinking pints… Continue reading BEARTOWN GETS A JOULE
A LITTLE HUG FOR NEWTON GRANGE
One commentor in particular on my blog has it in for those lovely Marstons people. I‘m quite happy for my beer to be produced in a giant beer factory in Wolverhampton, though actually their brands are still produced petty much where they always were. I’m also aware many folk don’t rate Marston’s dining pubs that… Continue reading A LITTLE HUG FOR NEWTON GRANGE
AIRPLANE CRASH BANTER IN BRAMHALL
I’ve just heard that the Stockport CAMRA Pub of the Year is the Blue Bell, a Sam Smiths house in Levenshulme. This fills me with joy. Elselwhere, micro pubs and brewery taps mop up the awards, and the bulk of the GBG attention, including yet another Micro Pub in Bramhall. Bramhall is as posh… Continue reading AIRPLANE CRASH BANTER IN BRAMHALL
SPENDING THE SPOONS VOUCHERS IN SOWERBY
I’ve no idea why I popped in Sowerby’s Spoons. It’s been opened 4 years and studiously avoided the Beer Guide, so it was hardly a pre-emptive tick in a well-pubbed town. But you know how it is when you’ve got a new quarters’ Spoons vouchers burning a hole, and a curious desire to test how… Continue reading SPENDING THE SPOONS VOUCHERS IN SOWERBY
SOWING THE SEEDS OF A SOWERBY REVIVAL
Nice place, Sowerby Bridge. A touch of Hebden quirkiness set alongside the grittiness of west Halifax, and a proper canal town. Any town with a passageway like this one from the station can’t be bad. You emerge to the market, and this gem, which has been selling WKDs and Woo-Woos to the youth of Sowerby… Continue reading SOWING THE SEEDS OF A SOWERBY REVIVAL
BBC DRAMA & CHIP SHARING IN t’ROYD
I didn’t really want to write up Mytholmroyd, mainly because I always spell it wrong and have to keep looking at Bing Maps. Why can’t places be called easy-to-spell things like Llandrindod Wells and Balaruminmore ? The other advantage of my central Halifax hotel was proximity to the station, with a cheap day return to… Continue reading BBC DRAMA & CHIP SHARING IN t’ROYD
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