retiredmartin

Just when I need to be on top of my game, in the first week of the new GBG season (highlights embargoed till 12 Sep) I’ve got man flu, the worst type.

No long trips yet this week, and my cross-checking between GBG19 and GBG20 is a pain.

And I’ve got two dozen pubs in Scotland and Preston to tell you about.

Let’s start at West Kilbride, said no-one ever.

Definitely not to be confused with East Kilbride, birthplace of the Jesus & Mary Chain and home to a Spoons I need to tick.

West Killie (?) is a handsome craft village with an authentic craft pub.

The Twa Dugs is as close as rural Scotland gets to a modern beer bar, though I guess Rutherfords in Kelso comes close.

As ever, the glass skulls are the giveaway.

Duncan stopped here to let me have a half in what had just been awarded local Pub of the Year, despite being too new to be in GBG19. That is NO guarantee it’ll be in GBG20, Simon.

But any bar that has beer as good as the Five Kingdoms Dark Storm Stout (NBSS 4) and as cheery service as this would walk into the Guide in Cambridge, let alone Cambuslang.

Very unwise to move onto a 6.9% stout so early, so the next few posts will be rubbish.

My notes say “My first Wooha“, which could mean anything.

The Twa Dugs has a sister pub on Cumbrae. I’d walked past it, an hour ago.

It looked NOTHING like the West Killie winner, but had I missed a trick by not popping in for a pint of Tennents ?

Almost certainly.