“WE’VE GOT A BEER FESTIVAL ON”

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A night in Loughborough is a joy for ever.

You can even get to real places like Derby from there on the train.  And thence to unreal places like the Pot Hole in Allestree, where I can never remember going before.  Only the GBG (and Life After Football) can direct you to Allestree.

Derby

BeerMat aka LAF got here first, of course. He’s such a trend-setter.

“In terms of new local boozers, I don’t think you can’t beat a 1960’s shopping precinct to house your project.”

Well it’s better than a shed on an industrial estate, anyway.

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Like Venice but drier

Wiki tells me Park Farm was one of the largest shopping centres in Europe back when it opened in 1963, just in time to celebrate my birth the next year.

More exciting are the population statistics.  I can only assume that the original VE celebrations were particularly, er, exuberant.  The late ’80s reduction coincides with Derby County’s decline, of course.

Allestree1

I expected to see half the population in George’s Tradition, a fine chain of chippies with branches in all the best East Midlands honeypots like Belper and Chilwell (wherever that is).  But it was empty.

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Everyone was in the pub.

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Goodness me, that’s a lot of signs

As BeerMat noted so eloquently back in January, the Pot Hole is a Proper (micro) Pub, more Aldridge Turtle than Tamworth Tap. 

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Blokes

Here you can avoid people talking about rugby, and even watch LIVE horse racing.

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nnnnnnnnn Nineteen

Quite a few folk were even watching the 15:45 from Doncaster over foaming pints of Fosters Posh Pink Grapefruit Pale Ale.

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Second pump from the left pleasingly unreadable

And they were SO friendly.  Keeping away from the bar, offering tables, offering me excellent odds on the 15:20 from Kempton..

I bet there were a couple there who dropped unmentionables from above on the away fans at the Baseball Ground back in 1988 though.

And then I heard the terrible words;

“We’ve got a beer festival on !”  smiling, handing me a big sheet of paper.

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I mean, the Posh Pink Grapefruit Pale Ale is all you need, surely ?

With a choice of dozen, I waited for the chap to my west to order the Scarborough Stout, and very good it was too (NBSS 3.5).

I offered my table to a couple who looked a bit terrified (by me, not the beer festival) and went in search of chips and curry.

Published by retiredmartin

Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.

17 thoughts on ““WE’VE GOT A BEER FESTIVAL ON””

  1. “A night in Loughborough is a joy for ever.”

    I saw ‘Heel Bar’ in the photo above and thought it was an actual micro or some such. Maybe in one tiny corner perhaps? I mean, if you have to take your shoes off to get them repaired, you may as well have a pint while you wait?

    “to unreal places like the Pot Hole in Allestree, where I can never remember going before. ”

    The bump on the head, from the pot hole, on the way there probably made you forget. 😉

    “Like Venice but drier”

    Blimey. These days that could be anywhere.

    “just in time to celebrate my birth the next year.”

    OK… youngster.*

    * – I was going to use Boomer but, that would include me. 🙂

    “I can only assume that the original VE celebrations were particularly, er, exuberant.”

    That certainly started a trend… until the 1980’s at least.

    “and even watch LIVE horse racing.”

    Much preferred to dead horse racing. No one ever actually crosses the finish line. 😉

    “Quite a few folk were even watching the 15:45 from Doncaster”

    You sure that wasn’t train spotting?

    “Second pump from the left pleasingly unreadable”

    Yup. Not a clue.

    “I bet there were a couple there who dropped unmentionables from above on the away fans at the Baseball Ground back in 1988 though.”

    They had a baseball ground?

    “I waited for the chap to my west”

    Most ‘normal’ folk merely say left or right. 😉

    “(by me, not the beer festival)”

    Here’s me being all decorous and whatnot. 🙂

    Cheers

    PS – Pardon the whiff of egoism but I apologise for not commenting of late. Still dealing with my mother’s estate, from many many miles away, and it’s been leaving me bereft of witty things to write at the end of the day. Hopefully you lot are still ok to have a pint with me should I make it over there in the sometime in the next few years. 😉

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      3. Chilwell is home of the – I believe – uniquely named Cadland pub, which used to sell Bass.

        Its reputation for ale keeping has been shaky for a while now, however.

        It was OK in 1972 though.

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  3. Surely TV’s aren’t permitted under “Herne rules?” Not that I’m bothered by such things, but thought I ought to point it out, in case there are any micro purists out there.

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  5. The reference to the horse racing reminded me of one of the chapters from Deserter’s ‘South London’ book. Do you think horse racing was traditionally a part of pub life in decades past, i.e. patrons were at least watching it on the TV, if not among the people who’d placed bets?

    In America the whole idea of betting on the horses sounds like something from a previous era these days, though I’m sure it’s still going on– possibly even a big industry, for all I know. My brother took me to a dog racing place once; closest I ever got to that world!

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    1. I went to the dogs once, the Walthamstow one on the Blur LP cover. Didn’t bet though.

      Horse racing is a real oddity in pubs. I never see it locally, even though I’m local to Newmarket, our most famous Racecourse.

      Do see it in a certain type of male dominated pub like George and Dragon in Leigh, and probably a lot of South London boozers frequented by Deserter?

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