Done the tick, done the Belgian thirds, time for a Lincoln classic.
Let’s go up the Steep Hill.
The puff of white smoke sadly doesn’t herald the reopening of Widow Cullens Well, as the city remains a Sam Smiths free zone.
But there’s still Proper Pubs near the cathedral and castle, though the Victoria is closed, advertising for a new tenant, and the Bass in the Morning Star is a distant memory.
Which means the Strugglers, I guess.
Harry Styles and “music” on the same blackboard? How inclusive.
The Vic’s temporary loss is the Strugglers gain. It’s heaving, the day before the Christmas markets bring chaos.
A range of favourites on the bar, but I follow the steer of the chap before me.
Landlord remains your benchmark pint, and after a few seconds of doubt this cool, crisp pint claims its 3.5.
But the beer is secondary.
The banter between landlady and regulars! The noise ! The colour ! The Jeremy Clarkson books !
It’s Lincoln’s answer to the City Arms, I guess, with a touch of Hare & Hounds squeezed in.
A chap drinking Lilleys Rhubarb Cider joins me at my table and starts to talk about Sigmund Freud in a serious tone.
“How many pubs have you been to ?” I ask. Well, he sat down uninvited so I feel I can ask such personal questions.
He tries to count to six. But fails.
I know the feeling.
retiredmartin 
That counts as a personal question?
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Apparently so.
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There must be a certain number of pubs he must have been to in order to sit down uninvited and start talking about Sigmund Freud in a serious tone. I mean, you’ve known me long enough to estimate how many pubs I’ve been to on a particular day. Have I ever either a) sat down uninvited or b) started talking about Sigmund Freud in a serious tone. No, is the correct answer.
So in his case, “more pubs than Will on any particular day” would be a good starting point.
Approximately 17, then? Correct.
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You did not even start with a question about the weather?
Sad to hear about the Victoria. We enjoyed both the Victoria and Strugglers.
At Strugglers we had a good conversation with a couple, one who was a professor at the University there.
At Victoria we had Ram Tam with and without the sparkler. They were very kind when we asked to try it that way. I believe the sparkler won, although both were very good.
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On a more serious note, I like the way your Landlord approaches a target NBSS score almost stealthily. It was always going to be a 3.5, but only after “a few seconds of doubt” did it reach that point. I hope you added this as a comment on WhatPub’s beer scoring facility. (I’m never that honest, so why should you be. Yeah, good point.)
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Lilleys Rhubarb does that to a chap, best avoided. Our local recently changed hands, and after several years lobbying by more regular locals than us, has finally got the Landlord back on. Tried a few yesterday, it’s… ok! I’ve never seen the landlord behind the bar, and they ran out of unflavoured cider and unflavoured tonics yesterday. Our next village local has Nene Valley, Bakers Dozen, Ossets, etc. and the gaffer is always good for a chat. No competition really, but our friends can’t understand why we haven’t rushed back for the Landlord…
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