FOUND IT ! THE MACC BASS HUNT

June 2025. Macclesfield.

A slight change to the “written in stone” itinerary as rumbling tums necessitated a lunch stop, and the Hyde’s place from 2021 hadn’t been great, though at least the Mandarina offered a straight glass.

Rumours that Jon had travelled the 4 hours from Frome just for a pint in a Wetherspoons were possibly unfounded, but the Society Rooms was worth the stop,

Not MY chips

and a cool Plum Porter (NBSS 3.5) reminded me this is a decent (if rather quiet) JDW.

Right, across the road, ignore the call of Red Willow, past the street art,

Him again

and a forlorn look at a definitely closed today Jolly Sailor, our Bass target.

But fear not, across Sunderland Street lies G & J Muckers, a name I would never remember. It looks a bit “shop conversion” (cos it is, I guess),

but immediately impressed with a pubby feel and warm welcome.

Proper seating, Bass tat,

a big sign saying “No mobiles ! Talk to each other !“. Kids, eh ?

“Four Bass, lads ?” Said the Guvnor.

How did he possibly guess ?

Must have been Jon’s Bass braces.

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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.

11 thoughts on “FOUND IT ! THE MACC BASS HUNT”

  2. “the Hyde’s place from 2021 hadn’t been great” but Lowry was drinking well six days ago.
    .
    “ignore the call of Red Willow” reminds me of Stafford’s Sun two days ago. The customer before me asked for THREE tasters, two Red Willows and a cider, and then ordered a half of the cider which he was hardly half way down by the time my Tiger had drunk well.
    .
    “Four Bass, lads ?” Said the Guvnor. – is just like “Bass ?” ( in the singular though as I was on my own ) in Atherstone’s Hat and Beaver. And a proper welcome from the dogs too.

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      3. It’s quite charming, when a robin settles on the arm of your chair, and looks you in the eye on the other hand.

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      4. SH,
        But cats do ignore most non-Stopfordians.
        Someone famous once said “Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us”

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      5. Dogs were drinking beer in a pub I used earlier this evening, definitely a rarer sight than yesteryear.

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  3. Nicely-done new bar, but being honest the Bass only managed NBSS 3. Nothing wrong with it, but the full complexity of flavour just wasn’t there.

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    1. People who drink Bass regularly, or in succession, have reported similar variation in other places. I think the same thing is detectable in other beers elsewhere , like Leeds: Kirkstall Three Swords and Leeds Pale are available in many venues and can vary quite a bit.

      I have found very little variation in Joseph Holt’s Bitter, but maybe that’s because I haven’t drunk enough in places other than the Hare & Hounds, Shudehill.

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  4. Ha, you’ve done a good job of capturing some of the usual suspects in their usual habitat in that photo looking into Mucker’s from the door.

    Yes, ‘Mucker’ himself is now out of the Jolly and fully installed in his own place across the road as you have discovered.

    Would have let you know, as the long rumoured move out of the Jolly was quite sudden in unexpected circumstances when it eventually came, but I’m entirely off Twitter now.

    Vaux Wanderer

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