retiredmartin

July 2026. Ouseburn. Newcastle.

Back from Cramlington by mid morning, with 5 hours till the bargain advance fare return to Sheffield.

Not quite enough time to head west to Haltwhistle, or south to Seaton Carew, for another tick.

But plenty of time for some aimless exploration along the Tyne.

I was only in Ouseburn last year, but it changed quickly,

and that view back to the Toon draws you back in every time.

Yes, it’s the Free Trade, looking and feeling as lovely as ever, if a little less scruffy than I remember, Gents apart.

A couple in the garden, a couple at the bar,

a cask line up with the Jarl hidden to the left, so I go local with Donzoko’s Keller beer.

Trade in the Free is mainly coffees, even though it’s gone 11. What happened to drinking at civilised hours ?

Being honest, the cask quality here has always been a bit secondary to the “pub” and the view,

and this is a tasty Keller that lacks that last bit of cool crispness (3+, GOOD). But I sense you’d guessed that already.