retiredmartin

August 2026. Frome. A long, long, day in Frome moves towards its conclusion with an actual NEW Beer Guide pub west of town, away from the cutting-edge art and scary shops, and neatly kept courtyards. The Royal Oak is your roadside pub on the way to (checks map) to Vobster and Mells, the pub with… Continue reading PUB TICKING IS A PROPER JOB. THE ROYAL OAK, FROME

August 2026. Frome. Yes, I’m really milking the Frome Folly Jolly for content, and appropriately Pub 7 talkes us to Milk Street, former home of Milk Street (now Frome) Brewery. The Griffin is the perennial GBG entry, the quirky local embodying alternative Frome with its legendary live music. I’m guessing it gets busy later, as… Continue reading BECKS. THE GRIFFIN, FROME

August 2026. Frome. Pub 6, or 7 (seven) for those on our Frome Roam who had popped off to Palmers Bottle Shop after Just Ales. I can tell you nothing about Palmers, which means it is guaranteed to make the next GBG. The pace was relentless, and some of our group went MIA, or possibly… Continue reading I AM A CIDER DRINKER. THE LAMB AND FOUNTAIN, FROME

August 2026. Frome. Pub 5 on the Frome Frolic, and having retrieved Kentish Paul from the chaos of the rail system it was time to do a rapid tour of the town, and head for the GBG micro up the hill. Oddly, we lost Stafford Paul at this stage, opting for a well earned breather… Continue reading UP THE HILL AND DOWN THE ALE

August 2026. Frome. The pub blogging community is very tight knit and supportive. Oxford Nick aka Prop Up The Bar has been receiving our counselling support since posting this photo on Tuesday; I shall be stealing that Olivia Rodrigo reference for future blog titles (see also : Bad Idea, Right). Kentish Paul had encountered some… Continue reading THE THREE SWANS, FROME. “No marine will be left behind”.

August 2026. Frome. It’s 12:13 last Saturday and we’re already on Pub 3 on the Great Frome Pub Survey, or whatever we’re calling it. It’s something called Archangel, without the “The“, like Architects without the definitive article. And that’s where the notes stop, at least until the pub where the cider was £2.80 a pint.… Continue reading ARCHANGEL, FROME – THE AI ASSISTED POST

August 2026. Frome. Oh look, spoiler, a map showing our pub crawl route in Frome last Saturday. The best is yet to come, but every pub deserves a Retired Martin post, even the George, the most stately looking place in the market place. I just looked up room rates this weekend; minimum 3 night stay… Continue reading WHO ARE FOLLY ROAD ?

August 2026. Frome. I can’t remember why we started our Proper Pub Crawl/Curated Survey of Licensed Premises* at the Blue Boar. Oh yes, it opened at 10am. We live in a world where many pubs don’t open till 4pm (if at all) during the week, noon if you’re lucky, so the value operators like Wetherspoons… Continue reading 3 1980 BLONDIE HITS IN A ROW. THE BLUE BOAR, FROME

August 2026. Frome. Somerset. A weekend in student digs in Bath, with the centrepiece a Saturday pubbing in Frome, guided by local celebrities Jon and Tracey. “Froooom. Throwm. ANiceTotnes. However you pronounce it, Frome is a gem”, I wrote on my last visit in March 2020, just before something cataclysmic happened. I’m veering towards “A Nicer Totnes” to… Continue reading DON’T BE LATE FOR THE LEAT ! FROME AWAITS