Keep Portland Weird

A trip to the southernmost tip of Dorset in which I spend two nights on Portland and live to tell the tale.

With an early round FA Cup fixture to watch in Dorchester the following day, I made my way down to the Isle of Portland on a Friday lunchtime, where Oxford ex-pat Graham had kindly offered to shift some of his giant record collection out the way to make space for me in his spare room.

Cup of tea; admire the views; then devise a plan for a few local pub visits plus a trip over to Weymouth.
Starting in the Royal Portland... 

Royal Portland Inn (40 Fortuneswell, Portland, DT5 1LZ)
We bowled in through the front door with it's Covid-era directional signage still in place, narrowly avoided a collision with the rampaging pub dog, then strolled to the bar to find a choice of two cask ales.  A Somerset duo of Cheddar Ales 'Crown and Glory' and Fine Tuned 'Misty Mountain Hop'.

There were six or seven folks in besides us, Friday mid-afternoon, just enough to make for a pleasant atmosphere and allow the landlady's Alsatian and local's Staffie ample room for their epic scrap. 

I thought my own dog had no respect for personal space, but this pair were something else.  Legs got bashed, furniture toppled, shins were barged into as the duo set out on the rampage.
The Royal Portland consists of one single room and no more than half-a-dozen tables, plenty of clutter - a 'lived-in' feel.  

The toilets are an experience - no pristine porcelain or posh handwash and moisturiser here.
"You're not local!" exclaimed a fella that I was politely holding the door open for on the way back from the facilities.
But to prove they're not an unfriendly bunch, the fellas at the next table got chatting about music after commenting on my t-shirt, one telling us how he'd seen Hendrix for £1 in Bridport, then proving he had the dodgy hearing to show for it.

My 'Misty Mountain Hop', a smooth 4% single hop golden ale was lovely.
If only we'd have stayed into the evening and knocked back half-a-dozen pints of it, I could have quoted the Led Zep lyrics...
 "I didn't notice, but it had got very dark,
and I was really really out of my mind."
...but it wasn't dark yet and I was quite coherent, setting off on a route downhill to the Cove House.

Cove House Inn (Chesil Beach, Chiswell, Portland, DT5 1AW)
Two months without a cloud in the sky, then I visit on the greyest glummest day of September.  With a bit of good weather the picnic tables in front of the Cove, with their views of the sea and Chesil Beach, would be packed.  As it was, the staff member behind the bar was warning folk they had to give the door a really good push to counter the gusts of wind.  There's a reason the front door is tucked inside a stone porch and all the windows have shutters.  Past vicious storms had seen waves crash into the pub and caused pebbles to be hurled against it.

Sea Fury would be apt, with the sea getting rougher, but I picked the Dorset Brewing Co. 'Origin' on this occasion.  On decent form.

The Cove is very foodie with a good-looking menu and 'booking advisable' signs. Safe to say this is one of Portland's more touristy pubs and no-one's likely to point out you're not local on your walk back from the gents.

Our next destination was a fair trek to a pub with the island's only 3-pint-pot top score on the CAMRA website.  Plus, I reckon I'm the first person to include the Green Shutters in a blog.
Heading around the north end of Portland towards the castle and marina, we passed the imposing Atlantic House...

Then found ourselves on Castletown's main drag, with one-time hotels and the boarded-up Jolly Sailor pub.  This is an area that I guess would have been quite different when the naval base and docks were still functioning.

There are a couple of café/bars in the vicinity catering for the visitors to the marina and D-Day museum, but the Green Shutters is the only place that calls itself a pub.
Lovely Eldridge Pope badge on the frontage, but the original name, The Albert' included in the uppermost masonry...

Green Shutters (12 Castletown, Castletown, Portland, DT5 1BD)
...although most will agree that the ground floor aesthetics leave a little to be desired. 
I loved it - a single room with trad carpet, suspended ceiling, pool table, and a splendid wooden counter, the crests of various naval vessels adorning the canopy above the bar.

We received a friendly welcome, ordering the Sharp's Solar Wave', the sole cask option.  A pint of this was pulled through before filling our own glasses which showed a bit of care taken for the ale and it did indeed turn out to be in decent condition and thoroughly enjoyable.

These three pubs had been a nice introduction to Portland, but Weymouth was calling.

We caught Bus No.1 to take us across the causeway, through Wyke Regis and into the coastal town of Weymouth.
On the southern side of the River Wey, we climbed the Chapelhay steps to a pub of the same name...

Chapelhay Tavern (Franchise Street, Weymouth, DT4 8JU)
A little off the regular tourist trail, this is a gem of pub.
It's been a pub since 1864 when it was converted from a couple of cottages, owned by Eldridge, Mason and Co. which later became Dorset brewing giants Eldridge Pope.  In more recent years the only other pub in Chapelhay has been closed and demolished, leading the locals teamed up to purchase the lease of the Tavern to ensure it doesn't go the same way.

The naval decorations were superb, the place packed full of pictures, maps, flags, seafaring signage, and old compasses, horns and bits of boats long gone.

Ales on the bar were Butcombe 'Original' or Sharp's 'Sea Fury', with a cask cider on the third hand pull.
Sea Fury for us this time - in good condition, even if it isn't one of my favourite beers.

Here's my host and guide for the day in a corner of the pub that looks like those 'dress up' bits of museums.

Busy signage on the gents...

What a cracking pub - somewhere I'm really glad we climbed the steps to get to.
Back down at sea level, we called in to the Good Beer Guide-listed Kings Arms on the quayside.

Kings Arms (15 Trinity Road, Weymouth, DT4 8TJ)
Named after King George III, who made Weymouth his favoured location for a spot of sea air and bathing, the Kings Arms traces its history back to the 16th century when it would have served the sailors, dock workers and maritime folk on this bustling harbour.
Nowadays you'll find more tourists that sea captains.

The beer line-up was a familiar one with Sharp's, St Austell and Dartmoor alongside Tim Taylors.  We opted for the St Austell 'Proper Job' - on 'acceptable' form, which was a let-down as I know this pub usually serves a much better pint.

Last time Graham brought me here in the dead of winter we doubled the numbers.  This time was thriving and full of life, ABBA playing in the background over a cacophony of chatter.
Too busy to really be prancing around taking pictures, although I needed a shot of the fireplace..

I would have expected the Kings Arms to be rushing out plates of food to customers, but it's actually a wet led pub.  Several customers were returned with bags from the neighbouring chip shop, but we decided to partake in the traditional seaside pursuit of eating ours on the bench outside and pretending it wasn't actually a little bit chilly.

Not a single seagull coveted our chips.
In fact they were noticeable by their absence all weekend - has avian flu devastated the gull population on the south coast?

Next stop, as darkness descended, was the Weymouth micro...

Dog House Micro (2 Great George Street, Weymouth, DT4 8NN)
Tucked away in a side street, the Dog House opened in 2018 in premises that used to house a second-hand domestic appliance shop.  It's a single room with a decent number of tables, narrowing to the back where the bar is, creating a pinch point which several drinkers delight in standing at.

There was a fine choice of ales here from Hop Back and Dark Revolution (Wiltshire), Bowman (Hampshire), and Neptune (the big traveller all the way from Merseyside).
I opted for the oatmeal stout 'Abyss' from Neptune - a glorious full-bodied dark brew.
My neighbour on the bench looked like he could do with one too...

After a quick diversion for a half in Wetherspoon's , we caught the bus back to Portland in time for a nightcap back in the Royal Portland Inn.
No rollicking dogs this time, but we did get The Breakout Band covering Teenage Dirtbag ("I can see a lot of dirtbags out there...not so many teenagers").

A great day out.
Sadly I got the windy grey version of Portland, so didn't go and stand on the tip of the island.  As long as I'm invited back, I'll do that next time along with a few more pubs in this cracking bit of Dorset.

Bathams in Kinver - Epic onion slices in Caunsall

A short Staffordshire/Worcestershire post, taking in Black Country Ales, Bathams and a magnificent cob.

The large village of Kinver is home to just over 7,000 folk at the bottom of the narrow strip of Staffordshire which runs alongside the West Midlands.  Those 7,000 residents get to enjoy a miniature railway (closed) 'til Sunday, rock houses (closed 'til Friday), and a Constitution Club which scores the three-pint-pot score on the CAMRA website (closed 'til 4pm).  I suspect I may not have visited at the best time.
Here's the view of the village from St Peter's Church, the steep footpath to which left me absolutely shattered and thinking twice about a walk on Kinver Edge.

Probably best to find a footpath which would loop me back to the Cross Inn...

The Cross Inn (Church Hill, Kinver, DY7 6HZ)
A 'Guess the Pub Co.' contest using the picture of the back room probably won't take up too much of anyone's time.
Even without the TV screen listing the 10 beers and ciders...

Black Country Ales pub tick #39 for me.
This was taken over by the West Midlands brewery in 2009, their ninth pub, prior to which the 19th century inn was boarded up and falling derelict.
I ordered a 'BFG' their staple golden ale, with guests alongside the BCA fare being Oakham 'Citra', Holdens 'Golden Glow' and 'Sea Fury', which seems to be taking over from Doom Bar as the ale you're most likely to see from Sharp's. 

The beer was on good form.  England were demolishing Pakistan at Edgbaston on the telly, and Witney was hollering 'I wanna Dance with Somebody' trough the speakers.  The 12" version, I guess, as it went on for almost as long as it took me to drink my beer.

Leaving the Cross, I made the short walk to the edge of the village and the bridge over the local waterway for pub number 2...

The Vine (1 Dunsley Road, Kinver, DY7 6LJ )
This inn first opened their doors in 1863 when the Staffordshire & Worcester canal provided enough trade to keep both this and one-time neighbour and competitor the Lock Inn going.
It was originally converted from two cottages, which you get a feel for on the corner table I picked, although internal walls have been knocked through in more recent years and significant extensions added.

Cask beers on the bar came from two locals: Enville and Wye Valley.

I settled with a half of the 'HPA', news channel on the TV (doom and gloom), No Doubt playing quietly in the background.
I think I was the only customer not dining, the rest of the punters spread out over a large 'please wait to be seated' restaurant and into the canal-side garden.  Okay, it's foodie, has silly bits of foliage on the table, no beer mats, and too much olive paint.  But it was very nearly closed in the 2010s, so I'm happy to find the Vine open, serving a reasonable beer and providing a friendly welcome.

A gentle stroll along the canal next, ambling along the towpath past the moored barges on a warm sunny afternoon.

It was quite a long way around, to be fair, the canal looping northward with no route off until you reach a lane to the equestrian centre, allowing you to cross the Stour and backtrack to Kinver.
A long enough walk to warrant a Batham's beer, I reckon.

Plough & Harrow (82 High Street, Kinver, DY7 6HD)
This is nicknamed "The Steps" due to the couple of big stone steps you have to climb from the High Street to the pub's ground floor level.  Those take you to a lovely tiled corridor, the door to the right leading to a cracking front bar, all tables occupied by locals on my visit.
That's how I've only ended up with a picture of the lounge to the rear...

Not my most sociable day.  But with good value Bathams 'Bitter' and 'Mild' to sup, I was happy.
The disappointment was that - in a large cabinet of pub snacks - the cheese & onion cobs had run out.  Who runs out of cheese & onion?!  As it turns out, I'd do well with a cob later on.
Leaving me to admire the tiling in the Plough and Harrow...

Back down the pleasant High Street...

And hanging basket laden mews...

And onward 2.4 miles to the village of Caunsall, by which time I'd crossed the border into Worcestershire.

The Anchor (Caunsall Road, Caunsall, DY11 5YL)
The Anchor traces it's history back to 1840 when a local farmworker took advantage of the Beer House Act and opened his front room to sell ales.  For much of the 20th century the Anchor was run by the Barker family who brewed Worthing beers on the premises.
It's a lovely country pub with one busy bar, a small Victorian snug, and corridor leading to ample outdoor seating.

I found a trad line-up of ales on the bar from Hobson's, Ludlow and Wye Valley.
And cobs...

"We were admiring your lump of cheese," said my neighbours in the front snug.
"That would have been family rations for a week back in the war."
Never mind the cheese, look at the size of those slices of onion!

I couldn't really fault my visit to the Anchor, sat in a wonderful pub room with trad seating, old fireplace and plentiful pictures.  Good laminated menu of the table (cobs and crisps only).
And a lovely Holdens ale in tip-top condition.

A couple of weeks later, I've just about gotten rid of the taste of that onion.

Wellington - Booted Off the Top of the Table

🕔Five pm in Telford.
I'd dropped my bags at my hotel, visited four Good Beer Guide regulars in Oakengates and Madeley, done the suburban tour on Arriva buses, and was all set to head in the direction of that evening's football match.
Top of the table (well, they were at 19:45 that evening...) Oxford City were taking on AFC Telford under the floodlights on a Tuesday evening in a National League North clash.

AFC Telford play their games at the New Bucks Head ground in Wellington.
Eight minutes by train, thirty minutes by bus for a skinflint like me determined to make the most of that day pass.
Wetherspoon's backs onto the bus station which was handy for a teatime arrival.

The William Withering (43-45 New Street, Wellington, Telford, TF1 1LU)
This sits on the site of one-time coaching inn The Duke of Wellington, so I'm surprised that the JDW naming committee didn't opt to revitalise that name, instead of picking a local physician and botanist.
The pub was demolished in the 1970's making way for a very dull two-storey chunk of concrete which housed Fine Fare supermarket.  The William Withering Wetherspoon's opened in 2011 looking pretty much exactly like you'd expect it to look within.
The sculpture is something a little bit different, though - I completely forgot to look what it represents. 

There was a quartet of guest cask ales available alongside the regular Spoons beers: Ludlow 'Blonde' or 'Stairway', Exmoor 'Gold' or Titanic 'Plum Porter'.
Ludlow's 'Stairway' for me, the West Shropshire brewers' 5% golden ale, alongside a 'gourmet' (the word used in the loosest sense) jacket potato. 

A short stroll along the pedestrianised streets of the centre took me to Good Beer Guide micro pub. 

The Boot Micropub (2 Market Square, Wellington, Telford, TF1 1BP)
The Boot opened in 2022, run by the same folks as the Coracle micro in Ironbridge.
I instantly quite liked the place.  Making the suspended ceiling black is a good move.  There's a DJ station decorated with 7" singles in the corner,  beers displayed on a TV screen, proper seating, a beer barrel perch, and a barman with the best jumper of the day.

And a cracking beer range.
Plenty of interest on keg, plus the unusual sight of Gueze Boon Lambik on cask.  Other hand pulled options were Glasshouse 'Bringing Seshy Back', Salopian 'Hop Twister' and Burton Bridge 'Cherry Orchard'.

Looking back I wish I'd had the lambik, but on the evening the cherry beer seemed a good idea - the one that would make Mrs PropUptheBar jealous back at home.
I was quite content sat in the corner of the Boot, Argent's 1973 LP 'In Deep' playing in full to entertain me.  A great micro that really seems to put the effort in for craft beers and vinyl.

Just down the road is the one pub in Wellington that I've visited previously...

The Pheasant Inn (54 Market Street, Wellington, Telford, TF1 1DT)
The Pheasant Inn was originally part of the Wrekin Brewery estate. Their brewhouse stood across the other side of Market Street until being demolished in 1975, production having shifted to Wem under the control of Greenall Whitley.  Then in 2014 Ironbridge Brewery took over the Pheasant and reincarnated Wrekin in the building to the side of the pub.  The founder moved away from the area in 2018 and Rowton arrived to make the outbuilding a second site for concocting their beers.

 

Of the three Rowton beers available, I picked 'Area 51', a fine crisp and bitter 5.1% pale ale. The first recorded metal meteorite landed in the vicinity in 1876, hence several space-themed beer names from the brewery.
Glassworks, Everards, and Green Duck and Weekend Project provided ample alternative cask options.

The Pheasant is a nice pub, the busiest place I'd visit in Wellington, the downside being that this relegated me to an uncomfortable high table in the centre of the room.

The third Good Beer Guide pub in the town wasn't on the way to the football ground, but I figured I could make a loop which incorporated it.

Wrekin Inn (26 Wrekin Road, Wellington, Telford, TF1 1RH)
So, what do you get in the Wrekin Inn?
From my experience: eclectic music, another great beer selection, and an "extra large WC"! 

There were three Rowton Brewery beers on offer here ('Meteorite', 'Area 51', 'Full Moon') plus a North Riding pale ale or Blue Bee five hop pale.
I stuck local with another Rowton ale - 'Full Moon' a 6.2% dark mild brewed with 6 different malts.  Lovely, if a little dangerous at that strength.

The Wrekin featured some odd blue lighting in the side room and a rockin' playlist.

I arrived to 'Rock 'n' Roll All Night' by Kiss; supped my dark mild to the Black Keys; raised an eyebrow at the heavy turn taken with Disturbed's 'Down With Sickness'; then tapped my foot along to Dexys 'C'mon Eileen', which met with the approval of the bar staff who turned the volume up a notch.    

I would happily have stayed longer but I was clock-watching - still one mile from the ground at 7pm.  A brisk walk down the Ropeway and Holyhead Road took me close to the New Bucks Head, where the Cock, Swan and Railway Inn present a trio of pubs for pre-match beers.
Let's do the Joule's...

Cock Hotel (148 Holyhead Road, Wellington, Telford, TF1 2DL)
The stand-out building on a road junction that we see today was an 1896 rebuild of a much older coaching inn.  It was run by the original Joule's brewery for a large part of the 20th century, then brought back by their modern incarnation in 2018.
It's a rather magnificent multi-roomed pub that I really didn't manage to explore properly on a short visit.
There was a familiar line-up of Joule's staples...

I took a half of the 'Blonde' - on decent form - into the front corner room which was busy with a fair few football fans.
After the music in the Wrekin, I felt that Natalie Imbruglia and Sinead O'Connor were a bit of a let down.

Then, as the tables of Telford fans drank up and left I figured I'd better get my skates on and find my way into the football ground.
The New Bucks Head is an impressive stadium for this level, three-sides of which wouldn't be out of place in the football league.
'Semi-segregation' was in place this evening, so entry was via turnstiles either side of the home terrace, then you were free to wander, although the far block of seating on the 'T' of Telford was officially set aside for away supporters.

'Free to wander' meant I got to explore a bit as the game kicked off, taking my time before joining the travelling support and boosting the away numbers into double figures.
Here's the view of the home terrace, where the fans made a fair bit of noise once they realised their team were completely outplaying the top-of-the-league (♪♪  "..you're 'aving a laugh") team.

It really wasn't Oxford City's night.
Ninety-nine percent of the 1,028 crowd went home happy after a 1-0 win that could easily have been more had Jonny Maxted not pulled off several decent saves.

Ah well...can't win 'em all.
The football hadn't provided much to cheer about, but my pre-match travels around greater Telford had made for a great day out.
Time to go for a a nightcap in the "town centre and the grubby Spoons".   Martin's description, not mine😉.