Bolton Wandering

Exploring the Pubs & Bars in Bolton & Horwich

I've gotten out of synch here, taking an age to write up this October mid-week football trip to watch Forest play at Bolton Wanderers.
So with no further ado - afternoon pub explorations:

Straight off the train I headed to a Good Beer Guide recommendation - Great Ale at The Vaults (Market Place, BL1 2AL).
The Market Place has been smartly and impressively renovated to create a retail and leisure hot-spot.  Down on the lower level, as the name suggests, you can find this bar, between eating places and a Dino-themed crazy golf course. It's kinda an ale bar for folks who don't like pubs.  

Great ale in an un-traditional setting - in the Vaults

I went with the bartenders recommendation of a Beatniz Brewery 'Beach Bum' pale ale.  It's described by the brewer as a beer to sip in the sunshine, so I wasn't in the ideal environment, sitting with my coat on inside a shopping centre.  
Interesting place with a good craft ale and cask choice, but I wanted something more traditional.

And where better for that than The Old Man and Scythe (6-8 Churchgate, BL1 1HL).
This historic pub throws it's hat in the ring when it comes to the much contested title of 'Britain's oldest pub'.  With mention of a pub on the site in 1251 it's in the top 10, or perhaps even 4th oldest in the country, depending on where you look.

The Old Man & Scythe - one of the countries oldest pubs.

It was rebuilt in 1636 in time to witness the execution outside it's doors in 1651 of the Earl of Derby for his part in a Civil War massacre.
As with all these old pubs, out of necessity of keeping it standing up, many parts of it have seen some modernisation, although the cellars and some of the wooden beams are said to date back to the 17th century.
So what music to complement the olde worlde charm?  Well that'd be Megadeth's 'Peace sells', along with some early nineties alt-rock - perhaps not the most appropriate for the ancient surroundings,  but I was thoroughly enjoying them sat in the snug with my pint of 'Flat Cap' bitter.
A Google search for the pub brings up You Tube video's of ghostly images caught on CCTV.  And cast any scepticism aside, because the pubs paranormal activity is reported in both the Daily Mail and the Mirror - two papers that never get their facts wrong.

A walk back across town took me to The Hen & Chickens (143 Deansgate, BL1 1EX).
I really liked this traditional town centre pub and would have stayed longer if I hadn't  set myself a strict schedule.

I stood in the doorway weighing up which door to use: the 'Vault' or 'Lounge Bar' in fear of getting stuck in the wrong side of the pub.  Only to find that it's now open plan and both led to the same place ultimately.
There's a nice feel to the pub - a number of happy daytime regulars, a lovely tiled frontage on a horseshoe bar and a good range of ales including Bass bitter for the traditionalists.  
I sat up on the raised area beyond the bar, where an old gent made a comment to me each time he passed to and from the games room at the back of the pub.  Didn't understand a word of what he said each time but my hapless grin and nod seemed to suffice.

Walking back through town I skipped the Good Beer Guide listed Elephant & Castle, with a perhaps unfair appraisal from the outside.  But then stumbled across a new brew pub that I hadn't known was there.

Northern Monkey Brew Co (Nelson Square, Bolton, BL1 1AQ)
This brewery and bar was only opened in September of 2018.  Bolton friends Ryan Bailey and Liam Convey started brewing beers in an extension of one of their homes.  They've obviously done a pretty good job of it, leading to them being able to renovate this old pizza restaurant into a smart modern venue, with the brewing kit on show to the side of the bar.
There were three cask ales available and a good range of craft keg offerings from their own brewery plus guests.  Extra marks for the second rock soundtrack of the day with a bit of Foo Fighters and Soundgarden to accompany my tasty 3.8% 'Wilhelmina', a pale session ale.
I appreciate that this bar would probably be best visited later in the day with more of a crowd to create an atmosphere, but I had places to be.

Halloween decorations -well, a bit of cotton wool masquerading as a spiders web. 
Brew kit and bar at the Northern Monkey Brew Co.

Check-in time at the Travelodge had been reached so I dropped my bag off and speculated how I was going to get myself out to the Reebok, Macron, whatever the football ground is called these days.

Bolton have indeed wandered

Their home is now at Middle Brook, by Horwich Parkway rail station.  Horwich Parkway is still a fair way from Horwich itself, but I decided to catch a bus there as it seemed ripe with some good drinking establishments.
"Where about's in Horwich?" the driver asked me as I boarded the 575 bus.  
It's unhelpful when passengers say "don't know", as I did.  
"I'm going to the Blackedge brewery" I added as an after-thought, in case this made things easier. 
His furrowed brow, deep in thought, suggested that this brewery wasn't a top destination for tourists or locals alike.  But then with a spark of recognition he said he knew where I meant and he'd give me a shout when to get off.

Where he was referring to was in fact the The Ale House (36 Church Street, Horwich, BL6 6AD) run by Bank Top.  It did have 'Brewery' emblazoned across it's frontage in all fairness.

Bank Top Brewery's sister-pub up at Astley Bridge is a multiple winner of the local CAMRA pub of the year, but I'd decided it was too much of a rush to get up there today.  So this was a great alternative and turned out to be a fantastic down-to-earth boozer.  The curved bar is set to the left of the front door, with lounge-like areas to the right, consisting of curved banquette seating along the wall and a couple of high tables with stools.  No TV, no food.  Just a spectacular run of 8 hand pumps serving up 7 Bank Top ales and a Nottinghamshire interloper from Milestone.  
When I arrived there were just a couple of blokes and a dog, but it quickly filled up, creating a pleasant atmosphere and hum of conversation. 
From here it was just over a 5 minute walk down the hill to my original intended destination...

Blackedge Brewery Tap Room (Moreton Mill, Hampson Street, Horwich, BL6 7JH).

Just time to squeeze this in before trekking to the game. These are the sort of venues that  can vary dramatically, so I walked through the dimly lit yard and entered the brewery not knowing what to expect.  As you enter, the brewing kit is visible behind a glass window, then up the stairs you'll find their bar, opened in 2015.  
And very nice it is too.  
It has a homely feel, with large rugs, sofa's and bar stools at high tables made out of wooden barrels.  There's a good selection on the drinks menu whether you're after craft ale, cask ales or cider (for which they've won a 2018 cider-pub-of-the-year award).  
First up I opted for a US-hopped IPA before heading back to the bar for a half of the traditional 'Heritage IPA', clocking in at 6%.  I had a phase on the look-out for 'proper' IPA's after reading Pete Brown's excellent 'Hops & Glory' book.  This version by Blackedge was absolutely fantastic.

I knew I had over a 2-mile walk ahead of me and the one chap in the bar wearing a football scarf had left 15 minutes ago, so it was time to leave the Blackedge Tap.  There's helpfully a couple of chip shops en-route, then a number of supporters to follow through a maze of cul de sacs and footpaths in a housing estate as a short-cut to the ground.

Evening kick-off at the University of Bolton Stadium.

For a modern ground I quite liked Bolton - some would say that's because Forest won 3-0 and they'd probably be quite right that my opinion is easily swayed by a winning performance and a good atmosphere in the away end.
Any ideas of a post-match pint were scuppered by the irregular service back from Horwich Parkway to Bolton.  I missed the 10pm train by 5 minutes, then had to hang around for an 11pm replacement bus service.   
A great, if exhausting, day, with some fine quality beers and great pubs.