This trip to the Black Country started with a beer festival - the Dudley Winter Ales Fayre to be precise.
Located in the town hall, they manage to pick a selection of fine winter beers with, pleasingly, barely any of them succumbing to a Christmas theme.
I was busy feeling smugly sensible avoiding the couple of tempting 10% ales, without realising that none of my picks veered far below the 6% mark.
Strong IPAs, imperial stouts, barley wines - all packed full of flavours to rave about.
But the less said about the Toll End 'Old Cockstrangler' the better...
I was busy feeling smugly sensible avoiding the couple of tempting 10% ales, without realising that none of my picks veered far below the 6% mark.
Strong IPAs, imperial stouts, barley wines - all packed full of flavours to rave about.
But the less said about the Toll End 'Old Cockstrangler' the better...
Beer tokens all used, we retired to a nearby Dudley classic.
A Bathams Brewery pub, this is a welcoming and comfortable tavern. The front bar has two sections to it, both with three sides of cushioned seating and a hum of conversation, where there's no need to mess around dimming the lights and putting on music to create an atmosphere.
On the bar, alongside Bathams Bitter and Mild was the XXX winter warmer, weighing in at 6.3% ABV. The barrel of this at the beer festival had sold-out, so it had to be tried, and made for a tasty nightcap prior to heading back to the hotel.
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| The Lamp Tavern - night-time photographs not my specialty. |
Saturday morning saw a thick fog shrouding Dudley, which meant we never even got to see the remains of the castle on the hill on our morning 'sightseeing' stroll.
Mappiman found a scenic route to take in the pubs in Dudley's surrounding towns, but I didn't do so well. Following Google's instructions to get to Netherton, the highlight of our walk was a signpost to Bumble Hole with the 'ble' blanked out. Yep, ours wasn't an urban culture classic walk.
Sunshine and blue skies broke through the fog - the first weekend in November that wasn't dull, grey and wet.
Enthusiastically early, we arrived at The Old Swan around 5 minutes before their 11am opening time, left to lurk in anticipation.
Sunshine and blue skies broke through the fog - the first weekend in November that wasn't dull, grey and wet.
Enthusiastically early, we arrived at The Old Swan around 5 minutes before their 11am opening time, left to lurk in anticipation.
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| Spent my five minutes before opening time waiting for gap in traffic to photograph the pub. |
This is a classic pub that has deservedly been on many a beer trip itinerary. When CAMRA first started there were just 4 brewpubs in the country, this being one of them. Brewing on site did stop in 1988, but resumed again in 2000.
Asking for the barman's recommendation, I settled down with a pint of 'Pardoes Entire'.
I completely missed the 'Black Widow', which at 6.7%ABV would have given me the chance to pick up where I left off the previous evening with the strong beers.
Someone ordered it a little later, to words of caution from the local at the bar - "Fella come in, had a couple of pints of it... Had t'pick 'im up from pavement outside, we did".
On reflection, I decided I'd probably be wiser to stick to beers in the 4% region today.
We sat in the magnificent front bar - a true classic. There's a central stove, with it's pipe extending up and across the ceiling, bench seating around the walls and a wonderful enamel tiled ceiling.
I did explore a little further, poking my head into the snug which is reached through the old off-sales counter at the side of the bar. Beyond this, a lounge bar has been created out of what was once a neighbouring shop, a nice way of increasing space without impacting upon the pub.
From outside Ma Pardoe's we caught Bus 81 down to Brierley Hill and walked a short distance to the nearby Waterfront development. In what once housed the Black Country Radio, there is a recently-opened Peaky Blinders inspired bar.
Asking for the barman's recommendation, I settled down with a pint of 'Pardoes Entire'.
I completely missed the 'Black Widow', which at 6.7%ABV would have given me the chance to pick up where I left off the previous evening with the strong beers.
Someone ordered it a little later, to words of caution from the local at the bar - "Fella come in, had a couple of pints of it... Had t'pick 'im up from pavement outside, we did".
On reflection, I decided I'd probably be wiser to stick to beers in the 4% region today.
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| An absolutely incredible pub room. |
I did explore a little further, poking my head into the snug which is reached through the old off-sales counter at the side of the bar. Beyond this, a lounge bar has been created out of what was once a neighbouring shop, a nice way of increasing space without impacting upon the pub.
From outside Ma Pardoe's we caught Bus 81 down to Brierley Hill and walked a short distance to the nearby Waterfront development. In what once housed the Black Country Radio, there is a recently-opened Peaky Blinders inspired bar.
Here's what the local paper says:
"It features a unique epoxy resin bar - reminiscent of the copper bars of the 1920s, dark wood furniture and ceilings which appear nicotine-stained - to give that 1920s feel."
Okay, so perhaps expecting it to look exactly like the pub on the tele was unrealistic, but I didn't really get that 1920s feel either. The Peaky Blinders appear on a wall-sized picture behind a small stage and on murals outside and in the bathrooms.
I might have warmed to it more had we had a soundtrack of music from the show - a bit of Nick Cave, Anna Calvi and Arctic Monkeys, perhaps. But no.
What we got was a dreadful Christmas compilation.
No complaints about the beers we picked, both in excellent condition.
We had a 10-minute walk across the canal, then along a couple of streets to our next destination.
The Rose & Crown (161 Bank Street, Brierley Hill, DY5 3DD)
We picked the left-hand door into the bar here, leading to a busy, small room with a local crowd. A few old boys at the bar, families with kids completely glued to their mobile phones, no-one paying attention to Man City on a small TV in the corner, and an 80's music mix, featuring a bit of Toto and Culture Club.
Five hand-pumps on the bar dispensed Holdens ales, from which we picked a 'Black Country Bitter' and 'Treacle Stout', sitting on a table by the fire to enjoy them.
Vine Inn (Bull & Bladder) (10 Delph Road, Brierley Hill - web)
Just look at it!
Yellow frontage, complete with Shakespeare quote, looking stunning in the sunshine - could anyone pass by this and not go in?
The current pub was built in 1912 and is the brewery tap of Bathams. That meant the same no-nonsense beer choice as the Lamp in Dudley - Bitter, Mild or the seasonal XXX.
The front bar is the most classic of the four rooms that make up this wonderful pub. No seats in there today though, so we ordered our pints and took them through to the back room. This is a slightly more recent addition, but is full of character, with red leather cushioned seating around the sides and a dartboard in pride of place at one end.
Bad planning on my part here, as I consulted an Ale Trail leaflet to see what else was close by, but missed a current Pub of the Region at Cradley. Where we ended up instead was in Quarry Bank at the...
Church Tavern (36 High Street, Quarry Bank, DY5 2AA - fb)
Mrs PropUptheBar didn't much like this one. I think the disappointments of the weekend (the banana and cinnamon wheat beer hadn't arrived at the beer festival, and there was no Cillian Murphy sitting chain-smoking in the corner of the Garrison pub) were beginning to wear her down.
It's a proper local pub, pleasantly tatty and busy with folks chatting and playing cards and keeping an eye on the horse-racing on TV.
I don't remember what ales they had on, but I picked the one I'd never heard of from The Hartlebury Brewing Company. Another decent pint of trad bitter.
From here we caught the bus for a long ride back to Birmingham city centre. Plans to visit the Pint Shop or Wellington were dealt a blow by the crowds that had descended on the Christmas market. Wetherspoon's had a one-in one-out queue, for crying out loud! Far too busy and crazy for me, so instead we headed to a new Beer Guide entry on the other side of New Street station...
Cherry Red's Cafe Bar (88-92 John Bright Street, Birmingham, B1 1BN - web)
Somewhere completely different - this is a corner-cafe with a big display of cakes to the side of the bar and a good menu of home-cooked food. Both upstairs and down were busy, as you'd expect on a Saturday evening in Birmingham, but we scored lucky with a table.
There are three cask ales, alongside craft taps and a big bottle/can selection.
After having a tasty bite to eat, we checked the train times, to see that our's was cancelled.
So I had to rush my Attic 'Hansel & Gateau' stout to make it to the station in time for the earlier alternative.
A great 24-hours in the West Midlands - and still lots left to do to necessitate a return visit or three.
Five hand-pumps on the bar dispensed Holdens ales, from which we picked a 'Black Country Bitter' and 'Treacle Stout', sitting on a table by the fire to enjoy them.
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| Giant conservatory. |
This was a friendly enough local pub with good beer, but what we wanted was a Black Country classic. And for that, we had to stroll down Brierley Hill's main drag and out past Delph Locks.
Vine Inn (Bull & Bladder) (10 Delph Road, Brierley Hill - web)
Just look at it!
Yellow frontage, complete with Shakespeare quote, looking stunning in the sunshine - could anyone pass by this and not go in?
The current pub was built in 1912 and is the brewery tap of Bathams. That meant the same no-nonsense beer choice as the Lamp in Dudley - Bitter, Mild or the seasonal XXX.
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| I seem to remember claiming that all I needed for lunch each day from now on was a giant cheese & onion cob. |
Church Tavern (36 High Street, Quarry Bank, DY5 2AA - fb)
Mrs PropUptheBar didn't much like this one. I think the disappointments of the weekend (the banana and cinnamon wheat beer hadn't arrived at the beer festival, and there was no Cillian Murphy sitting chain-smoking in the corner of the Garrison pub) were beginning to wear her down.
It's a proper local pub, pleasantly tatty and busy with folks chatting and playing cards and keeping an eye on the horse-racing on TV.
I don't remember what ales they had on, but I picked the one I'd never heard of from The Hartlebury Brewing Company. Another decent pint of trad bitter.
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| Church Tavern, Quarry Bank. Spot the indicator of a 'proper pub'. |
Somewhere completely different - this is a corner-cafe with a big display of cakes to the side of the bar and a good menu of home-cooked food. Both upstairs and down were busy, as you'd expect on a Saturday evening in Birmingham, but we scored lucky with a table.
There are three cask ales, alongside craft taps and a big bottle/can selection.
After having a tasty bite to eat, we checked the train times, to see that our's was cancelled.
So I had to rush my Attic 'Hansel & Gateau' stout to make it to the station in time for the earlier alternative.
A great 24-hours in the West Midlands - and still lots left to do to necessitate a return visit or three.
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| Blokes propping up the bar at Cherry Reds. |
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