Bass in Burton on a Wednesday Lunchtime

 

Safe to say that 11am on a Wednesday is not the best time to rock up in Burton-Upon-Trent on a pubs and beer mission.
The micropubs were waiting for late afternoon to unbolt their doors.
Forget about the brewery taps which are Thursday to Sunday affairs.
Even the classic run of the Coopers, Devonshire Arms and the Roebuck can't be tackled until gone 4pm.
But this is the Capital of Brewing, so surely I could still do well between the hours of 11 and 3?

As it was early doors and I needed some breakfast, I headed straight to Wetherspoon's. You're never very far from brewing links in Burton, this being named after Michael Arthur Bass, brewer and first Lord Burton.

The Lord Burton (154 High Street, Burton upon Trent, DE14 1JE )
Absolutely no surprises within the Burton branch, where only the historic pictures of the town adorning the walls remind you where in the world of JD Wetherspoon you are.
The open-plan room stretches a fair way back from the street, bar at the midway point, all the expected carpeting, furnishing and table clutter present and correct.

With added chaos at the bar.
Quite how the customers before me caused so much of a headache I don't know.  But it involved being served by two people, having to repeat their drinks order and forgetting who wanted what second time around.  One of the two staff fetched a boxed cider from the store room and I painfully watched whilst not being able to help as they struggling to lift it onto a high shelf in the fridge.  All whilst the plates to be delivered to tables increased and the number of folks waiting at the bar grew and grew.

Oh well, plenty of time to pick and then change my mind several times as to which ale I'd have...

I ended up spending my £1.99 on the ever-reliable Rudgate 'Ruby Mild'.
Taken to a table by the front windows where the gang on the nearby table discussed ailments, MOTs and Magaluf.
My plate of breakfast fodder provided me with the energy to make the fairly long walk to the other side of the River Thames and a pub with a promising "Best Bass" sign painted on the front and side.

The Elms (6 Stapenhill Road, Stapenhill, Burton upon Trent, DE15 9AE)
This was a bit of a gem.
It was built as private housing in the late 19th century, then converted into a parlour pub - where little would be changed from the original layout and the homely living quarters would be opened to drinkers.  (A proper parlour pub in Shropshire to follow in a post or two).
The front rooms are the most characterful places to sit: a lounge with colourful cushioned bench seating and a superb fireplace to one side; the more basic wooden benches in the bar to the left of the front door.

On the bar was Bass, Thornbridge 'Wild Swan' and Full Circle 'Equal Measure'.
I was in Burton in a pub renowned for one of the best pints of Bass in town, so poor old Thornbridge and Full Circle never got a look in.

It was very good.  The pub became busier with local customers, one and all taking the time to say hello to the odd-bod in the conrer taking pictures of his pint of Bass.

I backtracked the way I'd come in order to return to the centre - walking across the traffic-heavy Trent Bridge, then taking the footpaths through the meadows, with wooden walkways across the wet bits.

Time for a quick bit of brewing heritage, with a snap of the Worthington offices.
The red brick buildings date back to 1755 and served as the administrative centre of Worthington's brewery from 1863.  Given more time, I would have followed one of the town's brewing trails, but my schedule demanded I drink the beer rather than look at old buildings connected to it.

Retired Martin had recommended the Constitutional Club for the best pint of Bass in town.  "Just tell them you're a fan of Bass and they'll sign you in," he said.
I do confess I walked past the unwelcoming door with it's buzzer entry system twice before plucking up the courage.  This was more unnerving than Maidenhead Conservative Club.

 

Burton Constitutional Club (150 High Street, Burton upon Trent, DE14 1JE)
I don't know what I was worried about.  The welcome was super friendly, my query if I could come in for a pint of Bass without being a member met with a "course you can, my love".

A bit of history... This was built to house the post office in 1874.  When the post office moved to New Street in 1905 the building was only empty for 2 days before Lord Burton and the Ratcliff's from the Bass brewing empire purchased it with a plan to create a gentleman's club.  It was redeveloped over the next five years, with an oak panelled ground floor reading room, games room on the first floor with snooker and card tables, bowling green out back.
These days, the upper floors are used by a dance studio with the snooker tables in pride of place on the ground floor.

I'd love to have potted a few balls, but wasn't pushing my luck.
The Bass was on great form, a smooth pint with thick silky head, enjoyed in superb surroundings. 

Moving on, I wanted to visit the current Beer Guide listed Black Country Ales Burton outpost.

The Dog (5 Lichfield Street, Burton upon Trent, DE14 3QZ)
Located on Lichfield Street, just past the market place, The Dog stands out with it's creamy paintjob and timbered frontage.  A surprising lack of parked cars directly in front, although the Biffa wheelie bin is doing no favours to the aesthetics.
In previous incarnations, this was a Worthington tied house, an O'Neil's in the 90s, and an Enterprise inn until 2015, at which point Black Country Ales added it to their chain.
It's got a fair bit of character - quality ceiling, even better bar frontage, good carpet, wallpaper that will be familiar to anyone who's been in a BCA pub-or-two.

On the bar, alongside their own regular brews, were cask ales from Magpie, Facer's, Felinfoel, Lenton Lane, and Mallinsons.  My pick was the novelty Chocolate Orange stout by Facer's - it's not what I'd pick now, but it seemed a good idea at the time.

I took this to a comfy seat in the corner with a cheese & onion cob (of course!).  A fellow customer on the next table tried to conduct a phone call and hum along to 'Video Killed the Radio Star' at the same time.  It didn't work and obviously confused the person at the other end.

I needed to leave Burton at a sensible hour, so could only squeeze in one more pub.
I figured I'd make it the supposed oldest in town.

Olde Royal Oak (11 Market Place, Burton upon Trent, DE14 1HA)
On the market square, the upper timbered part looks a bit more authentic than that of The Dog.  Part of the building dates back over 300-years, once connected to the abbey by a tunnel, and once used as a lockup for ne'er-do-wells.
It's been owned by various breweries over the years, but seems to have struggled amongst the stiff pub competition in Burton, despite a cracking location.

I stepped in as the rain began to fall.
Lots of handpumps on the bar.
But not a lot of choice...

"One's plenty," as someone once said.  Especially when it's just the beer I'd hoped for anyway.
It wasn't up to the high standards of the Elms or Constitution Club, but was absolutely fine and kept me happy.
The Olde Royal Oak is a bit of an odd'un.  Lots of space, big stage area, complete mismatch of furniture set up in an unusual way - like the lovely old wooden bench I sat on, but couldn't lean back on due to a ledge poking out over the top of it.
Music came from Rose Royce, The Beach Boys, Simply Red (uh-oh), and Toploader (that's it, drink up!)
I started the post with a picture of a pint of Bass, so I'll finish on one too...

A Tutbury Beer Research Trip

Mid-April saw seven pub researchers descend on the East Staffs village of Tutbury on a Tuesday lunchtime.  
According to a quick search, Tutbury "has much to interest the visitor; from a ruined castle to a famous coaching inn, from handmade jewellery to a wide range of antiques."

Arriving on the 11:26 train from Derby, I accosted Retired Martin at the station and we set off to explore the sights.  It took us twenty minutes, although to be fair the castle is shut and we skipped the jewellery and antiques.  
Peering over the wall from a mound in the churchyard is as close as I got to the castle.
(See Martin's blog for better pics and an AI view of the castle which I thought I could steal having waited so long to write-up this trip, but decided I couldn't get away with).

Never mind.  The church looked nice from the outside...

We called by the Cask & Pottle micro to see if we could make sense of the opening times, which were unclear.
5-9.30 said Google. 
Noon-2.30 said CAMRA.
'This site can't be reached' said the link to the pub webpage.
No times on the door, so we were none-the-wiser, and Martin was barked at by the guard dog for peering too closely through the window.

More of the dog later.

Declaring tourism of the town as done, we headed into the first pub at noon.
It's a rickety timber-framed beauty... 

The Dog & Partridge (33 High Street, Tutbury, DE13 9LS)
Unfortunately, less-so inside.
The original front door looks like it's been bolted shut a fair few years, entrance now via the car park at the back.  Which is never a good sign.
The bar and much of the seating is located in a more recent extension to the side, with deep leather sofas and table clutter including cocktail deals and promos for matcha coffee and spring soirees.

Four hand pumps to pick from...oh...

The 'London Glory' was passable, if unexciting, although possibly a better pick than a reportedly tired Abbot.

A bit of intrepid wandering took me to the wooden beamed rooms in the historic bit of an inn that dates back as far as the 15th century.  Definitely intended for dining and private functions this bit.

The arrival of the next train saw our numbers swell to seven.  On a Tuesday!
Stafford Paul had made an even earlier arrival than us on home county bus routes; Martin and Will had made the trip down from Sheffield; Shawn from Leicester; Graham from York; and Jon tackled the most intrepid journey from Frome, bravely spending over 2 hours+ on Cross Country Trains.

We moved on to pub number two on the itinerary - a Black Country Ales outpost.

The New Inn (31A Ludgate Street, Tutbury, DE13 9NG)
The New Inn became Black Country Ales' 50th pub.  Something which deserves a plaque...

Perhaps they marked #50 with a radical change in style and just one handpump on the bar?
Nope...

The usual colours, checked fabrics and patterned carpets, with added darts board in pride of place.
Fast asleep on the bench under the window is the micro pub dog.  Had we known that was the owner of the Cask & Pottle we could have checked the opening times and saved freaking him out with our early arrival later.

Twelve hand pumps on the bar included two ciders and four of their own ales, alongside options from Milestone, Salopian, Lenton Lane and Welbeck Abbey and a couple of 'new beer coming soon' clips.  I ordered myself a cherry and vanilla 'Twist & Stout' by Nottingham's Lenton Lane Brewery - an acquired taste that I'm not quite sure I acquired before the end of the pint.  Plus the essential cheese and onion cob.

It wasn't far at all to the next pub on the itinerary.  We were moving from number 31 Ludgate Street to number 32, although somehow they've managed to squeeze two buildings inbetween.

The Vine Inn (32 Ludgate Street, Tutbury, DE13 9NG)
The front porch provides a choice of heading right into the L-shaped bar or left into the lounge.  I'm suspect the lounge was empty, whilst all the action was in the bar, busy with an impressive number of locals for a Tuesday afternoon, dominos in full swing.

I love the menu in the Vine: Chips £2, Cheesy Chips £3, Chip Cob £3, and for the adventurous, Southern Fried Chicken and Chips £5.
What more do you need?
Cask-wise, the choice was Marston's Pedigree or Courage 'Directors'.  Again, what more do you need?
The Directors was quite superb...

We suffered a pub fail at planned stop no.4, The Leopard.
Members of the group who hadn't loitered on the way from the Vine discovered an absence of real ale at this 3pm opener.
A disappointment as this was supposed to deliver our first pint of Bass of the day.

So, onward we trekked.
Three of us set off on foot for the mile walk to neighbouring Hatton.  And pleasingly beat those on the bus to our destination across the county line.

When we reached it, The Tavern didn't look to be brightly lit and fears of a wasted journey arose when Martin tried the front door and declared the pub shut.
Luckily someone had the good sense to search out another way in from the car park.

The Tavern (Station Road, Hatton, DE65 5EH)
Once we'd all made it in, this was a delightful pub.
There were a handful of mid-afternoon punters, included a couple of chaps who got chatting to us having recognised us as "that lot again" from the New Inn.
The Tavern consists of one open-plan space which extends into a conservatory with pool table.  The bar area has a fairly traditional feel to it, with the except for those excessive fairy lights.

Cask ales on offer were Pedigree or Bass.
One half of the couple who've run the pub since 2021, a young lady named Hayley, came to chat to the oddbods with seven pints of Bass in front of them.  Obviously a very enthusiastic and keen licensee, Hayley took pride in serving a good pint and was rightly smug about anticipating demand for National Bass Day - the excuse which had been provided at the Leopard for the lack of cask.

Leaving the Tavern, we made the trek back across the railway lines for a return to Tutbury and an assault on the micro pub.

Cask & Pottle (2 High Street, Tutbury, DE13 9LP)
Whilst the door was open at 4pm, I'm beginning to wonder if that 5pm time on Google may have been correct after all.  The owner seemed quite put out by our arrival and mumbled about people not usually coming in so early, opting to rearrange beer mats rather than serve us.

This was a proper micro of the original Kent variety with high benches around the sides, chunky tables, no music or TV, and no bar counter.
Beers were fetched from stillage in the ''Apparatus Room'.  You needed to walk around that room and past the considerable worktop clutter to reach the single WC which wasn't about to win any Best Pub Toilet award.

Here's Graham from York, getting his bearings...

Here's the pub dog...

And here's the beer range...

The Green Duck beers make it down to Oxford in The Grapes and Blenheim fairly regularly, so I picked the lesser-seen 'Piffle Snonker'.  Which sounds like something I should be looking up in my Collins Book of Birds.
This was a fine, well kept, pint of pale ale from Birmingham's Froth Blowers.

To be fair, once we all had pints in front of us, the owner got chatting and became quite hospitable in contrast to the dubious welcome.  Bringing out tasters of the two Dutch beers he had on draft led to several members of the group ordering halves of these and staying longer.

Myself and Sheffield Hatter strode on ahead to the Crosse Keys up the hill...

The Crosse Keys (39 Burton Street, Tutbury, DE13 9NR)
The side entrance led to a sizeable and deserted rear extension - a decent number of customers all located in the more traditional front bar.
Bass or Thornbridge 'Bother Rabbit' available on cask, along with craft keg from Glasshouse, Weekend Project or Northern Monk - a selection I wouldn't have expected based on the location and my initial impression of the pub.
 
By this point pub pictures were reducing in quality.
Dog...carpet...that'll do...

We only had time for a half of Bass in the Cross Keys - served in good condition.  Although that half was tackled at a much more sensible speed than by those who caught up us with us having stayed for Dutch IPA in the micro.
Martin led us down a short cut in a quick march to train station. 

Tutbury comes with the jeopardy that there is no footbridge, so if the barriers came down whilst we were on the wrong side of the tracks we'd be stuck.
Probably best not to prance around taking pictures of fence post decorations by the allotments, then.

We made it in plenty of time, disembarking in Derby and heading into the Victoria, remaining pub researchers having varying time to spare before homebound trains.

"One pint too many?" asked Martin.
I thought I was telling the truth when I responded 'no' and insisted I was walking to the Creaky Floorboard micro when I finished my Leatherbritches 'Dovedale'.
Turned out it absolutely was one pint too many (how did he know?!).  I never did make it to that micro.

Lichfield Pub Explorations

In which I spend a day in Staffordshire's second city, discovering micro pubs, dictionaries, Bathams, and good value Bass.

As I arrived early on an empty stomach my first stop was in Spoons.

The Acorn Inn (16-18 Tamworth Street, Lichfield, WS13 6JJ)
A reasonable hanging basket effort, perfectly parked mobility scooter, and a good cross-section of morning punters in a pub that stretches a fair way back from those front doors. Lichfield's JDW opened in 1998 and was named after the pub that once stood next to it.
On the bar I spotted local beers from Black Hole and Silhill breweries.  But it was 10:30am, and I was being sensible - a breakfast only visit.  

I made a goof on the app and forgot to add the hot drink to my side of two slices of toast.  Without the 49p coffee it's not a bargain item on the menu - in fact, you could almost get a pint of Jaipur for the price of these two slices of bread.  And to top it off they had one of those rotten toasters that only toasts one side.  Bah. 

Let's make up for it with a bit of sightseeing...

Everything was looking glorious in the May sunshine that preceded the Great Drought of 2025.
I ambled through the pedestrianised city centre streets with a market in full swing.
Then past Minster Pool and on to the cathedral and Erasmus House.

If the tourist board had been beaming out a 'come to Lichfield' message over the years I've completely missed it.  It was the powers of Life About Football who tempted me to visit with tales of bargain Bass.

I looped back to where I'd started at Spoons, straight across the road from Beer Guide entry Beerbohm.

Beerbohm (19 Tamworth Street, Lichfield, WS13 6JP)
This is very much a Belgian-style cafe bar.  Local CAMRA-type folks in the window boldly tackling the Sarah Hughes 'Dark Ruby Mild' before noon, plenty of other customers on a mix of pints and pots of tea, sat under a busy wall of pictures and mirrors facing the bar counter.
Surprisingly busy so early.  Relegating me to the least convenient, least comfy table in the room.

To be fair, the website does say there's "A large comfortable upstairs room", but I figured I'd be all by myself up there.
Other than the ruby mild, cask options came from Salopian, Peakstones Rock, and this little political hot potato from Church End...

 

I liked the pump clip but didn't fancy the beer, opting instead for the Peakstones 'Pugin's Gold Bicentenary Ale'.
Sipping that first beer of the day, I could see the Beacon just across the road, so figured I'd call in once I'd finished. 

The Beacon (20 Tamworth Street, Lichfield, WS13 6JJ)
This was previously a pub called the Pug, prior to Titanic taking over in the autumn of 2024.  It's a bold place to open a pub - two GBG bars across the road (more on the second one later), Spoons as neighbours, and the Quill and Scholar two doors down with happy hour cocktails.  I figure you could complete a Tamworth Street pub crawl in less than 200 steps.

The problem with the Beacon is that it was oh so painfully quiet.  Two other customers around a corner, a staff member lurking behind the pork pie counter, no TVs, no music.

I enjoyed a half of Titanic 'Plum Porter' but it wasn't a thrilling visit.
For the record, alongside six Titanic real ales, there were guest ales in the form of Cameron's Motorhead-themed 'Road Crew' and Salopian 'Oracle'.

Heading back outside, I decided to poke my head into Samuel Johnson's birthplace, now a museum and bookshop.  He looked a little bit like this...

The museum contains a replica of Johnson's dictionary, allowing me to look up 'contrafribularities' and 'pericombobulation'.

After that literary and cultural aside, it was time to find another pub, this time a Good Beer Guide regular on a quiet street just beyond the shopping streets.
I have no answer as to why the Horse & Jockey has an elephant on its roof. 

The Horse and Jockey (8-10 Sandford Street, Lichfield, WS13 6QA)
"Over 21s only" says the a-board outside, so lucky I've got some ID on me.  Other than the young chap behind the bar, there were few folks inside the Horse and Jockey who were likely to fall foul of the age policy.  But it was doing a decent early afternoon trade in real ale and cobs.

I perused the pump clips and ordered a pint of Batham's Best.

Somehow I missed the fact that this is a Bass stronghold.  It has its own hand pump hidden around the corner and I'm not observant enough to spot the chalk-board hung right in front of me with 'Bass served here' written on it.  Never mind - the Bathams is something I'd never see back home and is a cracking pint.
Plus, I had the Life After Football backup for Bass...

George IV (34 Bore Street, Lichfield, WS13 6LU)

I get a scowl from the fella outside who spotted me taking the pub picture.  Freddie McGregor 'Just Don't Wanna be Lonely' playing on arrival.  Horse-racing on the TV next to a wallpaper print of an old map of Lichfield.

Bass on the bar (bad luck, Wainwright fans).

No bar staff.  "She'll be back in minute" promises the local next to me between swigs from his bottle of Katy cider.

There was a wide mix of life in the George - tradesfolk in trousers with lots of chunky pockets, a chap with a whippet, an old boy with his crossword, heavily tattoed youngsters on the Peroni.
There was a moment of action in the front room when a chap barely managed to stay on his feet after sending furniture toppling.  
"It's his fault," he said (possibly with some more colourful language) indicating the absentee whose chair was upended.  "He's hung all his heavy shopping bags on the back of the chair and made it top 'eavy.  Now I've gone and trod on his sausages!"

 

And that Bass?
Not a bad pint, whilst not being quite good enough to tempt me to change plans and stay for a second.
Even at a bargain £2.95.

One last port of call before heading to the train station.

The Whippet Inn (21 Tamworth Street, Lichfield, WS13 6JP)
This was back on Tamworth Street again - one door down the road from Beerbohm.
The Whippet is about as good lookin' as micros get - plus top marks for the signage above the door.  Inside there is reputedly space for 45 - 25 on the benches - although I wouldn't fancy squeezing in as the 25th patron.  It felt pretty cosy with half that number in.

They served up another great selection of cask ales from which I picked the Sureshot porter 'Don't Get In the Kiln'.  Sat on the bench by the window, reading the local CAMRA mag with a quality bluesy rock soundtrack, this was a superb final beer.

Having arrived in Lichfield without really clicking that it was such a picturesque and pleasant sensibly-sized cathedral city, I came away a happy visitor. 
Highly recommended for a spot of tourism and pub patronage.  Just don't hang your sausages on the back of your chair when you're popping for that Bass refill in the George IV.