Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: Good Beer Guide

Stockport : Petersgate Tap

Back on my tour of Good Beer Guide pubs around the country, this two storey pub is located in what was formerly a betting shop. There’s now a mix of craft and real ale going on, alongside numerous real ciders and a bottle shop area upstairs.

The beer selection and they’re also listed on Untappd.

The bar arrangement and there was a friendly welcome from the staff member.

I had two half pints, the first was the Barncliffe Bitter from Small World Beers. A clean and hoppy beer with a rather lingering bitterness, but pleasant.

I had high hopes for the Black Forest from Vibrant Forest Brewery, but there was little chocolate, just some oats and not much else. The beer tasted a little tired, not much vibrancy going on here.

Anyway, a rather nice bar and I can see why this has found itself in the Good Beer Guide. It’s a relatively small independent venue, so it has that micropub vibe, with no loud music going on. The on-line reviews are positive other than one nonsensical one star review that there was only one dark beer available on the bar, which is not unreasonable in a small pub. The angry customer went marching off to Wetherspoons, although I know that even they sometimes only have one dark beer available and it’s not even really fair to compare a large national chain with a small micropub. The prices were towards the lower end of the scale for what I’m used to, although the cost of beer in Stockport is lower than the national average. All really rather lovely.

January 18, 2025
Stockport : Swan With Two Necks (Good Beer Guide)

The next pub in my tour of Good Beer Guide pubs in Stockport was the Swan with Two Necks, owned by the local Robinsons Brewery. Robinsons started brewing at the Unicorn Inn in Stockport in 1849 and they’re still going, now owning over 260 pubs and inns in the north-west of England and north Wales.

It’s not common to see a pub now which still has outdoor toilets, but I thought it added to the authenticity of the place. Who needs expensive renovations? There has been a pub with this name since the late eighteenth century, but the brewery notes that it was rebuilt in 1926 which makes it an interesting inter-war survival. CAMRA are able to provide a useful background to the heritage of the pub:

“A long, narrow pub which has changed little since its rebuilding in 1926, just before it was bought by local brewers Robinsons. The interior is simply organised and the extensive use of wall panelling is typical of inter-war pubs. To the left of the tiled and panelled entrance lobby is the vault, with plentiful panelling, although much of it was actually added as recently as about 2009 (and now covers over a fireplace). The other door from the entrance leads into a drinking lobby, which is essentially an expansion of the corridor and faces the servery. Beyond this is the delightful smoke room which, with its Tudor-style fireplace and oak panelling, has a particularly warm and comfortable atmosphere. From the central lobby one can see the unusual feature of roller shutters which can be brought down to safeguard the contents of the bar-back shelves and, above the servery entrance, a notice saying ‘waiters’ from the days when waiter service was a regular feature in north-western pubs. A small room at the back came into pub use during the 1960s.”

As for the pub name, it’s all about swans. The historical significance of swans in England is closely tied to the monarchy and, for centuries, unmarked swans in open waters were considered the property of the King or Queen. This ownership was formalised through a practice called ‘swan upping’ where young swans were marked with notches on their beaks to indicate ownership. In the sixteenth century, Queen Elizabeth I granted ownership of some swans to two organisations, namely the Worshipful Company of Vintners and the Worshipful Company of Dyers. To keep track of ownership, these organisations marked the beaks of their swans. The Dyers’ Company marked their swans with one nick on the beak, while the Vintners’ Company used two nicks to identify their birds. Over time, the term ‘two nicks’ was misinterpreted and mispronounced as ‘two necks’. And that’s how a pub name was born…

The real ale selection. There were two staff members, both of whom were friendly and welcoming. A customer later on asked for a gluten free beer and there was rather a debate with the publican suggesting that the customer was wrong on numerous matters, it was an exciting conversation to listen to.

My first half was the Unicorn from Robinsons Brewery, which is better than the reviews on Untappd suggested. A traditional beer with a malty edge and some caramel flavour, actually rather decent.

My second half was the Old Tom Original, also from Robinsons Brewery. I liked this, a complex beer which was boozy, rich, slightly sweet and a chocolate edge. It had a fruit flavour that I couldn’t identify and it felt like a well-rounded beer.

The separate front bar has remained, a survivor of how pubs have been opened up over recent decades.

Wood panelling, I had this room to myself. There was another room at the rear with a couple of people in, but it was a quiet pub when I visited. Anyway, I enjoyed this pub and I liked how it hadn’t been knocked around and ‘modernised’. It feels old fashioned, but that’s to the good as not every pub needs to be modern and shiny.

January 9, 2025
Stockport : The Magnet (Good Beer Guide)

Whilst in Stockport, I thought that I would have a little meander around some of the Good Beer Guide venues, with this being the first one.

The pub was opened in 1840 and was used as a coaching inn given its location to the Heaton Norris railway station, which closed in the 1960s. There’s a traditional feel to the decor and I like that there are numerous rooms with different seating and design styles. There’s an article in the newspaper from 1841 which notes:

“John Newton, of Stockport, will wrestle any person whose weight does not exceed his (5 and a half score) for £5 a side. He may be heard of at the Magnet Inn in Stockport.”

I suppose that was a handy guy to have as a doorman…. I have no idea what that weight means, the nearest that AI could get was that a northern measure of weight was a score which was 20 pounds, but that would make for a very light wrestler.

The Magnet is the ‘inn’ by Andrew Street, showing how near the railway station was. It has lost that railway station link now and it had some troubled years, being closed and starting to become derelict for a short while. However, it has been turned around over recent years and it has become something of a destination venue.

It was reasonably busy on the evening that I was there, with the service being friendly and welcoming.

The beer selection is substantial and they use Untappd for their beer menus. They have around 14 cask beers and 12 kegs to choose from, with the selection being well curated with most beer styles represented. The beer prices are also all towards the lower end of the scale.

My first beer was the Bright & Early from Wakey Wakey Brew Co and after trying it, I was surprised at its low rating on Untappd. Lots of toffee evident in the flavour, along with orange peel. The staff member pro-actively mentioned that they use lined glasses for their half pints, something which I personally think is a rather good policy.

Second beer was the Whiskey in the Jar from Liquid Light Brew Co. It was rather sweet and a little boozy with a taste of dark chocolate, really quite punchy.

I can absolutely see why this pub is in the Good Beer Guide as it’s welcoming, clean and has lots of beer which seems to be in very good condition. The reviews on-line are very positive and just about as high as a busy pub can reasonably get. They’ve never picked up a one star review on Google which is an achievement in itself. The food option is pizzas which are freshly made, with the non-beer drinks choice also being wide. The National Geographic also published an article last year, which I think is badly written for numerous reasons, but it mentions the pub as one of the twelve best pubs in the UK which must have been a pleasant little boost for them. And this was a positive start to my visit of pubs in Stockport, friendly and hospitable, so all rather lovely.

January 7, 2025
Manchester Trip : Port Street Beer House

The next venue on the list that Simon and I thought would be a good idea to visit is the Port Street Beer House. They’ve been open since 2011 and they have 18 keg lines and 7 cask lines, a balance that sounds just about right to me. It’s also no surprise given this heritage that the pub is listed in the Good Beer Guide, so that’s another one for my list.

This was a busy venue, although we found ourselves a place to stand. This is the Sun Goes Down mild from Thornbridge Brewery and this wasn’t as good as I had hoped for, it was too light and had a slight taste of charcoal. However, it’s always positive to see a mild on a menu.

Apologies for the finger in the way of the lens here, but this beer didn’t disappoint. It’s the Double Crumble – Apple, Blueberry and Maple from Pastore Brewing, and this surprised and delighted. Lots of maple, a bit of fruit and a creamy mouthfeel, just as I like a sour to be.

Richard treated himself to a fruited pale, the Specialist in the Field from Farm Yard Brew Co. I’m glad he bought it, it had a bit of a zing to put it mildly, but I didn’t find much depth of flavour in the whole arrangement. By this time we had gone hunting for a table and Łukasz has found one outside which was wet, but obstacles such as this don’t stop him. I don’t think the Polish are known for letting wet benches from getting in the way of their drinking.

This is a popular bar and judging from the positive on-line reviews, it’s a really well run operation. Where they get negative reviews, they’re like this:

“I used to come here regularly, but the last time I was there, they didn’t accept my legal tender (only card payments). This is unacceptable behaviour, and I do hope it’s now corrected. If so, I’ll change this review.”

I can’t imagine the bar shed many tears over this and it’s a reminder that cash isn’t king, but I won’t go down that line. There were some interesting beers available and the whole beer menu felt well curated. I would have preferred it to be quieter so we could get a table, but the reality is that it’s a popular and interesting place which I’m glad is doing well. And of course, it’s a worthy entrant into the Good Beer Guide.

January 1, 2025
Liverpool – Lion Tavern (Good Beer Guide)

I’ve been to this pub before, but I felt that a revisit was needed as my last time here was before I decided to try and visit every Good Beer Guide pub in the country. There’s some rail heritage to the Lion, it’s named after the locomotive that worked the Liverpool to Manchester Railway. This locomotive was made in 1838 and it’s now on display at Liverpool Museum, with this pub opening in 1840.

Interesting even from the exterior and the pub is listed on the CAMRA Historic Interior register and they note that:

“This richly appointed pub has a layout very similar to others on Merseyside in this guide, namely the Stork Hotel, Birkenhead, and the Prince Arthur, Liverpool. It has an L-shaped corridor wrapping round the public bar on the street corner, and with spaces leading off it. A plan of 1903 shows the public bar as now, but in 1915 the Lion expanded into the building next door. The corridor was then created along with a news room (so-named in the window glass) in the newly acquired area, and a lounge beneath a skylight (the dividing walls were, sadly, taken down in 1967). The corridor has a mosaic floor and a lovely Art Nouveau tiled dado, above which is a timber and etched glass screen, with openings allowing service to drinkers in the corridor. The back fitting in the public bar seems to be Victorian: the dado tiling here is to the same design as in the corridor. There is a fine set of old carved screens in the front windows carrying advertising, something that is occasionally seen in Scotland but rarely in England.”

One of the entrances, I like pubs with character like this and there are plenty of them in Liverpool.

The beer range which I thought was reasonable with some quality ales there to choose from.

One of the two bars, I was surprised by the lack of customers although there were a couple in the other side.

I went for half a pint of the Dark Flagon from Wily Fox Brewery, which I’ve had a couple of times before and enjoyed. It’s an excellent cask beer, there’s an initial hit of chocolate and then a rum finish. It’s smooth, decadent and just a little sweet.

It’s a beautiful pub and although it was quieter than I expected, the atmosphere was welcoming and the member of bar staff was friendly and engaging. It’s very well reviewed on-line, although I always feel the need to have a little look at the negative reviews to see what excitement has taken place, but there’s not much other than one customer who said he reported the manager to the police for being rude to him. I can imagine that the police were thrilled. The pub prides itself on its free jukebox, but a couple of customers are irritated that their choices have been deleted, but other than that, plenty of happy customers.

The real ale range seemed reasonable and interesting, the pub had character, the service was friendly and the surroundings were comfortable. All rather lovely and I can see why it’s listed in the Good Beer Guide.

December 6, 2024
Preston – Winckley Street Ale House (Good Beer Guide)

With an hour left until my train, this was the last pub in Preston that I was able to visit in my little expedition around their Good Beer Guide listed venues. It was known as the Otter’s Pocket when it opened in November 2018, but was renamed to its current name in March 2020. Prior to that it had been a shop and then previous to that it was a Mediterranean restaurant for several years.

The pub interior, it’s relatively spacious as there are a few more seats at the rear, but it’s still ultimately a micro-pub and I can imagine that it gets full relatively quickly.

That’s not a lined glass, so this is a short measure. It’s the Jelly Swirl Trifle pale Ale from Play Brew Co, but it had considerable flavour for a cask beer. It does what it say on the can (well on the Untappd screen), sweet, jelly and like a dessert.

My second beer, which was a third of the Gingerbread Latte from Vault City Brewing. Often Christmas beers really aren’t very good, but this is one that I can absolutely get behind. It was smooth, boozy, decadent and had an excellent mouthfeel with tastes of ginger and cinnamon.

I didn’t take a photo of the screen, although their beers are listed on Untappd for anyone who is interested in perusing their menu. The service was polite, but the atmosphere felt a little stilted and it wasn’t perfectly clean as the table was sticky and the handwash in the toilet had run out, but I accept that these things happen. They weren’t doing food when I was there, but they have pies, burgers, salads and light bites on Wednesday to Sunday lunchtimes and Wednesday to Saturday evenings, a relatively large menu given the size of the premises.

Certainly an interesting venue and I can see why they’re in the Good Beer Guide with their choices of real ales. The craft beer selection was excellent and that Vault City beer was a joy to behold, a beautiful beer on which to end my little trip to Preston. All really rather lovely and I look forwards to visiting again to see what craft beer that they have to surprise and delight me.

December 5, 2024
Preston – Guild Ale House (Good Beer Guide)

Next in my Good Beer Guide expedition was the Guild Ale House, which was the town’s first micro-pub when it opened in February 2016 in place of the former Hospice charity shop who previously occupied the premises.

The only two customers in the entire pub were sitting in front of the bar pumps, but fortunately they had a drinks screen which made matters easier. There’s a choice of cask and keg on the screen, but they also have a bottled selection as well including some Belgian options.

I went for the Bullet Tooth Tony from Wilde Child Brewing Company, which was well-kept and had some fruit tones, but I found it quite bland. I’ve always rated Wilde Child’s darker beers rather better, but it wasn’t an unpleasant beer.

The pub’s interior which is spacious and there’s a reasonable amount of space. They frequently have live music and other events, although they don’t play background music which is something I think they’re doing right.

I noted CAMRA’s comment of “worth noting they may close earlier than stated times dependent on footfall”, so I didn’t risk going in the evening and went at lunchtime. The venue is though very well-reviewed and in the eight years they’ve been trading they haven’t picked up a single 1-star review on Google, and only have two 2-star reviews. That’s a fairly impressive piece of pub management, so it’s no surprise that they’ve also won several CAMRA awards. Anyway, this seems to be a consistently good real ale pub and long may it continue.

December 5, 2024
Preston – Black Horse (Good Beer Guide)

Well, this is always a most wonderful way to start a visit to a pub. I was actually here because it’s listed in the Good Beer Guide and I’m carefully working my way around all of the pubs in it that I can. For reference, the other three pubs remaining in the national pub of the year are the Three B’s in Bridlington, the Bailey Head in Oswestry and the Little Green Dragon in Winchmore Hill, London.

The exterior of the pub adorned with CAMRA awards, this is a proper looking Victorian pub and it’s a Grade II listed building. Located on Friargate, there has been a pub with the name of the Black Horse on this site since the late eighteenth century. It was opened in 1898 as a small hotel and designed by J A Seward of Preston for Kay’s Atlas Brewery Company of Manchester, one of just two of their pubs remaining. There’s original tiling on the bar which was added shortly after the hotel opened and there’s Robinson’s brewery memorabilia dotted about, as they’re the current owners.

One of the entrances, with the building once also being used as a hotel. I didn’t realise this at the time, but it’s noted that this is the only pub in the country that has entrances on three different streets.

One of the banks of pumps. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of that shiny Guinness tap, but it all looked inviting and interesting.

The second bank of pumps.

And another couple for good measure. The barman was helpful and engaging, I felt choosing just one beer was perhaps beyond me, so I had three half pints.

Decorative elements everywhere.

I chose this room to sit in. It was a bit dark, but it was cosy and it had a fire going which the barman attended to every now and then.

A bit of heritage in the toilets.

Anyway, back to the beer and I liked the Preston Ale Trail leaflet. This first beer was odd, it tasted a little of plum initially, it felt like Titanic had plum porter overflowing everywhere. It’s meant to be the Titanic Classic Mild and it had a dark smoothness to it.

Beer two was the Tell No Tales from the Bosun’s Brewing Company. A little thin, but there was lots of coffee flavour, some sweetness and a bit of a malt.

Beer three and this is as good as cask gets, the 6.5% Cherry Porter Grand Reserve from Titanic Brewery. Decadent, smooth and boozy, lots of cherry and Titanic at its best.

The pub was laid-back and comfortable, with the bar staff being attentive and I was thanked when leaving (I mean politely thanked for my custom, not thanked for finally leaving). I can’t say that it’s a surprise to discover that it’s rated as one of the best in the country, it was a really quite classy traditional pub.

December 4, 2024
Preston – Plug & Taps (Good Beer Guide)

Carrying on my meanderings around Good Beer Guide pubs in Preston, this is one of the few pubs that is Untappd verified and is also listed in the Good Beer Guide. I wasn’t able to get a photo of the beer board but their offerings are listed on Untappd and they had ten craft beers and four real ales. There’s also a large beer fridge with some interesting options available, as well as a choice of Belgian beers. The bar opened in June 2018 and they have a permanent line from the Rivington Brewery.

My photos in this venue aren’t very good unfortunately, but this is the Helio (10th Birthday Beer) from Track Brewing. Tropical with a very lingering flavour, it was heavy on the pineapple, being smooth and decadent.

Well, there’s fighting talk!

I love the Stoopid series from Vault City and these beers pour like smoothies, so the glass will be a nuisance to clean. Slightly tart, creamy with heaps of strawberry, some blackberry and it was generally just delicious. And yes, I think it’s a beer, although that’s kind of the point, these drinks are meant to question that entire matter.

The atmosphere was welcoming, although it was quiet, but everything felt modern and on-trend. The service was polite and friendly, with the bar staff seemingly knowledgeable about the beer options. The venue was clean with the high seating that I personally prefer. The on-line reviews are nearly all positive, just a couple of grumbles about the prices, although I thought they were comparable with similar venues. Definitely yet another bar which I think is justifiably in the Good Beer Guide.

December 4, 2024
Preston – Orchard (Good Beer Guide)

Located in the covered market, this small craft beer bar serves mostly keg, but it has a couple of real ales and it has found itself in the Good Beer Guide.

The craft beer board, some intriguing and interesting choices here, a fair few of them are rated over 4 on Untappd.

Starting with the Crushing Blows from Neon Raptor and although I wonder sometimes whether there are too many beers of this style, I still like it and so I don’t much care. Plenty of pineapple and some miscellaneous stonefruit, tropical with a creamy mouthfeel.

There are only a small number of tables inside, with a few more outside, but it’s a cosy and comfortable interior with a homely feel. I can imagine that there are plenty of times when it’s difficult to get a seat though. Everything felt clean and tidy, with chunky tables that didn’t wobble and plenty of high seating, which is my personal favourite. Surfaces were also clean and not sticky, another problem in numerous bars.

My second beer was another clever brew from Vault City, with an upfront taste of pancakes, then the strawberry flavour hits and then the chocolate at the end. Smooth, decadent and maybe slightly over sweet, but everyone needs some sweetness in their life.

The venue is well-reviewed on-line, although there’s a ridiculous review which says:

“Came to have a drink and asked for draft cider and gave us cider from a box. Plus they lied to use saying it was a draft as she filled it at the back”.

The bar correctly responded that this is still draft and it’s how most real cider is actually served, although I guess it’s not how Strongbow would be served so perhaps therein lies the problem. Just about everyone else is happy with the beer, cider, atmosphere, occasional music and staff friendliness.

As a general comment, as a market conversion, they seem to have done a very decent job of the modernisation, with this bar feeling like it fits in well with it. They don’t do food, but there are plenty of options for that within the market. The welcome at the bar was friendly and the atmosphere was comfortable and laid-back, a worthy entrant into the Good Beer Guide even though its main emphasis seems to be craft beer.

December 4, 2024