I arrived in Birmingham in 1983 from Leeds, a city where even the monopoly beer was to my taste, and much better beers could be found without too much difficulty. Brum was different. More than half the pubs were owned by Bass, through their M&B subsidiary. M&B operated 3 breweries, Cape Hill, which made the […]

The newa that Sam Smith’s have banned swearing in their pubs got me thinking on the topic, and my thoughts took me back many years to a different world, and a pub that is now actually owned by Sam’s. Back then, early 80s, this pub on the outskirts of Harrogate was a free house, run […]

A number of blog posts have stung me into action again, particularly the excellent Boak and Bailey (http://boakandbailey.com/) and have made me think about why I drink what I drink, and where I drink it. I’ve realised that the primary reason I go to pubs isn’t to drink beer any more – that’s a strong […]