Dave Richardson joins the annual branch minibus tour to a legendary part of the Midlands
This was my third or fourth pub tour of the Black Country, but I didn’t need to think twice about going again. If you like pubs with genuine character and a wonderful line-up of mainly old-fashioned, traditional ales then this is the place to go, and you may well see other CAMRA groups making their way around.
The Black Country, to the west of Birmingham around towns including Stourbridge and Dudley, is a misnomer in this post-industrial age, but is so called because it once had much heavy industry. You can almost hear the footsteps of the working masses as they marched from terraced houses to factory to pub, and some of the latter still survive.
First stop, in less than two hours from Oxford, was one of two pubs we would enjoy that day called one thing but nearly always known by another name. The Vine in Brierley Hill is called the Bull and Bladder by nearly everyone, as its lounge bar occupies space that was once a butcher’s shop. Landlord Tom Comyns told me that the only parts of a bull not used were its horns (a pair are on display) and its bladder.
This revelation didn’t put me off my beer as this is the brewery tap for Batham’s, which has been in business since 1877 and is produced behind the pub. Through the good offices of Mark Geeson we were able to visit the cellar, where giant 54-gallon hogsheads of Best Bitter (4.3%) are rolled from the brewery and taken down by a lift, being much too large to handle. When you consider that a normal brewer’s barrel holds 36 gallons and a firkin 18, that’s a lot of ale – but they often get through one hogshead (over 400 pints) in a day.
We emerged shaking our heads to find pints of Best stacked up and ready for us, and also had time to sample the Mild – wonderfully flavoursome at 3.5%. There’s absolutely nothing pretentious or gimmicky about Batham’s, as Best Bitter and Mild are all it usually sells, plus the winter ale XXX during our visit. No IPAs, nothing trendy – but I pitied a group of lads who ordered Stella. We walked out of here reluctantly and looked back at the Shakespearian quotation adorning the outside: “Blessing of your heart – you brew good ale”. That says it all.
We now moved on a few miles to Amblecote where there are three Good Beer Guide pubs within a few minutes’ walk of each other, which was just as well as heavy rain and strong winds were battering us. First up was the Swan which had an interesting beer choice but was otherwise unremarkable, with a much modernised interior.
Another of the Black Country’s traditional breweries, Holden’s, was in evidence here with Town Crier and Golden Glow, the other real ales being Exmoor Gold, Sambrook’s’ Powerhouse, Ludlow Gold and Salopian Lemon Dream. I tend to favour amber or darker beers but went with the Lemon Dream, a real contrast with the Batham’s brews.
But I was soon on my way to the Starving Rascal, just a few doors away, keen to sample Black Country Ales as this brewery is one of my favourites and operates pubs throughout the Midlands, the most famous being the Wellington in central Birmingham. As in all its pubs the real ales appear on a TV screen showing their colour, strength and price, and I had a half of Pig on the Wall and a half of one of the guest ales, Beowulf’s Black & Blueberry Dark Ale (4.5%). Other guests included Enigma Golden Ale, Magic Dragon’s Hoppy Jester and Salopian Firkin Freezin, with the Black Country range also including BFG and Jubilee IPA.
I was keen to learn why the pub is called the Starving Rascal, which it has been since 1974 when renamed from the Dudley Arms, and an info panel duly obliged. The pub sign shows a vagrant being turned away by the landlord on one side, while the other side shows the landlord inviting the vagrant’s ghost back in. No wonder it’s haunted!
We then braved a short walk downhill to the Robin Hood, most traditional in atmosphere of the three, where I enjoyed a half of one of my favourite beers, Three Tuns’ XXX. Also on here were Batham’s Best, Enville Ginger, Fixed Wheel’s Blackheath Stout, Castle Rock’s Snowhite and Burton Bridge’s Stairway to Nelson Sauvin (don’t ask – I don’t know). They do like their real ale around here but there were also two real ciders – Lilley’s and Thistly Cross.
It was now on to Stourbridge and the only disappointing aspect of the day for me. I’m no fan of austere brewery beer halls with their barn-like atmosphere and bench seating, and Green Duck was no exception. But I realise that without these taprooms many independent breweries would struggle to survive, and good for them that it was very busy with a Santa Claus event….. for dogs. It was a chaotic scene with no chance of enjoying a pizza in the time available, but there were seven cask ales on and I had a half of Mild and a half of Bostin’ Mild XXL, bostin’ being (I deduced) Black Country speak for something very good.
Skirting Dudley we soon reached the Jolly Crispin in Upper Gornal, a pub which frankly I remember little about. That’s not because this GBG free house isn’t in itself memorable, but because I was pretty well bostin’ myself after “a number of” excellent ales. My records show that the choice available included Citra and Green Devil from Oakham, Butty Bach from Wye Valley, Absolution from Abbeydale and Dark Ruby Mild from Sarah Hughes – more of which later.
But I had perked up by the time we reached another essential stop on a Black Country tour – Ma Pardoe’s. Search for that on the CAMRA website and the first pub it lists is the Olde Swan in Netherton but fear not, dear reader, they are one and the same. Doris Pardoe ran the pub from 1931 to 1984 when she died aged 85, and her name endures.
The Olde Swan brewery is on site too, and it was just one of four brew pubs still existing in 1971 when CAMRA was formed – there are many more today. The historic pub dates from 1863 and its layout and fittings are largely original, giving it a labyrinthine if rather gloomy feel and earning it a place on CAMRA’s National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.
Landlord Tim Newey is rivalling Doris in his longevity as he has worked here for 47 years, half of that time as landlord. In 2022 he warned of bad times, retirement and closure, but that hasn’t happened. This sort of pub can never be considered safe, though, so support it while you can. Real ales are all in-house and included Original, Entire, Bumblehole, Netherton Pale Ale and Black Widow.
Did we save the best until last? Well we did visit one more, another old pub with a brewery as the Beacon Hotel at Sedgley is home to Sarah Hughes brewery and its renowned Dark Ruby Mild (6%). For logistic reasons we have to visit the Beacon either at the beginning or end of a tour, and midday nor 6pm, having already visited six other pubs and a brewery, is not the time to be imbibing Dark Ruby Mild. Other brews available included Snowflake (8.5%!), Sedgley Surprise (5%) and Pale Amber (4%), and I settled for a half of the Mild and a half of the latter. The Beacon still has the same layout as in the 1920s with four rooms and three serving hatches rather than a bar, and is also on the heritage list. A conservatory was added to cope with demand as people flock here from near and far, and soon after opening time it was full.
That was pretty well it, and I have little recollection of the return journey. Nearly all pubs visited would be worth a longer stay, and none of them serves food apart from cobs (rolls) and bar snacks, leaving them free to concentrate on the beer. We had no fewer than 38 real ales to choose from, and not a national brand to be seen. Roll on next time!