Details of Events

Saturday 7^th June 2008 Burton upon Trent & the Coors / Bass Museum

As you may be aware, the Museum of Brewing in Burton is facing closure at the end of June. As well as campaigning to prevent this, we have decided to organise a trip to the museum, in case it is the last chance we have to see this unique collection. We're also visiting the Burton Bridge brewery before the main event.

Trains

• Option A: Solihull 09:35 arr 09:47 / Birmingham 10:13 arr 10:46 at Burton
• Option B: Solihull 10:35 arr 10:47 / Birmingham 11:13 arr 11:44 at Burton

Standard return tickets cost £7.80, but we may get a group discount if we club together.

Directions from the station to the museum (10-15 minutes walk):

• Turn right into Station Street walk to the junction of Guild Street and Station Street (1/4 mile)
• Turn left into Guild Street walk to the T junction of Horninglow Street and Guild Street (1/4 mile)
• Turn left into Horninglow Street, and left into the Coors Visitor Centre

The Trip

The main event: Coors Visitor Centre, formerly known as the Bass Museum.
Postcode: DE14 1NG

BRING YOUR CAMRA MEMBERSHIP CARD - this entitles you to free entry to the museum (normally £6).

Take the train option B and meet at the museum for 12 noon. This is the museum to be saved. It would be easy to spend 2-3 hours or a lot more here (before going to the bar). It has a range of exhibits in several buildings including: the brewing history of Burton with models of the town and its brewery-owned railways, to brewing equipment (much bigger than the micro breweries many of us know), to artefacts from the brewery’s history such as malting and coopers tools, many in mocked-up offices and laboratories. There are also various videos and other interactive displays. There are a couple of reconstructed bars, one requiring your 70’s kipper tie and flares, another much older one includes some traditional pub games, which can be played. The museum includes the Coors shire horses, old vehicles and a large steam engine.

It is an extensive & impressive collection (opened in 1977 and has been updated many times since) it deserves to be preserved - please support it.

The White Shield brewery is also on site - originally a cold and static display, but now a working brewery and not open to visitors; however its beers are available in the brewery tap within the museum. Since White Shield is generally a bottled beer, this is the only place where you can try it on draft on a regular basis. It is excellent, as are the other beers brewed on site and available in the brewery tap.

Lunch: The brewery tap also offers typical pub meals: sandwiches and hot meals such as steak and ale pie, fish and chips etc at reasonable prices.

It is possible to sample a beer, tour part of the museum, enjoy lunch, visit some more of the museum and return to the bar; this should make for a leisurely, enjoyable and interesting day.

Please confirm your interest by emailing , as we need to alert the staff if there is to be a large group. Remember to ask before the event if you want a mobile contact number to ring on the day.

Other local pubs

• Burton Bridge Inn: 24 Bridge Street, DE14 1SY, tel 01283 536596. A short walk east from the museum, just follow the main road.
• Coopers Tavern: 43 Cross Street, DE14 1EG, tel 01283 532 551. This pub, on route to the station is a gem, has at least 7 ales/real cider & perry, all served from casks and is so good that it has just won CAMRA Burton pub of the year and the award will be presented that evening (the staff described it as a bit of a party).
• The Devonshire: 86 Station Street, DE14 1BT. Near to the Coopers, on the way back to the station, this is a Burton Bridge tied house.
• Old Cottage. Just past the station and the town hall. Another GBG entry with a large choice of beers.