A Long Weekend on Tyneside

Thursday - Newcastle Pub Crawl

Each year, a group from Solihull Branch of CAMRA visit a different part of the country in search of some interesting pubs and real ales. This year, we ventured to the North East, an area not previously visited by the branch, although my husband Allan and I, having lived in Newcastle for 12 years some time ago, have frequently sung the praises of the excellent pubs and beers available on Tyneside.

We set off on a fairly bright Thursday morning, and made good time to our lunchtime rendezvous, the. Kings Arms at Sandhutton, not far off the A1 in North Yorkshire. This was a pleasant pub with a friendly licensee. It has a lounge and public bar and offers a range of real ales. We chose the Taylor’s Landlord, which went down very well. There was an extensive menu of meals and snacks. Allan & I decided to try the filled Yorkshire puddings, with a generous helping of beef or pork and gravy. Just the job to set us up for the rest of the journey north.

After a slight detour to visit family on the outskirts of Newcastle, we joined the rest of the party at our hotel in the Jesmond area of Newcastle, just in time to head off for the evening. Jesmond is not renowned for real ale, but we found it conveniently close to the Metro system, which could whisk us off into Newcastle in a matter of minutes.

Our first evening was to be spent exploring Newcastle City Centre. We set off around 5pm and our first visit was to the Punchbowl in Jesmond, which used to be one of my husband’s locals when he was a student in Newcastle in the dim distant past. We did not remember it being anything special, but seeing it had an entry in the 2004 Good Beer Guide, we persuaded the others to try it on our way into town. The building is quite grand, and the furnishings were comfortable, but both the choice (Theakstons XB & Theakstons Cool Cask) and the quality of the beer was disappointing! The local branch appear to agree with us, as the pub is not listed in the 2005 GBG.

Our first priority on arriving in the centre of Newcastle was to eat, so we headed for the Union Rooms opposite Central Station. This Wetherspoons pub was opened a few years ago and., as the name suggests, it is housed in a former Trade Union building. There are a number of different bars, on two floors, and we headed up the sweeping staircase to the dining area. The choice of beers included Darwin Evolution and Wylam Bohemia as well as Theakstons Old Peculier, Greene King Abbot Ale and John Smiths Bitter. Some of us went for the Curry Night menu, others for a more traditional meal. We were then ready to move on to explore further.

The Bodega Bar is on Westgate Road, a short distance away from the original site of Big Lamp Brewery, before it outgrew the premises and relocated to Newburn on the outskirts of the city. It is appropriate that one of the regular beers is Big Lamp Prince Bishop Ale. The other regulars are also from local breweries, Durham Magus and Mordue Workie Ticket. The guest beers at the time of our visit were from City of Cambridge, Black Sheep and Enville. The Bodega has a striking interior, with two original glass ceiling domes, and has a welcoming atmosphere.

We moved on to the Newcastle Arms, a down to earth pub near St. James’ Park football ground. Here we were slightly disappointed to find no local beers, but consoled ourselves with an excellent pint of Oakham Bishops Farewell.

We then had a lengthy stroll through the centre of town to the Bridge Hotel, next to the High Level Bridge, overlooking the Tyne. This is a lively and popular pub and appears to attract a wide range of people. There were local beers on offer here, being Mordue Workie Ticket and Darwin Forest XB, as well as Roosters Hooligan, Black Sheep Best Bitter and Caledonian Deuchars IPA.

Eventually it was time to move on to what is, in my opinion, the best pub in Newcastle, the Crown Posada. Grade II listed, the pub is on CAMRA’s National Inventory of pub interiors. There is a beautiful stained glass window to the front of the long, narrow bar area. At busy times, it can be almost impossible to squeeze through to the seating area at the back! There were 6 beers available, including Jennings Bitter, Roosters Yankee and Taylors Landlord.

We left, reluctantly, at closing time, and since we were almost on the Quayside, we decided to do some sightseeing, so at almost midnight, we found ourselves walking across the new Millennium footbridge to Gateshead and back. This is a stunning construction, and has enhanced the Quayside area. The whole vista of the Tyne by night is a marvellous sight. We then headed back to Central Station for the Metro back to Jesmond.

Friday - Jarrow Brewery & beyond...

Friday dawned and we gathered eagerly for breakfast to discuss the plans for the day. We had arranged to visit the Jarrow Brewery based in the Robin Hood pub at Jarrow, on the South Bank of the Tyne. It was an easy journey by Metro, although we faced a long walk from the Metro station. On arrival, we were greeted by a view of the pub with the brewery van parked outside, bearing the logo of the Jarrow Marchers and the slogan "Beers you’d walk a long way for". How apt! We entered the bar to be confronted with a huge suit of armour standing guard beside an impressive wooden door. More importantly, there was an excellent selection of Jarrow beers as well as a couple of guests. The Jarrow beers are all named after local events and historical characters. We received a warm welcome from the brewer, Jess McConnell, who made sure we all had a drink, before taking us off to see the brewery situated behind the pub. An interesting feature was the brightly coloured plastic casks used by the brewery, probably quite difficult to lose! The brewery has been brewing for two years and supplies its beer across an area from Yorkshire to Edinburgh. So popular has it become that there are plans to relocate to larger premises.

The pub has an Italian restaurant attached, so we decided to sample a tasty lunch of pizza or pasta before moving on into South Shields. We had expected another lengthy walk to a different Metro station to continue our journey, but Jess and his wife, the licensee of the Robin Hood, very kindly offered to drive us into South Shields. So it was that we quickly found ourselves outside a brand new pub, the Trimmers Arms.

The Trimmers Arms had only been opened three weeks before, but already had an established feel to it. There were no less than ten real ales on the bar, including Jarrow JB, Durham Magus and Hydes Fit as a Fiddle. The pub consists of a large single roomed lounge with terraced seating area., as well as a separate restaurant.

We then moved on a hundred yards or so, to the Dolly Peel, named after an 18th century fishwife and smuggler. This is a well-established and popular GBG pub, with six real ales available, including Jennings Cumberland and Black Sheep Bitter.

We then headed towards the Ferry landing. There were several pubs within a short distance, but we did not have time to try them all. The Riverside, the current local branch Pub of the Year, was welcoming and comfortable. Here we found another half-dozen beers, the guests being Jarrow Rivet Catcher, Derwent Harvesters Ale and Black Sheep Special.

Moving on again, we came to the Alum House, close to the Ferry Landing. We settled in the wood-panelled lounge to enjoy some of the interesting beers, which included Roosters Knaresborough Pride, Durham Priors Gold , Darwin North Eastern BXXX and Hart Old Yokel. Soon it was time to catch the ferry across the Tyne to North Shields.

The journey only takes a few minutes, and once across we headed for the Magnesia Bank. This is a pub that I remember from my time living in Newcastle, but since then the pub has changed much less than the area around. Then, it stood alone in the middle of derelict land, but smart flats have now been built around it, as part of the regeneration of the area, This seemed to be reflected in the clientele, as it was quite busy for early evening. It is a traditional style pub, with a good range of beers, again featuring local brews including Durham Magus, Mordue IPA and Northumberland Kitty Brewster.

We moved on to the Tap & Spile, North Shields, which has a public bar with a wooden floor, and a more comfortable lounge. Again, we found an excellent range of beers, such as Hydes Over the Moon, Roosters Cream, Stonehenge Pigswill, Banks & Taylor Barley Mow, St. Peters Golden Ale, and Caledonian Deuchars IPA.

By now, we were feeling hungry, and we were recommended to try the Wooden Doll. This has four Jennings beers plus Wadworth’s 6X, but we were more interested in enjoying the stunning views over the Tyne as night fell and we enjoyed the some of the excellent fish landed at the quays just below us that morning.

We then headed off towards the Metro station, as we planned to spend the evening in Byker. The Cumberland Arms is another pub which appears to have changed little over the years, and is another regular in the GBG. Here we were able to sample Wylam Rapper Bitter and Summer Magic, as well as Banks & Taylor In the Mood. The GBG description "Bare boards but a Warm Welcome" seemed very appropriate.

The Tyne Bar was quite a contrast, as the loud music could be heard as we approached, and the pub was bustling with Friday night drinkers. We chose to sit in the well-lit Beer Garden, which nestles under the Glasshouse Bridge to the side of the pub. The beers available were Durham Magus, Mordue Workie Ticket and Five Bridges, and Wylam Whistle Stop.

There was still time for one final call before heading back to our hotel, and that was to the Free Trade. This is another basic but popular pub which enjoys a superb position above the Tyne, looking upstream towards Newcastle. The view of the Millennium Bridge, Tyne Bridge etc from the beer garden opposite the pub was spectacular as we drank our Mordue Workie Ticket, Jarrow Rivet Catcher or Northumberland Holy Island Ale. Then we headed back to the Metro station to catch a late train back to Jesmond.

Saturday - Tyne Valley by Train

We met up the following morning at Newcastle Central Station to purchase our Tyne Rover tickets before boarding the train to Wylam. The Boathouse pub is right beside Wylam Station, and Norman Weatherburn, the landlord, was there to meet us. He very kindly drove us to the Wylam brewery, which is actually situated a few miles away on a farm at Heddon-on-the-Wall. Here we were greeted by John Boyle, the brewery MD who showed us the brewery. The brewery was established about 4 years ago in an unused milking shed. We were able to sample several of the brews; Summer Magic, Hedonist, Toon Broon and Gold Tankard. Like Jarrow, Wylam brewery is also considering expansion, but in this case probably into a larger barn on the same farm. When we were ready to leave, Norman again kindly ferried us back to the Boathouse.

The Boathouse is the Wylam brewery tap, and is currently the CAMRA Northumberland pub of the year. There were 10 beers on the bar the day we visited, and Norman apologised because there were fewer Wylam beers than usual. He made up for this with a selection of beers from Archers, Phoenix, Durham, Taylors and Young’s. Norman told us many people use the pub as a station Waiting Room. Certainly we were able to sit and enjoy our beers until the warning bell and the lowering level crossing barrier told us our train was due, then we were able to walk across onto the platform in good time to climb aboard.

Our next stop was at Prudhoe, on the south side of the Tyne. From here, we strolled across the narrow bridge to Ovingham, where we found the Bridge End Inn. We arrived to find a Leek Show in full swing, and were able to inspect the local produce as we supped our pints. The exhibits included all sorts of vegetables, not just leeks, and we were told that the competition is taken very seriously!

Back on the train, our next stop was Hexham, a lovely old Market town with an imposing Abbey at its centre. Here we headed first for the Forum, a relatively new Wetherspoons pub in a converted cinema in the Market Place facing the Abbey. Here we found Wylam Bohemia alongside the more usual suspects such as Courage Directors and Shepherd Neame Spitfire.

Then we went off to the Tap and Spile where we found Charles Wells Bombardier, Caledonian Deuchars IPA and Durham White Gold alongside Black Sheep, Ruddles and Bass!

We had to make sure we caught the next train, as not many trains stop at Bardon Mill. We visited the Bowes Hotel, a Jennings pub which was quite busy for 5pm on a Saturday. Bardon Mill has a micro-brewery, but the timing of the trains was tight, so we sat outside in the sunshine enjoying some Jennings beer, before heading back again for the train to Corbridge.

Corbridge is another historic town, originally settled by the Romans. The remains of the old Roman town, Corstopitum, can still be visited. However, we visited the Dyvels, situated beside the Railway station. Here we found Archers Farmers Boy, Black Sheep Best Bitter, Archers Porters Pint and Deuchars IPA. It was now early evening, and we had planned to dine at the Indian restaurant on the station platform, but they could not accommodate our whole group, so four took the offered table. (We were told later that the food was excellent). The rest of us headed into Corbridge town. Our first call was at the Black Bull (Deuchars IPA, Abbot Ale and Flowers IPA). We then moved on to the Wheatsheaf (Everards Tiger, Jennings Cumberland, Deuchars IPA) where we secured a table and enjoyed a tasty meal.

On the way back to the station we called at the Angel of Corbridge. This is a very smart hotel with prices to match. The beer choice was Jennings Cumberland and Black Sheep Bitter, which we drank sitting in the wood-panelled lounge beside the grand piano! We then headed back to the station for the train to Newcastle.

Back at Central Station, we decided to have a final drink or two in town, and headed for High Bridge. The Duke of Wellington was bustling. Six real Ales included Orkney Raven, Rebellion Smuggler, Hopback Summer Lightning and the ubiquitous Deuchars IPA. The pub has wooden floors and pictures of the Iron Duke adorn the walls. The atmosphere was spoiled a little by the loud music and big screen TV, but I was impressed with the blackboard beer menus, which stated where each beer came from - an excellent idea.

Our final pub was the Bacchus, further along High Bridge. This was noisy, partly due to the wooden floor, and the furnishings were modern, predominantly chrome and glass. However, once again we found an excellent range of beers: Houston Blonde Bombshell, Outlaw Cirrus, Harviestoun Bitter & Twisted and Taylors Landlord.

I really enjoyed revisiting the North East, and those who had not visited before seemed very impressed by Newcastle, and not just the pubs. For those interested in statistics, in total we visited 27 pubs and two breweries, and were able to choose from 87 different beers over the weekend. It was also encouraging to see so many pubs stocking beers from North East breweries. If only we had such a choice in Solihull!

Brenda Duffy