If you enjoy reading please consider “buying me a pint”, this will help to cover my hosting and image hosting and help to ensure further trips can go ahead!
BUY ME A PINT
The start of a 4 day trip to Staffordshire. I started today in Stafford, a stop on the West Coast Mainline from Glasgow to London Euston. Visited some traditional style pubs alongside a couple of new craft bars. I then got the train to Stone, a lovely canal town. Some more great bars here as well as visiting “The Borehole”, home of Lymestone Brewery.
Stafford
Bird in Hand
My first call in Stafford was to “Bird in Hand”, a short 5 minute walk from Stafford Railway Station. A beautifully renovated pub in 2017 which is owned by Black Country Ales. Always a warm welcome in their pubs. Split over a couple of rooms with a large outdoor area to the rear. It used to be a Joules pub with the trademark cross still being visible on the outdoor door frames.
A stunning line up of 13 cask beers and ciders so lots to choose from here (photos below show some of the beers). I went with “Spring” from AJs Brewery who are based in Walsall in the West Midlands. A really light and crisp pale ale.
The Butler’s Bell
A short walk to the other end of town for my next call into “The Butler’s Bell”. A former Wetherspoons pub which has been bought by Birmingham based Davnports Brewery in October 2023. More of a food and sport bar with a great outdoor area to the rear of the pub. The pub itself was a former hardware shop.
A selection of their own keg beers available on the bar. Choices of a bitter, IPA and 2 lagers. I went for “RIP” – Real India Pale. A tasty pale ale with lots of flavour.
Shrewsbury Arms
Another walk through town brings me to my third call in Stafford which is to the “Shrewsbury Arms”. Another pub which is owned by Black Country Ales. It was refurbished by them and opened in December 2016. A great traditional style pub with a number of small rooms. A really warm welcome in here.
Another great lineup of beers, being 10 cask beers on, 4 of which are from their own brewery with the rest being guests. I started with “Big Dipper Bitter” from Kidderminster based Fownes Brewing Company. A tasty traditional English bitter. I went onto “Pig on the Wall”, a delicious Mild Ale from Black Country Ales.
Ye Olde Rose & Crown
A couple of minutes walk away, and located next to the Gatehouse Theatre. A beautiful decorated pub which is owned by Joules Brewery. A central bar which covers 2 separate rooms and an impressive outdoor area to the rear. A great warm welcome from the Landlord as soon as I walked into here.
A choice on the bar of 4 cask beers, one being a seasonal special aswell as a few keg lines that are brewed by the brewery aswell. I went with their “Batch Beer #1019 – Golden Gooseberry”, a great balance of tart Gooseberry and some subtle herbal notes. A really tasty pale ale.
The Sun
My next pub is “The Sun”. This opened in 2010 after an extensive refurbishment by Burslem based Titanic Brewery. A beautiful pub with lots of character and a great large bar upon entering the pub, straight in front of you. A great warm welcome from the manager here.
Another great line up of beers in here, a large number from their own Titanic Brewery alongside guest beers from Everards and Red Willow Breweries. I went with “Iceberg”, a clean crisp and tasty pale ale. I love the names of these beers all being related to The Titanic.
The Ship Aground
A walk a few doors down to my next call which was to “The Ship Aground”. This Micropub opened in 2022. A really relaxing feeling on entering with two rooms both with seating and the bar in the corner upon entering. Great chatting to the team behind the bar today.
A fantastic line up of 19 keg beers, alongside 2 cask beers and fridges stocked full of a range of different cans. I went with a sour beer from Windsor based “Indie Rabble Brewery”. “Pierre” was a tart and sour Cherry beer. Definitely hits all the right notes.
The Devils Taphouse
My last call in Stafford is just around the corner and is “The Devils Taphouse”. Another great Micropub and a relaxing feeling inside. They also operate “The Devils Bottlehouse” next door but one which is a bottle shop. This opened in 2020. A one roomed pub with the bar to the left.
A lineup of 5 keg lines and 2 cask lines, alongside a fridge packed full of a range of different cans and bottles to choose from. I went with “March Hare” from Brew York, a hazy hoppy delight of a beer using 4 different bops.
A short walk back to Stafford Railway Station and a short train journey to Stone. This has an hourly service from Stafford to Crewe in each direction.
Stone
The Borehole / Lymestone Brewery
My first call in Stone was around an 8 minute walk in the opposite direction to the town centre. “The Borehole” is in an old music school and before that an office building at the entrance to an industrial estate which was formerly the site of Bent’s Brewery. A fantastic pub which is bigger when you get inside than it looks. Great seating outside aswell for the warmer weather. A great warm welcome in here from Matt.
A really good beer selection on the bar with 7 cask beers from their own brewery alongside a number of keg options to choose from. Managed a few in here starting with “Ein Stein”, a really light and refreshing pale ale. I moved onto “Stone Edge”, a tasty traditional English Bitter, and finished with “Pounamu”, a New Zealand hopped pale ale packed full of flavour.
Sarah was kind enough to give me a quick tour of the brewery and events space. The brewery is literally located around a 30 second walk from the pub.
The Swan Inn
A walk down to the very bottom of town next taking around 12-15 minutes, to then work my way back up to the Railway Station. My call first was to “The Swan Inn”. An awesome freehouse which is located in a beautifully renovated Grade II listed building. The Trent and Mersey canal being very close to this. Really popular pub.
A cracking lineup of 9 cask ales all ranging in style and all from different breweries. I went with a local beer from nearby Izaak Walton Brewhouse, “Redeye Bass”, a delicious English Bitter. Izaak Walton was an English writer. Best known as the author of The Compleat Angler, so was great to see the pump clip relating back to this.
Ten Green Bottles
A short walk up in the direction of the Railway Station brings me to “Ten Green Bottles”. This opened in May 2017 and can be described as a cafe style, really well designed and laid out with some great outdoor seating to the side of the pub. Great warm welcome from the member of staff working behind the bar.
A brilliant line up here of 8 keg beers (out of 9 keg lines), alongside a fridge full of interesting beers to choose from. I went with “HUM” from Lewes based Beak Brewery. A delicious hazy IPA made with 3 hops. Delicious!
bod
Next in Stone is “bod”, a more recent venture from Burslem based Titanic Brewery opening a number of small cafe style bars. This one serves food aswell which looked stunning. A great bright, modern and warming feel to this bar. Was nice chatting to the team behind the bar today.
A line up today of 6 cask beers, alongside a range of keg beers including some of their own. “Steerage” was my choice today named after the lower class of travel on The Titanic. A delicious pale ale packed full of flavour. Worth checking out the Titanic Loyalty card if you’re visiting a few of their pubs.
Crown Wharf
A walk down towards the canal brings me to my next calling point “Crown Wharf”. A flagship tap from Joules Brewery located on the canalside. Packed full of nice-nacs and some beautiful wood panelling around the pub. Great seating area in the canalside aswell.
On the bar a line up of 4 cask beers from Joules alongside a number of their keg beers. I went with “Slumbering Monk”, a tasty traditional English Bitter.
The Royal Exchange
A short uphill walk brings me to “The Royal Exchange”, another pub owned by Titanic Brewery. A beautiful pub inside, very traditional. An awesome outdoor beer garden aswell here with lots of seating. Fantastic warm welcome from behind the bar.
A choice of 5 cask ales on the bar in here, 4 from Titanic Brewery and the other from Everards. I decided to go with “Iceberg”, another beer with links back to The Titanic. A light and crisp pale ale, really enjoyed this.
The Wren
My last call of the night in Stone is to “The Wren”, this was formerly in another location but moved to these premises in August 2023. A fantastic quirky pub full of lots of interesting items and a stunning roof. Great talking to the owner behind the bar.
A great selection of local beers behind the bar having 3 beers on from local Lymestone Brewery alongside a cider. I went with Lymestones “Stone the Crows”. A delicious malty dark ale with lots of great flavours coming through.
Micropub Adventures 
1 Comment