Now
it’s time to relax in Derby, with folks coming into to town on some nights and
time on my own on the others. Tuesday
was an opportunity to have dinner with gents from the British navy. But first, I stopped at the Honeycomb on the
way back to the hotel. The Honeycomb is
an Everards pub, located in a Mickleover neighborhood, and I had a nice chat
with the landlord over a Beacon ale.
Next it was the Exeter Arms (it’s in the book) for a quick pint, and I
tried the Dancing Duck Brown Clough, a traditional brown ale that went down way
too quickly. I thought we were going to
grab a curry, but the lads wanted Mexican, so I drank water while they had
their Coronas (uggh, what you have to accommodate when you are out with
others). The nachos were edible (they
didn’t have burgers), but just barely, but it was fun to listen about a range
of English problems. Thankfully, we
didn’t stay too long and headed off to the Brunswick (again in the book) for a
pint. I’ve raved about the Brunswick (http://www.brunswickderby.co.uk/) before, Derby’s
oldest brewery, and a great place to pop in and get a beer after dinner. Tonight I got the Tim Taylor Golden Best
while showing off my beer book. I said
goodnight, and stopped at the Alexandra Hotel (right next door and also in the
book) for one last beer. I had a Green
Jack Ripper, an amber Barleywine that weighed in at 8.5% (I slept well that
night). I also got the 2013 Edition of
CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide, a new update and full of new pubs to find.
Wednesday,
and I had some time for myself. Let’s
just say that I put the good book to use.
I decided to visit ALL the listed pubs in Derby, especially one that
weren’t located downtown. My stops
included:
· Coach
& Horses: Cottage Battle of Britain, a Bitter from Somerset, in this sports
oriented pub in the Little Chester section of Derby.
· Furnace
Inn (not in the book): I was rewarded with a Blue Monkey Infinity for
stopping. I hadn’t planned to, but I
made a wrong turn with Garmin and there it was.
· Horse
& Groom: I got a Whim Flower Power IPA at this dog friendly pub. Parking was limited so I parked on the curb
with my fellow alesmen.
· Five
Lamps (http://www.fivelampsderby.co.uk/):
My new favorite pub in Derby. 14 taps, a
great food menu, and friendly service. I
had a ploughman’s (not the burger) with a particularly pungent bleu cheese to
go with their house beer, Derby Five Lamps.
·
Rowditch:
I tried the Middle Earth Brewing Celebration Ale, an English Bitter for
celebrating the release of the Hobbit later on this year.
·
Brewery
Tap (not in the book): This Derby brewing pub is close to the hotel, offers
great beer. Tonight I got a
Leatherbritches Hairy Helmet (great name) to go along with a bowl of spicy
vegetable soup.
Thursday
I had to meet my boss Jake at the train station after work, which means I had
to take him to the Brunswick Inn for his inaugural beer in Derby. I had the Brunswick Staff Quarters, and
English Strong Ale. Jake got checked
into the hotel, so we headed out to dinner at the oldest pub in Derby, the Olde
Dolphin Inne (in the book). I had Marstons
Pedigree on the jug (taken directly from the bottom of the cask) to go with my
gammon steak. I wanted to show Jake
around, so I took him to some of my favorite downtown pubs. So we walked to the Flower Pot (also in the
book), and discovered that they were having a mini-beer festival celebrating
IPAs. I had the Black Iris (their own
onsite brew) West Coast IPA and an Acorn Calypso IPA. We then when back to the Five Lamps (after
taking some pictures of the local Catholic church) where I tried the Weston
Perry, a pear cider, that was sweet and refreshing. I then dragged Jake to the Silk Mill (also in
the book) for an Ossett Silver King.
Finally, I had to show Jake the Brewery Tap (feels like I was just there
the night before) where I had what I think was my favorite beer of the night,
Titanic’s Plum Porter. I am one of those
who likes a hint of fruit in his beer, and the mixture of plum and porter was
outstanding.
Friday
is special in the UK, since most of the office goes out for lunch at their
favorite pub. So we went to the Peacock
Inn, which has the same staff from the recently closed Smithfield, where I
enjoyed a ham sandwich with their house beer, a Leatherbritches Peacock Pale
Ale. Friday is also pay day, and all the
ladies in town dress up for so nightlife fun.
Not the cup of tea for two Christian family men, so we went to dinner at
the Greyhound (http://www.derbybrewing.co.uk/the-greyhound_62_7.html). The Greyhound is a Derby brewing pub, with a
great menu and close to a Laundromat (8.80 GBP and they’ll do your laundry for
you). I got the burger with a bowl of
cheddar cheese to go along with a Derby Penny’s Porter. Jake and I both decided to call it an early
evening since we were heading out to York the next day.
It
was a good week, and with a lot of work completed and a lot of beer
sampled. It was nice just to relax and
talk with my family before turning in. I
needed my rest for an action packed weekend. – 6119/12894
“The easiest way to spot a wanker in a pub is to look around and find who’s drinking a Corona with a slice of lemon in the neck.” – Warwick Franks
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