Return To Manchester

When Keith Satterly took over as our Social Secretary, his first trip, 2 years ago was to Manchester. This trip was so popular, Keith promised to return in the not too distant future.

On Saturday 20^th January, we did just that. With an almost full bus, leaving at 8.30, on time as always, we headed straight for Manchester without a stop. We made good time, arriving outside the National Winter Ales Festival at 11.10. We were given until 6.00pm to return, so we all set off to explore the city with the help of the maps and pub lists given out by Keith.

I teamed up with Sue, our Pubs Officer, and decided to venture on to the opposite side of town to that of my last visit. We purchased our day rover for the tram, a mistake as we only travelled 3 stops all day. We alighted at G-Mex, only to find all of the pubs due to open at 11.00 were still closed, not opening until 12.00.

Our first pub was The Knott, which is situated at the end of Deansgate under a railway arch. First thoughts are “not another wine bar” but once inside we were pleasantly surprised. There were five beers on, three of which were micros. We chose Bazen’s Dirty Old Town. Sue liked the collection of posters decorating the walls and the sound of the trains passing overhead. Not at all intrusive.

Moving on, we went to Britons Protection, a pub on our National Inventory (Pubs of Historical Interest).Here we found a pub untouched by time with four local beers on. Just up the road was The Rain Bar. From the outside it is a huge building and looks nothing like you would expect a Real Ale pub to look like, but pleasantly surprising once inside. Wood is the feature here, the interior and furniture, and two local beers on. Opposite was Peveril Of The Peak, which sadly didn’t open until 4pm. Perhaps next time.

A walk across town took us to Sinclair’s Oyster Bar, opposite the Manchester Wheel. This Sam Smiths pub was very busy. Not surprising with beer at £1.34 a pint, and very nice too. On two levels, this 16^th Century pub has been moved from its original location. A short walk away is The Hare & Hounds, also on our National Inventory. Here we met a number of familiar faces from the Beer Festival. There were two beers on, Tetley and Lees. In the back bar was a singer performing Ray Charles songs to perfection. It was hard to persuade Sue out to move on as she was enjoying the music and atmosphere so much.

We began heading back at this point, but couldn’t resist a quick one in The Castle. A classic Robinsons pub with almost their entire range of beers on. From here to another pub on the National Inventory, The Marble Arch. I noticed a block of flats had miraculously appeared next to it since my last visit. The pub was heaving with people so a quick half of Marble GSB, brewed on the premises, before the short walk to The National Winter Ales Festival to finish off. We met up with many people we know from The Great British Beer Festival. Most beers had gone but we still found some interesting ones and also took the chance to eventually have something to eat.

By now it was nearly 6pm so we left to board the bus. Keith announced that there would not be a stop on the way home, claiming that “If you’ve not had enough to drink in six hours it’s a poor show” A few of us compared our day’s pub visits. Many other people on the trip visited The Smithfield and the newly re-opened Crown & Kettle for their Beer Festivals amongst others. By 9.00pm we were back in Leicester. As always our thanks go to Keith Satterly for another grand day out, and to Dennis, our regular driver for a safe and pleasant journey.

K Williams / Sue Wilkins.

This page last updated: June 3, 2008

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