Shropshire and Over the Offa's Dyke!

A cloudy Saturday 8th May 2010 saw a coach full of keen Leicester drinkers depart Leicester at 9 a.m, on time, with passports in hand anticipating a trip abroad, some for the first time! There is no stopping Gary Akiens in his quest to find new drinking paradises for us, although there was a little bit of help in the planning!

The first port of call was the Barley Mow Inn, Trefonen near Oswestry and home to the Offa's Dyke Brewery. Good time was made over the hills and we arrived at 11.20 catching everyone unaware. Soon the pub was opened for us and we were soon sampling the 5 Offa's Dyke beers available Barley Gold, Honey Blonde, Offa's Pride, Thirst Brew and the strong 5.0% Grim Reaper.

The Barley Mow, Trefonen.

The brewery is at the side of the pub and a brew of Offa's Pride had just been completed by the part time Brewer who is also a Gamekeeper. A brewery tour and a brief history lesson was also had about the Offa's Dyke which is a heaped mound of earth marking the original border of Wales. Indeed this is situated at the back of the pub.

We then made our way to the CAMRA National Inventory Cross Keys at Selattyn. This fabulous pub had opened specially for us but could only provide 2 beers from the nearby Stonehouse Brewery: Station Bitter and a beer called KPA or Kingston Flyer. The guest beers promised had been consumed the night before! The pub had 3 rooms and our group queued in an orderly manner to get served by the one person behind the bar.

The Cross Keys

Passports at the ready and over the border into Wales to Llangollen, a first for me to this location. Split in two by the fast flowing River Dee we had a while in Llangollen to visit various pubs. The two GBG entries being the Corn Mill and The Sun Inn. The Corn Mill was an expensive touristy type pub with a good range of beers, I tried a beer from Brimstage and another from Facers. The Sun was interesting insomuch as the two large dogs in the pub which stood guard. I sampled the Hornbeam - Top Hop.

Time for another move down the road to Ruabon to the Bridge End Inn. This is home to McGivern ales but none were on upon our arrival. A large fire was going well in the lounge so much so that it was impossible to sit too near it! Beers I tried were Hawkshead - Red and Gertie Sweet - British Maid and eventually a McGivern Pale Ale appeared on the bar once we had cleared the lines! Great hospitality ensued with cheese and crackers being brought to the tables whilst we were drinking our beers.

L- R The Corn Mill, Llangollen, The Sun Inn, Llangollen, The Bridge End Inn, Ruabon

This was turning into something of a beer marathon as next it was to Shrewsbury for two hours. Gary gave us all maps and we split up once again as there were ten pubs marked on the map. Nearest to the bridge over the River Severn was the Salopian Bar which surprisingly sells Dark Star beers as regulars. I tried the Dark Star - Victorian Ruby Mild 6.0 which is nothing like the name implies! Not keen on this pub we moved on to the Admiral Benbow further into the town which had an interesting range of Six Bells Brewery beers on the bar: Old Castle Dark Mild, Bobby Dazzler and a house beer called Benbow IPA amongst others. Back to the coach for 8pm and there was going to be an added bonus of calling in at Oakengates on the way home!

So we arrived at 8.30pm in Oakengates with 3 pubs in the Oakengates triangle about 50 yards apart including the Everards Project William "Fighting Cocks" operated by Ironbridge Brewery. We had 30 minutes and therefore decided to have a swift half in each one. The Crown we had Purple Moose - Reveleation, The Station Hotel Prospect - Dragon Ale and the Fighting Cocks - Ironbridge - Foundry Gold. Thats enough for today now thanks.

After leaving Oakengates at 9pm, very few can remember the journey back to Leicester. Thanks to Gary Akiens for the organisation, thanks to Dennis for his driving skills and being the only one awake on the bus home - I think!

Andy Sales

This page last updated: May 21, 2010

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