The assault on Birmingham's Wetherspoons starts here at the Briar Rose. Not too impressed with the American Heather Ale but the Liberation Rouge is OK.
The assault on Birmingham's Wetherspoons starts here at the Briar Rose. Not too impressed with the American Heather Ale but the Liberation Rouge is OK.
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
Whistlestop visits to the Paradise Forum Wetherspoons which is a bit like a Tesco Express. No new ales so went for the Strawberry Lane cider. Then the Solomon Cutler which was like a lager factory , only blue labelled Lithuanian beer on.
Now in the Figure of Eight which given it's location in the middle of Broad Streets clubs I always thought this would be like a war zone. But it's quite a decent pub and they have a lot of the strong ales on. May stay here a little longer. Currently have halves of the Steenebruge Bruin and the St Peters fruit beer. The Moorhouse one and the unpronouncable green labelled Dutch one are also on. Makes me grateful that I rushed through the others.
Also found a power point to re charge the phone which is getting a fair bit of use.
Last edited by Millay; 27-10-2012 at 10:44.
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
OK, a race down to New Street and a train to Rugby and I've done both the Spoons there. First the Lawrence Sheriff where I found two new festival ales the Shepherd Neame one and the Italian one. Then on to the Rupert Brooke , If I should die (doing this) think only this of me that there's some corner of a foreign field that is forever England.
I next had thoughts of doing Milton Keynes and/or Berkhamsted but frankly these trains are so poor that I don't think it's worth it. The actual runnings don't seem to correlate with either the timetable, the departure board or the announcements. I got on this one thinking it would go as far as Northampton but they now say it's going to Watford , so i think i will stay on it.
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
As if to prove my point we've just been thrown off that train at Northampton and need to catch a different one. I'm just going to get back to Watford as best I can. There are a couple of JDW there if I still have the energy.
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
Back in Watford and a pint of the Japanese Minagof in the Colombia press. Now in the Moon under Water which will be the 19th hole , so to speak, and the final JDW of the tour. Some new festival ales here, I have the Bath wheat beer and one from Woodfordes . I can see the Titanic Golden Porter is on so that will be the crowning glory to this crazy stunt. Never seen David bloody Blaine do something like this !!
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
Clearly it was all work with no time for any play - well maybe a hour or so!Originally Posted by Millay
So, what to do with this extra hour. There's the start of a nice pink sunrise on the horizon so I may go out for a walk, and see if there is any energy left in these tired old legs. But first I need to finish this thing off with a few stats, memories and things I left out. The Brittas Empire is on UK Gold, they don't make TV like that anymore.
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
First the statistics.
Pubs - A total of 19 different Wetherspoons (10 of which were new to me) and 3 'guest' pubs.
Drinks - 5 pints, 26 halves and 3 'others'.
Festival ales - 23 new festival ales ticked off. Favourite the Steenbrugge Blond, least favourite Cambridge Heather Ale. Most expensive £2.99 London), cheapest £1.59 (Wolverhampton)
Places - 10 different towns and cities.London, Nuneaton, Tamworth, Stafford, Crewe (overnight), Liverpool, Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Rugby and finally Watford.
Trains - 12 separate journeys with a total time of just over 7 and a half hours.
Walking - Just under 7 hours, but feels like more.
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
Thanks Millay. Really enjoyed your journey.
Alcohol doesn't solve problems .... but then again, neither does milk.
And what have I learned during this two day adventure?
It's a far easier journey into the City on the 6am train.
If you want to be first in the Hamilton Hall at Liverpool St you'll need to be queuing by 06:45. The sight of the barstaff hurriedly serving half a dozen regulars with 'the usual' was quite astounding.
As coffee seems to take Wetherspoon's staff three times as long to prepare as pulling a pint does, perhaps they should charge more for it.
The Internet doesn't seem to have reached Tamworth yet. Spent most of my time there trying to get a connection
The Picture House in Stafford was one of the most enjoyable stop offs. The excellent Steenbrugge Blond, a £2.49 plate of curry and a really wonderful building. I suspect it may be an old picture house
Liverpool on a Friday night doesn't get any better.
The more beer you have the more lyrical you wax (see post nos. 22 and 33)
In general Wetherspoons proper pubs are better than the old Lloyds No 1 branded bars.
I've learned that the second thing to look for when you enter a Wetherspoons is somewhere to charge the phone. The first being the beer range, in case anyone was in doubt.
Tesco does 'Express' far better than Wetherspoons.
No contingency plan can anticipate the inefficiencies of London Midland and their ability to screw up your journey. When they advertise The Great Escape by saying you could 'Go Anywhere' they're right, but not neccesarily where you wanted to
Crewe is still rubbish.
I've just joined Alcoholics Anonymous - I still drink, just under a different name.
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