A Day Trip To Newcastle

Saturday 28th January. Just over 600 miles by train today. I decided to take advantage of a special offer from East Coast Trains. Any advance ticket £10 standard class or £25 first class. So I shelled out £50 for a Kings Cross - Newcastle first class return.
The train left Kings Cross at 0900, arriving Newcastle 1151.

Platform 6 at Kings Cross

I have only visited Newcastle once before a couple of years ago when I spent a week based there. The city centre has a good mixture of real ale pubs and today I was meeting a friend who lives there as well so off to the first pub of the day.

The Bridge Hotel

The Crown Posada

Bacchus

Lady Greys

LYH

Newcastle Arms

Bodega

 Town Wall

Waiting for the train to leave Newcastle and my first class seat.

 

The train left about half hour late, awaiting train crew delayed further south. I really enjoyed my wander around Newcastle. Found lots of different beers which are listed below.

Bridge Hotel:
Delavals-Lindisfarne Castle 4.0, Tyne Bank-Castle Brown 4.0,Marstons Wai-iti
4.0, Durham-Genesis 4.9

Crown Posada:
Hadraian border-Tyneside Blonde 3.9

Bacchus:
Yorkshire Dales-Bacchus Arctic 3.9, Temptation-Cascadian Dark Ale 4.5, cellar
run Sherfield Village-Cutting Response 4.5

Lady Greys:
Gundog - Red Setter 3.9, Hadraian Border-Tyneside Light Ale 3.5

LYH:
Caledonian - A Nan's A Man 3.4

Hotspur:
Jarrow-Isis 5.0

Newcastle Arms:
Summer Wine - Saison Lime & Coriander 6.0, Big Lamp- Newcastle Arms Winter Gold
4.5

Bodega:
Oakham-Preacher 4.3
Brew Co - Silly Biily chilli 4.5

Town Wall:
Wylam - Reel craft intergalactic Pale Ale 3.9, Wylam-Toon Waal Ale 4.1

Centurion Bar:
Delavars-Seaton Delaval Hall 4.2

The Rum Puncheon in Gravesend.

Thursday 26th January. An evening out with the Weekly Wind Up. A new venue for me was the Rum Puncheon in Gravesend. Situated about 10 minutes walk from Gravesend station and very close to the Tilbury ferry.
An impressive array of 8 handpumps greeted me on arrival.

The 8 beers were Adnams - Sole Star 2.7% and American Style IPA 4.8%, Wantsum - Hengist 5%, Rudgate - Ruby Mild, Canterbury - Foundry Torpedo 4.5%, Skinners - Betty Stogs 4%, Kent - KGB 4.1% and Royal Tunbridge Wells - Dipper 3.7%. A good line up with 4 beers from Kent. Well done.
All beers were £3 a pint, lovely comfortable surroundings, friendly staff made this a most enjoyable visit and I look forward to the Wind Up visiting here again.

A couple more photos of the inside for you:

Manchester Day 3

Saturday 21st January:

Tram from Piccdilly to MediaCity UK.

The Imperial War Museum North as viewed from MediaCity UK

I tookanother tram to St Werburgh's Road (changing at Cornbrook) and then walked to Chorlton and first bar was another Marble bar.

Next stop the Horse and Jockey, home of the Bootleg Brewery who weren't selling any of their beers. A bit disappointing to say the least.

No Bootleg beers on my visit.

The Trevor Arms was next

Then to the Parlour.

a gramophone - no Dolby, woofers or tweeeters

The Dulcimer was next.

The Electrik bar

The Bar, yet another Marble bar.

Last stop in Chorlton was called The Oddest

Though I should take some tram photos

Viewed from the tram is the former Manchester Central railway station.

Back to 

 I got the tram back to the city centre, alighting at the Shudehill stop, for a visit to the Arndale Centre where the Microbar is to be found.

 

And back for my final beer festival session.

 

And so finally. A brilliant 3 days, lots of great beers and a real choice of pubs and bars to drink them.