This sounds like a great pub to have as a local. The CAMRA pub of the month in Stockport, UK. Why can't Irish pubs be like this?
THIS is a multi award winning family run business; at the helm
are Sue and Vince, with a crew of four talented staff: Brian,
Frankie, Phil and Sara. The pub has been under threat of
demolition for many years but seems to have more lives than your
average cat. It has once again had a reprieve for at least another 12
months before it is knocked down to make way for a supermarket
(Sainsbury’s will have to wait).
Meanwhile it is very much business as usual. The bar sports 14 hand
pumps, serving cask ales from Pennine, Outstanding and
Moorhouses breweries, with ever changing guest milds. Every
Friday up to three guest beers are on sale; there is also a hand pump
with Thornbridge “Jaipur” as a permanent feature.
The cider and perry are supplied by John Reek of Merrylegs Cider,
so the quality is top notch. The perry is Weston’s “Country” 4.5%,
and as for cider, a different cider goes on as soon as the last barrel is
empty, so you never know what cider is coming next, but you do
know it will be good. A wide selection of Belgian, German and other
bottled beers complete the range.
The pub has a railway theme, with a large loco mural at the back of
the pub, and a model railway at the top of the bar. There is a
bar-billiards table which gets used a lot, and card games (crib) are
played around the pub. There is a quiz team and a darts team so the
place is buzzing with different things going on.
And if all that wasn’t enough, the Railway puts on up to three beer
festivals a year and the same amount of cider festivals (which are
not to be missed). All the local beer festivals get visited from this
pub with buses/minibuses organized by Sue & Vince. For the
Ramsbottom festival there was a vintage bus and a steam train used
to get there.
