Sheffield the Real Ale capital of the world.

[alchresearch 215]

The fact is that you'd struggle to avoid the decent pubs in Sheffield. Not the least if you just followed the many people out and about.

 

If you followed the "many people out and about" wouldn't you just end up on West Street?

[Cyclone 10]

If you followed the "many people out and about" wouldn't you just end up on West Street?

 

And Division Street.

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 11:42 ----------

 

I'm reassured to find that you wouldn't go to the micro pub in Chesterfield. When we go we park the car in the free parking area right outside the front door, usually on our way home from the cinema or one the the excellent dining experiences (where you can also park outside).

I would go there I wouldn't go ONLY there after taking a train and with a 15 minute walk from the station. Which is quite clearly what I said.

 

Ah yes, driving to the pub, always fun for all concerned.

Indeed I have no interest in doing a walking pub crawl, but unlike you my ignorance of such delights would preculde me from putting myself forward as a spokesperson on the matter.

Apparently it wouldn't. As you are engaged in such a conversation now, busily telling me how my view of my evening out in Chesterfield is actually wrong.

So if I wanted to know about the good pubs of Chesterfield I would consult one of the many genuine experts on such matters rather than a know all who hasn't actually visited the places.

I did actually post in a thread that I would try an evening out in Chesterfield, and I don't believe anyone volunteered any pubs that I should visit.

 

i get it that you love chesterfield, it has great parking, you've posted about it many times. But despite what you wish had happened, the evening out was disappointing, the pubs are widely spaced, the place was pretty much empty of people walking around and of the many pubs that we did go in, only 2 were decent. Perhaps if I was allergic to walking then great parking would be a key criteria for me as well, but fortunately my legs work, so I don't take the car when going out on a Friday evening and having tried Chesterfield I see no reason to spend £5 on a train ticket to go there again.

Edited April 25, 2016 by Cyclone

[DnAuK 10]

I have some bottles of Thomas Hardy Ale that claims to be the strongest beer in the world, although they date from January 1979 and things may have changed since then. We found them in my grandfather's cellar along with some Courage Imperial Stout. The bottles say not to be opened before 1989 and I guess that they were forgotten. I've no idea whether they are still safe to drink.

 

Hmm... I'm not so sure. I had a bottle of Goose Island Pere Jacques 2010, retrieved from. of all places, the back of the fridge in The Harlequin last Saturday. According to the label it 'matures in the bottle for up to 5 years'. I had it 6 years on... and it was very nice. Although my stomach didn't think so the next day!

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 11:48 ----------

 

No! having keg taps doesn't make it craft, as you well know...

 

SIBA is not a craft beer organisation, in fact I'd say it's the opposite, it's far more geared to the old-skool brewers, most of what I consider the 'A-list' brewers wouldn't even consider joining

 

What he said ^^^

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 11:51 ----------

 

Well, with the exception that I went into Chesterfield centre.

 

So it's more like someone arriving at Sheffield station and walking into the city centre.

 

It's entirely possible to do that without actually passing any decent pubs though (although they'd have to avoid the Tap actually at the station of course).

Through the bus station, they might go in the Penny Black, that's not on my list of decent pubs. Up Pond Street, no pubs, left towards Fargate, they might see the Bankers Draft (shudder) across the road and Cavells.

Up Fargate, no pubs. Don't look right and notice Leopold Square or All Bar One, but continue towards John Lewis...

Then it gets a bit awkward, making it back towards the train station without passing something reasonable would be a bit convoluted. And they've had had to fail to notice the crowds of people on Division Street.

 

But yeah, a lot like that. Oh, except that I'd downloaded the app which was supposed to take us to decent pubs. So yeah, totally like going the wrong way out of the train station with no plan, except for going the correct way and having a plan.

Perhaps you think I walked up to Hady Hill, that would be a lot more like walking up towards the Manor wouldn't it...

 

And again. I seem to be agreeing with too many people today. I must stop....

[foxy lady 10]

I would go there I wouldn't go ONLY there after taking a train and with a 15 minute walk from the station. Which is quite clearly what I said.

 

Ah yes, driving to the pub, always fun for all concerned.

Apparently it wouldn't. As you are engaged in such a conversation now, busily telling me how my view of my evening out in Chesterfield is actually wrong.

I did actually post in a thread that I would try an evening out in Chesterfield, and I don't believe anyone volunteered any pubs that I should visit.

 

i get it that you love chesterfield, it has great parking, you've posted about it many times. But despite what you wish had happened, the evening out was disappointing, the pubs are widely spaced, the place was pretty much empty of people walking around and of the many pubs that we did go in, only 2 were decent. Perhaps if I was allergic to walking then great parking would be a key criteria for me as well, but fortunately my legs work, so I don't take the car when going out on a Friday evening and having tried Chesterfield I see no reason to spend £5 on a train ticket to go there again.

 

On the contrary. I'm thrilled that you were disappointed. That way others won't be. I didn't tell you that your opinion of your evening out was wrong. You clearly had the type of evening your ignorance deserved. I commented that your lack of knowledge on the subject meant your comment on the quality of Chesterfields pubs in general was ill informed babbling. Having failed to find the decent places hardly qualifies you to comment on them. Indeed it says more about you than Chesterfield's pubs.

You do remind me of a lecture I had one day where we were discussing public speaking. The lecturer said that if you arrived at a meeting without knowledge of your subject you had 2 options. One was to sit there and say nothing, in which case you risked folk thinking you had nothing to contribute. The other was to open your mouth and put it beyond doubt. You fit very much into the latter category.

I occassionally visit Chesterfield pubs. Well researched visits knowing where we will go before we set off. I occassionally visit Sheffield pubs. Well researched visits knowing where we will go before we set off. Otherwise we would just visit the pubs of Barlow, Holmesfield, or Dronfield, knowing that it is very unlikely that a train load of drunks is going to arrive on our doorstep and spoil it for everyone. I've even bought shares in a local brewery.

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 12:15 ----------

 

Hmm... I'm not so sure. I had a bottle of Goose Island Pere Jacques 2010, retrieved from. of all places, the back of the fridge in The Harlequin last Saturday. According to the label it 'matures in the bottle for up to 5 years'. I had it 6 years on... and it was very nice. Although my stomach didn't think so the next day!.

 

I think I will give the drinking a miss. I opened a 50 year old Port a few weeks ago and it would have been better left as a museum piece.

A local wine merchant has expressed an intrest in the bottles. It would perhaps be safer all round to pass them to someone who can appreciate them, and buy something enjoyable in their place.

Edited April 25, 2016 by foxy lady

[Cyclone 10]

Having been into about 10 pubs in Chesterfield centre, I feel like I can comment on the general style of pubs found in the area.

Why you think 'others' will have a better time of it I don't know. I suspect that many would give up much sooner and get the train back whence they came.

 

Where is this list of decent places? So far there's been about 2 pubs and a micro pub mentioned. Is that it? Is that the awesome real ale scene that you think I'm denigrating?

 

You've made a big song of dance of pointing out how wrong I was, how I'm obviously deficient somehow in not having had a better list of pubs to visit. So where's the list...

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 12:34 ----------

 

It is rather like someone coming to Sheffield, arriving at Manor Top and wandering the streets for 500 yards in all directions before concluding there were no decent pubs in Sheffield.

 

This was your first post about my experience of Chesterfield.

 

But it isn't it, it's nothing like that at all, and that's why we're now arguing. Because you deliberately started an argument.

Presumably you said 500 yards, because that's the furthest you can think of someone walking.

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 12:37 ----------

 

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/dir/Chesterfield+Rail+Station,+Corporation+Street,+Chesterfield/Peacock+Inn,+412+Chatsworth+Rd,+Chesterfield,+Derbyshire+S40+3BQ/@53.2348384,-1.4464395,15z/data=!4m19!4m18!1m10!1m1!1s0x487985330e8776e3:0x8b91291a441238c0!2m2!1d-1.4200005!2d53.2382845!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4299041!2d53.2345524!3s0x4879853762593893:0xf4248509be6edff3!1m5!1m1!1s0x48798512a6d099d7:0x14254f60f916f15b!2m2!1d-1.4552734!2d53.2317054!3e2

 

In reality we walked nearly 2 miles through Chesterfield and then back again... Through the Shambles and the Market place, right through the centre of town.

[alchresearch 215]

Where is this list of decent places? So far there's been about 2 pubs and a micro pub mentioned. Is that it? Is that the awesome real ale scene that you think I'm denigrating?

 

I posted a link on page 2:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/l8sxq88zdp6qta8/AAA_TkcDKkMkLl6nBf2as3hVa/Chesterfield%20CAMRA%20TC%20pubs%20mini%20guide%20revised%202012.pdf?dl=0

[Cyclone 10]

From that list, number 8 was the last pub we stopped in, on the return to the station. We liked it.

The white swan (6) we must have walked past.

5 The Spa Lane vaults was the first pub we visited. Weatherspoons. Had a beer called "Wheat Beer" that turned out not to be a wheat beer and the Porter was off. Disappointing.

Didn't go to the one next door, number 4, turned in towards the Shambles and Market instead.

3 Royal Oak - can't be sure, we called at 1 pub that was in the shambles, looked small and old from the outside, turned out to be small and lacking in any decent on the inside. Might have been another pub though, street view doesn't go through the shambles, so I can't view the outside to check.

2 - Portland Hotel - 2nd pub that we visited (number 3 was on the return leg) - very disappointing, poor choice of beer.

1 - Missed this one.

 

And I think that leaves number 7, the Rutland - Disappointingly my mate pointed it out, but we were slightly off course and trying to find the Spa Lane Vaults, so I said, no, lets stick to the plan :-(

 

So, to summarise, 2, 3, 5, 8 - visited

1, 4, 6, 7 - missed

 

Unfortunately 3 out of the 4 we visited were poor. We also visited a number of others, all except 1 of which were poor.

 

I'm struggling to work out which the other good pub was, might have been "the tap house" on Chatsworth Rd perhaps. Or maybe it was the Peakcock Inn and we actually made it one pub further to JJ Flowers... I know that the one furthest from the train station was awful, and all the sports banners outside JJs make me think maybe that was it. Or perhaps it was actually the tramway tavern.

I wasn't actually trying to make a note of it, and as we'd switched to halves we were actually drinking very quickly and moving on at a fast pace.

 

I think we gave Chesterfield a fair go, and as we DID make it to 4/8 of the camra list, that's not bad IMO.

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 14:10 ----------

 

http://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/chesterfield-s-oldest-pub-has-closed-1-7520008

 

That's confirmed on number 3. That's where we went, and I can entirely understand why it's closed now.

 

Looking at the dates, it must have reopened I think, so perhaps if it's only recently reopened that explained the confusion when we asked if they had any stouts or porters (for me) and wheat beer for my mate. They looked at us like we had 2 heads!

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 14:14 ----------

 

FYI we also called at "Grouse", "Rose and Crown", tap house and tramway tavern I've mentioned, and at least one that wasn't on the camra app because we'd walked quite far and were cold and need a loo break.

Edited April 25, 2016 by Cyclone

[foxy lady 10]

Having been into about 10 pubs in Chesterfield centre, I feel like I can comment on the general style of pubs found in the area.

Why you think 'others' will have a better time of it I don't know. I suspect that many would give up much sooner and get the train back whence they came.

 

Where is this list of decent places? So far there's been about 2 pubs and a micro pub mentioned. Is that it? Is that the awesome real ale scene that you think I'm denigrating?

 

You've made a big song of dance of pointing out how wrong I was, how I'm obviously deficient somehow in not having had a better list of pubs to visit. So where's the list...

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 12:34 ----------

 

 

This was your first post about my experience of Chesterfield.

 

But it isn't it, it's nothing like that at all, and that's why we're now arguing. Because you deliberately started an argument.

Presumably you said 500 yards, because that's the furthest you can think of someone walking.

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 12:37 ----------

 

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/dir/Chesterfield+Rail+Station,+Corporation+Street,+Chesterfield/Peacock+Inn,+412+Chatsworth+Rd,+Chesterfield,+Derbyshire+S40+3BQ/@53.2348384,-1.4464395,15z/data=!4m19!4m18!1m10!1m1!1s0x487985330e8776e3:0x8b91291a441238c0!2m2!1d-1.4200005!2d53.2382845!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4299041!2d53.2345524!3s0x4879853762593893:0xf4248509be6edff3!1m5!1m1!1s0x48798512a6d099d7:0x14254f60f916f15b!2m2!1d-1.4552734!2d53.2317054!3e2

 

In reality we walked nearly 2 miles through Chesterfield and then back again... Through the Shambles and the Market place, right through the centre of town.

 

Well I could tell you about Chesterfield Arms, The Derby Tup, The White Swan, The Neptune, The Beer Parlour, The Tramway, The Royal Oak, Barlow Tap House, The Rutland Arms, The Chesterfield Ale House, The Rose & Crown, The Galleon, The Tramway Tavern and many more. I could even tell you about the £2 Tuesdays and which pubs offer 2 for one meals, but you wouldn't be interested. I might as well tell Osama Bib Laden about the wonders of Drinking beer.

The fact is that you have no interest in the pubs, just a desperate desire not to admit you got it wrong.

I have no interest in Chesterfield pubs other than popping into them from time to time. My only point was pointing out to those who are actually interested that should perhaps ignore your comments. Most probably already do that.

I'm very pleased that you don't frequent Chesterfield's pubs. They are better places for that.

[Cyclone 10]

You'll notice that quite a few of the places you're telling me about were already mentioned in my post.

If you'd read it.

 

I definitely wouldn't be interested in anything on a Tuesday, you're quite correct.

 

Personally I doubt that you have much interest in beer, but perhaps I'm wrong and you go to pubs to drink beer and not for 2 4 1 Tuesday microwave meals.

 

I'm not trying to convince anyone, but I went to 4 of those Camra listed pubs and 3 of them were disappointing. But hey, maybe you know more about pubs than I do, and I'm wrong to expect there to be some kind of dark beer in any halfway decent pub these days. Maybe Jaipur is all that's needed, or cheap burgers. People can make their own decisions having read the posts.

 

And I'm glad that you don't like walking, because that way we're not likely to bump into each other in Sheffield. If I do see someone tottering into Silversmiths from a car immediately outside I'll be careful not to engage them in conversation.

 

---------- Post added 25-04-2016 at 15:29 ----------

 

I have no interest in Chesterfield pubs

 

Quoted that bit for truth though. You don't. You just want to argue with me.

[TORONTONY 10]

I heard this, so a month ago on a Friday evening I went out in Chesterfield with a friend.

We used this application in the hope of being guided to decent pubs

 

http://cask-marque.co.uk/beer-drinkers/cask-finder/

 

And it was a disaster.

 

Chesterfield appears to know nothing except bitter and lager. I was even offered John Smiths when I asked if they had any dark beers (ie stouts and porters) on tap in one place.

 

We probably visited 10 pubs, drinking halves since they were all so dismal, and found just 1, on the return leg, close to the train station that seemed pretty decent.

 

I have not been over for 8 years, but do remember that Whittington Moor was a bit of a hot area for real ales and the likes back then . My brother is the CAMRA guy of the family so I just followed his lead. To be honest I'll sup owt, I am easily led that way lol:D