A new Demand Responsive bus service has launched in North East Derbyshire called Travel Derbyshire On Demand, funded by the county council’s bus service improvement plan.
This is a minibus service operated by Derbyshire Community Transport that is open to all and is designed to cater for journeys not served by regular scheduled buses. The fare is a flat £4 per ride for adults (Derbyshire Wayfarer tickets also accepted) and you need to book your journey in advance either on their app or on the phone. The system then designs a bus route around all the passengers wanting to travel around that time.
This bus is available for pretty much any journey within North East Derbyshire and operates on weekdays between 7am and 7pm and on Saturdays between 8am and 5pm.
The area of operation stretches from Dronfield, Ridgeway and Eckington in the north down as far south as Alfreton. There’s some good rural pubs in that area this bus could be useful for getting to in an afternoon!
In other news, the Sheffield City Centre “Sheffield Connect” bus service sees improvements from 8 April. The existing service will be numbered SC1 and operate longer hours – 7am to 7pm – and a second route, SC2 will be introduced running from Sheffield Interchange to the Moor then along Arundel Gate, down to Millsands (for Kelham Island) and back to the Interchange via Castlegate and Flat Street. At the same time the existing minibuses are due to be replaced with electric single deckers too.
Barnsley, a town I had not visited for decades, in fact not since racing my cycle through its streets and precincts in the ’80s races held their. So, after hearing good things about its transformation, I decided to make the trip on my NR £2 return.
I started my day with a couple of swift drinks in the Bankers Draft. The first pint was a very nice Salamander Juicy Lucy, a pale of 4% with banana overtones. As the train was departing at 11:35, I followed this with a half of JHB bitter of 4.2% before the walk to Midland Station.
As always, or so it seems, the announcer stated the train would depart from 4a, rather than the 1a we were all sat on. The mass exodus over the bridge was quite chaotic. The short hop to Barnsley quickly passed, and before I knew it we arrived in the town.
As usual, I had a little exploration before hitting the bars. I must say that they have regenerated the town centre with great success. It is nice and bright, with a mix of old, new and very few vacant units. The market in particular is worth a mention, busy and vibrant with a variety of stalls to suit everyone, and a very busy food hall with Artisan food vendors. There was a Deli that sold tapas style dishes, now I love pitted olives with chilli, but be aware these were dynamite and good value at £2 for around a dozen or so.
With my mouth tingling, it as time for a drink. I made my way up Market Street to The Kestrel. A little like a Wetherspoon, but with music, TVs and a very good darts set-up. There was 2 beers on from the 6 wickets on the bar. As one was Landlord, I plumped for Ringwood’s Razor Back, a 3.8% session bitter at a reasonable £3.60 and served by a friendly girl.
A customer recommended my next port of call should be the Old No 7, so off I went up Market Hill. As I approached, ready to take my photograph, there was a chap about to have a cigarette who kindly stepped back in while I did so. This turned out to be Matty, a customer and part-time custodian of the bar. I was immediately impressed with the 8 pumps, only 1 of which had run out. I plumped for the Acorn CF299 IPA, a full-bodied 5% of English heritage. I also put a SALT Suede stout in the pump and a very tasty 4.1% with notes of chocolate and coffee, nicely roasted it was.
Manager Adam certainly knows his stuff and after moving from Skipton’s Blackhorse, he is certainly making this establishment a success. Beers regularly come from Acorn, Thornbridge, Little Critters and Ossett, as well as further afield.
Matty had said that my next visit should be Bar Ruelle on Regent Street S, as it was another that carried an impressive array of cask. A little awkward to find, but close to the Interchange on a little side street. The bar nestles in-between small shops. Stepping in, you are faced with a bright and modern interior with the normal sight of regulars sat at the bar. As stated the pumps were varied between dark and light beers including Acorn, Theakston’s and Titanic. My first drink was Fixed Wheels Chain Reaction, 4.2% APA with Ossett’s White Rat 4% EPA closely following on. I still had over a hour to go, so 2 more beers were consumed here, those being Acorn Barnsley Bitter 3.8% and a rather nice Old Moor Porter 4.4% from the same brewery.
I left to make the short journey across the road to the Interchange for my train home. Faced with a short delay, the train arrived 10 minute late for the short journey home. As it was still fairly early, I popped in the Old Queens Head for one last drink. The pumps on the bar have changed slightly with 4 of them being dedicated to Thwaites beers, so I plumped for a pint of Vocation Bread & Butter 3.9% APA and very nice it was too.
All in all, a very pleasant and successful reconnaissance for a summer social to the town with the branch. As Arnie said “I’ll be back.”
Having done our traditional City Centre pub social the previous weekend, it was unusual to do two such socials in as many weeks but with news that the long established Royal Hotel in Dungworth is likely to be closing down at the beginning of March with the long established owners retiring and selling up we thought it would be timely to pay a visit – and pop in a a couple of other pubs out that way whilst there!
Stagecoach bus 62 from Hillsborough Interchange runs a circular route on an hourly frequency with a stop right outside the Royal Hotel, it also links Bradfield, Loxley and Wisewood too. We met up at the Beer House in Hillsborough, which is conveniently located next to both the tram stop and bus station!
One the bus has gone through Malin Bridge and wandered around the estates in Stannington it hits beautiful countryside as it meanders up hill and down dale and on the way to Dungworth look out for the dairy farm that is the home of Our Cow Molly milk and ice cream! The journey time from Hillsborough to Dungworth is 24 minutes.
The Royal is a pub that still retains a traditional layout where you arrive via a corridor with various small rooms off to the side as well as the main lounge at the front. The bar had two cask ales available – Bradfield Yorkshire Farmer and Clark’s Best Bitter.
The pub also serves a small menu of food including a variety of pot pies, mostly steak or chicken based along with a few other dishes including liver & onion, lasagne and omelettes. Many of our party ordered a pie for lunch!
A nice little feature that has been there for many years is the windowsill in the room at the back of the pub, which affords a breath-taking view over the Loxley Valley, has a pair of binoculars for customer use!
After a couple of hours at the Royal, we just had enough time for a group photograph outside before boarding the bus again!
After Dungworth the bus passes Dam Flask lake which is the home to a sailing club and it also passes the Plough pub along with the cricket and bowling clubs in Low Bradfield before climbing up the hill to High Bradfield where we alighted for the Old Horns Inn.
The Old Horns is a Thwaites pub leased to a local operator, however the real ales on the bar were from Bradfield (Blonde, Brow Cow and Belgian Blue), Black Sheep and Theakstons. Unfortunately every table in the pub was reserved for diners so away from the bar drinkers were confined to a choice of a single bench or the outdoor drinking area, which affords a fantastic view over the valley – it was rather cold though!
We stayed at the Horns for an hour until the next bus, which heads along the main road, past the Nags Head Inn (a tap for Bradfield Brewery) and the Admiral Rodney in Loxley before dropping downhill to Wisewood. We alighted outside the Wisewood Inn where we had another hour between buses in order to enjoy a variety of Loxley Brewery beers, which are brewed on site there.
The bus then returned us to Hillsborough Interchange for onward bus or tram connections and our happy party bid each other farewell after an enjoyable afternoon drinking in rural pubs and went off to enjoy their Saturday evening!
Our RambAles combine a gently paced walk in the countryside with a real ale pub or two and CAMRA members are invited to join us. All the walks have start and finish points that are possible to reach from Sheffield by public transport.
The 2024 RambAle programme kicks off in April, our co-ordinator Malcolm is still working on the finer details but the calendar is currently planned as:
13 April: Lodge Moor & Redmires. Meet at the Shiny Sheff at 12:15 (51 bus from Sheffield City Centre, Arundel Gate stop AG11 at 11:46).
11 May (TBC): Eyam, Foolow, Bretton and Grindleford. Catch 65 bus from Sheffield Interchange at 11:30 to Eyam and meet at the Miners Arms.
8 June: Dronfield, Apperknowle and Hundall. Coincides with One Valley Festival. Get 44 bus from Sheffield Arundel Gate stop AG12 at 11:11, meet at Drone Valley Brewery.
13 July (TBC): Stanton in Peak, Birchover, Darley Bridge and Bakewell. Get 218 bus from Sheffield Interchange at 10:40, connecting onto bus 172 to Stanton in Peak, meet at the Flying Childers Inn.
24 August: Bradwell, Brough and Hope. Coincides with Hope Valley Beer festival at the Old Hall Hotel. Get 272 bus from Sheffield Interchange at 12:36, meet at the Bowling Green pub in Bradwell.
We were invited to join our friends in the Dronfield & District CAMRA branch on some of their events recently.
WIRKSWORTH & MATLOCK BUS TRIP
The first joint social was a trip on the Stagecoach X17 bus which runs from Sheffield and Chesterfield through to Wirksworth via Matlock. The service runs half hourly as far as Matlock with one bus an hour continuing to Wirksworth. Currently An all day Derbyshire Wayfarer bus pass costs £8 or single tickets are just £2 a ride thanks to a government subsidised fare cap!
Given that the longest bus ride is much more comfortably done without a bladder full of beer we started at the furthest pub away – the Feather Star in Wirksworth. This quirky pub, which doubled up as a shop selling vinyl records, offered a choice of around 6 cask ales on handpump plus a number of interesting craft beers on keg too.
After a couple of beers we jumped back on an X17 to Cromford for a cheeky half in the Boat Inn. Had it not been raining the beer garden would have been an attractive proposition here but instead we grabbed an inside table not required by diners for our brief visit before heading to the bus stop for a Trent Barton 6.1 bus, unfortunately it didn’t turn up so the opportunity was taken to grab lunch at the chippy by the bus stop and instead catch the next X17 down to Matlock Bath!
The choice pub here was the Fishpond. A limited but attractive beer range here and most tables inside were reserved for diners, however the place to be is the heated and sheltered outside area with a view of the fishpond and waterfall!
The other place to go for the real ale drinker, after walking past various amusement arcades, fish & chip shops and ice cream parlours, is the Old Banknote, a micropub with three handpumps, which on our visit featured a choice of beers from Eyam brewery.
The next move was back on the X17 into Matlock town. We had an ambitious list of good pubs in the town but limited ourselves just to Bod Cafe-bar run by Titanic Brewery along with the award winning Twenty-Ten bar, two venues almost next door to one another, before heading back to Chesterfield and Sheffield (with an easy connection to Dronfield on the 43/44 bus from Chesterfield before the X17 heads up the bypass fast to Sheffield).
MEET & GREET #1 – COACH & HORSES
The Coach & Horses pub is on the edge of Dronfield attached to the Sheffield FC football ground and is run by Thornbridge brewery and the Dronfield CAMRA branch took the pub over on the evening of Friday 6 October to meet & greet local drinkers and hopefully recruit some new members. The evening started with a beer tasting with samples of various Thornbridge beers shared around, this was followed by a beer themed quiz then live music provided by Jamie Mallender’s Swear Box. The branch also hosted a membership stand in the pub with lots of information available.
Later in October saw another Dronfield CAMRA Friday night Meet & Greet event, this time at the Dronfield Arms, which is home to Temper Brewing.
Again the evening featured a beer tasting with everyone in the pub offered tasters from Temper’s cask beer range along with a quiz. Pizza Pi, who serve from a kiosk in the pub beer garden from 4pm-9pm Thursday to Saturday also provided a few free samples which tempted many to order themselves a full pizza!
Since then the branch ran a Sunday social on 19 November starting off with a carvery lunch at the Dronfield Pioneer Club followed by a wander down the hill to the Dronfield Arms and Underdog.
The next Dronfield branch event is a branch meeting at the White Swan on 12 December, 8pm start then:
Sunday 7 January – Post Christmas social: Sunday carvery and a pint at the Hyde Park Inn at Hill Top.
Tuesday 9 January – branch meeting at the Pioneer Club in Dronfield.
Tuesday 13 February – branch meeting at the George & Dragon in Holmesfield.
More information about what Dronfield & District branch are up to can be found on their website – dronfield.camra.org.uk and look out for their “Peel Ale” magazine.
An attempt at an Ale Trail on the Penistone Rail Line which runs between Barnsley and Huddersfield. The first part of the line opened in 1850 between Huddersfield and Penistone, with the other part following later. It is designated as a “Community Rail Line” and covers a 27 Mile Route (from Sheffield to Huddersfield).
Dodworth – Dodworth Tap
After changing trains at Barnsley and hopping om board the train to Huddersfield, the first stop on the Penistone Line was Dodworth. The village is known as being a former coal mining village and the memorial stands in the centre of the village with some great history about nearby pits.
The pub I called into here is called “Dodworth Tap”, formerly known as the Station Inn, but opened in July 2020 after the amazing renovation work which makes the pub look so good. A large inside area with a huge stone fireplace along the back wall, alongside a great sized outdoor area.
A great choice of 5 real ales on the bar here to choose from, “White Rat” from Ossett Brewery was my choice, one of my favourite beers which never disappoints. Was great to meet up with the couple being The Great British Pub Crawl aswell here. Check out their adventures HERE.
Can also try Thorneley Arms further down the road if you want more time in Dodworth.
Silkstone Common – The Station Inn
The next station on the line was Silkstone Common. This one is a literal walk off the platform and into the pub, “The Station Inn”. A really warm and welcoming village pub full of locals when I entered. Sunday Lunches are served aswell as other food events during the week.
A choice of 2 real ales on the bar here, Timothy Taylor “Landlord” and Bradfield “Farmers Blonde”. I went with “Farmers Blonde” from Bradfield Brewery. A great easy drinking blonde beer.
A huge outdoor beer garden to the left of the pub (next to the train station entrance), which includes some small wooden cabins so lots of seating for the summer months,
Penistone – Penistone Tap and Brewhouse
Back on the train again, getting off this time at Penistone. Penistone station used to be the junction for the Woodhead Line which was a line linking Sheffield, Penistone and Manchester. The old part of the station can still be seen.
Around an 8 minute uphill walk brings me to the town centre where the pub “Penistone Tap and Brewhouse” is located. This micropub opened in 2021 and also acts as the brewery tap for “Woodland Brewing” which was formerly known as Whitefaced, the brewery being located on the rear of the ground floor.
A choice of 2 cask ales and 8 keg beers here. I started off with “Eternal Summer” from the in house brewery Woodland Brewing. A delicious easy drinking golden ale. Followed by “Catharina Strawberry and Guava Sour”, a tasty and tart sour beer from Triple Point Brewing in Sheffield.
Penistone – Penistone Beer Shop
A few doors up is “Penistone Beer Shop”, a great place to drop into to get a few drinks for the train journey home. Packed full of bottles and cans from local Yorkshire breweries plus ones from further afield.
If you want to jump off at Shepley there are two local pubs The Black Bull and The Farmers Boy that are worth calling into both selling real ale.
Denby Dale – The White Hart
Next stop on the line is Denby Dale, on coming into Denby Dale Station you go over a large viaduct which is Grade II Listed. It was originally built of wood but replaced by the current structure in 1880.
A short 7/8 minute walk downhill from the station and through the small village brings me to “The White Hart”, a pub which looks fantastic on the main road through the village, with lots of outdoor seating to enjoy the sunshine (although it was quite clouded over today).
A choice of 3 real ales on the bar here, 2 from Timothy Taylors Brewery and the other from Theakston Brewery. I went with “Landlord” from Timothy Taylors Brewery in Keighley. An award winning beer.
Stocksmoor – Clothiers Arms
The next stop along the line is Stocksmoor. Its claim to fame being it was the birthplace of Ben Swift Chambers, the church minister who, in Liverpool, founded St Domingo’s parish football team, which became Everton Football Club. A picturesque small country village.
“The Clothiers Arms” is located next to the station, a large country inn style pub, with outdoor seating on decking at the entrance to the pub. It offers food a number of days a week. A very traditional style pub inside.
A choice of 2 cask ales on here, Bradfield Brewery “Farmers Blonde” and Tetleys Cask. I went with the “Farmers Blonde”, a favourite of mine and always tastes great.
Brockholes – Rock Inn
Next call is to Brockholes, another small village along the line. A 7/8 minute walk downhill brings me to “Rock Inn”, a Thwaites pub situated on the banks of the River Holme. It was refurbished in 2014 and is full of character and charm of a village inn.
Really busy local pub, a number of cask beers available here including Wainwrights and Bombardier. I went with a pint of “Wainwrights” a lovely golden beer from Marston’s Brewery. Enjoyed overlooking the river in the rear beer garden.
Berry Brow – The Railway
Last call on the Penistone Line before getting back into Huddersfield. This time its Berry Brow. A short 4 minute walk downhill from the station brings me to “The Railway”, a very popular pub, and a very warm welcome on entering the pub. Lots of outdoor seating here being a front and a side beer garden. Also has food offerings at certain times.
Five cask beers available on the bar today. Bradfield Brewery, Moorhouses Brewery, Abbeydale Brewery, Recoil Brewing and Ossett Brewery. I went with “Upbeat” a special beer from Moorhouses Brewery based in Lancashire.
A walk back up to the station to head to Huddersfield on the train to finish off the Penistone Line Ale Trail.
The Golden Fleece is the opposite way from the railway station if you have longer to spend here.
Huddersfield – Kings Head
Two pubs located on Huddersfield Station. Started with the “Kings Head”. Always a busy place with lots of beer choices (both cask and keg). Huddersfield is covered in more detail as part of the “Transpennine Ale Trail“
Went with “Piccadilly Gold” from Cloudwater Brew Co in Manchester. A great classic beer, easy drinking.
Huddersfield – The Head of Steam
Located on the opposite side of the station is “The Head of Steam”, a 2 roomed pub which also offers food. Huddersfield is covered in more detail as part of the “Transpennine Ale Trail“
A great range of cask and keg beers in here. 14 cask and 8 Keg. Went with “Pork Scratchings – Best Bitter” from Northern Monk. A really interesting beer, a smoky tasting English Bitter. Really enjoyed this.
Volunteers from the 2022 Steel City Beer Festival had a summer get-together in the city recently. The day began with brewery tours courtesy of Triple Point Brewery and Heist Brew Co. Volunteers then set off from each brewery visiting a variety of pubs before all meeting up in the Kelham Island Tavern. Pubs visited included Rutland Arms, Sheffield Tap, Dorothy Pax, The Crow, Gardeners Rest, Alder Bar, Shakespeares and the Wellington, among others. A very enjoyable day, it gave everyone the chance to renew friendships made at the festival, and at last year’s volunteer’s trip to Halifax.
For anyone interested in volunteering for this year’s festival, the staffing form will be live on our website shortly.
This summer has seen two open top bus services introduced offering scenic rides around the Peak District National Park not far from Sheffield. Your editor had a ride round on the 1 July launch day and started thinking about the pubs and breweries along the route!
The afternoon began by catching the TM Travel bus 218 (Sheffield to Bakewell via Totley) as far as Baslow, where both the open top bus services call at the same stop. Baslow has a number of pubs, although most appear to be hotels with a public bar and restaurant.
Within just a few minutes of arriving at Baslow’s Nether End bus stop, one of the Stagecoach “Peak Sightseer” open top tour buses appeared. This operates on a circular route between Chatsworth House and Bakewell at 30 minutes intervals. Leaving Baslow, it is routed via Curbar to Calver, passing the Eyre Arms then doing a loop manoeuvre around the cross roads to then change direction and climbing up hill a little for the longer, mostly rural run to Bakewell, where I alighted.
In Bakewell I decided to spend half an hour before the next “Peak Sightseer” came through by enjoying a pint in the Joiners Arms. This small bar, which offers a range of craft beers on both cask and keg is under the same ownership as the Dronfield Arms which is home to Temper Brewing and it is one of their beers I chose. The day of my trip coincided with Bakewell Carnival so the town was busy and people had got their spots outside ready for the procession to come through later!
Boarding the other one of the two vehicles on the “Peak Sightseer” service, the bus left Bakewell via the A6 Buxton Road and passed the business park that is home to Thornbridge Brewery, where if I had more time I could have gone to visit their tap room to sample a few beers and order a pizza!
The next location along the route is Ashford in the Water where we passed two pubs across the road from one another, although one was closed with the now familiar pub company sign advertising it as available to lease. The Bulls Head however was open, this is an old coaching Inn owned by Robinsons Brewery.
The next landmark along the route is at Hassop where the bus crosses over the Monsal Trail, this used to be a railway running from London to Manchester via Matlock and Buxton but is now a popular walking and cycling trail and the old Hassop station is now a cafe. The bus continues via Pilsley and stops by the Chatsworth farm shop before turning off the main road and onto the Chatsworth estate, up the drive to the house.
The bus has a short 5 minute break at the Chatsworth House stop before setting off around the circular route again and heading down to Baslow, passing Peak Ales brewery as it heads down the hill!
Having completed the Peak Sightseer route, I wanted to try the other open top bus service, “The Breezer” operated by local independent bus company Hulleys of Baslow. This is a more traditional bus service rather than a circular tour, running from Baslow to Castleton via Calver Sough, Grindleford, Longshaw, Hathersage and Hope then returning the same way. Most people in Sheffield know about Surprise view before heading downhill into Hathersage and this offers the opportunity to enjoy it on an open top bus!
Unfortunately there was a good hour or so until the next “Breezer” leaving Baslow and was keen to get to the Hope Valley to do my Beer Matters magazine deliveries to a couple of pubs there so I joined the regular bus 257 after a wait of less than 10 minutes for a scenic ride on a modern single decker. The departure I joined was the one a day which goes a different route to normal, after Eyam if went via Foolow, Great Hucklow, Bradwell and Hope where it dropped me off.
There are three pubs in Hope. I had a pint and delivered Beer Matters magazines at the Old Hall Hotel which is known for hosting beer festivals most bank holiday weekends as well as the pub having a restaurant, tea room and accommodation. Just across the road is the Woodroffe Arms, owned by Greene King and a short walk down the Edale road will bring you to the Cheshire Cheese Inn, a classic rural pub with a good beer garden!
From Hope I joined “The Breezer” open top bus which had left Castleton a few minutes previous bound for Baslow and enjoyed a short run down the Hope Valley as far as Hathersage.
In Hathersage it was a visit to the Little John Hotel to deliver their Beer Matters magazine as well as enjoy a pint and a bite to eat.
There are a number of other venues in Hathersage including the George and Scotsman’s Pack in the village and the Plough Inn a little bit of a walk down the road to Leadmill Bridge, I could also have joined the final “Breezer” open top bus trip of the day back down to Baslow, however time was running out and I needed to be home to get ready for evening plans so joined a Sheffield bound train back from Hathersage!
BUS TICKETS
The Stagecoach “Peak Sightseer” open top bus tour costs £6 for adults and £4 for concessions with a ticket allowing you to hop on and hop off as much as you like during the day.
All the other normal local buses in the area, including the Hulleys “Breezer” open top service currently cost £2 per ride and also accept English National Concession Senior Citizen and disabled passes. Alternatively you can buy a “Derbyshire Wayfarer” pass for the day offering unlimited travel on most local buses in Derbyshire (including direct links from Sheffield) for £8, or there is an option also including trains for £14. With the Wayfarer pass you can buy the Peak Sightseer ticket at the discounted price of £4.
DAYS OF OPERATION
The “Peak Sightseer” runs daily until 30 September then weekends only up to Christmas Eve.
“The Breezer” runs on Saturdays and Sundays, plus weekdays during the school holidays, with the last day of operation 3 September. Please be aware that Hulleys only have one open top vehicle so from time to time this may be substituted with a regular bus.
If you are looking to enjoy a summer of pub and need inspiration, you could do well to check out the new “Great British Beer Garden” Facebook page and blog started by former Dronfield CAMRA chairman and keen home brewer Rob Barwell.
He kicked off by enjoying a Friday evening sunset chasing whilst enjoying a nice beer in Hathersage and Fox House.
Sat outside the Plough in Hathersage as the sun begins to setAdmiring the sunset sat outside the Fox House Inn
The next day saw Rob head out around Dronfield on the day of the One Valley Festival, which sees many pubs and clubs in the area add outside bars, music stages, food stalls and more and this year the weather was perfect. Some of his photographs were from before opening time when the venues were still setting up, others once the party got started!
Manor House hotel – setting up for One Valley festival which here featured an outside bar with cask ale from Abbeydale, a food van and a stage with live music followed by a DJ.Green Dragon before opening on One Valley Festival day, which here featured an outside bar with cask ales, a gin trailer, fish and chip stall and performance area for live singers.Dronfield Arms on One Valley festival day, which here featured an outside bar, pizza stall, stage for live music and later on a sunset disco outdoors.
Of course it is worth noting that the Manor House and Green Dragon have their outdoor areas open all the time with a DJ on Friday evenings at both venues with the Dragon having live entertainment on Saturday evenings.
Our last RambAle of the year took place in late September: nine used the Huddersfield train from Sheffield, two took a double-bus route from Hoyland and one took the scenic route from Stocksbridge on the 3-times daily 23 Millhouse Green flyer.
The Untappd powered beer list at the Penistone Tap
After meeting on platform two, and admiring the 1912 Art Deco masterpiece which is the Penistone Paramount, our first stop was in the well-stocked Penistone Tap & Brewhouse. This was the original home of the Woodland Brewery (formally Whitefaced Brewery, named after a local breed of sheep). The brewery has recently moved to a larger local site.
In the Hunstsman, Thurlstone
We then utilised the Trans-Pennine Trail, originally part of the, Sheffield-Manchester, Woodhead Railway line, progressing to GBG-serial entry, the multiple award-winning and hardly-changed Huntsman in Thurlstone. The pub lived up to its billing, providing the usual six, well-kept, cask beers. The choice included Abbeydale, Acorn and Salamander.
A line up of Kibble Brewery beers at the Crystal Palace
Our next stop was the nearby Crystal Palace, since May 2021, the home, and only regular outlet, for Kibble Brewery. Four of their beers, all named after major coal seams, were available: Barnsley Bed Bitter (4.2%), Colliers Monday (5.8%), Kent Thin Pale (4.2%) and Kent Thin Pale: Strawberry (4.2%). In addition, Head Brewer, Alasdair Twist, provided a brewery tour and an entertaining series of anecdotes. The 2.5 Bbl. brewery is located in a former stable block in the car park. A kibble is a big bucket used in pit shafts: the owner felt that the mash tun (from the now-closed Hamelsworde brewery) looks like a kibble. There is also a smaller pilot plant which is used for one-off specials.
We then returned to Penistone via Stottercliffe Road, paying a return visit to the, now busy, Penistone Tap & Brewhouse before catching our return transport.
An excellent afternoon in the late September sunshine.