Socials
A look back at some of our socials
We hold a monthly social, which everyone is free to join. Check the branch diary to see what we've planned. It may be at a beer festival, brewery tap, single venue or a pub crawl - either in or out of the branch.
Below are the excerpts from Social Round-Up in the branch magazine, Pints of View. The page will be updated approximately a month after the magazine's release, in which the socials are featured, to promote reading of the magazine.
September - Pavilion Beer Festival
September’s social saw a return visit to The Pavilion on Racecourse Park for their second beer festival of the year. (The last was in May.) This festival was ‘sponsored’ by local brewers Two Matts, with four of their ales on the bar over the weekend - initially Eureka Ka Ka (4.5%), The Superdelic Revolutionary (4.9%) and Audacity of Hops (4.9%) - and these were later joined by We’re Going on a Beer Hunt (4.2%). Both Matts also came along on the Saturday to serve customers and answer questions about their beers.
A further 9 cask ales were served in the Racecourse Lounge directly from their casks, mainly by Mansfield & Ashfield CAMRA volunteers, so we were short on pictures as we were busy, but were allowed to use some taken by the venue. Mick Bull (a former branch Chair) was also alongside us again serving a great range of 16 ciders and perries.
Towards the end of the event, landlord and organiser David Maguire treated volunteers and some of his regulars to a tasting of a very special beer brewed by the late Sir Iain Turnbull, the Brewing Consultant who initially helped him to set up Kings Clipstone brewery.
It may have been unnamed, but it was a very special beer (with a touching story behind it which David shared with us all) - ridiculously strong too, as it had matured for many years, so thank you, David, for the privilege of getting to join you in a toast to Sir Iain.
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August - Nines ZigZag
August’s social saw us zig-zag on and off the Trent-Barton Nines route, starting at the Picture House in Sutton-in-Ashfield. We met at 11am, where we enjoyed a late breakfast and a pint or two (I think this was actually the first time I’ve had a pint with my breakfast!). There was a Thornbridge TapTakeover on, so I had a Wild Swan followed by a Lord Marples, as I thought kicking the day off with Jaipur at 5.9% might be a bit much - no matter how much I like it! Despite it being very busy, we all got fed in time and just made it across the road to the bus station in time to catch our first connection, along Alfreton Road, to the Duke of Sussex.
The Duke of Sussex had a change of management in late June, with Dolly, Karen and Stuart taking charge. All six handpulls were in use, featuring Bass, Oakham Citra, Black Iris Endless Summer, Dancing Duck Dark Drake, Lenton Lane Cloudburst and Twist + Stout - a nice mixed line-up with two stouts for us dark ale lovers.
With the bus stop right outside, we could leave it until the last minute before we left. A five-minute journey into South Normanton and we were at our Pub of the Year runner-up - The Market Tavern. The regular five handpulls greeted us, with a choice of Three Blind Mice Bag of Dogs, Welbeck Misaligned, Burton Bridge Stairway to Heaven, Shiny Double Dinner, and another I didn’t manage to make a note of or photograph. I tried the first three, which were all in great form. Karl was the only one who braved the Double Dinner, which was a double dry-hopped IPA at 7.5%!
A quick walk up the road brought us to our next pub, The Clock, which was the first opportunity I had to see the recently-painted mural up close. Two ales were available: Pheasantry Dancing Dragonfly and Dancing Duck Nice Weather. The latter seemed pretty popular, but ironically, as soon as we went outside into the beer garden, it started raining, so we had to duck under cover for the remainder of our stay. It was soon time for us to catch another bus to head into Alfreton, where our first stop was Prospect Street Micropub.
This micro - as the name suggests - is on the end of Prospect Street, at the junction with Mansfield Road and is the sister pub to Tom Said in Ripley. A first visit for me, where we had a warm welcome and a choice between Ashover Brew Co. Rainbows End and Two by Two Metropolis Pale on cask, or a selection of craft keg beers, including a stout and a sour. We were even treated to free taster samples of ‘Woowoo’ - a 4.2% peach and cranberry sour brewed with Crich Brew Co to celebrate Tom Said’s 6th birthday!
After an enjoyable hour there, it was time to head off to our last stop - the Alter Ego Brewery Tap - which was a 10-minute walk into the nearby industrial estate. Being a Saturday evening, the estate was dead quiet, so it was quite weird to see an absolutely packed brewery tap upon our arrival. Eight of their own craft keg were pouring, from a Helles Lager, to pales, sours, a DIPA and a barrel-aged imperial stout. I tried each of the two cask ales they had on the bar: 3 Wishes, a 5% Rye IPA, and SideKick, a 4.5% session IPA, before succumbing to the food vendor outside. We caught the final few songs (and encore) of a solo act, doing rock and indie favourites, before it was time for us to head our separate ways - but not before I tried that barrel-aged impy! If you’re tempted to come and see the place for yourself, you’ll have to wait until Spring as it’s only open on the last Saturday and Sunday of the month between March and October, but it’s certainly worth a visit and was a great place to finish off our social-by-bus.
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We were back on public transport for our July social in Heanor...
Our stand-in social secretary, Joss, had lined up a tasty six-pub crawl, packed into a few hundred yards around the town centre. The TrentBarton 33 picked up regular attendees from Mansfield and Sutton, before heading to Kirkby, where a group got on, introduced themselves to us and said they had changed their plans when they spotted our social and decided to come along. They were staying on for a couple more stops to try the Marlpool Ale House before returning to join us along the route, so we alighted the bus first, hot from the ride and ready to quench our thirsts.
The Crown Inn was built by Hardy’s and Hanson’s in 1913 to replace a nearby pub demolished for road widening. It also happened to be the only traditional pub on our itinerary - the rest being micro pubs. On the bar was a choice of Woodforde’s Reedlighter, Sharp’s Doom Bar, Adnam’s Lighthouse, and Wychwood Hobgoblin; being a decently warm day, I opted for the Lighthouse. We headed outside to the rear beer garden, which was a bit of a sun trap, to enjoy our first drink.
Heading back through the marketplace was our second stop, The Angry Bee. This charming micropub had a choice of Alter Ego Incognito, Oakham Bishop’s Farewell, Thornbridge Crackendale and a brace from Leadmill in Fluffer and Blue Morpho. You don’t tend to see Leadmill ales in our branch, so I had a half of both and thoroughly enjoyed them. At this point, we were joined by former committee members of Erewash branch, Stephen and Anyas Boa, which was a nice surprise. Finishing our drinks, it was time to move on to our next pub, just two minutes away on Ray Street.
The Hop Wright Inn was our second micropub of the day, featuring a small bar area, seating out front and a large indoor drinking area to the rear, which feels like a bit of a secret. On the bar were Hollow Stone Temple of Baal, Shipstone’s Red Star, and Leatherbritches Brown Sugar. The latter sounded nice, but at 5.6% it wasn’t pub crawl friendly - at least not for me. At this point, the Kirkby contingency caught up with us, so we sat enjoying a pint while making conversation.
Across the road is The Redemption Ale House. This is billed as a micropub, but the open, roomy space as you walk in gives it a different vibe from the other pubs visited. The approach to the bar is impressive, featuring eight hand pumps and a windowed cooler complete with casks and bag-in-box cider, all neatly racked up behind the bar. The ale choice was Leadmill American Girl, Lenton Lane 200 Not Out, Black Iris Endless Summer, Stancill Blonde, Abbeydale Cherry Bakewell Stout, Magpie Best and a duo from Thornbridge in Crackendale and Brother Rabbit. Phew! I decided on the Leadmill again, but also wanted to try the Cherry Bakewell Stout, so I had half of each. We went out to the pretty rear courtyard, which is a lovely place to sit and sup an ale or two in the sunshine.
A short walk around the corner is the Dead Man's Tankard. This smart micropub had a choice of Goff’s White Knight, Woodforde’s West Coast IPA, Milestone Son of a Beach and Classic Dark Mild. The pub has a cosy feel to it, and we enjoyed a couple of pints and a good chat before making our way to the last stop.
A short walk back to the marketplace brought us to The Crafty Tap, where there was just the one ale from Shiny called Celestial Twins - a hazy, fruity pale ale at 4.5%, which we enjoyed while sitting in the sunny beer garden to the rear. I returned to the bar to get a cheeky third of Emperor’s Mindless Philosopher, a 12.0% blueberry cheesecake imperial porter, which rounded the day off nicely. Another great out-of-branch crawl, so thanks to Joss for organising and the Kirkby group for deciding to join us on the day.
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June - Scruffy Dog, Sutton-in-Ashfield
After taking in the many real ale pubs of Hucknall, June’s social was back in branch and at just one pub: The Scruffy Dog in Sutton...
The pub wasn’t included on previous socials around Sutton and Kirkby due to its slightly out-of-town location, so it was time to put that right. A one-venue social also means no walking between drinks!
A good turnout enjoyed a warm, sunny afternoon, socialising in both the bar and the beer garden. The bar was packed with a great selection of cask ales from the in-house brewery. Ales rotate here, so you never know what you might find until you arrive. Pale ales are popular at the Scruffy Dog, and there were four to choose from: ‘Sit! Ra’, ‘D4 Dawg’, ‘Dog Tired’ and ‘Dogrophenia’. ‘BDM’ stout and ‘Mango Milkshake IPA’ made up the other two choices on the bar, giving us plenty to try.
The afternoon also saw the presentation of the Urban Spring Pub of the Season award.
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May’s social took us out-of-branch again to sample the delights of Hucknall...
Following our first out-of-branch pub crawl in Eastwood, back in February, we were looking forward to this one - a short distance out of branch, a good choice of public transport links, and, most importantly, a decent lineup of pubs.
A half-hour(ish) ride from Sutton on the TrentBarton 3B and we’re off and heading to our first stop: the Station Hotel, where it turned out we were slightly early and had to wait a few minutes for opening.
The Station Hotel, being a Lincoln Green pub, had an expected number of their ales on, including Hood, Archer, Tuck, Sheriff and one not from the core lineup - Pedal To The Metal. Timmy Taylor's ‘Landlord’ and a brace from 8 Sail Brewery, in the shape of ‘Smash Harlequin’ and ‘Old Colony’, completed the lineup. A great start to the day!
The next stop was the Plough and Harrow along the High Street. The former Hardys & Hansons tied house is a smart-looking building, which is both a registered Asset of Community Value and has entries on Ashfield District Council's Local Heritage List. We weren’t sure what to expect here, but the one ale on the bar, Fuller’s ‘London Pride’, was in good condition and enjoyed by all.
A short walk around the corner to Watnall Road brought us to the Baker and Bear micropub - a former gym which was converted to its current use when the gym moved upstairs. The pub has an industrial look, with exposed brick walls, wooden floors and ducting on show. It was a little too warm for Titanic Plum Porter for me, so I opted for Castle Rock ‘Harvest Pale’, and everyone else seemed in agreement. We found it to be in good nick and enjoyed sitting outside the entrance watching the world go by.
Two minutes further down the road is the Green Dragon, which wasn’t on our original itinerary but was recommended to us by another branch. On our visit, we had a choice from Nottingham ‘Robin Hood’ and Pheasantry ‘Dancing Dragonfly’. Judging by the number of Beermats Brewery pump clips behind the bar, they feature regularly. We made our choices and retreated to the sunny beer garden to enjoy them.
Retracing our steps for a minute brought us to the Beer Shack. The micropub featured, for me, the most adventurous line-up of the day in Potbelly ‘Pigs do Fly’, Pheasantry ‘Aurora’, Nightjar ‘Jesters Privilege’ and a pair from Nailmaker in ‘Mango’ and ‘Clout’ - a bunch of breweries I had not seen for a while or tried at all, save for the local Pheasantry. To add to the cask selection is a great choice of bag-in-a-box real cider and a shelf of craft cans, which occupies the rear wall of the pub. I’d be more than happy to pop in here again, should I get the chance.
Alighting from the Beer Shack and turning left along Derbyshire Lane, then right onto Yorke Street brought us to The Hideout - a smart micropub occupying a corner plot which was once a shop. We enjoyed a warm welcome from the friendly staff while sampling the Dancing Duck ‘Nice Weather’ and Pheasantry ‘Excitra’; with the third, Beartown ‘Kodiak’, running out as we ordered.
The short walk along South Street brought us to our penultimate pub - the Byron’s Rest. As with the Beer Shack, the Byron’s Rest is another great pub for real cider - with the selection stacked to the ceiling, opposite the bar - though this time it’s more ‘bag-in-a-crate!’ The cask selection was good too: Dancing Duck ‘Gold’, Titanic ‘Plum Porter’, Little Brewing ‘Summer Glow’ and Black Iris ‘Snake Eyes’’. With that choice, we stayed for a couple, happily sat chatting in the small yard to the rear.
Leaving the Byron’s Rest and back down the High Street brought us to our last pub for the day: the JD Wetherspoon Pilgrim Oak. As with most ‘Spoons’, it was busy, but finding a table wasn’t too difficult, thankfully. The beer selection - the regular offering aside - was: Beermats ‘Matterhorn’, Pheasantry ‘Black Pheasant’ and Thornbridge ‘Jaipur’. With a good number of pubs (and pints) under our belt, it was time to head off our various ways, though I’m certain we’ll be back again in the future.
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April 2025 - Brown Cow Beer Festival
April’s social was held at the Brown Cow spring beer festival...
The branch had offered to staff the ‘Cow Shed’ stillage for the weekend, as was the case last year. The Saturday afternoon social saw attendees take turns on the stillage as well as mingle and try the large selection of ales, craft beers and ciders.
The stillage was hugely popular, and no surprise given the line-up (photo, bottom right). The Alter Ego brewery “S’more Fire” was the first to run dry - the punters no doubt enjoying the sweet, sticky marshmallow taste which kept them coming back for more, once they had tried it. Two Matts ‘Tropic Like it’s Hot’ was hugely popular too, being an ideal tipple for a warm afternoon. Drinkers were surprised to find that both beers were brewed locally - in Alfreton and Sutton-in-Ashfield, respectively - showing that you don’t have to look far for great beer!
The afternoon also saw a good turnout from North Notts branch, and East Midlands CAMRA Regional Director Rob Hamnett-Day unexpectedly popped in for a pint too.
The festival itself was a huge success, with Saturday reportedly being the pub's best-ever trading day! The Saturday afternoon was certainly jam-packed, thanks to a warm, sunny spring day that saw live music in the rear courtyard and a mobile food wagon serving burgers and other treats to hungry drinkers.
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March 2025 - The Yard
The Yard at Langwith was chosen for our March branch social... Home of the Dolomite brewery tap - the date coincided with the East Mids Craft Market. Despite it being an incredibly busy day at the venue, the turnout from the branch was fairly small, due to things unexpectedly cropping up for most of the regular attendees. Though the branch representation wasn’t as good as hoped, the venue did very well, with beer running out later in the afternoon!
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February 2025 - Hucknall Beer Festival
Due to our January social falling on the 1st February, the actual February social arrived soon after...
We decided a return to Hucknall Beer Festival was in order, as it’s easily accessible and last year was a great day out. Another brilliant afternoon was spent sampling great ales in good company. The Spike Golding Challenge was held again, and this time it was great to see more representation from our branch, with Aither and Two Matts joining Beermats, our only participant last year. On the Saturday afternoon, Blue Monkey were declared the winner with their Choca Mocha Stout - a worthy winner that then went on to sell out in about 5 minutes! Two Matts were highly commended with their New England IPA, ‘Krushin It’, which packed a huge amount of flavour into a tiny 3.4% abv - so very well done to them.
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January 2025 - Eastwood Pub Crawl
We kicked off our year of socials with a visit to the micropubs of Eastwood...
It didn’t matter that our January social was being held on February 1st, we were just happy to have put the gloomiest month of the year behind us and journeyed out-of-branch to see what delights Eastwood had to offer. We knew there was potential - Micropub Adventures had covered the town last year, and everyone we had spoken to beforehand had said there were a lot of good micropubs to try.
By the time I stepped off the TrentBarton 33 and arrived at the Dog and Parrot, most of the committee were happily supping their first ales of the day. A good turnout from Amber Valley CAMRA swelled our ranks, and along with a good number of lunchtime drinkers and a throng of Sheffield United fans passing through, made it a very lively place to start the day.
The ale lineup comprised Shiny ‘Backside 360’, Woodforde’s ‘Tap & Go’, Thornbridge ‘Wild Swan’, Pheasantry ‘Tank Ale’ and Bear Crafted Conservation ‘Black Bear Stout’ - the latter being my first choice, having never heard of the brewery. A little bit of investigation revealed it to be a new brewery in Long Eaton, which had only two brews to their name at that point. Regardless, it was very enjoyable and possibly my favourite beer of the day.
We left the Dog & Parrot very happy indeed and headed across Nottingham Road to our second stop of the day, Mellors Mews. The pub is set back from the main road, down a gap between a solicitor's and a sweet shop. It is signposted from the road, so it is easy to spot, however. Venturing inside, the interior is modern with lots of decorative lighting, very unique compared to the other venues encountered.
A brace from Leatherbritches, ‘Dovedale’ and ‘Dr. Johnstone’, Pheasantry‘ Dancing Dragonfly and Oakham ‘Citra’ graced the bar. I tried both Leatherbritches, having not seen any of their beers on my travels for a while, and both were in great form. The photo of the famous ’Hollywood’ sign, which can be found on the way to the toilets, but mocked up to show Eastwood instead, was snapped as a header for this piece!
The next stop on our tour was the Gamekeepers, roughly a five-minute walk down the same side of Nottingham Road. (This is the sister pub to Poacher’s Alehouse in Jacksdale.) We’d spoken to a few people who had championed this micro, so we were expecting good things... and weren’t disappointed. The pub was already busy by the time we arrived and nearly standing-room only, with many of those we’d spoken to earlier enjoying a pint. I only managed one drink here (and one photo!) due to too much chatting and not enough supping, but I did try one of the ‘much-lauded’ scotch eggs, which I can heartily recommend. On the bar was Black Iris ‘Endless Summer’, Shiny ‘NZ Pale’, Lenton Lane ‘Krush Sm&sh’, Pheasantry ‘BB’ and lastly, Lenton Lane ‘Twist & Stout’ - which one of the group enthusiastically announced was a great pint!
At this point, some of the group turned back rather than carry on to the Tap & Growler and Pick & Davy, which had been pre-agreed before the day. Those who continued down Nottingham Road found the walk seemed shorter than they had imagined from the map. The Tap & Growler is a snug one-room micro that was already busy when we arrived. Once we’d squeezed in, the choice of ales was: Acorn ‘Barnsley Bitter’, Welbeck ‘Life in Miniature’, New Bristol Brewery ‘The Joy of Sesh’, Liquid Light ‘Stargazer’ and Oakham ‘Bishops Farewell’ - a fine spread of brewery locations. I thought the framed pump clips - arranged by colour - were a nice touch.
Next up was the Pick & Davy which turned out to be another jam-packed micro. We grabbed a pint and half stood, half perched at the rear - some chose the covered outside area to the front of the pub instead. As you may have guessed from the name, the pub is mining themed with both pick and Davy lamps adorning the walls. There are also boards with mining history and photographs. Again, a very good choice of ales: L!ttle ‘Hawk’, Shiny ‘Crossed Wires’, Tiny Rebel ‘Yippy Try-Yay’, Oakham ‘Bishops Farewell’ and Dancing Duck ‘Dark Drake’, the last of which is a favourite of mine.
At this point, some of the group walked back up to the Lady Chatterley to get some food before catching their bus home or going on to other arrangements. I was lucky enough to be offered a lift by the better half, which a couple more folk from the group also benefited from. Eastwood was a brilliant out-of-branch social, packed with great pubs, great ale and which saw our best attendance to date - thanks to our social secretary Dick for organising.
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