BRAPA in .... YOU DON'T HAVE TO TAKE YOUR CLOTHES OFF IN DERBYSHIRE TO HAVE A GOOD TIME (Pt 1/2)
Saturday 9th March 2024, 11:40am
Derbyshire isn't a county I've had much of a pub ticking appetite for since I completed it in Long Eaton back on 3rd August 2019.
Inevitably, plenty of gaps have since appeared that BRAPA need attention. But it was only when my Untwappd / X / Twitter pal Rich, who I randomly met along with Steve H. in Plungar last summer, suggested chauffeuring me to the impossible duo at Parwich & Kniveton that I exclaimed "Derbyshire is back on baby yeah!"
Beer and pub wise, Derbys is the strongest county I've done to date, so it was win win.
Rich had even drawn up an agenda evocative of the most carefully planned BRAPA outings:
I met him and Steve at the back of Derby station. York had been about minus 10 degrees, Abu-Derby was positively spring-like by comparison. No jacket needed. Southerners eh? Don't know how lucky they are. Steve already had his place in BRAPA history assured, having helped me with many free Grand Central York-King's Cross tickets over the years. Basically funded my ESB's.
First stop is Sainsbury's for snacks. I've had a (half) English breakfast so ask them to grab me a sausage roll and I'll be fine, providing I stick to beers below 6%! Derbyshire beer always affects me.
Snax in ladddzz
Even put the BRAPA home kit on, as it is a special day
First up is Holbrook, previously driven here by Retired Martin (who inspired this blog title, NOT that he takes his clothes off in Derby, to my knowledge) with some other chap whose name I can't remember so hope he's still alive and well.
Back in the 2019 Guide it was the Spotted Cow, but this one I prefered ......
Dead Poets Inn, Holbrook (2685 / 4846)
A real thriker to kick us off in the (Black &) Amber Valley. Despite the exciting beers on offer, there is only one direction my eyes are pointing and that's towards that Bassy Red Triangle. Irk the snobs! Barmaid is lovely, very engaging and do I detect a Scouse twang? Definitely not a native. Thankfully, Steve decides to play hide n seek which gives me a chance to (unwittingly) explore the pub. What nooks and crannies! What tiled flooring (which I'm forced to admit even beats a 'Spoons carpet)! What low ceilings and warped wooden edges! A pub fans dream! Steve had actually secreted himself into a booth, so my Tayloresque pub wanderings come to an end, with a couple of gnarly locals propped on the walls chuckling as me and Rich walk in circles trying to locate him. We then play 'guess which BRAPA mascot is in the bag'. Neither guess Colin amazingly, but this was a day, a county and a pub worthy of the OG.
Up next Belper. Back in 2019, on a soggy day, feeling like a drunken duck, I hazily ticked two micros here. Angels and Arkwrights. One I really liked, one I really didn't. I think Angels was the good one, but don't quote me!
But 2024 is the year of the solid old boozer, so let's get to it.
Railway, Belper (2686 / 4847)
A basic but pleasant sort of boozer with an underwhelming carpet, which is offset nicely by two different patterns of flooring. But an extra level of excitement here as my friend Christine had tipped off her mate Richard 'Coops' that I'd be in here at this time (the power of Rich's agenda), so I was told to look out for a friendly faced smooth headed chap. He has no social media, but still found my blog which I'd like to think is the sheer power of the BRAPA gravitational pull. I'd already half glanced at two chaps whilst ordering my quality Lincoln Green booze, but one wasn't smooth headed enough, and the other had a decidedly unfriendly face. But then the right Richard jumps up from the corner, and the four of us stand and chat at a weird angle, trying not to block any pub through traffic, and it is all most heart warming. Great to meet you Richard if you can see this!
Next up, the Rich-mobile chugs steadily north west to Wirksworth.
Yet again, I'd been landed with a pub which decided to move premises. Todmorden, Halifax, now this, and I've got one at Folkestone on the agenda which moved TEN days after my visit. How unlucky is that? Why pubs , why?
Feather Star, Wirksworth (2686 / 4847)
Yes, it is now part of the old Red Lion Hotel which I think itself was a GBG entry back in the day for an added layer of confusion! It all felt rather like when wasps lay their eggs in caterpillars which then hatch and eat the caterpillar alive from the inside. I might put that on Trip Advisor. They'd like that. My memories of the original are vague, but I remember being impressed by a quirky homely atmosphere, which it retains, only the pokiness was a problem. Well Feather Star, haven't you grown? And full of jolly blokes up for a bit of craic. Toilets are bonkers too, a saloon door and it goes round at right angles so you can't see who's in the pisser, and how to navigate around them to the sink. Beer wise, this place is a saviour for me as they offer a 3.1% table beer from Kernel. EXACTLY what I need on a day in Derbys. Most notably, and quite divisive, is this man made tree in the centre of the pub. Now I love a good pub tree. Combermere in Wolverhampton, Boot & Shoe at Ellerton, I'm sure you know others. A bloke hears our chat and pipes up about how this man of Jesus carpentry skills did it all from scratch himself and how clever it is. But just because it is good craftsmanship, doesn't mean it should've happened! Has a phallic dragon tail snaking upwards for added giggles. Probably the happiest and most vibrant pub environment of the day, nicely done. And in a late twist, Duncan Mackay has just pinged the GBG tickers chat a message to say he's here as I write this!
So that was part one, and I'll be back on Sunday 9pm for part two, providing Antiques Roadshow doesn't go to extra time.
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