Latest reviews from Burton On Trent

“Together with Finn I attended Camras Winter festival on Thursday and Friday 16-17/2. On the first day we experienced much of the same difficulties as imdownthepub. After we had waited for a long time in the queue outside, and at the crowded entrance, we ended up at the balcony over the main hall. Not the best rating condition, but we managed. After a while we found a table and proper chairs in the back room, in friendly company with Taboada, by the way. On Friday we turned up early, and went strait to the back room, and had a decent rating session, this time together with a few Swedish beer enthusiasts from Gothenburg. All the ales we had were in perfect condition and served by hardworking, but friendly, volunteers. The ales in the main hall were quite easy to spot, in alphabetic order written in capital letters. The second cask ale bar and the cider bar were more confusing. All together we rated a little more than 50 beers and a few ciders during our stay. We also had the pleasure of a short meeting with Theydon_Bois, Travlr, mR_fr0g, Cheeseboard and Stevoj in addition to Taboada (Burton Town Hall, 16-17/2-2023).“

Rune 400 days ago

“Visited February 2023. Un local moderno entre tanto local old-school, para triunfar precisa ser distinto e ben manexado. O ambiente era excepcional, a selección de cervexas verdadeiramente estupenda. Música en directo e prezos razonables. Unha auténtica xoia. Next one please!“

Taboada 402 days ago

“Visited February 2023. Outro local agradable na vía principal de Burton. Non hai moita variedade de cervexas pero o ambiente fixo que merecera a pena a parada. Next one please!“

Taboada 402 days ago

“Visited February 2023. Un local pequeno pero cun trato agradable e un ambiente excepcional. Next one please!“

Taboada 402 days ago

“Visited February 2023. Un local con bastante ambiente no que hai unha interesante seleción, aínda que limitada, de cask. Next one please!“

Taboada 402 days ago

“Parada después del GBBF Winter,“

fombe89 406 days ago

“Parada después del GBBF Winter,“

fombe89 406 days ago

“Parada después del GBBF Winter. Local moderno, buena selección de cervezas.“

fombe89 406 days ago

“Visited February 2023. Enorme pub situado ao lado da estación de tren. Ten o seu toque vintage cun xardín bastante grande. A selección de cervexa é bastante boa. Repleto nun venres noite. Next one please!“

Taboada 408 days ago

“Stopped in here twice during a weekend in Burton. Small, but cozy place on the street from the train station to downtown. Very well curated selection of casks and taps. Friendly owner too. Great service. One of the best places in Burton.“

stevoj 431 days ago

“Visited on Fri Feb 17 and Sat Feb 18. My visits weren't as crowded as IImdownthepub stated fro the Thurs event. Still, logisitically , it was an awkward set up. Only one glass was issued, unlike other events where they allow you to purchase multiple glasses and can return them for deposit when you are done. This meant you had to go to the bars for each and every pour. Seating was definitely an issue., and general mobility as that menat since there was no seating, people would congregate and drink at the serving areas.Stilll, I found the selection and quality of the beers to be great, kudos to the volunteer staff for making the ebst of a bad situation. Scored a bit higher as I gave the service a 10 for keeping the event moving.“

stevoj 431 days ago

“Stopped in here while crawling around BoT on a Sunday afternoon. Live music was going on. Very old exterior, but the interrior seemed to be recent, while keeping the old wooden beams visible. Variety of seating options, although the music stage took up a bit of space. Limited cask taps, didin't explore anything beyond that. Fast, friendly service.“

stevoj 431 days ago

“Stopped in here after GBBF winter. Quite the labyrinth inside. Dark abd dripping with history. Mostly serving Joule's ales while I was there. Sat outside in a small covered area. Serving area was set up at end of corriddor, Service ewas fast though, small tap list.“

stevoj 431 days ago

“Owned bythe same person who owns the Last Heretic, Set away from downtoan a bit, but still an easy walk. Small intertiot, but bright and vibrant. Great selection of taps featuring regional craft. Great service too. Friendly, definitely worth a stop.“

stevoj 431 days ago

“Quiet on a Sunday afternoon. Great selection of house and regional casks. Nice large bar, lots of comfy booths. Great vibe overall“

stevoj 432 days ago

“Stopped in after GBBF Winter. Afternoon, pretty bustling on a Saturday afternoon. Lively crowd, but was able to find a seat and enjoy my first cask Bass. The usual crowd and TV noise. Classic pub feel“

stevoj 432 days ago

“Stopped in with Cheeseboard after GBBF Winter. Small, cozy place. Serving bar, low tables up front, high tables in the back. Great selection of taps as well as a cooler for on or off premise consumption. Felt very welcome here.“

stevoj 432 days ago

“Cozy and comfortable two room old skool pub with a decent range of well kept beers.“

Travlr 432 days ago

“Pretty interesting place with lots of nooks and crannies, more of an old school place with mainly Joule's handpumps and outdoor toilets.“

Travlr 432 days ago

“Smallish place with lots of nooks and crannies. Tiny elevated serving bar. Decent outside area looks a bit makeshift but worked well. Nice selection of mainly local beers on. Met Badger from Britains got Talent here and he sang a lasagne song and Protein Jolene for us, adding one point to the Ambiance score.“

Travlr 432 days ago

“Visit on Thursday 16th Feb 3032. This is quite a difficult review for me as I know how hard it is to put on a Festival such as this and how much effort unpaid volunteers put in to make it work. We turned up with advance tickets around 40 minutes before scheduled opening time, two queues had developed, town side for ticket holders and the other side for walk ups. Smartly our tickets were checked in our queue before opening to try and smooth entry however this moved the pinch point to the voucher and glass distribution area causing quite a bottle-neck. It took us some 10 minutes to get through there. It turned out that the far room where seating would normally be found, and the cider bar is situated, was shut off for the Winter Ales beer tasting panel. This meant that the only seating available was in the food area which quickly became choc-a-block, I was with someone who is disabled and really needed a seat, so we piled into there too. Shortly afterwards one of the stewards came round saying that only people buying food could sit in the room, sorry but not a single person moved and those that did buy food were not at all impressed with it. The main beer hall quickly became full and there was constant queueing for each of the beer bays right from the start. I was impressed with the big banners above each bay giving a list of what breweries were available in there. The serving staff didn't seem to have much room to move about. I noticed that there was some seating up in the gods above the main hall, but this had filled pretty quickly. The beers that I had were all in pretty good condition, a tribute to those running the cellaring. Whilst there is a voucher system running it became apparent that you could also pay by contactless, so I hadn't needed to spend an age to get new vouchers, sold in £10 lots. The queue for the gents quickly developed, reaching back into the corridor. I was told that there was room in the building for 800 people and that 900 tickets had been sold out for each day. I suspect that they don't want them to turn up at the same time. I suspect that the Burton Town Hall isn't really suitable for a National Camra event such as this and that the only reason it functioned was due to the hard work put in by the volunteers. I won't return if it is held in the same venue next year.“

imdownthepub 434 days ago

“This is one of the oldest pubs in Burton and is found in the market square close to the impressive St. Modwen's Church. It has had a chequered history by all accounts but is now owned by Fownes Brewery and has been smartened up. It is a friendly bar, however the interior has lost a lot of its history having been opened up. Around half the casks are from Fownes then there are guest ales to be had. The keg fonts are on the far end of the bar with a few interesting choices. Restricted opening hours currently. Certainly worth a look now with some of the better beers in town.“

imdownthepub 524 days ago

“Large, quite gloomy Wetherspoons in the main shopping area in Burton. I went in as I had arrived a little early in Burton and before Noon this is the only game in town for beer. There is a long bar to the right once you are in, reasonably quick service with the pub about half full. Good mix of customers from pensioners through to the kindergarten push chair brigade. The beers are mostly the generic Spoons regulars but there was a couple of local guest beers which proved to be winners for me, nice condition too.“

imdownthepub 524 days ago

“Central location, in the High Street of the town. We came here early on a Friday eve after a pub crawl in Burton-on-Trent. Busy and noisy, but we got what we came for; some food and a couple of festival beers on cask. Half of the 12 HP were devoted to the spoon's October festival '22. Okay traditional JDW with polite service. (Visited with Finn 14.10.2022).“

Rune 544 days ago

“A pub full of charming atmosphere with dark furniture and classic pub interiors. No music at our stay. Beers are served from HP and gravicask. Outlet for the Joules Brewery, with six of their beers on. Polite service. Only a few minutes walk from the train station. (Visited with Finn 14.10.2022).“

Rune 544 days ago

“A classic, old school, and cozy British pub with a bar serving two rooms. Ten cask ales on offer, many of them from breweries in the surrounding area. Not far from the railway station. Polite service and a friendly vibe on a Friday afternoon. (Visited with Finn, 14.10.2022).“

Rune 544 days ago

“Central located pub and shop, colourful decorated both on the outside and on the inside, with flags from Bayern and other German related symbols. Lots of German bottled beers available in the shop section at the entrance of a long room. The serving bar had 20 beers on taps and four HP. For us it was interesting to a see three Norwegian beers among the tap menu, sold for about half of the price compared with Norwegian prices. We were told that the Norwegian Brewery Amundsen soon would have a TTO at this place. Good Friday Octoberfest vibe with German oompah music at our stay. Friendly service. Recommended. (Visited with Finn 14.10.2022).“

Rune 544 days ago

“Interesting, different pub. Good selection. Lots of rooms. Nice outdoor seating.“

Finn 560 days ago

“Well kept pub with a lot of rooms. Limited beer selection.“

Finn 560 days ago

“A pub with good selection. A lot of bottles/cans to take away. Recommended.“

Finn 560 days ago

“This is the old Fuggle and Nugget premises. The High Street address is a bit misleading as it’s not exactly in the town centre. About two thirds of the way out to the Burton Bridge Inn, on the left hand side as you head out. It’s a similar sort of place to Fuggle & Nugget, but more craft beer oriented – and it does have a bar ! Fairly basically decorated with turquoise walls, grey ceiling and brewery related photos on the walls. Seating is by bench / chair / stool round tables down each side. The comfy seats are up a step in the front window ! Bar is at the rear on the right, and there’s a basic beer “garden” out the back. There are three handpumps on the bar, serving an everchanging range of mainly local beers. In the wall behind there are about 12 craft keg taps. Range varies from traditional (e.g. Thornbridge,) through established (e.g. Pollys) to obscure (e.g. Play Brew). I’m told there is a range of ciders as well. There a TV screen with the current beer list by the bar. Food consists of pork pies ! As yet, I’ve only been here during Burton Ale Trail weeks, but I can certainly recommend it at those times. Ticks aplenty are awaiting. “

Martinsh 592 days ago

“Micropub in an old shop on Burton’s “main drag” (station to Wetherspoons). Copule of minutes walk from the station, between Roebuck and Devonshire Arms. Can easily be missed if not open. The single room is narrow with bench seating down each side (but a large round table in the window). At the back there is a step up to what passes for a bar, but is usually used to prop up the proprietor whilst he pontificates ! Behind that there is the “cellar” behind a glass partition. There is also a beer “garden” out back which consists of a gravelled area with kegs and paltters scattered about to use as chairs and tables. (Better than it sounds). The beer list is on the right hand wall, with copious notes. Usually 4 or 5 cask beers available (all on gravity), plus a craft keg or two. Craft ciders are also available. There is a focus on local (Derbyshire / Staffordshire) beers from small obscure breweries. On my last visit there were five beers at over 7% available – but I think that was a one off. Beer quality is excellent. Prices are reasponable for the weaker beers. The only food is bar snacks. Excellent place with a great atmosphere. “

Martinsh 781 days ago

“Slightly surprised to find no previous reviews of this place, though it is pretty much unsung. I’m told it used to be pretty rough, and it does still look a bit dodgy from the outside. I only discovered it when I had a long wait for a train. Turn right outside the station – and it’s the first building you come across. Being on a corner, it’s a slightly strange crescent shgape, but you don’t notice that at all once inside. From the mian road entrance, the bar is straight ahead to the left, and is heavy with wooden panelling. Seating is in intimate clusters at the front and down the right hand side of the long thin room. Broken by another door halfway down offering entrance from a side street. It looks like an old style boozer – and it is. The bar has 8 handpumps, though at least one is usually a cider. Four of the pumps are pretty mainstream beers (Bass, Pedigree, Abbot, Old Peculier) but the others usually include at least one beer from Gates Burton Brewery. In fact it’s the unofficial Gates Burton brewery tap – and Mr Gates may well be there drinking his beer ! Quality of all the beers is usually excellent. Bar food is limited to pork pies. This is what a traditional pub ought to be like – each time I visit it goes up in my estimation ! Incidentally, they sometimes have Roebuck Brewery beers here – but that is named after a different Roebuck several miles away ! “

Martinsh 781 days ago

“A micropub based in a small strange shaped former railway building. Easiest way there is to turn left outside the station, then right and the cross roads, and then double back on yourself at the first entrance on the right. [ There is a slightly quicker way there, but it’s not quicker back is it invoves steep steps ] As above, a small long thin single storey building. The entrance is one of the doors on the right which says “We are Open” on it. Otherwise it isn’t obvious that they are open ! The bar is left through another door. It’s long, thin and occupies half the room. A bit more space at the end of the room, where there is (in season) an open fire. There’s another small simply furnished room beyond that which has its own fire. There are four handpumps on the bar. Usually at least one is from Muirhouse, but the others are from small breweries nationwide. There are a couple of craft keg beers on the wall to the right. Normally only bar snacks in terms of food, but when I visited they were offering “cheese boxes” for £5, as part of the Burton Ale Trail. A nice enough place, but seemed to lack a bit of atmosphere. “

Martinsh 782 days ago

“A very enjoyable afternoon in this cosy 17th century pub, full range of Burton Bridge beers available“

Jerseyislandbeer 895 days ago

“Black Country Ales pub at the south end of the town centre – a black and white half-timbered building. From the main entrance the bar is straight ahead, and is fronted by amazingly intricate wooden carvings. There are some seats to the right and rather more to the left. Walls are cream above olive green tiling, with maroon plush benches around the outer walls. The beer selection is the expected Black Country beers / ciders / guests, about 10 in this case. However, there is more emphasis on craft keg here than in other BCA pubs (about 5 taps). The down side is that frequently at least a couple of the beers are “sorry, just gone”. Also, the bar staff have always seemed to me to be surly and stand-offish. And it does seem a very cliquey place, with the small coterie of regulars all knowing each other. Not my favourite BCA pub by a long chalk. “

Martinsh 968 days ago

“Always thought this place looks a bit like a dolls house ! Mainly due to it’s shape which is pretty much that of a cube. Painted in green and white and situated on Burton’s “main drag” from the railway station to town centre / Wetherspoons. The cubic emphasis continues inside as well, with the rooms in the shape and the bar (which juts out into 2 rooms) as well. Red seating around perimeter walls and old prints etc on wall – including huge map of Burton in 19th century. A Burton Bridge house so the range of 7/8 cask beers includes 3 of theirs. On my last visit these were joined by Bass, a Gatesburton beer and two guests. Beware, handpumps are split between each half of the bar – full list is on the wall. The only food available is on Tuesday evenings when they have “theme nights” (e.g. steak, fish, burgers). However these are currently booked up three months in advance ! Friendly atmosphere and service. Only downside is that that it isn’t open weekday lunchtimes. Always worth checking out for a tick or two. “

Martinsh 1309 days ago

“Classic time-warp pub that is the spiritual home of Bass. It was originally the brewery’s directors club. Now, part of the Joule’s estate, though thankfully they haven’t changed it at all. An idiosyncratic place, full of little nooks and crannies. I’ve been here a few times now, and am still discovering rooms I hadn’t noticed before. Anyway, from the front entrance you plough straight ahead through and old time basic boozer, with upholstered settles, grainy tables and beer memorabilia on the walls. At the end you reach the holy of holies. A minute bar on the left, and on the rear wall several casks racked up for gravity dispense. Much of the rest of the back wall is covered by signs denoted what beers are available. On the right there is a long low bench against the walls and a couple of upturned barrels. You can retire here with your beer, or else return to the many rooms you’ve walked straight past ! As for the beer, there are three handpumps – which serve Joules beers. Plus four or five beers served from the racked casks. Bass is always one of these – the others are guest beers. As you might expect from such an establishment, the only food is bar snacks. Unless you are an obsessive ticker, you will definitely find something of interest here. And on my last visit I got a brewery tick anyway (Bowness Bay). Almost forgot. The toilets are behind the rear wall of the bar – but to reach them you have to go back, out the side door and past a small outdoor drinking area. “

Martinsh 1493 days ago

“Interesting pub just across the overshadowing towers of evil empire across the road. Multiple rooms, fireplace, nice beer signs hanged on the walls, but still the interior seemed a bit basic. Probably because we were only guests. Nine casks, 1 keg and several bag in a box ciders. Beers were good, both quality and condition. We had a pie which was quite good. Nice place, worth visiting.“

Iznogud 1581 days ago

“The Devonshire Arms is a decent beer pub, but it's also a wonderfully pleasant place to be. The staff and clientele are very friendly, and the traditional two-room layout creates a spacious atmosphere. It's a Burton Bridge Pub, with a few house beers and a good number of guests. The beer is in brilliant condition, and though they lean toward the traditional side, the beers here are from decent breweries such as Wincle, Dorset, and Whim. It's close enough to the train station to warrant a look, although you may stay longer than intended.“

jjsint 1799 days ago

“This is one of the better beer stores I've been to lately. It's not very big, but almost every beer they carry is one I'd want to drink. The great and the good of Midlands breweries (Titanic, Ashover, Blue Monkey) are joined by craft from the UK, Estonia (Põhjala, Sori) the US (Founders, Wicked Weed, Jolly Pumpkin) and Germany. Big cold fridge for drinking in or taking away, and they'll be getting some taps in soon. On the expensive side - about 20% on to what I'd pay at my local craft beer shop - but well worth it. Very highly recommended.“

jjsint 1799 days ago

“Handsome looking half timbered 19th century building in the centre of Burton. Black Country Ales-run, but without the entire emphasis on their own ales, thankfully. A solid range of other cask, both modern and traditional, with 6 kegs devoted to thornbridge, kernel, Ridgeside and others of their ilk. 6 box ciders, though 4 were fruity Rosie's Pig. We sat admiring the ornate wooden carvings running along the kick board of the bar. Every spare bit of wall and ceiling throughout the pub boasting beer pumpclips, and an eclectic selection they seem have had too. Nice modern pub with something for everyone it seems.“

minutemat 1801 days ago

“Another old Burton alehouse with a pleasing look from outside, ivy creeping up the worn brick facade around the Burton Bridge sign. Traditional in feel, the bar straddles two seperate rooms, with cask range focussed on Burton Bridge beers, brewed directly behind the pub. Nice relaxing atmosphere.“

minutemat 1801 days ago

“Lovely old remnant from Burton's brewing heydays when most of the town consisted of breweries and rail lines (as illustrated in the National Brewery Centre!). The front stares out somewhat melancholically to the imposing steel FV tanks of the Molson Coors brewery opposite. Inside it does feel like stepping back into those 19th Century glory days, lots of cosy seating areas, and plenty of Bass mirrors and posters adorning the walls. There are two narrow outside seating areas to the left and right of the building, joined by a walkway through the middle of the pub. Around 8 or so cask on offer, some gravity, with around half devoted to Joules, half to guest. One box cider. The mild special had just finished, so I got a Dancing Duck. Nice old pub with atmosphere. Pork pies and individually wrapped cheese fingers available too.“

minutemat 1801 days ago

“Visited here in May 2018. Nice selection of beers made more impressive by the number of unusual ones such as Greece and a range from Portugal which I had not seen before. Service was friendly and prices reasonable. The only down side was that it is surronded by double yellow lines. You have to park around the corner on a meter which is a minimum of 80 pence. One I will hopefully visit again.“

johndoughty 2156 days ago

“A micro pub close to the railway station and railway bridge, looks like it was a shop previously. Bijou is the current term for size but we all got in okay. There is a blackboard with their current offerings and what is coming next, popular with Football Fans on match days but all very amiable. Last port of call for us before the coach home so a touch hazy but a must do in a great beer town.“

imdownthepub 2188 days ago

“A relatively new pub, not sure I would call it a micro pub myself but it works to that style. 4 Changing beers quite often from Wentwell Brewery that has a tie to the pub. Bright and airy but comfortable as well, there is a friendly atmosphere. It was tricky to find for us as I had lost my map by this point but cross the Railway Bridge and keep going right. Well worth a look see.“

imdownthepub 2188 days ago

“Nov '22 update. This is now more bar than bottle shop and just as good as before but obviously in a different way. Several tables for tasting the beers. It has the widest range of beers in town. Apr '18 review. This is a bottle shop just a short walk from the National Brewery Centre towards the Railway Station, so handy to pick up some winners on your way home. It is bright, spotlessly clean and well laid out in an easily found shop on Station Street. The range is very good indeed, loads of choice from the UK but mainly across Europe and the USA from rarely seen breweries here. I recommend it highly. Not sure if they ship beers.“

imdownthepub 2188 days ago

“This is a traditional, old (17th Century) ale house, rambling but with 2 main rooms to the front and back. Owned by Burton Bridge beers and only their own beers on sale. The Barman was chatty and helpful throughout our visit, joining in any banter that was going. Despite the limited range of beers this is a must visit pub. The pork pies are excellent.“

imdownthepub 2189 days ago