Pub Walk - With A Little Bit Of History

19/01/2022

The Old George in Newcastle. Lovely pub known to be frequented by King Charles I back in the day. I'm having another Jakehead IPA here!

If you’re looking for Newcastle’s oldest pub, then make your way to The Old George Inn which dates back to the 16th century boasting royal links. King Charles I was a regular visitor while in an open prison nearby and today they still offer a royal service in this truly spectacular building. Located off the famous Bigg Market, Friday and Saturday nights are not to be missed due to its party atmosphere in the outdoor courtyard where you can dance the night away to live music and DJs.

19/01/2022

Crown Posada is back open! What a pub this is!

Currently sipping on a Jakehead IPA

Now for a little bit of history!

Rebuilt 1880 (architect W.L. Newcombe) for local brewer John Sanderson, this is a three story pub on a narrow site which retains its three drinking areas, one behind the other. The front windows contain two impressive Pre-Raphaelite style stained glass windows which may be by Birmingham artist Edward Burne-Jones and are believed to have been a later addition. One window depicts a lady serving a drink and the other a Tudor gent about to consume it. Originally the Crown, and renamed Crown Posada, legend has it that the pub was bought by a Spanish sea captain for his mistress (Posada is the Spanish word for resting place).

Owners since 1901 are the long-established, family-run business Sir John Fitzgerald, who have made a number of careful refurbishments over the years and much of the fixed leather seating, panelling and other woodwork are likely to be true replicas of the originals. In the 1980s they replaced the windows running down the right-hand side, which only overlooked an alley, with a series of mirrors with mahogany surrounds. Behind the wallpaper are some old wall paintings (claimed to date back to the Spanish Civil War) which see the light of day when the pub is re-decorated approximately every 15 years!

Look for the unusual stone painted blue with carved crown symbol and the word ‘Posada’ on the exterior and the glazed brick lobby with a wrought-iron ‘Crown’ gate. The long narrow interior has a high ornate moulded ceiling with deeply recessed panels. There is a delightful small screened-off snug at the front left-hand side which has lost its door. You can order your drinks from the side of the servery but originally this was covered by a curtain and service was via the tiny hinged stained glass window attached to the bar back. The fixed seating is post war.

The bar fittings are essentially original but have some modern replacements such as the mirrors and stained & leaded panels on top section on the four-bay mahogany bar-back fitting, and the pot shelf is a later addition. Only recently was permission given to replace a small section of the lower bar-back fitting with a couple of small fridges. The two side panels of the screen that separated the front public bar from the rear sitting room remain and have good colourful leaded pictorial panels at the top but, again, the door has been lost.

The last major change was in the early 1950s when new ladies' and gents' toilets were added at the rear (formerly a disused warehouse) and the seating area at the rear was extended slightly. The present fixed seating was likely to have been added in the early 1950s. The gents' has a terrazzo floor and the doors to both the ladies' and gents' are of an inter-war style and, again, could date from the early 1950s.

Music comes from a 1941 turntable record player situated on the bar counter and customers are encouraged to bring their vinyl LP's to play.

12/03/2019

Check out our new video where we visit The Grotto in South Shields, and share some of the awesome history about the place!

Definitely worth a visit!

05/03/2019

Kat visited Amsterdam last week, no videos but she did discover this beauty of a Dutch beer.

Jopen brewery was founded in 1994 and is based in Haarlem. Haarlem has a vast history of brewing beer along the River spaarn, between 1407 and 1916. At it's peak, it had 52 breweries along the river, in the 17th Century and shipped beer throughout The Netherlands and Belgium.
They were the first on record to create the hops beer in 1501 and the first to add gruit (a sweet herb mix) to their recipe and extend the beers shelf life.

The popularity of lager, tea and coffee throughout the 18th and 19th century was unfortunately what killed Haarlems brewing industry.
That was until 1992, when to commemorate the city's 750 year anniversary coming up in 1995, the Haarlem beer society is formed in aim to bring beer back to Haarlem.
With help from local historians and the council's historical archives, Walter Schelfhout finds two beer recipes, from 1407 and 1501 and is able to recreate them.
The 1st beer Jopen was released in 1994. Named after the 112 litre barrels used to ship beer. This one was made from the 1501 recipe found, and in 1995, koyt (brewed from the 1407 recipe) was released.

In the picture, Kat is drinking the white beer, Jopen Adriaan, released in 1997 and named after the De Adriaan windmill that sits on the Spaarn. It was unfortunately destroyed by fire in 1932, however through sales of the beer, Jopen were able rebuild the windmill in 2002, which sits proudly today as a Haarlem landmark.

There is so much history on Haarlem and its beer I think a visit there may be on the cards. 😁.

24/02/2019

Sunday Showcase!

Kriek Mariage Parfait 2016

an Old Style Kriek of exceptional excellence. 400 g of wild cherries per litre are fermented together with a strong Lambic of spontaneous fermentation and aged on 6,200 litre oak foudres (large wooden casks) for 5 to 6 months.
Kriek Mariage Parfait is naturally clarified and referments in the bottle. It is unsweetened, unfiltered, unpasteurised and has no artificial flavours, preservatives or colourings added. Brewed in Lembeek, the village that gave Lambic its name.

Pour slowly in a flute glass without disturbing the yeast sediment in the bottle and enjoy this epitome of traditional Lambic brewing

16/02/2019

Out and about in Sunderland or South Tyneside tonight? Be sure to stop by at some of these places!

Hundreds of real ale lovers have been voting for their favourite pub in Sunderland and South Tyneside.

14/02/2019

Not pub related (although you could impress your friends down the pub with it), but here's a bit of Valentine's day related History for you......

The identity of St Valentine is Shrouded in Mystery. The Catholic Church recognizes three saints under the names Valentine or Valentinus, all whom were martyred under the date 14th February. This was all recorded around the 3rd century.

The most common legend is of the temple Priest St Valentine, beheaded in Ancient Rome around 270 B.C for secretly marrying Christians. Emperor Claudius the 2nd was a Pagan ruler, in a time where Christianity in Rome was on the rise. He believed Single men made more willing and better soldiers, therefore he banned young men getting married. Valentine, against this belief, defied the emperor and wed young couples in secret. When his actions were discovered, he was sent to ex*****on and died on 14th febuary.

Another Legend suggests that Valentine was executed for assisting in an attempted escape of Christian prisoners, who were persecuted for their religion. While in prison himself, he sent the first "Valentine" greeting in a letter to his jailor's daughter, whom he fell in love with. She would visit him often while in confinement, the letter was signed "From your Valentine" a saying still said today.

These legends paint Valentine/'s as a sympathetic, loyal and loving hero. His popularity grew in medieval times and it is believed Valentine's day appeared from there.

12/02/2019

Grannie Annie's (formerly the Smugglers) - Sunderland

Named after the owners gran, it has had a modern make over from the previous establishment Smugglers (of which I spent many a night!)

Since opening in 2017 it has been a big hit with drinkers and dog walkers (it's a dog friendly pub) along Rokers amazing coastline.

It has a great selection of beers gins, and other alcoholic beverages along with a nice food menu

It Also plays live music every Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

11/02/2019

In this video we check out Yorks most haunted pub The Golden Fleece, and discover what ghosts haunt the place!

Thanks for watching, if you like our stuff, please share this video and give us a big fat facebook follow!

09/02/2019

I'll be looking to do a "Notorious Pubs" special segment in the near future where I'll be looking at pubs (both old and current, they don't have to still be in existence) and the gruesome history or famed notoriety they may have endured in the past.

Is there any pubs you can think of that has had a notorious past/gruesome history? please let me know in the comments!

James

08/02/2019

Pub Walk takes to Lafittes Blacksmith Shop Bar in New Orleans where we learn a thing or two about a smuggling operation, talk a little bit about the Battle of New Orleans & try their famous Voodoo Daquiri!

Song Credits:
Sea Shanty: Great Open Sea by Wellington Sea Shanty Society

08/02/2019

It's Friday, Make our Ancestors proud. .