I simply walk straight out of a pub if they don't have hand pulls or craft ales. Don't care for either cider or lager. Like stout from time to time. Would never drink wine or spirits in a pub. The number of ale offerings has risen significantly in recent years, but I'd still only set foot in about a quarter of the region's pubs.
I see one of my favourite pre match pubs has been crowned 2015 Tyneside Real Ale Pub of the Year, Bodega on West Gate Road, well worth a visit and always a great selection of Ales, even have had some hand pulled lagers which are well worth trying if you come across them.
Yeah I like the Bodega. Long time since I've been in mind but they always had a good selection. I don't really drink ale anymore. I drink a lot of rum now.
Gets quite on my tits the use of the word "real" before the word ale. How pretentious and arrogant can you get? Beardy CAMRA types also get on my tits. That said, after a life-time of disliking warm, flat, turgid beer, I'm slowly finding one or two that I like, mostly through the emergence of the craft beer market offering more palatable options. I think the majority of "real" ales are fowl, dirty, unrefreshing pish though tbh and brewers get away with basically producing literally anything and giving it a jolly name and logo for the pump and idiots lapping it up as if it's something incredible.
Love a Bodega and Tilley's mate. Often walk back and forth between them. The ceiling in the bodega is sublime.
