By Adrian Tierney-Jones 12:35PM BST 28 Apr 2011
It sits on a nondescript road, its solid confident Victorian architecture towering over the bland Sixties boxes that surround it. The simple quote “You Brew Good Ale” is proudly painted across its brow, a Shakespearean exhortation (from Two Gentlemen of Verona, if you want to establish the context) to enter and cast all the cares of the day behind.
On a Saturday lunchtime, it’s not a difficult decision. I push open the door and walk into a lively hum of conversation.
The Vine is the brewery tap for Batham’s, which produces its traditional Black Country mild and bitter in the adjoining brewery. It moved here in 1877: this was originally a slaughterhouse, hence the pub’s local nickname, the Bull & Bladder. They did a good job of converting it and, thankfully, have had the good sense to leave it be.
Inside it’s a wealth of Victorian pub ambience: green tiled front corridor, coloured and engraved glass partitions, mirrors, ornate carvings, a massive mahogany fitting behind the bar counter, sparkling and shining with bottles and mirrors.
The front bar is a parlour-like den of dark wood and framed photos. Regulars sit and contemplate their pints; but the moment you order a pint, you’re initiated into Clan Vine. It’s one of the friendliest pubs I’ve ever been in.
RELATED ARTICLES
Northumberland pub guide: Twice Brewed Inn, Bardon Mill 14 Apr 2011
How pub quizzes are all the rage 09 Apr 2010
Beer should be the lifeblood of any village 19 Jun 2010
Sussex pub guide: The Lewes Arms, Sussex 12 Apr 2010
The Great British Pint 09 Apr 2010
Kavanagh’s in Dublin 12 Mar 2010
“Come far?” asks the chap next to me, in a rich Black Country burr. I tell him that I’ve made a bit of a pilgrimage and he nods approvingly. “We get a lot of people coming here from all over the country; they like the fact it’s a proper pub.” He lifts up his glass of mild — dark with crimson edges glittering in the light.
In the lounge across the corridor, the hubbub is more controlled as voices discuss football prospects and racing tips. A man in the corner tucks into his cheese and ham cob with obvious delight. There’s a family room next door with children eating pasties and chips. The back bar features that most pleasurable of equations: Saturday lunchtime civilisation = a pint and a paper. Batham’s Mild is light, creamy, crisp and biscuity. If you hanker after something stronger, try the sprightly Best Bitter with its cream cracker dryness of a finish.
Grub is straightforward but filling (served solely at lunch): pasties and cob rolls are simple pleasures but I plumped for the magnificence of faggot and chips (£2.50).
You do brew good beer, Batham’s, and The Vine is a good pub. Better than good actually — it has a quality of timelessness that marks out the very best of English pubs.
The Vine, Delph Road, Brierley Hill, West Midlands (01384 78293)
via West Midlands pub guide: The Vine, Brierley Hill – Telegraph.
