Hub Marketing: Pick of the Pubs - Part One

Having cast a critical eye over Hub Marketing history when considering his Top Ten Trips last month, Chairman D9 has since been tasked with pondering the best and worst pubs from those we've frequented over the past nine and a bit years. He has contemplatively compiled two Top 20 charts for our delectation so I'll start today by revealing what made positions 20 to 11 in the Best Pubs category...

- Charlemont Bowling Club -

Before we commence the main countdown, let's pause to consider a club climber. D9 and I do like to visit the occasional social club should a suitable opportunity arise, and during June 2015 we were delighted to sample the Charlemont Bowling Club on the Charlemont Farm estate near West Bromwich. It was a case of Dark Mild in the Function Room as the Chairman considered himself transported back in time to the 1980s. 

#20 >>> the chart proper begins with another throwback kind of place, the Charles Napier in Palfrey. We weren't even sure it was still trading so August 2019 saw us dropping lucky for a pint of Brew XI amidst the Milton Street terraces. The public bar here was decked out with an array of football scarves (British and continental) although a Walsall FC allegiance was definitely apparent.

- The Timbertree -

#19 >>> straight in at number 19 is the Timbertree near Cradley Heath. A typical estate boozer, it was located on Valley Road close to the local shops and was for many years a regular haunt of the Chairman's Uncle Les. We included it as part of our June 2012 Cradley Circuit, experiencing some John Smith's bleach in the spartan front bar. Sadly the pub has since been demolished to make way for housing.

#18 >>> another pub to have subsequently fallen on hard times is the Happy Wanderer on the Stowlawn estate, which nonetheless registers at number 18. Two trips spring to mind here, a Yew Tree and Bilston circuit in March 2012 followed by CSI West Bromwich in May 2016, both occasions being a no-nonsense experience. It was fun playing darts and making the acquaintance of the resident mannequin (Mr D9 could do with her blonde wig to cover up his bald spot), while a display of Wolverhampton Wanderers ticket stubs was very much to the Secretary's liking. 

#17 >>> next up is an Edwardian establishment that harks back to the heyday of Coventry's automotive industry. The Humber Hotel is a handsome Arts & Crafts landmark that for many years had car factories for close company. We've called by a couple of times without ever quite managing to get in a game of bagatelle, the Humber being one of the very few pubs that retained a table as part of the Coventry Bagatelle League (is that still going?)

- The Old Sticky Wicket -

#16 >>> just from the choices thus far you'll have gathered that D9 has a certain fondness for the most memorable 'ordinary' pubs. That's not to say we don't appreciate the absolute classic real ale establishments (we still love the Beacon Hotel and the Bull & Bladder for example), but the hallmark of Hub Marketing days out is getting around those flat-roofed specials the Chairman so enthuses about. And let's face it, roofs don't come much flatter than that at the Old Sticky Wicket in Matchborough, scene of some darts exploits during last year's Redditch Good Friday extravaganza. 

#15 - also firmly ensconced in the Chairman's affections is the Wonder at Tividale, which for a while was one of his local pubs when he lived around Regent Road. One of our earliest Hub haunts, it featured during the March 2011 Oldbury outing when we admired the traditional hand-painted signage and supped quality Marston's Pedigree. The Wonder also made an impression in January 2013 when we scrambled up the side of Netherton Tunnel (the north portal of which is directly to the rear of the pub) in search of pepperpot ventilation shafts. 

- The North Star -

#14 >>> there had to be some Birmingham stuff somewhere on the listing and sure enough we now declare the North Star at Stechford as number 14. The Secretary remembers taking pictures of this when it was the Star Members Club and never thought he'd be brave enough to one day set foot inside. Fast forward a few years and that unexpected moment came to pass as part of our Outer Circle endeavours in March 2017 - I was pleasantly surprised to discover a welcoming interior and a decent drop of M&B Mild.

#13 >>> sticking with Birmingham we switch our attention to Sparkhill where the Bear has been a long-time bastion of the Stratford Road. This proved a highly appropriate target during the September 2017 Big Sleuth trail which had seen us spotting bear sculptures at NEC Resorts World and in Solihull. The Carling in here could have come with a 99 flake such was the ice cream-like peak of froth atop our respective glasses. 

- The Bear -

#12 >>> three Brummie boozers in a row it seems as the much-lamented Eagle & Tun parks itself at number 12. Mr D9 adored the musical heritage here (UB40 more so than Ed Sheeran admittedly) and the terracotta trappings were also impressive so it's a real shame that the place is set to become a casualty of the HS2 project. March 2016 gave us an initial taste of what is due to be flattened, but it was in January 2020 that we made a special journey to say goodbye just a few hours before it closed for good. Here's the bald spot paying its own little tribute...

- An Eagle & Tun Bald Spot -

#11 >>> so which unlucky contender finds itself perched just outside the higher echelons of the chart? Missing the top ten by a whisker is the Weighbridge at Alvechurch, a canalside cracker that we savoured both in September 2013 (the South Birmingham Rovers day) and February 2015 (when a certain Nick Esq was also in attendance en route to the Redditch Beer Festival). The rest of the rundown will be revealed in due course...