Social Trip Nottingham 27th December by Rick Graham

Five Pubs are visible in this photo of Canning Circus

‘I am just going out and may be some time’, said Rick as he headed out into the snow and ice to catch the Nottingham train.
‘How long will you be?’ said Amanda.
‘Well no more than five or six hours I suppose’.
‘In that case I’m coming with you’, she replied (a bit like in the TV ad, except I’ve a feeling that that ad was for lager).
And despite the snow overnight, what a successful trip it was. Joined by a large Amber Valley contingent and one from Derby even smaller than that of Matlock, a small army of CAMRA members besieged the Derby Road/ Ilkestone Road real ale epicentre (actually there are probably other epicentres in Nottingham, but 7 pubs within a few hundred yards must be some sort of epicentre).
And what great pubs – we visited the Ropewalk, Sir John Borlase, Falcon and Organ Grinder, leaving the Hand and Heart and Hawksley for next time, even though they’re only next door.

Of course getting thirsty to and from the station Ye Old Trip (well I’d never been there before), Crafty Crow and Malt Cross were also looked in on.
Many ales were supped, but the Organ Grinder (Blue Monkey Brewery Tap) was my favourite, with a superb Bonobo black IPA.

Most pubs were serving a number of seasonal beers. A mistake in my humble opinion, as every “Ho Ho Ho’s”, “Jingle Bells”, and “Red Nose Reindeer”’s seem to taste maltily the same to me. However sweeping these aside, many other quality beers were still on offer.
A final mystery: why do so many of the pubs seem to have their back bars carved into sandstone caves? Not so puzzling if, like Ye Old Trip, you’re nestling a rock face, but these just look like normal pubs in terraced streets without a cliff behind that I could see. Maybe that was it: I couldn’t see. A mystery to be solved on our next visit.