I recently took a short trip to check out the scene in the West Yorkshire town of Castleford, where I came across a mix of modern bars and traditional pubs in what is a friendly little place. Read on to find out more....
The last time I had visited Castleford would have been back in the 1980's so when the train from Leeds pulled in to the town's station I have to say I was unsure of my bearings. I'd come here because there were two pubs in the Good Beer Guide that I needed to visit to fill in some gaps, which along with one or two more that I'd spotted on WhatPub? would make up a decent short crawl around what is the fairly compact centre of this town of 45,000 or so which is situated to the south east of Leeds and a few miles north east of Wakefield.
The town is situated close to the confluence of the rivers Aire and Calder and it was here that the Romans built a fort and established the first settlement in the area. The Anglo-Saxons later occupied the area but for centuries it remained as only a small settlement. However, the town's expansion really took off in the 19th century when coal mines were sunk and became established in the area. Other industries developed alongside including the manufacture of pottery, glassmaking, confectionery (Nestle had a site in the town until 2012), and textiles (top fashion brand Burberrys have a factory here), whilst Thomas Fawcett and Sons have been malting barley in Castleford for over 200 years, which today sees them supplying a multitude of brewers large and small, not just in this country but across the globe.
No visitor to Castleford can fail to pick up very quickly that the town is a Rugby League stronghold; from conversations with the locals and pubs with names like the Tap & Tackle, the sport and most particularly support for the Castleford Tigers is in the town's DNA. The team was founded in 1926, and have played at their Wheldon Road ground (later the Jungle) since 1927, and were founder members of the Super League in 1996. Many of the game's greats have played for or coached the team, and many of these were born or lived here; names from over the years like Roger Millward, Keith Hepworth, Alan Hardisty, Stan Kielty, Steve 'Knocker' Norton, and more recently Daryl Powell and Luke Gale. But it's not just a rugby league town; other famous people from other walks of life include sculptor Henry Moore and 1960's pools winner Viv Nicholson who told the media following her win that she was going to "Spend, spend, spend!" And in years gone by the town boasted a multitude of pubs and three night clubs which led to it being nicknamed Cas Vegas.
There are less pubs nowadays, and it didn't take me long to find one of the most iconic, the Junction (opening image), which was less than 5 minutes walk from the station. The pub has an exterior stripped back to reveal tiling and stonework displaying the signage of long-gone Wakefield brewery Beverley Brothers Ltd, who had an estate stretching from West Yorkshire up to Teesside and had been founded in 1888; in their heyday they had over 170 pubs, but then disappeared in 1967, swallowed up by the voracious appetite of Big Six behemoth Watney Mann. It certainly makes for an impressive contrast to a fairly utilitarian and functional town centre with the usual mix of chains, bookies, vape shops, charity shops, and fast food outlets that occupy our high streets these days.
Despite being a pub since 1882, the building was previously home to two chapels and there are reminders as you walk into the traditional interior, from pew-like wooden benches around the sides of the room and an old piano near to a dartboard at the far end of the main room, although to be fair the dartboard is unlikely to date back to those times! The pub consists of a large L-shaped room with the bar midway on the right, with many traditional features, along with open fires for the cooler months. To the right as you go in is a snug featuring a traditional brick fireplace complete with stove with dark wood surrounds, and with ceramic dogs, an old clock, and candelabras on the mantlepiece, and along with old wooden tables and captain's chairs, old books, boardgames, and plenty of quirky touches, it has the look of a room from decades ago.
What draws many visitors here though is the fact that the cask beers are normally served from wooden barrels which are owned by the pub. The barrels are filled by a number of breweries who do not have their own stock, and typically the bar will feature beers from the likes of Daleside, Old Mill, and Stancill through the 6 hand pumps which line the bar, although on my visit there were only 3 beers available, all from Stancill. I ordered a pint of their 4.3% Stainless which is a pale hoppy ale featuring Cascade and First Gold hops giving a refreshing citrus flavour and a floral aroma. It was good value; I paid £3.50 cash for it (they don't do card) to the friendly lass who was on bar duty. I enjoyed my pint as I drank it sat at a table near the entrance, and reckoned it was a 3 on the National Beer Scoring System. The pub was a fairly quiet; there was a group sat at a table just on from me, another table was occupied by a couple of blokes to the other side of the bar, around which was a changing cluster of blokes chewing the fat over their pints.
I went back to the bar for a second pint, only this time I opted for a pint of Sumo, a 5.5% ABV strong pale ale featuring a blend of 4 hop varieties - Fuggles, Challenger, North Down, and Citra. It had more body than the Stainless and delivered a punchy flavour with berry and pine notes, with an underlying depth which I suspect was down to the wooden cask. I rated as another NBSS 3. The Junction is a must-visit if you are in Castleford, and if you like your beer from wooden casks, this is the place to be. And take some time to look around at the many traditional features of this fine pub.
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| The Junction, Castleford |
I left the Junction, and headed down towards the river where I came across a modern bar based within an old mill. Yorkshire Craft Ales was busy, with tables in the yard out front occupied by punters enjoying the early evening sun. I walked in to a busy modern bar, with shelving along two sides of the room chock-full with bottles and cans from a vast array of brewers. There was an annoying straight-line queue as I walked in, whilst to my left were a few tables where most of the occupants were enjoying a drink whilst watching the local team struggling against Super League rivals, Leeds Rhinos, who eventually ran out as winners by 32 points to 4. When I got to the bar, I spotted a hand pump with a beer I didn't recognise, and instead from the craft ales on offer I went for a half of the 4.3% Under the Manhole Cover, a hazy NEIPA from Bini who, having started out in Ilkley, now operate in Leeds. A pleasant drink in a nice modern bar with a good vibe, and I got the distinct impression that this was something of a local destination for lovers of craft beer.
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| Yorkshire Craft Ales, Castleford |
Now regular readers will know I have no time for outspoken bouffant-coiffured, Kiwi-born Tim Martin, who heads the ubiquitous JD Wetherspoon chain, and for that reason I rarely visit any of his pubs other than when faced with absolutely no alternative, or when I visit my family in the North East where one of my granddaughters is a huge fan. But when I walked past the impressive former post office that is now the home of the Glass Blower, the local branch of Tim's estate, I was moved to go in and check it out. The beer range though was very ordinary; the usual Spoons fare of Ruddles Best, Greene King Abbot, and Doom Bar was all there, with no locally-brewed ales on offer, and so making the most of a bad job I ordered a half of Exmoor Gold, the only beer from an independent on offer. It was right enough (NBSS 3), but as a beer I have to say it is sadly a bland and emasculated shadow of its former self, when its arrival on the bar would generate ripples, nay waves, of excitement. A bit like this pub: the interior was disappointingly lacking in any distinct character considering the impressive building in which it sat, but to be fair there was a pleasant outside drinking area to the side and rear which was pretty well occupied.
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| Impressive building; the Glass Blower, Castleford |
I headed off and a few minutes later I was at the Market Tap, on Carlton Street and close to the skeletal frames of the town's market stalls. However, the shutters of this modern bar based in a former pawnbrokers were firmly down which at just after 6 on a Saturday evening wasn't a good sign. According to the latest edition of the local CAMRA magazine, the excellent O to K, it had recently been taken over by new owners so who knows, but unfortunately I wasn't able to call in on this visit.
I walked further along Carlton Street and just round a corner I came across the second of Castleford's Good Beer Guide entries. Based in a former shop unit and next door to a tanning salon, the Doghouse is the second pub owned by the family-run Little Black Dog brewery which is based in Snaith (the other pub is the similarly-monikered Doghouse in Selby). And unlike some micropubs it is quirkily decorated with old song lyrics and other hand-painted artwork on the walls, giving it a warm and cosy feel. There were two guys on behind the bar, both friendly and welcoming. There were no Little Black Dog beers on though, at least not on any of the six hand pumps, so from a range which also featured beers from Taylors and Saltaire I went for a pint of Selby Bitter from the Jolly Sailor brewery. This 3.8% amber beer has a caramel malty base with an overlying bitterness from the use of Goldings hops, and was well-balanced and quaffable, and maintained the consistency of the beers I'd had during this trip (NBSS 3). And by way of a contrast with the Junction, there was a sign on the bar saying contactless and card payments only.
I walked back along through the quiet streets towards the station, arriving with a few minutes to spare before my train departed. There was already a train in on Platform 1, which was the platform where I'd alighted when I arrived, so I assumed that the train back to Leeds would be leaving from Platform 2. Now I did wonder why the bridge over the line had so many pigeons strutting around as if they owned the place, and I did question the efficiency of the station cleaning regime as I picked my way gingerly through a mass of pigeon droppings, but it was only when I'd made it to the other side, was on my own, and no train had appeared that it dawned on me - the train I needed was leaving from Platform 1! And just as I realised, with a cough and a revving of the engine, the waiting train started to move, leaving me stranded on the wrong side of the tracks!
I picked my way back over the bridge, and with 28 minutes to kill before the next train I headed over to the pub at the side of the station car park. Imaginatively called the Station the pub was heaving. No real ale on the bar, only J*hn $m!ths $m**th on keg, so I ordered an emergency half of Carling from the friendly lass behind the bar. Outside it was sunny and just after 7pm, but in here it felt like 11 at night as there was a proper old-fashioned disco with DJ in full swing and several folk were leaping around and throwing some pretty impressive shapes! But it was a great atmosphere and everybody was super-friendly, so it wasn't a bad way to wait for the train! Which duly arrived on Platform 1, and from where it left, drawing an enjoyable if short visit to Castleford to a close....
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