St James Wine Vaults, Bath

With my leg aching and my head fuzzy, notes from here are sparse. Comfy enough traditional feel with a fairly dimly lit interior that stayed on the right side of atmospheric. Four cask; Butcombe, Sharps Atlantic, one I forgot to note and a fair Bass (NBSS 3). As noted below it most certainly isn’t a wine bar, the customers were too salt-of-the-earth for that. According to WhatPub there’s a downstairs bar which plays host to jazz sessions on occasion. I liked it here and it’s worth the trundle up from the Star, as it’s all downhill back to the station from here!

As described by Blackthorn, this is a proper pub with welcoming staff, normal clientele and decent beer, a rare breed in this part of town. From the outside it looks like a 1970s throwback, and the interior décor is dated, but none of that marred the drinking experience. It wasn’t clear how to get into the cellar, so maybe it isn’t in regular use during the afternoon. On draught were Butcombe Original, Atlantic Pale Ale, Pride and Bass, all in good condition. There were also 8 megakeg offerings, and dog biscuits were on offer. I enjoyed this visit and would happily repeat it, though it is a shame it doesn’t open lunchtimes.