The White Lion, Bridgnorth

In the centre of the historic market town of Bridgnorth is The White Lion, a pub which, according to a sandwich board a bit further down the road is “home to Bridgnorth’s only working microbrewery. Outside the pub, a board on the wall tells us that the pub dates from the 1640’s and is classical late Georgian in design. There’s the inevitable tale about a White Lady ghost – apparently a benign spirit. Inside, a small staple shaped bar counter decorated with hops serves a number of adjoining, but different, areas. An area just inside the door on the left has a dartboard, several circular tables and stools and a rather odd looking painted mural on the wall depicting an old SVR train railway carriage bound for Llandudno. The area on the right is comfortable and carpeted and traditionally furnished and features a tree decorated with fairy lights, the branches of which have started to lean over, having reached the height of the low ceiling. A further area, round the far side of the bar has beer mats on the black beams and several comfortable seating booths. In summary, it’s largely a rather unremarkable reasonably traditional interior except for the addition of a few quirky modern touches. Outside, passing through what was evidently the former coaching inn entrance is a lawned garden which incorporates a separate play area with equipment for kiddies. In a smokers shelter, leaning rather forlornly against the wall, is the old pub sign, indicating that The White Lion was formerly a Banks pub. On the wall of the pub, we see a large rather artistic wall mural depicting the green countryside and fields full of sheep. It’s a pub that seems to be trying to cover most angles which, from my experience, generally means that there are times when such a pub is best avoided. For instance, we see advertised a Pirate Night and Rum Tasting Evening and we learn that, if we are judged to be the best dressed pirate, we can win some grog. Continuing the theme, should we wish to participate in this event, we must cough up 20 doubloons ( pounds ?). The pub is now the home of the Hop and Stagger Brewery, whose strapline, according to their beermmats is “Staggeringly Good Beer”. A small leaflet on the bar counter tells us that their first brew was born on 21 April 2012 – coming up for 6 months ago. On my recent mid-September lunchtime visit, Hop and Stagger’s Golden Wander was on plus Ludlow Gold, Pardoes Original, Wye Valley Butty Bach and Salopian Lemon Dream. In response to the friendly landlady asking me what I thought of the Golden Wander, I told her I thought it was rather unremarkable, to which, somewhat surprisingly, she implicitly agreed. She did say that, if I were around at the weekend ( which I wouldn’t be ), I should pop in and try the Ruby, which is apparently, a more popular stronger beer. Several posters dotted around the place advertise the pubs past Winter beer festivals. The pub has been in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide for a number of years now – these precede the birth on the on site microbrewery obviously. On the other side of the coaching inn entrance is the Hop and Stagger bottled ale and farm cider shop where we can stock up on takewaways should we so wish. My experience of Bridgnorth pubs is unfortunately limited to this one plus the splendid Railwayman’s Arms in the Low Town. Walking around the town, I saw quite a few pubs that seemed, externally at least, worth a look, - and Bridgnorth has as many as 7 pubs in the 2012 GBG - but, nevertheless, I think I’d want to do this one again next time I’m in Bridgnorth