The Little George and Bent's Brew House, Stafford

Visited in May 2010 The George is a 17th Century coaching inn situated at the central crossroads in the attractive Staffordshire town of Eccleshall. Despite some sensitive modernisation ( in customer terms, not pubco speak ) , the interior retains quite a traditional feel with some low beams, exposed brickwork and flagstones. It feels a bit bare and it's not particularly comfortable. There's a separate restaurant on the right but, on my recent Sunday afternoon visit, most people seemed to be eating in the separate bar area. As a concession to current demands, there's a small area with a couple of sofas which was showing the Grand Prix on a big screen, but nobody seemed interested. The exterior was currently receiving a lick of paint, so it will probably look less tatty than experienced by previous posters. The George is the brewery tap for Slaters Ales although these are no longer brewed at the pub, but in nearby Stafford. On my recent visit, 5 Slaters beers were on - Why Knot, Original, Top Totty, Premium and Monkey Magic - at prices between £ 1.85p and £ 2.10p. The Why Knot ( 3.6% ABV ) at £ 1.90p was an excellent pint. There was also a guest beer ( 4.5% ABV ) at only £ 1 per pint, but, for some unaccountable reason, I forgot to note down what it was. The pub has been a CAMRA Good Beer Guide regular in recent years. On the pavement outside, a sandwich board tells us that the pub is REAL - Rooms, Eatery, Ales, Log fires - which sums it up pretty well. I was reasonably impressed with this one.

Rather a strange looking place at first sight especially if you approach via the right hand entrance, which has the feel of a seventies Italian restaurant to it; the slightly scruffy exterior doesn't help either. Once you're in and discover the main bar, the beams and open fires bit, the scales fall from your eyes. This is where Slaters brewery showcase their beers and very fine it all is. Five (out of six I think) beers on when we stopped for lunch on Boxing day. With friendly, knowledgeable service and delicious hot roast beef sandwiches there's little more you can ask for.