Cumberland Arms, Newcastle Upon Tyne

A classic two bar local, five hand pulls with local ales in the public to the left with some usual suspects on a low T-bar. To the right is a sitting room with a hatch. Both rooms are traditionally furnished with banquette seating, Britannia tables and kitchen chairs, board floors, tongue and groove walls and ceilings, plus stained glass windows. The beer’s pretty good too.

I have been to this pub on quite a few occasions, mostly before I started writing reviews, and often when in company or a little the worse for wear. Somehow I've never quite seen it as the must-visit that many people say it is. Though it would be a rare visit to Newcastle that did not include this one. There are far fewer hand pumps in action than when Aqualung reviewed it in 2018: WhatPub suggests five and I'm not sure they were all in action at the time of my visit, but it was getting a bit crowded and I only snatched pictures of the two beers I had. Burning Sky Plateau, one of the new 3.4% beers that take advantage of a reduced tax rate, was pretty good (NBSS 3.5) though not as good a beer in my opinion as some at that strength that I have tried. I was encouraged to go for another as well, and tried the Black Iris Till The Bitter End, a 4.4% best bitter. Unfortunately, I think this one had been lingering friendlessly in the pipes and was well past its best, though not actually off (NBSS 2). I decided to go in search of a bitter where there might have been more throughput, and headed for the town centre and the Old George Inn.

Wxcellent traditional pub on the top of the hill, good beer. My weekend visit meant it was extremely busy with a disco and food supplies