Skinners Arms, Machynlleth

This place was up for sale last time I was in town so presumably Marstons got no offers. This was a Burtonwood pub that generally speaking were beacons of light compared to the run down dumps or closures that years of Marston ownership have left behind. This has retained the public bar to the right and the lounge to the left which I didn't venture into and never have. The public bar is a long rather dark room with a pool table at the rear and TV screens which were showing music videos. I saw no hand pumps on this side but was told that Banks's Amber and Marstons Wainwright were available. I went for the Amber (£2.25) which was in poor condition, no mean achievement for a beer of questionable authenticity as a real ale. I thought this one was pretty poor.

Always very dark inside so much so reading the paper there is an issue. Similar crowd as you get at The Foresters. Average Beer but far cheaper than the same in the Red Lion.

A traditional-looking Marston's pub, both inside and out, retaining two separate bars (with the larger one having a busy pool table at the back). Although no doubt remodelled a few times, it does still have some character. On the beer front, Banks's Amber (excellent value at just £2.25) and Sunbeam were available from a pair of handpumps on each counter.

Don’t be fooled by the large frontage, the two-room interior is actually quite small. Usually a couple of ales from the Marstons list in decent nick. The left hand room is for the likes of me, nice and cosy with a large fireplace (the fire itself is a stove) and is a cracking spot in the winter (which, in Mach is long). The other room is for the younger punters and has, if I recall pool and darts. The best all-round pub in Mach for my money and I usually default to this one between trains.