The Merchant Bar @ Bosville Hotel, Portree

Long thin bar in the Bosville Hotel with the counter along middle rear, three pulls with Skye brewery beers and two T-Bars with local kegs from Cullen and Isle of Skye, Thistly Cross and a couple from Innis & Gunn. The cask was fine quality wise in spite of the default glass being a bloody dimpled mug. Mix of bench and chairs at mid height tables, and tall tables with stools. The bar back is a collection of pigeon holes, and there’s a further collection of pigeon holes holding nic-nacks and an off sales display. Part of a poshish hotel it still has a pubby feel, in spite of staff disappearing to fulfill restaurant drinks orders. The sound track was initially hits of the 1960s and 70s but later it was The Wolfe Tones singing Irish republican songs which isn’t going to suit everyone.

The bar is nice and the hotel was OK if a little overpriced for a tiny room. Also no lifts. That's not my car on the photo although I wish it was!

A smart modern bar that is part of the Bosville Hotel, but with a separate entrance in the building to the left of the main hotel. The floor is wooden and there are stone walls at either end, the other two being wallpapered. To the left is a fireplace with a large mirror above it and the overall impression is of a well-presented room that has had some money spent on it, and not without taste. In confirmation of the latter point, there are two hand pumps on the bar, prominently displayed and offering Caledonian Golden XPA and a beer from the Cuillin Brewery just along the road at Sligachan, Black Face (a reference to sheep rather than coal miners or vaudeville artists). I got a friendly welcome from the bar person and the beer was spot on, so I had a pleasant visit here. Not one for an extended stay, though, as it doesn't quite have that elusive pub atmosphere, unlike the nearby Isles Inn, for example.