Black Lion, Bishop Auckland

The Black Lion appears to be the best pub in Wolsingham and it turned out to be my favourite pub on this visit to County Durham. Situated on a backstreet parallel to the main street, it still attracts a good local trade and probably a few pub/beer/cider tourists like myself. I walked in as the pub cat was trying to make a getaway through the front door. The landlady was happy for him to go. Although apparently he doesn't like the rain much. So, it wasn't long before he was jumping on the tables and eventually settled down on my lap! Dogs are limited to a maximum of 2 in the pub at a time, which must prove difficult for local dog owners who won't know how many dogs are present until they attempt to walk in. Presumably the cat enforces this rule! The cask ale range is good here. There are 4 handpulls and 3 of them were clipped on my Thursday afternoon visit. Beers on were Three Kings Shield Maiden, Wensleydale Hocus Pocus & Purity Ubu. Ciders were Thatcher's Stan's Cheddar Valley & Weston's Family Vintage & Rosie's Pig. At £4 a pint, my Hocus Pocus was good value. There is a traditional front room with old pumpclips on almost every space on the beams. The bar is offset to the left and there is a cabinet on the end of it containing various bar snacks. Food is listed on a couple of boards next to the cabinet. Underneath that was a small bookcase with a few magazines, sellotape and a couple of boxes of eggs! A fire to the right-hand side was lit, whilst a TV in the corner was off. There were a few locals discussing the issues of the day in the bar area, whilst another section to the rear was unoccupied. This contained board games, a pool table and a dartboard. There was also a goldfish bowl and several CAMRA award certificates. I enjoyed my visit here. The beer was good (both in selection and quality) and the atmosphere was pleasant.