The Barrel Drop, Nottingham

Hidden down a narrow alleyway the Barrel Drop is an attractive looking micropub. inside it is split leveled in a sideways to the bar U shape encompassing three seating areas. There are five handpulls on the bar and at the time of my visit four beers on all from Magpie, I opted for a Honeycomb Milk Stout which I found in great condition at £4.20 a pint, also available were four Ciders from Thistly Cross, Lilleys and two from Thirsty Farmer, eight Craft keg. The place was near full capacity but didn't feel crowded due to the layout of furniture. I thought this place pretty good.

Micropub located in a narrow, but long alleyway which connects two main roads. Even the entrance to the alleyway is not immediately obvious. Once inside, it feels a little dark. But there is a good selection of real ales, craft beers and real ciders, which are all listed on a blackboard opposite the bar. On our Sunday afternoon visit, it was fairly quiet. Magpie beers on were Raven & Ten For A Time Of Joyous Bliss. Guests on cask were Severn Amarillo Citra APA & Milestone Shine On. Real ciders were Blue Barrel Sherwood Blend & Snail's Bank Rhubarb Cider, whilst craft beers were New Bristol Summer Crush, Abbeydale Heathen & Salvation, Shiny Kiss Ya Homies Goodnight, Magpie Belong To Earth, Polly's Columbus & Amundsen Barrel Aged Glazed & Confused. There are a few different sections to drink in and I noticed a good selection of board games available to use. This is a decent place and I hope to get back here one day.

Good Beer Guide 2021 entry and without that prompt, I never would have found it. Tucked away down a tiny alley in the city centre. Classic Micro Pub in look and feel. Chalk board details the cask and keg. Many from Magpie brewery but I went for a Kernel Pale Ale Mosaic. Informed that the priced listed on the board were not for pints. Even though this was a standard 5.2% and no reason not to serve it in anything other than as god intended. It looked pretty miserable, with my server attempting to get some life into it. On exiting, I noticed that it had been removed from the chalk board - so I obviously had the dregs.

Checked opening times before we left home. Said it was open until 10 on a Sunday. Arrived at 9:05 and it was closed. To be fair the door sign said until 9, but their social media was wrong which isn't much use.

On the face of it this looked more like a craft bar than a micropub but the only real distraction was a loud music track playing. It's a split level room with the bar lower down. It was quiet on my early Wednesday evening visit. Five cask ales are available normally but on my visit one hand pump was unused and one had a cider leaving Colchester AKA Pale & Number One and Great Heck Citra. I went for the Great Heck Citra (£3.50) followed by the keg Magpie Wanderlust Stout (£4.90). Both were in good nick. I thought this was OK but not the best micropub I've been to.

The Barrel Drop is a fairly newly opened micro pub and was a first in the city center of Nottingham. Located down a very small alleyway called Hurts Yard. Which lays sandwiched between Angel Row and upper parliament street. This is quite hidden as there is no signage or advisement on any of the main roads so this place is discovered by tumblers by or people in the know. As you enter the pub is one medium sized room on two different levels the bar is down a few steps on the bottom level with seating to the right with more seating on the upper level. The pub is quite minimalist with no fancy decor just Palin tables and walls with the beer being the main focal point with design taking a bit a of a back seat. Nothing bad just very basic and functional. There are no hand pulls on the bar, all beer is dispensed via gravity from barrels behind the bar. Being a fan of sparklers I’m not the biggest fan of gravity dispensed beer but not the worst thing. Unfortunately on my visit of the twelve barrels behind the bar only five were on which featured Liverpool Organic Brewery’s Shipwreck, a super strong Russian imperial stout, Torside brewery’s “modern bitter (£3.40) and a couple of pale ales I failed to note. I had the Torside bitter which was unfined which I also don’t really like that much either and it was not advertised as so I automatically presumed it to be cloudy before being corrected by the bar girl. It was a bit lifeless and soapy for my liking with my friends pale ale being a little better which at £3.40 was a bit on the pricy side for ale in Nottingham and especially a “Micro Pub”. Overall a bit disappointed by this place, the atmosphere was pretty none existent as there was hardly anyone in on a Monday evening and the poor choice of pricey beers did not do much to lighten my feelings towards it. The Room with a brew a few hundred yards away is a much better example in my opinion. Its not the best Micro pub in the world but if on a busy evening with a better more varied selection of beers this would probably be a lot better. For a micro pub it is not in my list of favorites but it’s still a long shot better than all of the keg only flea pits dotted around the city. It’s worth a visit and could be good if you catch it right but there are better in the wider Nottingham area.

Nice little micro, hidden away from the bustle of Nottingham city center. We called in early doors on a Friday evening and it was very quiet, with a couple of women drinking pints and a small group of blokes, talking football. 3 barrels on offer and I chose a very acceptable pint of best bitter. My wife had a half of challenging dry cider. the bar is clean and tidy with decent toilets and lots of seating. Not very disabled friendly, due to a flight of steps leading down to the main bar from the door. Well worth a visit, just to see what they have on offer.