BottleCraft, Stoke-On-Trent

Official site of Bottle Craft - www.bottlecraft.beer

Official site of Bottle Craft - www.bottlecraft.beer

Prior to my visit to Hanley, I’d heard about this venture but was unclear whether it was a bottle-shop or a bar, so upon arrival I tried to peek through the steamed up front window to see what was going on inside. At this point, a cheery couple walked past and stopped to give a glowing review of the place, suggesting I waste no more time peering through the window but to go straight in and check it out, as they had apparently been doing earlier that day. You can’t really ignore recommendations like that, so in I went to find what might best be described as a shop converted craft beer bar and off-licence. As a resident of South London, I’m pretty familiar with this type of venture, but I can see why it might appeal to the residents of Hanley, offering as it does, a fairly radical departure from the town’s typical traditional watering holes. The unit is a single bare boarded room with shelves filled with beer bottles down the right hand wall and a servery opposite. The bar has a simple counter built from old planks of wood, whilst the bar back is nothing but a white wall with a board listing the beers available on draught. More beers are available from the fridges past the end of the bar whilst at the far end of the room there are three tables all served by rows of medium height stools. The room has been decorated with modern art prints, some enamel brewery signs, fairy lights strung through empty beer bottles and a pillar covered in pump clips. The beer shelves have various flags behind them which appear to signify the country of origin for the various bottles on display. Music was playing quietly in the background but in no way impeded conversation and the cheery bar staff were happy to chat about beer, make recommendations and generally exude a bit of bonhomie. The draught beers are all dispensed via keg taps, but I believe some, if not all, are key keg dispense. There was a real mixed offering when I arrived including beers with some very odd names. The options were Mad Hatter Pale Ale, Brighton Bier Hung Like a Gorse, Lost and Grounded Running With Sceptres and a Thistly Cross cider, with a fourth ale going on just as I was leaving. I opted for the Pale Ale which was the only beer I could glean any information from via its name and also the only one below 5% abv. Unfortunately it was fairly murky and had I not had a half, I would’ve almost certainly returned it. All of the bottles are also available to be consumed on site and there was a fairly clear divide along age lines regarding who drank bottles (the youngsters) and who drank draught. This is probably the sort of venue Hanley has needed for some time and perhaps the right sort of scale of operation to ensure it doesn’t go the same way as the unfortunate Smithfield. I was a bit let down by the beer quality and could only really imagine dipping in and out of this place rather than enjoying a full session, but it’s a decent little business that I hope continues to do well.