Joiners Arms, Bakewell

Located in a central position in the heart of Bakewell, this micropub conversion of a former newsagent and estate agents is a good sized establishment in an unusual wedge shaped building. It was surprisingly quiet on our visit, but then that was a Monday, hopefully it’s busier later in the week. Décor wise it’s got quite a rustic feel to it, with sanded wooden boards on the floor and rough wood cladding on the bar counter, the back wall behind the bar and on the lower part of the walls all around the pub. Elsewhere the walls were painted a plain white, with little in the way of decoration apart from a couple of old maps and an odd mirror. A corner section next to the bar counter had been painted red though, and displayed an extensive collection of old beer mats. All in all it had a nice vibe to it despite it being very quiet, and I could quite happily have settled in for a few. A board next to the bar displayed forthcoming events and beers, with the Naughty & Nice Honeycomb Crunch sounding particularly intriguing. Beers on tap were Northern Monk Eternal, Titanic Iceberg, Nottingham Supreme, Peak Ales Chatsworth Gold and Bang the Elephant’s It’s All in the Hips, with the latter two both going down very well. Cider’s meanwhile were Aspall’s and Pulp Raspberry. All in all I really liked it here, and would certainly have called in again if we had more time.

For years (since the Peacock in 2005), Bakewell didn't have an entry in the Good Beer Guide, which seems a shame considering Thornbridge brewery is just down the road. However, the latest Good Beer Guide has 2 Bakewell entrants and the Joiners Arms is easily the better of the two. Looking at all online sources, it appeared that the pub should open at midday. However, it is 3pm opening during the winter. Ironically, we arrived a few minutes before 3 and the manager quickly opened up for us. He turned out to be a really amiable guy who had similar aims to myself, in trying to visit as many pubs as possible across the country. He'd clearly done a fair few, especially in the local area. This pub is fairly large for a micropub. It's located in a prominent location near to a busy roundabout and having been a former newsagents, it felt quite spacious. Although until the arrival of another punter shortly before we left, business was quiet on a Tuesday afternoon. The real ale range was excellent - Thornbridge Lord Marples, Peak Ales Mild, Liquid Light Daimbag, Thornsett He's Behind You, Wincle Waller & Temple Relacite. This was also the only pub visited in Derbyshire that stocked a real cider Weston's Rosie's Pig Rhubarb Cider in a bag in the box on the bar. A discount is offered upon presentation of a CAMRA card, whilst there is also a selection of craft beers available too. I was spoiled for choice between the Daimbag (described as a chocolate, pecan & caramel stout) or the Mild. I followed my instinct and chose the stout, which was nice, but not as tasty as it sounded. My drinking partner was impressed with the Thornsett and Wincle beers and we enjoyed a pleasant 30-40 minutes chatting with the manager about beers, breweries and the local pub trade. This was my favourite pub of the day and warrants a special visit to Bakewell, which is finally on the beer map for something other than the Thornbridge Brewery. We resisted the temptation of taking home a tart whilst here!