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Beer of the Week (w/e 27th April 2025) with Thuck Phat
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The Victorian Tap, Hexham
Hexham
NE46 1BA
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 7½ of 10) see review guidelines
Blackthorn _ left this review about The Victorian Tap
A traditional street corner pub in the centre of Hexham’s High Street, it looked quite pleasant with it’s blue paintwork on the exterior as well as some green glazed tiling below the windows. Going on it’s name, I was expecting more of a tap room/micropub sort of feel inside, but it’s rather more of a conventional pub than that, and although not unpleasant I assume the layout has rather been mucked about with over the years and I suspect that it may at one time have been a lot cosier than it is now.
It’s a roughly L shaped pub, consisting of three interconnected rooms with the front two having a broadly similar feel with smooth wooden boards on the floor, and painted and embossed wallpaper on the ceiling. The left-hand room had duck egg blue wood panelling on one wall at the back, with some exposed stonework elsewhere and an old cast iron fireplace. An old beer barrel had been made in to a table for vertical drinking, whilst the right hand room had a similar theme with darker blue woos panelling on the lower part of the walls and fitted wooden bench seating. Both rooms had a large collection of beer mats dotted around. The rear room seemed a little cosier with grey paint on much of the walls, red leather banquette seating and a good collection of brewery mirrors, signs and pump clips as well as a wood burning stove in a fireplace, although the TV screen and darts board contrasted with this somewhat, as well as the large flags covering the ceiling, presumably in relation to the current Euro’s football tournament.
Beers on tap were Anarchy’s Blonde Star and Euro Star, Blue Monkey Marmoset, Timothy Taylor Landlord and Black Sheep Respire, whilst the ciders were Old Rosie and Inch's Medium Apple. Overall, I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this. The barman was certainly friendly and there was a decent beer selection, but somehow I just didn’t really warm to the feel of the pub. Perhaps if we hadn’t been the only punters in there it might have had a bit more atmosphere.
On 19th July 2024
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2060 recommendations about 1962 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about The Victorian Tap
A bit of a revamp and change of name since my last visit, the main change that I could spot being the opening of what was previously a doorway between the two rooms and is now an archway, albeit a plain rectangular one. The bar counter has six hand pumps as before, with one cider and five real ales (see photo). Two were almost local: Darwin Melon Head from Sunderland, and S43 Phoenix, an American late-hopped pale from the brewery formerly known as Sonnet 43 of Coxhoe in County Durham (and not, as the name now seems to suggest, the Sheffield postcode area). I went for the latter, not being in favour of fruit flavours in beer, and it was an ok beer, though almost indistinguishable from countless other American beers from modern breweries, not all of which have Sheffield postcodes. One of the better pubs in Hexham.
On 3rd April 2022
- rating: 7
[User has posted 4273 recommendations about 3935 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about Tap & Spile
My visit found the pub with only two beers on among the six hand pumps on the bar, but it had been a "busy weekend" apparently - it was May Day bank holiday and I passed through Hexham on the Tuesday. I had a half of High House Farm Old Hemp, which was in good condition but a bit pricey I thought at £1.80/half. The other beer was Anarchy Urban Assault. This two-roomed corner bar, with entrances at 1 Eastgate and 1 Battle Hill (take your pick) has one side carpeted, the other bare boards. My abiding memory of this pub is the rather tearful interview the landlady was having with a representative of the pubco; I hope everything turned out all right. The Facebook and Twitter activity on behalf of the pub suggests that live music has a strong presence here.
Date of visit: 2nd May 2017
On 28th July 2017
- rating: 7
[User has posted 4273 recommendations about 3935 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about Tap & Spile
Well worth a visit friendly staff and locals. This traditional pub had six real ales to offer on my visit. On handpull were Farne Island, Everards Tiger, Mordue 5 Bridges, Ruddles Best, Jarrow Rivet Catcher and Northumerland Fog on the Tyne. Will defo return
On 7th October 2011
- rating: 10
[User has posted 3645 recommendations about 3645 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
hondo . left this review about Tap & Spile
Old style real ale pub serving food. Deuchars, farne island, flowers, hexhamshire bitter, roosters yankee, ruddles and white amarillo beers on . The pub has a dartboard.
On 25th March 2010
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2933 recommendations about 2866 pubs]