Vinyl Tap, Preston

Personally I quite liked this pub despite the reservation of some of the others on the crawl, but then again I still have and play loads of vinyl at home. I also had a pint of the Oakham Citra which was in great nick. I'll call in this one again as well.

Student rock/alt pub. Hundred’s of LPs available which the staff will put on at the customer’s request – I got the Manic’s Gold Against the Soul loudly in its entirety. Also The Young Ones was being shown with subtitles on a drop-down screen and there was a small stage for live music. Hairy barman who was dead friendly and treated chatting to customers as part of his day job. Five cask, I went for Farm Yard Hoof Stout which was in great shape (NBSS 4). I rather liked this one, it was at odds with a lot of the others pubs done that day. GBG ’22 listed.

The day was beging to take its toll by the time I reached this pub, being the tenth of the day so far, It's a music pub which I have no preferances about either way but in this instance I didn't get much in the way of atmosphere or warmth from the pub, I had a pint of obligatory Oakham Citra as Steve C reminded me I should, and it was fine, however I didn't feel a need to return to this pub.

You'll get a good idea of what to expect from the name, with music (both live and recorded) being the main draw. However, it had more or an alehouse feel when I visited at a quieter time. Five real ales available on handpump, including an excellent Ruby Treasure new world red ale from Donkeystone (£1.80, half).

I would like to borrow their own description from their web site as it sums up its mission statement very well. “Vinyl Tap is Preston’s ONLY vinyl record themed Rock and Roots bar. With over a thousand records, live music, award winning beer, and a great food selection of Authentic German Currywurst, Loaded Dogs and our own Vinyl Tapas, Vinyl Tap is THE place to be if you love rock n roll!" Situated on a street corner ,this looks like it was a proper pub at some point back in the day but now internally as described below. Very impressive vinyl collection which the bar keep will put on for you and a decent range of well priced ales as described below. Not particularly busy for our early evening visit and was slightly lacking in atmosphere, but I am sure that is very different later on, especially if there is live music on. It fulfils a purpose and does it well. But if it is only a pint of ale you are after I wouldn’t advise leaving The Moorbrook for this one.

As described below, this pub's USP is a the bespoke vinyl selection. My half of Farm Yard's Hoof at £1.85 was probably the cheapest drink of the day, but lacks tasting notes in my notes.