The Birkett Tap, Bristol

As described below, this is another lacklustre town bar that sets itself low standards and fails to meet them. On entry we experienced an atmosphere that felt like a bad day in a funeral home. All of the cider and ale pumps were dry, and the barmaid didn’t seem to care, shrugging her shoulders and pointing at the only two taps which had anything on – Camden Hells and IPA. Really not worth the effort, though I might give it another shot if the ales are ever back on or I feel like self-immolation, but at the moment it’s more die than tap.

Named after the architect who designed the building, this is a large modern bar with modish decor set over a couple of levels with upper and lower bar areas. Four pumps with three ales on; Sharps Doom Bar, St Austell Proper Job (flat via an overworked aspirator, my guess) and Electric Bear. 10 craft keg taps. I also tried the Electric Bear Napoleon Complex (after asking which was the darkest- it was darkest in the sense that the man with a single hair follicle on his head is less bald than Duncan Goodhew) which was flat and tasted like scrumpy. Exchanged, with an air of resigned incredulity. So in short, this place sells upmarket beer but without any staff who give a toss. Could be half decent with some cellar skills and a bit of enthusiasm.

Renamed and extensively renovated since my previous review, it’s a good size, split level pub that has thankfully moved away from the fake Irish theme and now has a style that probably fits somewhere between rustic and shabby chic. Certainly the beer range has been much improved and the staff seemed friendly enough, if a little ditzy. The bar counter is located on the upper level at the rear of the pub, and this area had varnished boards on most of the floor with some smaller sections of slate style tiles inlaid with a Victorian floral design. Walls were a mixture of cream plasterwork with painted green wood panelling on the lower part, or in many places roughly hewn plans tacked on to the wall at 45° angles. The lower section was broadly similar in terms of style, and there were a few nods to the local area including a mural of hot air balloons and some artistic photographs of the suspension bridge. A couple of TV’s were dotted around, but the volume was off and these were not at all intrusive. Seating was a mixture of wooden chairs and remarkably uncomfortable metal stools. Beers on tap were Proper Job, Doom Bar, Arbor Shangri-La and Bristol Beer Factory’s Nova and Milk Stout. Ciders meanwhile were Thatcher’s Gold, Thatcher’s haze and Rekorderlig Strawberry & Lime. All in all, I was quite pleasantly surprised by this and it’s certainly a lot better than it’s previous incarnation.

Official site of The Birkett Tap - www.craft-pubs.co.uk