The Bag o' Nails, Bristol

Ever so pleased to find this pub that we enjoyed so much on previous visits to Bristol is now back on the scene and delivering good real ale again. Newmans Dr Price's Super Hop, Celt Experience Dark Age, Cotswold Spring Vixen and Glastonbury Thriller Porter were all enjoyed at this visit, and we had half pint jugs too. Entertained by the pub cat still very kittenish. Real cider also available on the bar. Good selection of records available to brouse through and choose your music from. No problem with the house rules, as I believe every publican should be able to choose whether the pub can cater for children or not.

It’s good to see this Bristol institution re-open again after several months of closure, now with Luke Daniels (from The Cornubia) at the helm. Layout inside it’s pretty much unchanged, but then it’s a small pub so options are limited. It’s certainly had a spruce-up and a change of colour scheme though. The change of colour scheme is salmon. An unusual choice perhaps, but it works well enough. That’s complimented by some red wallpaper depicting drawings of dressed up ladies. Difficult to describe, but you’ll see what I mean. As before there is some bench seating along the right hand side, with the bar counter on the left. There were a few black and white photo’s of jazz artists on the walls, and the music was provided courtesy of a turntable with a collection of vinyl stacked nearby. The illuminated holes in the floor also remain which is an interesting feature, and there were a few board games around as well as a book on Bristol’s pubs, which, I guess, dated from somewhere around the 70’s. It made an interesting read to see how many were still around, although thankfully those that are with us are no longer owned by Watney’s. A large blackboard sign on a pillar at the end of the bar documented the pub rules (or pub statements in many cases) such as “Tom Cruise is a t**t”, “No Scientology” (obviously a theme there), “Babies and Toddlers to be put in the cellar”, “No Beards”, “No C**ts” and “No ‘C’ word”, although obviously you’re allowed to write the ‘C’ word since it was one of the previous rules. Landlord seemed friendly enough though in spite of all his rules, and it was good to see it packed to capacity on a recent Friday evening visit. An unusual, and fairly local choice of beers on tap with Bitter and Butty Bach from Wye Valley, Ruby and Star Gazer from Yeovil Ales, plus Cheddar’s Totty Pot. Cider’s were also slightly more esoteric with Wilkins Dry and a very pleasant Rich’s Sweet.

Popular real ale pub that frequently crops up in the Camra guides and does regular beer festivals. Quite small with a limited amount of seating. Good choice of beers as you would expect, including a very pleasant Titanic Anchor. Also Stowford Press and Thatcher's Gold ciders.