The Denbigh Castle, Liverpool

GBG 2023 Entry. Freehouse, with a good choice of cask ales, served in fine condition. A shame its a football pub with both many TVs and commentary pumping from slightly out of sync BOSE speakers. Unless you are there to watch the football, in which case, its ace. Tidy pub across two rooms. Tables reserved for a beer tasting group coming in the afternoon and several posters for organised tasting events (From the Neptune Owners). A downstairs bar/room that was out of bounds during my visit.

Luckily enough Vocation Brewery had a bar takeover the evening before, so I had a choice of three of their beers on handpump. These were Vocation Bread and Butter, Heart and Soul and Life and Death. The fourth pump had Conwy Welsh Pride. The barman was friendly and chatty and the pub had a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere, so definitely on my radar for another visit.

Now a somewhat different vibe to this place than I assume was the case when it was Jupiters, a lesbian bar. It's been nicely decorated in a slightly bland way, but the decor is nice enough and the barman and the rest of the punters were friendly. The bar is facing you as you enter the pub with an area to the immediate right making it L shaped. 3 of the 4 handpumps were serving Welsh beers, so I'm guessing that this may be their USP. The other was Saratoga from the local Neptune brewery which was in good nick. I liked it in here and the other half thought it was really nice, so I suspect we'll be calling in again soon.

Another new pub for me in Liverpool, tucked away in a narrow side street in an area that is densely packed with pubs. Its location and its lack of natural light does make it a little depressing inside. But there were plenty of customers creating a lively atmosphere, with live Premier League football on the TV. 4 real ales are sold. These were Conwy Welsh Pride, Bristol Beer Factory Delray Beach, Kirkstall Black Band Porter & Five Points XPA. The cider was Lilley's Peach Cider. This will certainly become another reliable real ale and cider outlet in this part of town, without standing out particularly from the crowd.

it’s a far cry from the lesbian bar it was before, now reverted to its original name and basically a smart but fairly bland modern pub with two bars, one as you enter and another downstairs . Reasonable selection of ales including the always worthy Titanic Porter. In the bar it was set up for live sports, a bit cold and lacking in character but full marks for bringing a pub back alive and putting on some decent ales. Table service only.