Windsor Castle, Lye, Stourbridge

What an excellent place, the second pub we visited on our Lye crawl, to which we returned before catching the train. I have no need to describe the extrior, as you can see the pictures, though there is a beer patio/garden area. The inside is a strange mish-mash of old and new, that actually works. Sofas, barrels used as tables, tables usued as tables, chairs, stools, plain walls with olive green touches, different memorabilia here and there. The clientele were mixed and friendly, as were the bar staff. Beer wise, its nice to see the usually dominant kind of fizz drinks shunted up the bar to make way for a central bank of handpulls, standing like troops awaiting a battle. A battle it was, as you were at war with yourself over which one to try next. Across the range, roughly from left to right; Jack's Ale, Mild, Greenman (lager), Worcester Sorcerer, Hop Monster, Thin Ice Stumbling Badger, Kinver Drop, Mellow Yellow and Mud City Stout I tried halfs of several and sips of others. The MILD was better later on the evening visit, the stout excellent. The others were all good solid beers. Along with the Shovel, the two best places in Lye (Holly Bush, third). A must visit place.

Cracking pub - choice of at least six excellent beers all brewed on the premises. This is the place that Oz Clarke & Brian May got carried away on BBC2 recently.