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Derby Brewing Tap House, Derby

Pub added by Tim Norris
1 Derwent Street
Derby
DE1 2ED
Phone: 01332366283

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Reviews (Current Rating Average: 8 of 10) Add Review see review guidelines


Steve C left this review about The Tap

The curved bar counter across the rear wall of the Derby Brewing Tap House serves bars to the left and right that are split by a central flight of stairs that lead up to the Ark and Royal Rooms, that I imagine are for functions. Four DBC ales were on cask, Iron Ore, Dashingly Dark, Single Hop and Business as Usual, the latter being my beer of choice. Some real ciders from Weston’s were also available, but the four hand pumps in the right hand bar all stood unused. For lager lovers there is a range of premium keg and a longer list of craft keg, alongside Carlsberg for some reason. The bare board floor and sparse furnishings made this feel like quite a basic bar. The service was very friendly, but I struggled to get comfortable. That said the BaU was a decent drop so maybe I’d pop back in for a quick one if passing.

On 31st July 2023 - rating: 6
[User has posted 5179 recommendations about 5148 pubs]


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paulof horsham left this review about The Tap

My initial impression of the Derby Brewery's Tap Room was of a pub which was brightly lit, but slightly under heated, as afternoon gave way to evening. There were 6 pumps on the bar (5 of their own with Thornbridge Cortado making up the numbers). Numerous keg taps upped the beer total. Food is offered till late which is helpful if you're pub-crawling.

While it's a quality venue with good beer, overall I found it a bit sterile, especially having popped up the street from the more traditional Exeter (although not so much that I'd forgo a repeat visit some time).

On 2nd February 2023 - rating: 7
[User has posted 449 recommendations about 421 pubs]


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Moby Duck left this review about The Tap

One thing I've noticed with wedge shaped pubs is that they're nearly always pretty good,a fairly modern setup inside with a good range of beers, mine was Derby Hop Till You Drop, also ate in here which from hazy memory was good but I was past my best that evening and should have eaten somewhere much earlier, but I do remember it a decent pub certainly worth a return.

On 3rd November 2022 - rating: 7
[User has posted 1868 recommendations about 1841 pubs]


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Alan Winfield left this review about The Tap

When i first visited this pub it was called The Royal Standard.
It used to be an Ansells tied house which had a couple of rooms and plush carptets.
I first went in the new Brewery Tap when it was done up now just called The Tap,but still the same as it was when the Brewery Tap.
Once inside there is now a small room to the right in the apex of the pub that has the main bar,there is pew seats and comfy chairs in this area,there is a larger area to the left which is irregular shaped,there is leather bench seating here and chairs.
The pub is now run by the Derby Brewery company,so lots of their beers on the bar,on my most recent visit i had a drink of DBC Hop Till You Drop,which was a very nice drink,the other real ales noted were DBC Quint Essential,DBC Dashingly Dark,DBC Double Mash,the guest beers were Church End fallen Angel,Taylor Landlord and Backyard Gold.
I have always enjoyed my visits to the Brewery Tap and Tap over the years and it was fairly busy on my early Saturday dinner visit with drinkers.

Royal Standard first visited 1982

Recent visit to the Tap 1/4/2017

On 4th June 2017 - rating: 8
[User has posted 6113 recommendations about 6113 pubs]


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Danny O'Revey left this review about The Tap

Wedge shaped large pub, light, nicely laid out in a modern basic way, brick bar, barrel tables. Nice feel

On 2nd December 2015 - rating: 8
[User has posted 1456 recommendations about 1434 pubs]


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Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Tap

Derby Brewery Tap in a wedge-shaped building with some interesting architectural detailing on the façade. The interior has been remodelled and thoroughly refurbished in a semi-modern style, and had a relaxed atmosphere on a Friday lunchtime. Also has a small patio area. Six of their own real ales on handpump (including On Tap, £3.10) plus guests from Timothy Taylor, Everard's and Titanic and a range of less-usual keg / craft offerings supplemented by a chalkboard list of 55 bottled beers.

On 21st November 2015 - rating: 8
[User has posted 8066 recommendations about 8066 pubs]


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Aqualung . left this review about The Tap

I hadn't planned to come here, but after going the wrong way from the Silk Mill and getting caught in a thunderstorm I found myself peering through the torrential rain from a bus shelter and realising that the pub opposite was The Tap. As soon as the rain eased slightly I made a break for it. Inside it's been nicely refurbished and although I didn't get to note down all of the beers, partly because I felt like a drowned rat, I did get to try two, the guest Fat Cat Marmalade Cat (£3.20) and the Derby Indian Ink (£3.10) both of which were in excellent nick. I sat in a sheltered part of the smoking patio watching the deluge and impressive lightning display from the ongoing thunderstorm.
I liked this pub and would gladly come back to try more Derby Brewery beers.

On 21st July 2014 - rating: 8
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]


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Pub SignMan left this review about The Brewery Tap

This pub, formerly the Royal Standard, is now home to the Derby Brewing Company. Since their take over, the pub's name has been getting shorter and shorter, starting off as 'The Brewery Tap at Derby's Royal Standard', then becoming 'The Brewery Tap' and now seemingly known as 'The Tap'. I suspect the next time I visit it will be called 'T'. Despite a traditional looking exterior, the pub has been completely refurbished inside, creating a modern bar with a bit of a 'craft beer' feel to it. It's essentially a two bar set up, focussed around a vast semi circular servery on the back wall and with a central staircase acting as partitioning between the two bars. The left hand side is the largest room and has comfy banquette seating around the perimeter, a few tub chairs here and there and some table-topped barrels surrounded by high stools. There is a small fireplace on one wall and a TV screen that was out of action during my stay, plus plenty of posters and pictures from the Derby Brewery. Large arched front windows allow plenty of light in during daytime hours and to the left, another set of windows looks out to the partly covered patio area. The room extends slightly to the left at this point, allowing customers to grab a seat on a banquette with a view of the garden. The right hand bar is smaller and has a couple of rugs on the bare floorboards and more banquette and tub chair seating. A small, lit stove stands next to the bar and there are more Derby Brewery pictures on the walls. Additional seating is available upstairs, although this room was booked for a private function during my visit, so I was unable to explore. There's a pretty decent looking menu with main meals around the £9 mark and sharing platters for £15. Everything on the menu has a beer matching suggestion to accompany it.
The beer options are pretty extensive, with a number of blackboards detailing the large, varied bottled beer range, which is also set out in a comprehensive drinks menu. On hand pump there was Derby Brewery On Tap, Quint Essential, As You Like It, Business As Usual and Dashingly Dark, Taylor Landlord, Leadmill North Dakota, Navigation Apus and Triton and Allgates Exp 5526. Racks of ale, world beers and wine are available, allowing you to sample a range of these drinks. I tried the On Tap, which was reasonably well kept but a rather boring brew.
This is definitely the place to visit in Derby if you're looking for an extensive range of drinks and it seems like a comfortable and popular spot to enjoy a session. The modern interior will no doubt divide opinion, but I thought it was a good venue for the city's eponymous brewery to showcase their beer.

On 1st March 2014 - rating: 8
[User has posted 3102 recommendations about 3102 pubs]


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John Bonser left this review about The Brewery Tap

Update – November 2013

A large banner draped across the front proudly announces the pub as CAMRA Pub of the Year 2009.

5 beers were on from the on site brewery – Business As Usual, Bewitched, Hop Till You Drop, Penny’s and Milky Way. There were 5 guests – 2 from Leatherbritches, 2 from Braydon Brewery in Wiltshire plus T T Landlord, the latter being laughably overpriced at £ 3.60p when compared with the 6 % home brew ( Milky Way ) at £ 3.05p.

An upstairs room – The Royal Room – which I don’t recollect from my earlier visit, is now in use.

In marked contrast to other Derby pubs visited this time, staff appear to consist of those irritatingly laid back studenty types, who give out the vibe, unintentionally hopefully, that they're doing you a favour by serving you.

Whilst in negative mode, I'm going to add that there’s a rather cold, clinical and antiseptic feel to this pub, but there’s no escaping the fact that there’s a decent range of beers and, based on my two visits, these are well kept. A CAMRA Good Beer Guide regular in recent years.

ORIGINAL REVIEW - APRIL 2009


This is now the home of the new Derby Brewing Company. The pub's official name seems to be "The Brewery Tap at Derby's Royal Standard".

The wedge shaped building, situated just across the River Derwent on a street corner, looks quite austere from the outside. The attractive black and white frontage shown by the picture that I downloaded before my visit from a Derbyshire / Peak District website has now gone and has been pared back to bare brickwork.

The interior is quite badly modernised in my view, with London pub style pine floors and large plain glass windows, leading to a distinct lack of cosiness and warmth.

There were 4 Derby Brewery beers on, including a light hoppy beer called "Hop Till You Drop" and a dark mild called " Dashingly Dark".

Guest beers came from Timmy Taylors, Shardlow and Durham breweries.

Food plays quite a large part of the operation and prices would appear to suggest that the credit crunch has not yet reached Derby ( eg Cumberland Sausages - £ 7.95p, Traditional Beer Battered Fish - £ 7.75p )

There is a largish NHS Office opposite the pub where I imagine quite a bit of trade comes from as, otherwise, it would appear to be the "wrong" side of the river for the City Centre trade.

Despite the existence of an on site brewery, this pub is not top of my list for a re-visit if I'm ever in Derby again

On 18th December 2013 - rating: 6
[User has posted 560 recommendations about 560 pubs]


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Old Boots left this review about The Brewery Tap

A splendid Victorian pub with not a lot of interior left, the brewery tap of Derby Brewing company. Two rooms at one end, a larger one with two banks of three pulls serving guests while a bank of four next door has the beers from Derby. Decent enough quality of beer but the decor is a bit sterile for my tastes and the service just a bit too lackadasical. There's a sort of yard affair to one side for smokers.

On 4th November 2013 - no rating submitted
[User has posted 3209 recommendations about 2920 pubs]

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