Macclesfield - revisited Pt. 2

As promised here is the write-up about the “missing” Macclesfield pub – the one I saved until last. As well as writing about the town’s Jolly Sailor, I was also going to describe the trials and tribulations I endured in getting to Macclesfield, a process that was far more challenging on the homeward journey but have decided against this. Leaving out the gory details of cancelled, non-running or delayed trains, what my day on the rails did expose was the fragility of the UK’s rail system, and the knock-on effects that occur, when something goes wrong.

We have seen record investment in the nation’s railways since the bad old days of the Thatcher government, when there was serious talk of adopting one of the more crack-pot ideas proposed by the 1983 Serpell Report. This seriously suggested slashing the UK’s rail network to just 1,630 miles of track, and I recall an even more ludicrous proposal to concrete over many commuter lines, and replace them with guided bus-ways - like that's ever worked!

Billed as the second Beeching Report, Serpell’s recommendations were quietly dropped and shunted into the sidings, in the run up to a general election. Fortunately, since then, successive governments have realised the value to the nation of a modern and efficient rail system, although the botched privatisation of British Rail by the government of John Major, did see a significant amount of the investment being syphoned off by non-contributory, private companies.

Leaving aside the inadequacies imposed by Major’s fragmented system, and looking back at the days when British Rail was a national joke (a very unfair accusation given the restraints BR was operating under), today’s railway would be totally unrecognisable to a traveller from the 1980’s, particularly when it comes to the appearance, comfort and overall high design standards of the modern rolling stock which runs over the tracks as we approach the second quarter of the 21^st century.

The major problem seems one of overcrowding, An issue that affects the northern half of the country, more than the south, and I saw this for myself last Tuesday, when I somehow managed to squeeze myself onto the late running, Cross Country trains connection from Stafford to Macclesfield. The train was already rammed when it pulled into Stafford, meaning myself, plus a dozen or so other passengers had to stand squeezed into narrow vestibule, at the end of carriage next to the toilet. Fortunately, it was only 30 minutes’ worth of discomfort, but was still not a pleasant experience.

Returning to the main event, which was the third pub (for me), on our tour of Macclesfield.  I’d heard good things about the town’s Jolly Sailor, and in particular its well-kept Draught Bass. As you might be aware from previous “Proper Days Out,” such as Burton and Bath in particular, the legendary cask ale that is Draught Bass, and the one which big-meany, global brewer, In-Bev keeps trying to kill off, is making something of a comeback. Local Bass connoisseur, Ian Thurman, a fellow blogger who I had the pleasure of meeting 3 ½ years ago in Burton-on-Trent (the original home of Bass), has compiled and maintains the Draught Bass Pub Directory, which lists all known stockists of this legendary beer.

Ian’s directory might well be a labour of love, but it’s also an invaluable tool for locating outlets where drinkers can obtain a pint of Bass. The directory is six pages long, and as might be expected, the majority of the pubs stocking it are in the midlands, with counties such as Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Staffordshire leading the way. Other areas that have historically been Bass strongholds, such as the West Country, parts of Wales, Manchester, and Greater London, also feature prominently, but sadly, my home county of Kent now only has one regular outlet, in the form of the Miners’ Arms, Dunton Green, near Sevenoaks.

Draught Bass is available in two Macclesfield pubs, the Waters Green Tavern being the second outlet. The availability of reduced-price rail tickets, plus the aforementioned delays, meant I was unable to make the midday starting time at this pub, so it will have to wait for another day, but the Jolly Sailor was well and truly open when our group called in, after our brief visit to the Queens. Described by What Pub, as “a much-improved cosy town centre pub renowned for one of the best pints of Bass around,” the Jolly Sailor is essentially an open plan, single room pub, which is divided into four distinct areas. Six hand-pumps can be found on the central bar serving two permanent beers, one of which is Bass, and up to four guests.

Comfy sofas, intermingled with more traditional seating plus a roaring log fire, combine to create that increasing rarity, a traditional town boozer. The pub is located in the heart of Macclesfield and is only a few minutes walking distance from both the train and bus stations. The open fire, surrounded by comfy chairs, where customers can warm themselves on a cold winters day, is quite rightly, the most popular place in the pub, and our party of five was lucky to have bagged that spot. I thought I detected a few words of disappointment from a group of punters who came in a short time after us. So, with pints all round, of top-quality Draught Bass all round, plus that welcoming open fire, the Jolly Sailor was definitely one of the highlights of Tuesday’s visit.

It was getting dark by the time we left the pub, and as you will be aware from the previous articles, there were two further pubs left to visit. The Silk Trader, in particular was disappointing, and compared against the Jolly Sailor and the Castle, the Wharf wasn’t a lot better. It was whilst in the latter that I discovered the distribution to rail services, which could potentially affect my journey home. This came after checking live train departures on the National Rail website, so I decided it would be prudent to make my way back to the station.

The Cross-Country train from Macclesfield was fine, this time around, and it wasn’t until I alighted at Stafford that the fun started. Both West Midlands services I could have used were cancelled, nut fortunately, an Avanti staff member, present on the platform informed me that I could use one of their trains, and advised me which would be the most direct. He also assured me my ticket would be valid on Avanti trains, in view of the West Midlands cancellations. There was also disruption heading in a different direction, so station staff has laid on a replacement bus service, for travellers heading that way.

Full marks then to the Avanti staff, and full marks to for their fast, comfortable, and not overly crowded that transported me back to Euston. I had known in advance that rail travel might be somewhat hit and miss that Tuesday, as although the south east of the country was not directly affected by the ongoing, rolling strikes by ASLEF train drivers, there was an ongoing ban on overtime and rest day working. As it happened, there was some disruption, but things still worked out OK, and after an uneventful cross-London tube journey to Charing Cross, I was on the train back to Tonbridge shortly after 10pm.

So, despite a few travel hiccups on the travel front, and not managing to track down some Old Tom, Tuesday’s "Proper Day Out" in Macclesfield certainly live up to expectations. It was good too, to catch up with what is effectively the northern contingent of the Beer & Pubs Forum, and to enjoy their company as we experienced several classic, town pubs.