Kicking Up A Stink In Minworth

If you’ve ever been to Minworth then you’ll know it has its own unique odour.  Minworth Sewage Treatment Works, in the east of the village, is Severn Trent’s largest treatment works, treating the waste from the equivalent of 1.7 Million people from across Birmingham and the Black Country.

Suffice to say that, on occasions, given a prevailing wind, there is a rotten stench that permeates this area of Brum!

However, aside from the occasional festering sewage aroma, Minworth does have the advantage of the Birmingham-Fazeley canal running through it, which means there are bound to be some boozers in close proximity.

It’s not quite East Birmingham so you can pick up a pint of real ale in this part of town but I don’t think this would be classed as a cask stronghold.

A rare sighting of this Beefeater breweriana…

…is a sign that food rivals drink in these parts and that was definitely the case when I arrived at 263 – Cuttle Bridge Inn B76 9DP.

It is situated on a service road  just off the main drag going through the village so there are probably easier options to stop at.  In all fairness this is arguably a hotel/restaurant where you can still buy a drink but I was met by a Beefeater style greeting asking me what I was eating and was almost frogmarched to the bar area in case I didn’t know how to order just a drink by the very helpful waitress!

This is clearly a place that flaunts its Doom Bar and Atlantic (Sharp’s) and I have to say my pint of the latter was very good indeed as I grabbed a table on the beer patio.

Considering it was around 8pm on a Wednesday night it was absolutely rammed inside and out.  I think there might have been a warm up to a Thursday wedding going on but I wasn’t sure although the place was packed full of people eating and drinking.

Gorgeous sunshine and canalside boozers are always honey pots for folks from the Birmingham area and this proved to be no exception.

I reckon it’s the feeling of being landlocked and so far from the sea (or it could be that they have more canals than Venice…) that makes Midlanders flock to the canal.

Pete often takes his boat through this part of Brum and with his new found love of cask ale I could imagine him mooring up outside the Cuttle Bridge and polishing off a pint of Atlantic or Doom! (I’m expecting a post soon Pete)

Anyway there were all sections of society from the jumpers tied round their necks brigade to heavy rock t-shirts and tattooed couples with painted on clothes.

There was a great group of girls working their way through a stack of Peroni and wine engaging in a fruity conversation with swearing to rival any boozer in Whitwick and just a general feeling of a happy summer’s evening.

It felt like a restaurant to me really but was chilled, the beer was good and the place was packed to the rafters so whilst it might not be your traditional boozer, it looks as though it is thriving and has almost shaken off its Beefeater past!

(Definitely more canals than Venice!)

Oh yes, it doesn’t smell in this part of Minworth either – not at 8pm on a Wednesday evening anyway!