Old bakery and former chemist among new entrants in Good Beer Guide
A legendary jazz bar, a former chemist's shop, an old bakery and a modern micropub are among the new entries from the region in the latest edition of an authoritative guide for beer drinkers.
The 2022 edition of the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) Good Beer Guide features a total of 229 pubs from across the West Midlands, Staffordshire and North Worcestershire.
Included for the first time is the Love & Liquor in Codsall, which opened in a former shop unit just two years ago.
"This village-centre bar is an excellent real-ale choice in Codsall," says the guide, praising the comfortable downstairs bar area with a wood-burning stove.
The legendary Trumpet jazz bar in Bilston returns to the guide after a three-year absence, and is praised for its welcoming atmosphere.
"Holden's award-winning ales and the music draw in customers from around the area," says the guide, adding that the walls are lined with musical memorabilia.
Also returning after a three-year absence is the Duke of Cambridge in Short Heath, near Willenhall.
Owned by Black Country Ales, it is described as a "traditional, homely, welcoming pub converted from 17th-century cottages" with a wood-burner and wooden beams.
Also new for 2022 is the Royal Tiger, a former bakery which was converted by the J D Wetherspoon chain. Named after an earlier pub which stood next door, the pub is praised for its knowledgeable staff and work promoting small breweries.
Another new entry is the Malt Shovel in Dudley.
"Originally known as the Lord Wellington in the 19th century, this exciting and trendy town-centre establishment has a popular balance of locally produced cask beers and modern nationally sourced brews on the bar," the guide says.
Micropubs in former shop units continue to prove popular, and one of the quirkier new entries in the 2022 guide is the Old Dispensary at Langley, near Oldbury.
The former pharmacy is praised for its "progressive and adventurous real ales".
The guide adds: "Small in size, but big in ideas, the venue offers high-quality cask, craft and ciders."
The pub opened in February 2017 and was the Camra branch cider pub of the year in 2018.
Hednesford's first micropub, the Heddin's Ford, also makes it into the new guide.
Ye Olde Seven Stars in Kidderminster, which won bronze in the 2019 local Camra pub of the year competition, returns to the guide for 2022.
Another new entry in the town is the Bear & Wolf, a modern town-centre pub which opened in 2019.
The Robin in Drayton, near Belbroughton, also makes the 2022 guide, with special mention for the quality of its home-cooked food.
"A welcoming country pub, refurbished while retaining the ambience of a rural retreat," is how it is described by the guide.
The Foresters Arms, on the edge of Wollaston in Stourbridge, also returns to the guide, along with the New Inn at Wordsley.
A total of 79 breweries from across the region feature in the guide, with Trinity at Lichfield and Brew 61 in Bromsgrove among the new additions.
Websters Brewhouse in Wollaston, Stourbridge, no longer features, having temporarily closed in October last year. Grey Friars in Featherstone, near Wolverhampton, and Shugborough at Milford, near Stafford, are still listed although brewing has been suspended.
