Sun shines in Swalwell
Sep 19 2008 by Alastair Gilmour, The Journal
THEY like to laugh in Swalwell. It’s one of the reasons the Gateshead village manages to retain its old identity, long after the steel works died, the railway station closed and the A1 Western Bypass amputated its extremities. There were precious few local amenities before a branch of Lidl arose from a former brickworks site and there’s a finite number of times you can visit B&Q – yet its residents manage to remain positive.
Now there is another reason to smile. The Sun Inn on Market Lane has entered the revered pages of the Campaign For Real Ale (Camra) Good Beer Guide 2009, a remarkable achievement for an area not previously renowned for offering traditionally-crafted beer. And, it’s the result of two solid years of constant hard work by a dedicated landlord whose vision and determination are worn on his sleeve, just along from where his heart has always been.
Dave Cook and his wife Sarah took over the beautifully-proportioned pub in September 2006 and with the help of friends and pub regulars (it’s not nicknamed The Mates for nothing), they spruced it up and sluiced it down. First one cask-conditioned beer was introduced, then another, then – particularly at weekends – a very creditable, superbly-kept quartet of real ales rises to the challenge. At the moment, there’s a choice of Jennings Crag Rat (4.3% alcohol by volume), Wylam Angel Ale (4.3% ABV), Evan Evans Harvest Home (4.3% ABV) and Jennings Rye Beer (4.0% ABV). Next week it could be something else.
“We’ve been here for exactly two years,” says Dave, who previously worked at the Explorer Group in Consett, manufacturing caravans and motor homes. “I got fed up with the same routine, day in, day out. The Sun Inn has always been my local and Sarah has worked in pubs for years, so we decided to go for it.
“It was a bit of a mess, but we’ve increased trade by 80%. Real ale has made the difference; it’s possibly what’s kept us open.”
The Sun’s oval-shaped bar divides the main room into two distinct areas, one of which is deceptively lengthy. A separate room for entertainment, quiet contemplation or private functions is equally bright and pleasant, the result of efficiently emulsioned walls and contrastingly-coloured half-panelling. There’s no getting away from neatness and cleanliness, though why should Swalwell settle for anything less? Historic photographs of the surrounding area dot the walls and a framed Daily Express from May 7 1954, headlined At Last – The 4-Minute Mile, features Roger Bannister breasting the tape in the extraordinary race. Perhaps it’s a metaphor for vision and determination.
Dave Cook taps his glass of real ale. “This is probably what has saved us from walking away,” he says. “Customers started to like the taste and they’ll now drink three or four pints of ale rather than three or four pints of lager. It’s nice to know your tastebuds are still working. We’re getting by and paying the bills and heading in the right direction, although I’m still not getting a wage out of it. Little watering holes like this are disappearing fast; they’re perfect for having a couple of pints on your way home from work.
“With us being just a little community pub and the only one around selling real ale we don’t get a lot of travelling groups, but people have started to come from nearby Sunniside, Whickham and Consett – and one Camra member comes all the way from North Shields. I’d much rather the other pubs around did the same as us, it would make a hell of a difference. It puts a smile on my face to see people enjoying their nights. But, being tied to Marston’s means it’s difficult to offer the choice I’d like to offer. Customers come in for local ales such as Wylam and Hadrian & Border but it’s all nationally-available beers on Marston’s lists. I like to try different ones, though. I’m getting a Dutch beer in next which should be interesting.
“You’ve got to get people into pubs and the only way to do that is to give them what they want. I’m sticking to my guns and I’m over the moon with the four handpumps I’ve built up – and when people say your beers are spot-on it’s a great boost. We had a 55-seater bus trip in last week and they said it was by far the best beer they’d had all day. I was so proud to get that level of praise. Even my accountant Tony Turner spreads the word.” Dave is right to stick to his guns. The Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA), which represents the majority of the businesses in the sector, reports that in 2007 its members saw an average increase in sales of 11% while sales of Stella Artois – the country’s biggest-selling premium lager – fell by 10%. “The reason is simple,” according to the opinion of Good Beer Guide editor Roger Protz. “More and more drinkers are looking for taste and character in beer rather than the tasteless fizz offered by global brewers.”
There are more breweries in Britain today than at any other time since World War II. More than 70 have been created between the 2008 and 2009 editions of the Good Beer Guide (though, on page 854 a list of 36 “deaths” is reported). Further up the production scale, the 150-year-old Timothy Taylor of Keighley, West Yorkshire (brewer of the legendary Landlord Best Bitter), has invested £10m in new capacity over the past decade, doubling production to 60,000 barrels (2,160,000 gallons) a year. Gun-sticker Dave says: “We did all the small things first that we thought nobody would notice, like putting two coat hooks in the Ladies. They noticed all right – plus it’s amazing the number of women who say ‘your toilets are lovely and fresh’ and how polished the brasses are. People comment all the time and I never even thought they’d notice. I still put black pudding on the bar on a Sunday, visitors are surprised that someone still does it.
“I’ve got a great team, there are only five of us including the cleaner who does two hours a day, seven days a week. It makes it worth having a pub. People say it’s a little oasis. It’s not a gamble for me – I know what good beer is.
“The first thing I did with the beer was to take out the John Smiths. People moaned at first, but a friend of mine from when we were very young summed it up. He’s now living his dream; he’s got a houseboat in Tring, moored next to a pub with about 12 real ale handpulls. When he saw what was originally on the bar here he said ‘I’m not drinking that stuff, I weld with the gas they put in that’ – and he’s right, CO2.”
The film playing on the bar television as we chat is The Left Hand of God which stars Humphrey Bogart as a priest. Perhaps the 1955 movie is yet another metaphor for real ale in Swalwell; the billing is not what you’d expect, it’s an extremely enjoyable experience, it has a quality cast and focused direction. Nice one Swalwell, nice one Sun.
