The Swan, Birlingham, Worcestershire Pub Review

The Swan, Birlingham

Posted on 21. Jul, 2010 by Robert Gale in Pubs

The Swan, Birlingham

The Swan is hidden withinin the quiet and picturesque village of Birlingham, Worcestershire. The black and white thatched pub dates back to the mid-late 16th century and according to the landlord, many of the walls are still original.

The pub consists of a very small bar on the left as you enter, a fireplace with a few seats arranged around it and a snug area with more comfortable seating and more direct access to the bar. The area with the fireplace did get rather congested when I visted on a Sunday lunchtime with people people for their meals.

At the rear of the pub is an extension used for dining and beyond that is a spacious south-facing garden which is perfect for spending an afternoon in the sun with a few ales.

The Swan, Birlingham

The beautiful thatched roof was re-thatched in April 2010. This photo taken back in 2008 shows a rather neglected roof and the little swan on ridge of the roof is a new addition.

The range of beers is good featuring Sharp’s Doom Bar, Wye Valley HPA and Bitter and it was good to see two beers from the Brains Brewery – Dark and SA. Dark was a permanent beer but I’m not sure about SA as it had a handwritten pump clip. There were two ciders including the radioactive looking Cheddar Vallery from Thatchers. As I was driving I can’t comment on the quality of the beer.

The pub holds two beer festivals a year, one in May and one in September.

The Swan is very much a locals pub and appears to be a popular place to eat, at least on a Sunday. The landlord was happy to talk about the history of the pub and the locals were friendly.

If you visit the Swan, make sure that you also pay a visit to the Cider House in nearby Defford. It is one of a handful of true cider houses left in the UK.

Venue Location

The Swan

Church Street

Birlingham

Worcestershire

WR10 3AQ

Tel: 01386 750485

www.theswaninn.co.uk

View on Google Street View

Robert Gale (Twitter: @awv)

Beer Taster, Pub Attendee, Photo Taker

Robert Gale likes beer, pubs and beer festivals. He also likes to take photos of beer, pubs and beer festivals. Most weekends of the year you can find him travelling around the UK (and sometimes beyond) photographing and reviewing good quality pubs and beer festivals. He also has a day job in the form of a web developer for Ozum.