DEPOT is Cardiff’s natural home for live music, DJ-led club nights, and large-scale events. A versatile multi-purpose events space with state-of-the-art production and an in-house creative team that can bring any vision to life, DEPOT has hosted everything from major gigs and electronic music takeovers to corporate showcases and full-scale immersive events.
Today’s lunchtime venue is the White Lion in Ross-on-Wye…
Looks a beautiful area…
Nestled on the border of England and Wales, the picturesque town of Ross-on-Wye is the birthplace of British tourism. For centuries, the town has welcomed visitors wanting to soak up the stunning views of the Wye Valley. The local landscape inspired Wordsworth, Coleridge, Alexander Pope and countless other poets and writers.
Lovely sunny day with plenty of time to get there…
Time for a film…
We’re enjoying the film…
Just crossing the River Severn…
The lake in the background is the former Ripple quarry site.
Nearly there…
St Mary’s church…
The church spire has dominated the town’s skyline for over 700 years.
At last…
Is it a bird, is it a plane…
No…it’s the pub!
A friendly pub right on the banks of the beautiful River Wye, a 10 minute walk from the centre of Ross-on-Wye. With great food and an extensive drinks menu, there is nowhere better to relax. The pretty beer garden with its hanging baskets is perfect for enjoying a cold beer or wine and watching the wildlife pass by on the river.
No words needed…
Brewed using Maris Otter and Crystal malts together with locally grown Target and Goldings hops, Pyoneer has a delicate hoppy aroma leading on to a full malty flavour and ending in a crisp, clean bitter finish.
Our table was inside…
But we didn’t want to miss the views outside…
That’s not 8 pints by the way…
Time for our lunch…
BEER BATTERED FISH & CHIPS Beer battered cod served with homemade mushy peas, chips & homemade tartare sauce (GF*) £16.95SCAMPI & CHIPS Served with mushy peas, chunky chips & homemade tartare sauce £14.25CHEF’S HOMEMADE PIE OF THE DAY Served with a choice of mash or chunky chips & seasonal veg £16.9510oz PENGETHLEY FARM GAMMON STEAK Served with a fried egg, pineapple, grilled tomato, peas & chunky chips (GF) £16.95
All the food and beer was great…
Snap decisions…
Sadly it was time to go…
Just enough time to finish the film…
Soon enough we arrived at the venue…
It’s a massive space…
Catering was finishing early today…
So we grabbed some food for later and headed to the dressing room…
Peroni Red (4.7% ABV) is a popular, crisp, and refreshing Italian lager, often considered Italy’s favorite, offering a slightly darker color and more pronounced malty/hoppy flavor than Peroni Nastro Azzurro.
Time for a quick soundcheck…
Before heading off into Cardiff Bay to meet some old friends…
Opening in the 19th Century, The Packet was established during a time when Cardiff’s docks were bustling with trade. Ships from across the globe once docked at the busy port, bringing goods and people who often settled in the city, transforming it into their new home. Though the docks have changed beyond recognition, The Packet remains one of the few surviving institutions from that time. Named after the packet ships that ferried mail to British outposts, The Packet has been an integral part of the docks’ narrative since 1864.
Inside we met up with our mates from Cardiff who were big fans back in the 90’s & 00’s…
A great pint too…
Brewery: Brains ABV: 3.5 – 3.7% Style: Bitter using Goldings and Fuggles hops. The aroma is very sweet and foremost hoppy. The taste is malty yet sweet with slightly grassy notes. Smooth and clean on the palate. Quite refreshing with a very bitter finish.
Time for one more photo…
Then a cab back to the venue…
Time to go on…
A great crowd…
It was a great gig but we had to head home straight after…
Next stop Liverpool…
Saturday 21st March 2026 – Liverpool University Mountford Hall
Liverpool University Mountford Hall stands out as a premier venue in the heart of Liverpool, known for its exceptional ambiance and remarkable acoustics. The hall offers a unique blend of historical charm and modern facilities, making it an ideal spot for a diverse range of events, from concerts to cultural gatherings.
No travel today as we arrived home from Cardiff in the early hours…
The plan was to meet up in ‘The White Hart’ pub around 3.30pm…
Our snug pub is a Dickensian styled labyrinth of nooks, crannies and rooms. We’re in a gorgeous town house building in Liverpool’s historic Georgian quarter, spitting distance from the Catholic cathedral and the Philharmonic pub. We are all about cask ales, roaring fires, great tunes and we have a fantastic indoor/outdoor beer garden.
They had White Rat…
White Rat is a popular 4% ABV, pale hoppy ale brewed by Ossett Brewery, often produced by their dedicated ‘Rat Brewery’ craft arm. It is characterized as a sessionable pale ale with a very pale appearance, featuring intense citrus, pine, and floral hop notes derived from Cascade, Columbus, and Amarillo hops. It is widely considered a top cask ale.
We headed off to the venue and our dressing room…
ShinDigger’s West Coast Pale is a clean and crisp pale with a burst of orange from the lead hop Amarillo. It is our homage to the West Coast styles that dawned a new era in world brewing and inspired us to start brewing.
We had a quick soundcheck then headed back to the pub…but via the back door!
The Engineer is a hidden gem located on Arrad Street in Liverpool’s Georgian Quarter, just behind Hope Street. This back-street boozer is known for its historic setting and cozy atmosphere, offering a true cask pub experience reminiscent of another time.
A quick couple of pints with our guests, then back to the venue…
The Octagon Centre, built in 1983, is a multi-purpose conference centre and music venue at the University of Sheffield, England. Situated in the Western Bank campus, it is joined by a skyway to University House and comprises an eight-sided auditorium with a capacity of 1,800 (1,230 seated), offices, meeting rooms, and a lounge with bar and patio.
12pm meet in Liverpool as our lunchtime venue is the ‘Riverhead Brewery Tap’ in the village of Marsden in Yorkshire…
Looking forward to it…
Marsden is a large, vibrant village in West Yorkshire’s Colne Valley, about 7 miles from Huddersfield, famous for its rich textile heritage, stunning Pennine moorland, and the historic Standedge Tunnel. It offers a mix of urban culture-independent shops, cafes, and pubs-and immediate access to nature, making it a popular spot for walkers and tourists.
Straight on to the M62…
Hollingworth Lake Country Park
We took a diversion across Saddleworth moor…
Atmospheric…
Eventually we arrived in Marsden…
And the pub…
The Riverhead Brewery Tap is ideally placed in the picturesque village of Marsden. On the ground floor in the bar, there are 10 real ale hand pumps several of which are permanently dedicated to the popular Riverhead beers brewed on-site. The famous Riverhead micro-brewery is housed downstairs in the cellar. Here we brew a wide range of beers all with a local connection. Hot and cold food is served regularly with all dishes freshly prepared on site.
Great selection of their own beers…
The Riverhead brew-pub opened in 1995, with Ossett Brewery purchasing the site in 2009. The core range are named after local reservoirs, with the height of the reservoir relating to the strength of the beer. Brewer, Richard Armitage, has created many new beers whilst retaining the old local favourites such as Butterley and Redbrook. The Riverhead is our smallest brewery, which now boasts a new five brewers barrel plant producing just fourteen firkins per brew which means the majority of Riverhead beers are sold through the Brewery Tap itself.
We went for the black stuff…
One of the original Riverhead recipes. Brewed using traditional English hops. Dark ruby dry mild with a roasted flavour.
Great street food menu…
We had some very messy wings…
Washed down with a nice pint of bitter…
This is fresh from the rolling hills of Marsden. Butterley became so popular with our Riverhead brewpub locals, we had to share it with the world. Made from all-English ingredients, with waves of malt and honey, we’ve captured the essence of our lush landscapes in every sip.
We had a bit of time to walk off our Bao Buns…
Carl had given his to this friendly mut!The River Colne in West Yorkshire rises near Marsden at the confluence of Redbrook Clough and Haigh Clough, 768 feet up in the Pennines. It flows east through the village, joining with Wessenden Brook before passing toward Slaithwaite, forming a 12-mile-long, historically significant “stony river”
Marsden Mill…
Bank Bottom Mill, later known as Marsden Mill, was from 1824 an important centre for the production of woollen cloth in Marsden, West Yorkshire, England. Originally a fulling mill, Bank Bottom Mill reached its heyday in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries under the ownership of the Crowther family, in particular John Edward Crowther, a businessman and philanthropist. However, the cloth industry declined in the late twentieth century, and production of woollen cloth finally ceased in 2003.
We enjoyed our time in Marsden but it was time to go…
Eventually we arrived at the venue…
Carl had designed and printed out our new mailing list beer mats…
They came in handy in the pub before!
After soundcheck, we’d arranged to meet up with some old friends in a nearby pub…
The bath hotel occupies a triangular site at the end of a mid-victorian terrace on Victoria Street, Sheffield. Despite a covenant preventing the use of the site for the sale of alcohol, it became a pub in the 1880’s & was bought around the time of the first world war by Ind Coope, which in 1931 refaced the ground floor and gave it an internal refit. The layout and fittings are as they were then apart from the closure, some time ago, of the off-sales. So there are two seperate bars, each with their own character.
Some good beer…
Lord Marples was the first ever Thornbridge beer! Brewed in 2005 at the Hall Brewery we wanted to try a traditional style for our initial offering, and a classic Bitter seemed perfect. It pours an attractive mahogany, bringing forth flavours of honey and caramel with just a light bitterness in the finish to keep it balanced. It’s named after Mr Marples, a former owner of Thornbridge Hall, who enjoyed using the title of Lord while never quite achieving it officially, we thought we would bestow it upon him.
And good company…
The Sheffield and Hull contingent
Back in the dressing room, the Sheffield lads had bought us some boxes of Vocation Brewery beer…
We brew bold and flavourful beer for the many because we believe beer should be an experience and there should be a beer for every occasion, whether celebrating a milestone, reminiscing with friends or the first cold sip after a long day.
Time for a shave…
ShinDigger Mango Unchained is a popular 4.2% ABV Session IPA brewed in Manchester, UK, blended with natural mango and pineapple extracts. Known for a “juice-bomb” flavor profile, it offers a tropical, fruity taste with a light, smooth body, often described as a refreshing, “grown-up” version of mango juice.
On stage!!!
Couple of vids…
Groovy Train
Groovy Train 2
Great crowd…
What an absolutely brilliant night we had but sadly it was time for us to head off home.
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