Nottingham keeps its beer close to the ground, in railway arches under the viaduct, in the old lace factories around Sneinton and Hockley, in corner units you'd walk past without noticing unless you already knew to look. The Lace Market itself still carries the old warehouse feel even as the tenants above the shopfronts change from one year to the next, and that's where a fair few taprooms have ended up, brick walls and cast iron columns doing the decorating for them. Sneinton Market adds its own cluster on a weekend, stalls and small units side by side, easy to spend an afternoon in without meaning to.
Head out towards the Trent and things get quieter but no less serious about it, riverside spots that fill up on a warm evening and empty out just as fast when the weather turns. Sherwood and Beeston keep their own smaller pockets going too, a short bus ride from the centre and worth the detour if you're not in a rush. We keep an eye on what breweries and shops around the city are posting, not which of them we'd put top of a list. Nottingham doesn't shout about any of this the way some cities do; it just keeps making beer and letting people find it.
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