A corner house pub with a good selection of tables chairs to suit all . Good location to catch overspill from city centre . There were a couple of their own brews on when I went which were ok quality . Unfortunately they also had a couple of the Cornish large brand beers which were nowhere near as good . Think they should put more of their own creations on .
Edmunds Bar & Lounge has recently been closed and reopened under new management as Edmunds Brewhouse, so you should probably disregard any reviews before June 2015. On hearing that Birmingham had a Brewhouse addition to it's expanding bar scene, and being a bit of a beer geek, I was eager to check this place out. Edmunds reopened two weeks ago and they class themselves as being Birmingham's first brewhouse (meaning that they brew beer on site). Pedants like myself will like to point out that they're not Birmingham's first, as historically there would have been loads of brewhouses across the city. A visit to the 'Back-to-Backs Museum has a traditional brewhouse at the back of the house. It's also not really true in modern terms, as Rock 'n' Roll Brewhouse have been based out of the Lamp Tavern in Digbeth since 2011, and Two Towers have opened a bar in their brewery, does that make them a brewhouse too? Debatable, but the first sure wasn't Edmunds. Pedantry aside. I visited two weeks after Edmunds had reopened as a 'brewhouse', there was scaffolding outside, but a banner displayed "open as usual". On entering, like many very new places, the first thing one notices is the smell of paint. It still felt a little but like a building site, like everything had been stripped out and they hadn't quite finished the restyling. The deep mahogany woods have been replaced with a green front bar and hints at a modern stripped back aesthetic. I say it doesn't feel finished as I felt that one doesn't flow seamlessly through the space. Perhaps it was the lighting? As the place has only just opened I expect the character of the venue may grow as it finds it's character and regular clientele. On the bar is a range of the usual suspects in keg, but also including Staropramen and Franziskaner Weisse. Most intriguingly three of the four handpulls are given over to Edmunds Brewhouse beers; 'Gold Hop' 4%, 'American IPA' 4.5% and 'Pale Ale' 5%. I went for the American IPA, which was pleasant enough but doesn't have enough hoppy IBUs (International Bittering Units) to be an American IPA, it's more of a golden ale. I was bemused at how, after installing a brewery only two weeks ago, they could possibly have three ales on the bar already!? After speaking to the staff it became apparent that they have installed a TrueBrew "Techno-Brewery"; an automated system capable of brewing 280 pints in two hours (plus a week for fermentation). The landlord/brewer buys recipe kits from TrueBrew, throws them into the kettle and presses start on the touchscreen. The machine then does all of the work, including cleaning. Many brewers are cynical about the automated process as it takes the skill out of brewing, but it also takes out the risk of human error. Big breweries like Marston's and Thornbridge are fully automated. Now with the help of technology pub landlords can achieve decent brews with little brewing experience. There are hundreds of beer recipes that Edmunds can choose from, so I'll be interested to see if they stay safe or go for more adventurous flavours. Perhaps given time, Edmunds will be able to use the kit to create their own bespoke recipes. Edmunds is certainly one to watch out for; I'll be keeping an interested eye out to see what they come up with over the next 12 months. It has potential to be a top Birmingham brewery bar, I just don't think it's quite there yet.