Beer Passport Autumn Diary (Venues 38-50)
It is a while since I have documented my Beer Passport journeys. Last night I passed the magic milestone of 50 so it seemed about time. No great unifying themes here, just some very good beer.
The usual disclaimers in terms of which breweries I take the time to single out and which I don’t. 1. This is just my opinion and your opinion is every bit as good as mine. 2. My experience of a beer is not timeless and objective but depends on a range of things including just what mood I am in. 3. I have not had a single bad pint throughout my travels. Some made an impression on me and some didn’t, especially. That’s all.
This chapter of the story begins in mid September. I stopped off on my bike at a nearby pub because it was hosting the AGM of the local chapter of a certain national beer organisation. I put my head around the door to say hi but they were having their branch meeting and didn’t seem particularly interested in drawing me into the events of the evening. So I saddled up and headed instead for Bohem at the Queens Arms, just off Queenstown Road. As a contrast in terms of engagement, the landlord spotted me wrestling with my bike and rushed out to invite me to come in and store it safely inside. I tentatively showed my Passport - they were not in the book but the guy at Bohem in Bounds Green had said that it was worth a try… sure, no problem! Once again this was really solid and tasty Czech lager, so I supped two enjoyable pints of the Sparta Amber and listened to a bunch of guys jamming with their instruments at a corner table. A local(ish) place that I will definitely return to.
My next journey felt highly adventurous, as it took me up to the Arctic Circle of the Northern Line as far as Woodside Park. Having stopped off first at the London Brewing Co at the “Bohemia” in North Finchley (lovely huge art deco pub venue, beer didn’t quite do it for me), I then caught a bus down to Muswell Hill Broadway and located, hidden away in a mews off the main drag, Muswell Hillbillies. A tiny cosy place so I just managed to squeeze onto the last available small table. Lovely friendly atmosphere, with someone cranking up 70s soul / disco on what someone my age can only describe as a “record player”. Both the Bowes Park Pale and Hillbilly IPA were fresh and flavourful - not a huge selection but that doesn’t matter when the staples are that good.
A few days later I had an important family dinner in the evening in Hackney. So obviously I had to be at my best and clear-headed… but I arrived in the neighbourhood too early so rather than mooch around I figured breweries were called for. My eye had been on Saint Monday for a while. A spin off from the Black Heart venue in Camden Town, they specialise in strong and dark stuff in surroundings with a decidedly metallic theme. And we aren’t talking melodies played in major keys here, but serious death-y doom-y compositions (they did play Black Dog and War Pigs to appeal to older stagers such as I, but - thanks Shazam - also the likes of Green Lung and The Devil & The Almighty Blues). The beer - just wow. The Warpsword Strata IPA produced in collaboration with Conan is one I will long remember for the richness of flavour (I will take their word that it is indeed precisely 6.66%). They also recommended the 6.9% West Coast IPA and again that was a triumph. So basically Saint Monday shot into my top 10, are a very good bet to stay there, and this is a journey I will make again.
I still had time left before dinner so thought I might as well be hung for a sheep as for a lamb and Hackney Church just happened to be on the way. I had a Gazpacho Gose. Yes, I know. I asked for a taste with the comment that I knew I would either love or hate it and the gentleman behind the bar replied “well, I love it, but then I brewed it”. (These are the kind of unique moments you get in taprooms). So I had a pint and am very glad I did… although it is somewhat acquired as a taste. Plus their Festbier, which was a good safe bet. I think I must have got through the evening ok because my kids are still talking to me.
To head off in a completely different direction, I fancied a cycle ride one afternoon and saw that a gentle meander along the river from Battersea would get me to Chiswick and Fullers Griffin, which had long been on my bucket list after many excellent pints of London Pride over the years. The brewery shop is also a bar (and the starting point for brewery tours, which can be booked with a Passport discount). I first enjoyed (a lot) a pint of HSB premium bitter - originally the flagship beer of Gales Brewery and a well constructed combination of sweet and bitter. Then they were pouring their Vintage Ale (8.4%), produced to celebrate their 180th anniversary and basically a masterpiece of which I crammed as many bottles as I could into my rucksack for the journey home. There are those who would damn Fullers as “not independent” because they are owned by Asahi and therefore seek to imply that their beer is somehow less good - as regular readers will know, I have little patience with this argument.
On the same theme, a few days later I made it to Kentish Town West and the Camden beer hall. I had their two Oktoberfest variants on Hells - the Marzen and the Fest - and they were both very nice. Whatever you think of AB InBev, it is simply irrational to dismiss everything that they brew as if it could not possibly have merit.
Brief mentions to Small Beer in south Bermondsey for making some very nice beer at 2.5% (perfect for keeping your wits about you while attending a Millwall game nearby) and Two Tribes just off the Caledonian Road for their intriguing “Tokyo IPA” with Japanese Azacca hops and flaked torrefied rice in the mash bill.
Then I returned to Bermondsey proper and a wonderful evening at Anspach & Hobday. I signed up for their Rare and Vintage tasting curated by Paul Anspach himself. Having enjoyed the Hop Pickers Harvest green hop IPA as my welcome pint, I relaxed as my table worked its way through an unimaginable wealth of off-beat, often barrel-aged concoctions, many around the theme of strong porters that is the particular calling card of A&H. I would simply say that if you get the chance to do something like this then it is a no-brainer in terms of value for money. Paul explained that London Black now dominates their production and underpins them financially - so this has strengthened my resolve to offer this as my standard porter to visitors as opposed to the Irish stuff. Leaving aside the fact that it is better.
I still don’t know how I made it home from A&H. Ditto the following week when I led a group of friends there after we had previously sampled the wares of the Kernel, Mash Paddle and Cloudwater. Memo to self: when on a brewery crawl, best not to drink pints of stuff pushing 7%, and of the amazing Cloudwater DIPAs the less said the better.
Finally, I was looking to catch up with my son, so decided to take him for a drink or several in his east London stamping ground. We ended up on an enjoyable walk down the A10 from Dalston to Hoxton. We enjoyed some lovely pales at 40 FT, were a bit underwhelmed by the offerings at Signature Haggerston and ended up in a pleasant cool misty drizzle outside Great Beyond, with a steady flow of delicious Yard Sale pizzas arriving on bikes (including for us). Their BOGOF deal is limited to their Hoxton Fresh pale and Hoxton Lager. We agreed that it wasn’t quite lager weather, but to be fair as lagers go it was a good one.
Counting down the last few before Christmas now, and already looking ahead in anticipation to the 2026 Passport (which I am sure Phil and Mike would like me to mention as it is on sale now).