Three London brewery crawls you probably don't know about
It seems like a month doesn't go by without news of a new brewery inLondon. While this is great news for fans of good beer (like us), itcan sometimes get a bit overwhelming. You want to try them all but don't know where to start. We think there are two solutions; sign up for a Deskbeers subscription to keep sampling local beers every Friday, and go on a brewery crawl. Everyone knows about the Bermondsey beer mile, the mecca for craft beer fans in London, but as the craft scene goes from strength to strength in the capital, other crawls are developing that we think are worthy of your time. A brewery crawl allows you to sample a wide range of beers and breweries in one day, get to know the brewers and start adding to your list of favourite pale ales. We've searched the capital and found three crawls to liven up your weekends.
Route map: https://goo.gl/maps/g2m6w
Our first crawl takes you on a beer filled journey between two of London's most vibrant and multicultural areas. Starting in Queen's Road Peckham, first stop is Beer Rebellion, a cross between a bottle shop and a bar run by Late Knights brewery. They serve a mixture of their own beers and a range from other independent breweries in both casks and kegs. Late Knights' own beers include the Old Red Eyes red ale and the creatively named Dawn's Early Light, an American pale ale that pays homage to our Yankee friends' national anthem. Beer Rebellion is open daily from 12-11.30pm.
A fifteen minute walk through Peckham brings you to the second stop on the crawl; Brick Brewery. Founded by local resident Ian Stewart in late 2013 in a Peckham Rye railway arch, Brick has so far made no moves to become a large scale brewer and produce just five barrels per brew, preferring to focus on quality not quantity. Ian opens up the tap room on Friday evenings (5-9pm) and Saturday (12-9) where you can taste all the regular beers plus some of the specials that are available exclusively to brewery visitors. The core beers range from a 3.9% light cask ale to 5.7% IPA and a few others in between.
After sinking your second drink or more - we're not judging, honest - you can either walk it off (20 minutes) to reach the next stop on the crawl or if you need beer quicker than that, jump on a train at Peckham Rye to take you to Denmark Hill in a mere three minutes. The Phoenix pub in Denmark Hill station isn't technically a brewery but they do serve a rotating range of “innovative craft beer” and provide a convenient stop on our journey to Brixton. If you're getting hungry then the Phoenix also serves food, however Brixton market and all it's street food treats await two stops further down the crawl.
A 15 minute walk from the Phoenix brings you to the Beer Hive, home to Clarkshaw's tap room as well as the London Beer Lab who run courses for those interested in making their own beers. We're sticking to the drinking part of the equation for now and Clarkshaws offers some tempting and fantastically named options. Curse of Cthulhu is not only the most difficult-to-spell beer we've come across but also has the honour of being approved by the Vegetarian Society, which somehow makes it seem like a curse that might not be all that bad for you. One of the more recent brews is the Gorgon's Alive golden ale (see what we mean about these names!?) which is made with Goldings hops from East Kent. Clarkshaws started off in East Dulwich before moving closer to Brixton. The Beer Hive is open from 12-6pm on Saturdays.
Final stop on the crawl is a contender for the best craft beer packaging around, Brixton Brewery. The colourful and loud designs are not only interesting to look at, they also reflect the vibrancy of the surrounding area. The brewery has a slightly unusual founders story in that it was set up by two couples who also both happen to be parents, making this a true family business. The core beers are all named after local landmarks; Windrush Stout takes inspiration from the ship that brought over the first wave of West Indian immigrants to the area, while the Reliance Pale Ale is named after Reliance Arcade, a passageway off Brixton market full of local businesses. You can sample these beers and more from 12-4pm on Saturdays.
Finishing in Brixton means you now have access to all the exciting dining options that have sprung up over the last few years. Market Row houses sour dough pizzeria, Franco Manca, while Brixton Village has Honest Burgers. There are far too many other eating options to list here but all will help you soak up the beer. If you're not finished yet and want to grab a few bottles to take home with you, Market Row Wines has a good selection of local craft beers. If you'd prefer to line your stomach before the crawl then just do the route in reverse.
Route map: https://goo.gl/maps/GqF8u
Our second crawl remains in south London, fast becoming a hot bed of craft beer creativity. We start at The Florence, a brew pub in Herne Hill. Led by chief brewer, Peter Haydon, who is also an author and pub historian, the pub produces a core range of three cask beers along with seasonal specials. The Weasel is a hoppy golden ale, the Bonobo is for fans of a dark bitter while the Beaver is a wheat beer. All beers are below 5% in volume so again, this is a good place to begin the crawl. Being a pub means you don't need to worry about the opening hours either.
Round the corner is Canopy Beer Co which has well and truly put Herne Hill on the craft beer map. Located (as seems a pre-requisite for breweries these days) in a railway arch opposite Brockwell Park, Canopy specialise in small batch beer that helps them brew twice a week and allows them to keep experimenting with new specials. They do have three permanent beers though; the Brockwell IPA, named after the aforementioned park, the Milkwood Amber ale and the Ruskin wheat beer. These guys don't have a regular open day yet but they have confirmed they will be open this weekend (28-29th March) so more incentive to start exploring straight away.
The next stop on the crawl is a fair hike so we recommend you get the number 3 bus from opposite Brockwell park (outside Costcutter) to take you up to Gipsy Hill where we have three breweries to visit. The journey takes roughly five minutes and you need to get off at Paxton Green.
Gipsy Hill Brewing Company have definitely won a place in our hearts for their commitment to brewing full flavoured beer below 5%. This focus on great tasting session beers means they are perfect for, well, eerrrr.....a session, such as as this craft beer crawl in fact. They have three core beers for now, the Southpaw amber ale, Beatnik pale ale and the Dissident English porter. All three taste great and you can get your hands on them on every first and fourth Saturday of the month when the tap room opens from 1-6pm.
Next stop, The London Beer Factory, which is conveniently located on the same trading estate as Gipsy Hill Brewing Company. Set up by two brothers, Sam, who has a degree in Physics and Astronomy and Ed, who has experience in the wine industry. They like to think they combine both “science and art” in their brewing process. With a 20 barrel brewery to their name the boys have plenty of room to experiment and brew specials to sit alongside their range of permanent offerings. The core range includes the Chelsea Blonde, the London Session ale and the Paxton Pale Ale named after Sir Joseph Paxton, the architect who designed the nearby Crystal Palace structure which burned down in 1936. The brewery is open at irregular intervals so best checking their twitter feed (@LDNBEERFACTORY) to make sure they are open for drinkers.
A nine minute walk up Gipsy Hill to Crystal Palace brings you to the second Beer Rebellion outpost (the other branch is in Queen's Road Peckham), again run by the folks at Late Knights Brewery. The shop and bar follows the same formula, a range of their own and other independent beers available to buy or consume. This branch has eight casks which change every week, four keg beers and even ciders if for some reason you need a change from delicious beer. There is also the added bonus of food in the form of “London's best burgers” that provide you with something to soak up the beer and reflect on all the beers you've tasted.
Route map: https://goo.gl/maps/YrnnO
Our last crawl is in east London and gives you the chance to wander through London's newest park as well as seeing first hand the venues where Team GB collected 65 medals in the 2012 Olympics, 29 of them gold. However, first up is Redchurch Brewery in Bethnal Green. Redchurch are all about keeping it simple, their brews are unfiltered and unpasteurised and they believe people “shouldn't tolerate bland, flavourless beer” while the pared back packaging reflects their no-nonsense philosophy. Amongst their regular options are the Bethnal Pale, Shoreditch Blonde, the Brick Lane Lager and the Hoxton Stout, all of which are available to sample in the tap room from 6pm on Fridays or all day Saturday. The Brewery is a five minute walk from Bethnal Green tube.
To get to the next stop on the crawl you'll need to retrace your steps to Bethnal Green station (if you came that way) and get the Central Line (the red one) one stop to Stratford. Once there, follow the signs to Westfield Shopping Centre, an odd venue for a craft beer venue admittedly, but bear with us, it's worth it. In the Great Eastern Market area you will find Tap East, a cross-breed of brewery and bar. They have a regularly changing line-up of 16 draught beers, made up of their own brews and guest ales. In addition there are more than 100 bottled beers meaning you will never get bored. Amongst their own creations are East End Mild, a 3.5% brew with “dark toasty notes and a smooth finish”, Coffee of the Morning, a strong stout with freshly ground coffee beans as well as a light and citrus Tonic Ale (3%) for those trying to take it easy. Tap East is open from 11am-11pm Monday to Saturday and from 12-10pm on Sundays.
When you've had your fill in Tap East, follow the signs to Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park for the next leg of the adventure. The park is still being finished but there is plenty to keep you occupied already, like a climbing wall, some pretty fun looking swings and of course the Olympic arenas now open to the public, not that we advise combining strenuous physical activity with beer. For £12 you can also go to the top of the UK's tallest sculpture; the Arcelormittal Orbit, or in normal speak, the red helter skelter thing.
If you'd rather spend your money on more beer you need to head to western edge of the park and the signs to Hackney Wick. Here you will find Crate Brewery & Pizzeria, right at the bottom of the White Building and next to the canal. If the weather is good then take advantage of their outdoor picnic tables next to the water. This is the halfway point of the crawl so it makes an ideal lunch venue and Crate delivers strongly in the gastronomic stakes. Big, crisp, stone baked pizzas provide a great accompaniment to Crate's range of seven core beers which include a 4.3% Best bitter, a 5.8% IPA and 4.8% lager while pizza options range from Middle Eastern lamb to red onion, courgette and feta.
To get to the penultimate stop on the tour you can follow the canal south to Truman's, one of London's most historic brewers. First established nearly 350 years ago and one of the capital's last independent breweries before it was sold off in 1970, Truman’s was reborn in 2010 following a 21 year closure. It now occupies a smaller site in Hackney Wick (no longer the iconic Brick Lane building) and intends to focus on being the best, not the biggest. A separate bar and tap room, The Cygnet, has a fantastic outdoor terrace right on the River Lea, 100 yards from the main brewery. If you get bored of the views then there are outdoor pool tables and ping pong to keep you entertained, as well as a full food menu. The Cygnet stocks Truman's own core beers including the Swift golden ale and the Zephyr, a hoppy pale. All of them are made from 100% malted grain and usually come from a cask. If you live locally you can bring a utility bill along to get 15% off.
For the last stop on this east end crawl you need to head back to Hackney Wick station and go two stops west to Hackney Central (five minutes). A short walk from the station is The Cock Tavern, a brew pub where you can get your hands on beer from our last two breweries. The first, Howling Hops, is brewed on site underneath the pub and this is pretty much the only place in London you can drink it. Their eclectic range includes the Ruby Red Dinner Ale, the Duchess Single Hop Ale and a Chocolate stout. The Cock also stocks beers from the East London Brewing Company (ELBC) who operate out of Leyton but do not have their own tap room. ELBC are a family-run microbrewery with just 10 barrels but they still manage to produce a good range, from the increasingly ubiquitous American pale ale (Cowcatcher, 4.8%) to the Quadrant, a dark, fruity stout that was brewed in collaboration with the winners of the National Homebrew Competition.
If you'd like to enjoy some of these beers from the comfort of your own office, don't forget to sign up for a subscription to Deskbeers and instantly become the most popular person in your team. We deliver great craft beer to great companies every Friday. Friday beers have never tasted this good.
