All about the Beer 20

Walking to the Pub is good for your health

Who would have thought? Over the past year, I have walked over 2,250 miles according to my Samsung phone. 80% of that may have been travelling to and from London pubs. At a recent medical check, the nurse announced I had shed 4kg in the previous 12 months (despite the beer intake). Ergo, walking to the pub is good for your health. I am the lowest weight I have been in nearly 30 years, my legs clearly work well and my feet have yet to fall apart. I am celebrating with a pint of Twickenham Brewery's Naked Ladies. Sweet.

The Last Judgment, Chancery Lane (Rating 9.0) WC2E 1DT

This may be the grandest pub in London. It was built in 1865 as a banking hall and the bar retains many original features. In recent years it became a Weatherspoon’s pub but has recently been purchased by a small chain called Berkeley Inns. Today it serves four ales including Allsopp’s Pale Ale but that may have been a guest beer. The Regulars include London Pride, Landlord and an Adnams ale. My pal and I both had the Allsopp’s Pale Ale. I normally drink Allsopp’s IPA but the Pale Ale (4.0% ABV) is also a very good beer. The temperature was very good and the atmosphere is truly uplifting.

WC2 has 20 pubs of which I am aware and I have thus far visited 12.  This, The Lamb & Flag (Fuller’s ESB), The George (Landlord), The George IV (London Pride) and The Seven Stars (Adnams Broadside) have star quality in my view.

The Foresters, Hampton Wick (Rating 9.0) KT1 4RG

The most impressive thing about this pub is that it serves its ales at the perfect temperature. Secondly, it rotates a selection of good relatively local ales from Twickenham and Surrey Hills Brewery. I had a pint of Shere Drop and supped it at a table on the pavement on a sunny June evening. I lived and worked not far away 15 years ago and my recollection is that it wasn’t the best pub in the area but, under new management, it is smarter and serves good beer well.  Out of 11 pubs I have visited within a 15 minute walk from here, it is the best. The next best include The Wych Elm and the Canbury Arms, both in Kingston.

The Oddfellows Arms, Pinner (Rating 8.5) HA5 3EN

This is a small pub with a large garden. There were three beers on tap and I had Fuller’s ESB. The temperature wasn’t perfect but it was OK. I spent half a day in Pinner and visited two other pubs, neither of which was as good as this. The Queen’s Head is the next best.

The Two Bridges, London Bridge (Rating 8.5) SE1 2TZ

This is 127 years old and 5 years into its current incarnation since extensive refurbishment in 2019. There are only two ales available and I had a good pint of Timothy Taylor Landlord at a good temperature. It was busy and sadly overly dominated by screens showing a football match. I struggled to find a seat but enjoyed my beer and my own company. I would go again when there’s no football.

The immediate vicinity of London Bridge is a bit hit and miss on the quality pub front. There are seven good ones and at least five quite poor ones. The best are The Barrowboy & Banker, The Woolpack, The Two Bridges, and The King’s Arms [Newcomen Street]. One of the issues is a seemingly generic tendency to serve the beers too cool.  The Two Bridges is the best in this respect but these other three are OK.

London Hospital Tavern, Whitechapel (Rating 9.1) E1 1BJ

This is so close to Whitechapel station that you feel you are almost sitting on a platform. In fact, I was sitting at a trestle table almost on the A11. It was a beautiful Summer’s afternoon and full of surprises. I reflected that I had never been to Whitechapel before, even though I lived in Wapping some years back. I had never encountered Butcombe’s West Coast Pale Ale before and I like it. My only previous encounters with the Bristol brewery’s fare had been Butcombe Original and I didn’t much enjoy it, but today was different. The West Coast is a very good pint (ABV 4.8%) and the LHT serve it well at 19.5 Celsius. The other surprise was that one of my sons, who had recently moved to Haggerston, came and joined me. Cheers!

Pint of the Week: Butcombe West Coast Pale Ale as drunk at the London Hospital Tavern. A good find.