London Pub Tour 21 - Mayfair: Guinea, Coach & Horses and Burlington Arms

Photo by Ewan Munro

I actually assist CAMRA by delivering London Drinker magazine every two months to a selection of pubs in central London around the Piccadilly area. Delivering the magazine gives me the perfect opportunity to visit a varying selection of pubs (both on the route and off the route) along with discovering some pubs I wouldn't have previously. I'll cover some of the other pubs in the route throughout the next few months, as sometimes I don't always get to stop and drink due to time pressures.

After trudging across London with a box of Magazines and coming out of Green Park station with the rain beginning to drop, I was glad to finally arrive at the Guinea (W1J 6NL). Now the Guinea is probably the least favourite pub on my route mainly due to the typical customer. As expected the pub was rammed inside with lots of suits. This is a very small pub and mainly does good trade during good weather as everyone can stand on the quiet cobbled road outside drinking. It's based in an old mews, and has what I can only assume is a posh grill restaurant upstairs based on the doorman in his outfit.When walking in the pub door, you see how small the pub is, with the bar just to your left. There is seating against the front window and a sofa area just behind the bar. Then there is a little standing area along the walk next to the entrance, and that's about all the space inside.

Photo by Alan Stanton

The Guinea is a Young's pub and as such they have Young's ale on (Special and Bitter) and also Sambrooks Pale Ale. They also have 6 kegs serving up Guinness, Amstel, 1664, Estrella, Camden Pale and Heineken. I went for a pint of Estrella which was okay, and standard lager. Looking behind the bar it was strange to see they had jars of Pickled Eggs and Onions, which I assume they were selling. The rain started to let off and the suits made their way outside with their drinks for a smoke. After drinking my pint quickly, I made my way onto the next venue I was dropping the booklets at, The Coach & Horses (W1J 6PT).

The Coach & Horses is a Taylor Walker turned Green King pub. It stands out amongst the other buildings around it due to its design and height. It's a stand alone, slim, tudor beamed pub. This is one of my favourite looking pubs from the outside, due to the contrast with its surroundings. The front entrance is not in use, and you have to use the side door. The building is slim on front and actually gets wider as it goes back. The bar area is small and there is some tight seating surrounding it. There are some small tables against the partition wall separating the larger and more spacious dinning area from the bar area.

Photo by Ewan Munro

The bar was offering up Exmoor Dark, 1730 and Ruddles. They had in Keg Camden Pale & hells, Hogstar, Peroni, 1664 and Fosters. I picked up a half of Exmoor Dark which was dark-ish in colour and smelt very good. Not sure if lager previously impacted upon my tasting of the beer, as it felt quite plan. The pub wasn't too busy and so I found a small table and a seat in the bar area. Looking at the bar, the top had loads of pump clips showing off beers they'd sold previously. Sadly now as a Greene King it stocks more Greene King ales and only has one guest.

After finishing up the half I moved on to my final stop for this delivery batch, the Burlington Arms (W1S 2JL). The pub is down a cul de sac just off Bond Street and out the back of Burlington Arcade. The pub isn't large on the inside but does have an upstairs dinning area. This place is frequented by suits just like the Guinea and it was busy on this day with customers.

The pub does have an automated brewing machine, and I remember talking about this with a representative from the company at this pub over a year ago. I don't believe I've had any of their own brewed beers during my previous visits. On this visit there were 6 ales on including Good Old Boy, Market Porter and Edinburgh Castle. On the keg front they had Rothaus, Harpoon IPA, Goose IPA, Pilsner Urquell, West Coast IPA, Mosaic Pale, Amstel, Heineken, Cote Breton Brut Cidre and Guinness. I opted for a pint of the Rothaus which was a beautiful pint. After my Rothaus I stayed for one more drink as something in the fridge had caught my attention. I didn't know the name of the beer but liked the can design, so ordered based on that. What I ordered was Ægir India Pale Ale by Ægir Bryggeri. The can was a ring pull which completly comes off, and as I was unaware of strength required I did spill a little. I poured the beer into a glass and enjoyed the hoppy pale ale-ness of it. I've since seen further beers by the same brewery and have been tempted to pick them up, but have thus far resisted.

London Pub Tour 20 - Enfield Town: The Old Wheatsheaf, The Stag, King's Head and The George

Photo by Bone007

This pub tour was again on the outskirts of London, in Enfield. I started just outside the town, at The Old Wheatsheaf (EN2 6SE) which is a short walk down the hill from Enfield Chase Station. The pub is split into two sides, with no access between the two. The newer side is the door you'll arrive at first from the station, and also provides access to the rear garden. I however prefer the older side, which you enter through a latched front door, which is unusual to find at a London pub. The pub feels like its had a lick of paint recently, but still feels aged. The small bar is facing you straight on as you enter, only a few paces away. To the right and stretching down the back is seating. There is wood flooring around the bar area, and the seating area is carpeted.

On tap there was Guinness, Amstel, Becks, 1664, Fosters, Heineken and Carlsberg. There were three hand pumps offering up 6X, Tribute and Courage. I selected to start the night with the 6X as it was only 4.1%. I hadn't had 6X in years, and its a decent sessionable pint. After the 6X I moved across to have a pint of Heineken. The pub wasn't too busy, but I seen the poster on the wall advertising quiz night at 7pm, so decided to move on before any participants started to appear. I moved down the hill, to the top end of Enfield Town and stopped off at The Stag (EN2 6PH).

Photo by Bob Osborn

The first time I actually went into The Stag was last year and it was just a quick stop off after coming off the bus at the bus station opposite. On that day the pub was empty apart from a small after wedding ceremony going on. Tonight there were no other customers in the pub, though some customers did arrive to check in to their rooms above the pub. The Stag has been through quite a few different managers over the years, and has been refurbished a few years back after a fire. The refurbishment involved giving the interior a more modern, minimalist look. There are no ales served and on tap they offered up Becks, Shipyard, San Miguel, Fosters, Carlsberg, Peroni, Guinness and Thatchers. I went for the pint of Shipyard and took a seat over in the sofa area.

As the pub was quite empty the bar man came over and joined in for a chat. We began discussing the history of the pub and in particular the historic unsolved murder in 1816 of John Draper. Draper was a beadle who had been out collecting money earlier in the day and had already been kicked out of a pub in Barnet. He made his way with a new accomplice to the Bald Faced Stag where he proceeded to drink and in the process pick fights with most of the other customers. When he didn't return home that night his wife called the police and they discovered his body in the well at the rear of the pub, minus his pocketbook and money. The police were unable to pin the murder on anybody as they all had a reason for murdering him, but all backed up each other's story. The bar man explained where the well can be found. It was a very interesting discussion and certainly added to the allure of the pub. After another pint of Shipyard it was time to move on to catch the second half of the football.

I made my way down into the Town Centre, and in particular to the market square where the King's Head (EN2 6LL) can be found. This pub was closed for numerous years and I believe re-opened in 2015. This is quite a large pub with some outside covered tables. Walking in the door and the large bar which I can't describe as Horseshoe, but which wraps around the bar and all the way towards the back, is the first thing you see. The pub has an Irish feel to it, meaning a pub where your certain to find Irish sports on. The pub is split into sections with privacy screens between the areas, some with stained glass. Walking towards the rear and you arrive at the dinning area, which used to have a canoe hanging from the ceiling, for what reasons I'm unsure, but since has been removed.

The pub has 4 hand pumps which on this visit were offering up Bombardier, London Glory, Greene King IPA and London Tap. I selected a pint of London Tap from New River Brewery, as never heard of the brewery before and they're local. The pint was drinkable but nothing really stood out. It had a hoppy taste and aroma but not much else to distinguish it from other similar beers. I certainly wouldn't say no to drinking it if given the choice, but it wouldn't be a first choice. So much so that my next beer was from their keg selection. They offered up a variety of the mainstream beers you see in London including Guinness, Stella, Amstel, Peroni, Heineken, Hop House 13 and Hells. I went for a pint of Camden Hells, only reason being that Camden Brewery will be moving to their Enfield Brewery soon (So you can see my thought process at this stage).

The pub was busy with lots watching the football on the many TVs dotted around the pub. There must have been 40+ people, so it was at that level you have space still. The pub is owned by the Enfield Market Trust who lease it out. This pub always seems to have a good number of people and has managed to become a very popular pub in the town centre. The other competing pub is just across the road and is where I went next, The George (EN2 6LE). The George is definitely a busy pub during the day and after work, but was particularly empty this night. They sometimes have DJs and clear to make a dance floor, and as such, the pub seems neglected in caring for its furniture or even the smell.

The beer range is standard with a few ales on offer, which included Sly Fox, Rudolph's Reward, Doombar and Greene King IPA. The kegs included beers such as Punk IPA, Stella, John Smiths, Carlsberg and Carling. The pub reminds me slightly of a spoons with the large single level open plan pub, though it has been this way long before spoons made that style famous. I sat down and had a pint of Stella, though slightly reached the decision that maybe I should have called it a night at the King's Head and not moved on. As it was quite late and many pubs in, I didn't have many notes for this pub. After finishing most of my pint I called it a night and got a cab home. All in all a nice variety of pubs were covered, with three that were different but enjoyable and the last a place that isn't on my re-visit list.

Beers to note - January 2017

So there were less pub visits in January than a typical month, mainly due to friends being on Dry January or just not going out due to over expenditure in December. Alongside this I didn't drink too many beers outside of the pub. Just to put this into perspective I had a look through my Untappd stats and for last year my average number of drinks a month was 58 (which obviously doesn't take into account measure e.g. halves, 330ml or pints). For January 2017 my drink total was a lowly 39 which did include a few bottles. So below are my beers to note from January 2017.


Santa Paws (BrewDog) - 4.5% | Keg Pint
This was the beer I used to break my New Year duck and ensure I don't follow Dry January. A Christmas beer in January is normally to be avoided after a certain stage by 2nd January is acceptable. I had this beer previously in bottle format but the keg version was far superior as the flavours were more powerful and better aroma. I hope BrewDog have this one out again next year as its definitely one of the seasonable beers I will look for next year.






Organic Cherry Ale (Samuel Smith's) - 5.1% | Bottle 355ml
I didn't even realise this beer was 5% until checking it out for this list. I do like Sam Smith drinks and these fruit beers are no exception. The only problem with them is the high price they always charge, but the beers are always amazing. Cherry has to be one of my favourite as the smell and taste are so perfect, and what I expect from a fruit beer. It's actually quite refreshing to drink, though certainly not sessionable.






Cake Boy Hazelnut Ale (Meantime) - 5.0% | Keg Pint
This beer is from the Pilot Series that Meantime brew and was a special one for the winter period. They have done a fantastic job in capturing that amazing hazelnut taste when sipping the beer, along with some nice malt and chocolaty-ness. This is a beer I would recommend to try but again not something I would consider sessionable.







Hibernate (To øl) - 6.0% | Bottle 330ml
This was one of those beers that you pick up to try and once you open, you wish it was in a bigger bottle or you picked up more. This was a beautiful hoppy wheat beer and I'm not sure what else to say. If you can get your hands on this, do!






Sussex Best Bitter (Harveys) - 4.0% | Cask Pint
This beer is always a beautiful drink, and never disappoints. Harveys brew some wonderful beers but this as a flagship is flawless, and when served in perfect condition in cask cannot be beaten. Easily sessionable.





Old Ale (Harveys) - 4.3% | Cask Pint
Another Harveys beer, and again a great pint served in perfect condition. The beer is dark but light and easy to drink. I haven't tried the bottle version which is a lower ABV of 3.6%, which I'm concerned could impact the flavour, so would suggest sticking with the cask if found. Easily sessionable.







Coconut Porter (Old Hands) - 6.0% | Cask Half
The beer pours dark. There is no real aroma coming off the beer but the taste of the beer is distinctly coconut. The coconut came through and fitted perfectly with the beer. I wouldn't say this was a refreshing pint but I did enjoy the coconut taste which they perfected.

Ægir India Pale Ale (Ægir Bryggeri)  - 6.5%| Can 330ml

I firstly liked the design of the can, which was eye catching. Also the ring pull takes off the whole top half of the can like on a soup can. I admit I did pull a bit too hard and split a little of this precious liquid. It was a nice hoppy pale ale, and one I wouldn't mind trying again, maybe in keg format....a trip to Norway beckons I reckon.

London Pub Tour 19 - Wandsworth: Cat's Back and The Ship

Heading south of the river again and this time to Young's Territory, I arrived at Wandsworth Town station. My first stop though was not a Young's pub, and wasn't near the station either, but was one I wished to visit again as part of my London Pub Tour. I made my way about 15 minutes following part of the Thames path to the Cat's Back (SW18 1NN) which is halfway between Wandsworth and Putney, and situated right near one of those new Thames developments.

Sadly I never made it to the Cat's back under the previous owners when there were interesting tit-bits all over the pub, but since 2012 this pub has been owned by Harveys, and is one of only three in London. When I arrived outside the pub, I could see one of the workers outside cropping up wood for the fire. Upon entering the pub the bar is directly in front, to the right and left are tables with seating. On the right at the end of the bar is the open fire, which the worker was tending to. To the left in the corner facing towards the road is a piano, which had a sweet machine atop. The pub has vinyl wall paper on the bottom half of the wall, whilst the top half is either a plain colour or pattern paper. The flooring is wooden block flooring.

There were about as many customers as staff when I walked in and it remained that way for my visit. On tap at the bar there was Guinness, Peroni, Thatchers, Blue Moon and Staropramen. But I wasn't here for the keg stuff, I was here for the cask. There were 5 taps, though one was separate from the other bank of 4, and may have just been a prop. Only the bank of 4 had ales on offering up Sussex Best Bitter, Old Ale, IPA and Wild Hop. I of course started with a pint of the excellent Sussex Best Bitter and it did not disappoint. The body, mouth feel and flavour were all on spot, and made even better sitting opposite a nice crackling open fire.

Harveys is a brewery whose beer I always enjoy, but sadly don't have often enough. My last pint of Harveys was at the GBBF in summer last year, and it was their monsterous Imperial Stout, which likewise is an amazing beer. I was hoping they might have sold bottles at this pub, so I could take a few away, but alas no. After finishing up my lovely pint of Best I thought I'd give Wild Hop a try. Unfortunately this was just out, and so I selected Old Ale instead. The ABV on this is slightly higher at 4.3% and the price was 20p more at £4.20, though still a great price for London. This was a dark beer that was still light and smooth to drink. Not as good as the best, but certainly a well made beer. As I sat down and supped my pint I noticed an extra bit of furniture, the large old suitcase on top of the bar, which I thought a strange addition to the pub, and wonder if it was a nod to the Cat of old.

After finishing up my pint I made my way back along the Thames path towards Wandsworth to The Ship (SW18 1TB). This is a Young's riverside pub, that was at one stage the closest pub to where I lived. Unlike some of the other Young's along the river here, this one is an old pub that has stood here for over 200 years. The outside has a raised decking area with seating, providing a wonderful river spot in the good weather. To accompany this there is an outside bar at busy times, and a burger shake. But as we know this is January, and the outside was empty and everyone was inside.

There are two parts to the pub. I entered via the smaller part of the pub where you see the final tip of the large horse shoe bar. There was one person on this side, and though I normally enjoy sitting here I opted to walk through to the main bar area. Walking through to the main bar, you actually leave the old original pub building and enter a large conservatory. It has all been tastefully built and when the rain is pouring down outside, its a good place to wile away the time. There are a number of function rooms in the pub, in the original building. Connected to the extension is a private dinning area serving up a different menu to the rest of the pub. There was a very nice fire light in the middle of the extension, that added a bit more to the feel of the pub.

On tap there was the usual Young's selection of Estrella, London IPA and Camden Pale, but there was also the addition of London Lager Brewery Fresh and Camden Hells Unfiltered. On Cask they were serving up Pure Gold, Special, Bitter, Winter Warmer, Pump House and Broadside. But I had already been taken by the Camden Hells Unfiltered. To be honest, the pint came out looking very clear and couldn't tell much difference between this and the filtered Hells. Also following on from the two lovely Harveys pints, I don't think this drink stood a chance. I took a seat, though it was had to find one what with the pub being practically empty, yet every table having a reserved sign for people who were due (and even overdue) within the next 30mins.

I think the Ship is a nice pub, and it just depends on the day and the crowd you get. Similarly with the Alma nearby, which I hope to cover in a London Pub Tour, along with some of the other Wandsworth pubs in the next month. So for today it was just the two pubs, but it was all for the Harveys anyways.

London Pub Tour 18 - Vauxhall: Nine Elms Tavern, Riverside, Royal Oak and The Beehive

I was back south of the river again (just) for my next London Pub Tour, taking in some of the pubs in the Vauxhall area. I started by heading slightly down Nine Elms road to one of the newest pubs in the area, Nine Elms Tavern (SW8 5BP). This pub is in the new US embassy district and no doubt once the place opens up later this year, this pub will become busy every evening after work. At present the few occasions I've popped in this place has been empty and this time was no different.

The pub, like most new pubs, is underneath some Thames side flats, facing the river. Upon walking through the doors the bar is directly in front, with all the remainder of the pub accessed by turning right. There is an upstairs with quite a bit of seating, and from this area the design of the pub feels slightly ship based, with the supporting beams feeling like a ships mast. The downstairs has large round booths, with large tables in the middle, allowing big groups of 8 people to sit and drink in comfort. This is by all means a very modern bar in design but it pulls it off well and due to not being noisy/busy is easy to relax in having a quite chat with a friend or reading a book over a pint.

On offer were 3 ales: Winter Warmer, London Gold and Young's Bitter. The lagers offered up included Hells, Peroni, Estrella, London IPA, Guiness, 1664 and Fosters. I surveyed their bottle beer range and selected one of their Briton beers, Atlantic APA. The bottle was 330ml and 5.4% in ABV. I also had a packet of crisps to accompany from the Tyrells range, and the total came to £6.80. The beer was very floral but easy tasting and the hops were not overpowering, which is just the way I like it. There were only about 3 others in the pub, though some did start to arrive as I was finishing off my bottle.

I retraced my route to the Nine Elms tavern, back to Vauxhall and into another Young's Thames pub - Riverside (SW8 2LE). I'm quite familiar with Riverside as when it opened it was the local pub near where my work was based. Much like most of the Young's (Rams) Pub estate the outside hanging sign has been updated to just displaying the initial letter of the pub name, fitting into a scenery that matches. I do appreciate the design work that goes into these signs, but I feel they're less distinct and at a quick glance all you see is a letter, making all the Young's look very similar. I see they continue to update signs in their estate and assume these will happen for all their pubs, just wonder what their doing with the old ones?

Riverside offers a better view of the Thames than the Nine Elms, particularly with the outside heated seating. This wasn't in use today due to it being January, so everyone was inside. It's hard to tell which is the main entrance for this pub, but I walked in the doors from where the seating area is and the bar is at the far side. Along the window facing out to the Thames are lots of comfy seats and smaller tables. On the left there are more seats near an open modern gas fire. Directly opposite and running parallel to the bar is some high cushion seating. To the left of the bar is the dinning area and toilets. The bar is a large oval bar, though the rear is not used for service, and the area behind the bar had single seater booths. These are my preferred seats on busy days as you can seat with a mate with your own table and comfy seat and chat. Sadly the keg and pump selection offered at Riverside was exactly the same as the Nine Elms, except for the addition of a New Year Ale from Young's. I resisted and went for a pint of the London IPA. At £5.30 it's not worth the price, but it at least tasted better than the last pint of it I'd had.

The pub was starting to get busy with after work drinks crowd, so I moved onwards to my next pub the Royal Oak (SE11 5QY) which is a short walk from vauxhall train station heading towards Kennington. This is an Irish style bar, not the Irish theme bar of the 90s but an old school Irish boozer. The pub is not that wide, with the bar on the left and red booth style seating opposite on the right. At the end of the pub is an open  area with table seating. This is where most of the punters were, seated down the end watching the horse racing and Trump's inauguration. On one wall at the end was an electronic advertising display board, near to this was a juke box, quiz machine and a wall with trophies and photos. The pub has a worn look about it, but felt comfortable. There is an outside area for smokers to go. Behind the bar were leprechaun teddies which would hopefully inform those not in the know, that this is a Irish pub.

There were two hand pumps offering either Doombar or Cornish Coaster. On Keg there was a standard offering of Guinness, Guinness Extra Cold, Stella, Fosters, 1664, Carling, Heineken, John Smith and Strongbow. Out of this selection I would normally go for Guinness, Stella, Heineken or Strongbow, which all depends on my mood and the weather. I went for stella and a pack of Tayto's, and was surprised the stella was only £4.30. I relaxed in one of the empty booths and caught a bit of the inauguration, which to be honest wasn't high on my interest agenda. After finishing my pint I made my way round the corner to the Beehive (SE11 5JA).

The Beehive resides on a busy road junction and stands out with its mock tudor beams. The outside of the pub is great to look out but the inside differs entirely from what you may be expecting. The inside is very modern and open plan. The horseshoe bar is right in the centre of the pub, with some sparse sofa seating around the edges. This leaves large spaces around the bar area, which makes sense when you think that this pub is right next to Oval cricket ground. Considering the three pubs I had walked into already I was even more shocked to see that the Beehive was rammed packed with standing room only. On tap the selection was the lowest out of all the pubs today offering Heineken, 1664, Amstel, Fosters, Symmonds and Strongbow Cloudy. On cask there was Pride and Doombar. I selected a pint of Heineken and luckily found a drink resting space in the pub.

Looking around it seemed to be a few different work gatherings, and it's the first time I've seen the Beehive this busy outside of Cricket days. There is a small outside garden through the glass doors for the smokers to gather in. There was some awful club music playing trying to compete with the volume of the customers. After finishing up my pint I headed back to the Royal Oak for another pint of Stella in quieter (yet slightly busier than before) surroundings.

Not much beer choice on this pub tour but overall the pubs themselves were quite good, even if they were at the extremes of busy or quiet.

London Pub Tour 17 - Belgravia: Orange, No. 11 Pimlico Road and The Rising Sun

My next London Pub Tour was back in the work grounds. My first stop was The Orange (SW1W 8NE) in Belgravia. This is a pretty building from the outside with its white facade. The main door into the bar is on the corner and is curved, which is a really nice touch. You walk into the small bar area with the bar directly ahead of you. To your left are a few tables for seating, whilst to your right (Which is directly opposite the bar) are a few 2 seater tables. The Orange was a brewhouse, and was one of the new wave of breweries in London, though am not sure when it closed, but think it was probably before my drinking days. The pub is now owner by Cubitt House and also own the Thomas Cubitt nearby. Unlike the Cubitt the orange does feel more open to causal drinkers, hence a bar area, whilst the Thomas Cubitt seems more restaurant like. The Orange has some function rooms upstairs and a hotel, and to the side of the bar is a large dinning area, and I understand that they do quite a good Sunday roast.


The bar area in the Orange is very much sanded down wooden floor boards and bar, therefore a much lighter wood colour. The bar has a large selection of wines and spirits but also does have a few surprises when it comes to beers. They have 3 hand pumps serving up Adnams Lighthouse and two of their house ales, Journeyman and The Cubitt 1788. Both the house ales are made by Canopy Brewery in Herne Hill, which I have been meaning to visit for a while. On keg they offered Amstel, Guinness, London Lager, Peroni and 1664. Alongside this they always serve a rotating Meantime beer, and quite often from the Pilot series, and thankful this visit it was a pilot one. Without hesitation I paid for my pint of Cake Boy Hazelnut Ale. The beer didn't have much aroma to it, but boy did they get that hazelnut taste spot on. A very enjoyable brew which I understand was for the winter season, and it went well on this cold January day.

I'd had both the house ales previously and the pub started to suddenly get busy, mostly with suits, so I left it at the one and moved on. I don't think my next stop qualifies as a pub but nonetheless I shall include it on this blog (and start to work on my definition of a pub going forward). The venue was No 11 Pimlico Road which was just a minutes walk away from the Orange and was much emptier, in the sense of, only bar staff empty. No 11 Pimlico Road is certainly more resturant than pub, but it could even fall under the classification of gastro pub. There were plenty of tables, some reserved, with mismatched chairs. There was some comfy seating as well thrown in for a good mix. The venue is large and upon walking in and stating your just here for drinks, you can walk straight to the bar. There are bar stools available, and you may also sit at the table if you wish, but I decided to remain at the bar.

There was only one hand pump on and this was serving Redemption Pale Ale. Considering it was still early January and this place probably hadn't been busy, I assumed the ale wouldn't be in good condition and gave it a miss. On tap we had Kozel, Goose Island IPA, Pilsner Urquell, Peroni, Becks, Guinness and Franziskaner, which is quite a good varied selection. Looking in the fridge I seen a very small bottle selection of 3 craft, 3 standard and 2 ciders, but the craft beers caught my eye. I selected a bottle of Wu Gang Chops The Trees by Pressure Drop. I really liked the bottle design, though didn't realise until pouring that it was a Hefeweizen. The beer was okay for a Hefeweizen, being light and wheaty though there was a lot of herb flavours coming through which was unexpected, but turns out that was the style. I guess this would match well with food, but on its own towards the end part of the bottle it was slightly less enjoyable. As this beer was only 3.8% and 330ml, and the bottle selection was small, I stayed for another bottle but of a different beer. This time I selected Pale X No. 2 by Howling Hops which was a much higher  5.2%. Both in aroma and taste there was a wonderful citrus taste, which wasn't overpowering. It was a fresh and balanced beer.

No 11 Pimlico Road

Two more guys had come in and taken seats at the bar ordering the Goose IPA but otherwise the venue was still deserted. Rather than try the 3rd bottle beer (which I really can't remember the name of) I moved on round the corner to the Rising Sun (SW1W 8PZ), a large Young's pub situated on a main road, which isn't too busy. I assume their main custom in previous years would have been soldiers situated at Chelsea Barracks. Their main custom still comes from Chelsea Barracks, but now it's the builders. There is some seating outside on the main road, and a small patio out back as well. Inside the pub is spacious with plenty of seating. Upon walking in the bar is straight ahead of you. To both your left and right are seating areas of equal size, and straight ahead behind the bar is an additional seating area which also doubles up as a function area and can be partitioned off.

Inside Rising Sun

The ale selection was a choice between Young's Bitter or Christmas Ale. On the keg front there was Foster's, Amstel, Estrella, Peroni, Three Hop, Coast to Coast, London IPA, Heineken and London Lager. I selected a pint of Meantime's London Lager at £5.75, and also a portion of Pork Scratchings from the jar. The bar man topped up my pint without asking, which is also good pub etiquette. The pub had wood flooring all the way around and all the walls paneling to waist height. There were some modern art photos on the wall, along with some historical vanity fair framed pages. The pub is cosy and very much a traditional boozer, but I suspect that once the development is complete and the workers go, then they might invest in making this more up market and gastro to attract the new residents and workers nearby.

London Pub Tour 16 - Fitzrovia: The Prince of Wales Feathers, The Carpenters Arms and Fitzroy Tavern

I don't believe in partaking in dry January so I always try to get out to the pub as soon as possible in January to prevent it becoming one by accident. This year I managed that task on 2nd January as part of my London Pub Tour. The place - The Prince of Wales Feathers (), the drink, a decidedly Christmas one - Santa Paws by Brew Dog.

I opted for the Santa Paws as I'd had it previously in December and enjoy it, but only in bottle. When I seen it on tap I thought I better give it a try, and the honestly tasted much better on keg than it did in the bottle. The flavours just came through better to make this beer so enjoyable, and a good choice for first beer of the year.

The Prince of Wales Feathers (which in itself is a decidedly strange name for a pub which seems to have just come about by chucking Prince of Wales in front of its original name The Feathers) is located just a few metres away from Warren Street tube station. The front of the pub looks very traditional until you get closer and notice the stained glass windows. The pub has a roof terrace and I believe a beer garden out back, but due to the weather I didn't try to seek out either of these, nor sure if they would be open. When walking into Feathers you will see straight ahead stairs going up and  just to your right are two tall 8 seater tables. The bar is against the side wall, and there is no seating around it, offering a very spacious bar area. Where the bar ends the walls come in slightly, and this is where the tables for the dinning start. There were about 20 people in the pub, with majority sat down eating in the rear. The beer choices available on my visit included Estrella, Heineken, Camden Pale, Camden Hells, Stigel and Numero Uno (which I've had before). On Cask only three of the 5 pumps were in action offering up Landlord, Doombar and Ticketybrew.

After my excellent pint of Santa Paws I took a short stroll, maybe about 5-10mins, down to The Carpenters Arms (W1T 4EY). This was a corner pub on a back street just off the main road. It's also owned by the same company as the feathers, Castle (Which is a M&B brand). This pub was a two part bar with the side I entered into a small bar area, with some seating on the edges, including a sofa and table in one corner, and a small bar. The other side was a large dinning area which had a larger bar and more people. I stayed in the smaller bar area where there were about 6 other people. There were two hand pumps offering Doombar and a Coming Soon Speckled Hen. I certainly wasn't going to wait around for that Hen to come on. On the keg side they had Stigel (which I'm beginning to realise is maybe now more common in London pubs that I originally thought), Peroni, Veltins, Chimay Gold and Pilsner Urquell.

I selected a pint of Pilsner Urquell as I thought the Chimay was going to be a high percentage, but was shocked to discover afterwards that is was only 4.8%, drat. There were craft cans available but nothing stood out too much. The Pilsner Urquell came in a branded jug and was okay. I used to like Urquell quite a bit but now think there are some far more enjoyable Pilsners. I guess the only way to change my mind is to pop into one of the pubs that have freshly brewed tank Pilsner Urquell.

I left the Carpenters Arms and walked again for another 10 minutes, by passing other pubs, to get to the one I wanted, Fitzroy Tavern (W1T 2LY) a Sam Smiths pub. I already knew what I wanted to drink in this pub, hence why I bypassed other pubs. I've not been to this pub before so was unaware that it was separated into 4 separate areas, with no connections between them. The first section I went into had nobody in there and I couldn't see anyone at the bar, so I walked out and into another section where there were about 4 people, but again I couldn't see anyone at the bar. Both these sections would be in what I would consider the rear of the pub. I then walked around to the front (main road entrance) and finally found bar staff, but had to decide which quarter I wanted to sit within. I selected the busier section as this meant bar staff were more likely to hang around on this side and I'd get served quicker.

I order a bottle of the Organic Cherry Ale, which doesn't come cheap compared to Sam Smiths prices, but when compared to fruit / craft beers elsewhere I think it's quite reasonable. The beer comes in a non-standard 335ml bottle (Might like their larger non-standard 550ml bottles which when poured into a glass and creating a bit of head looks exactly like the normal Sam Smiths beer pint measure). The beer has a tart cherry flavour that is delicious, and not sickly sweet. It is my favourite of the fruit beers offered by Sams but I do admire their other beers. Compared to the likes of some of the mainstream belgium fruit beers like Fruli or Timmermans, this beer is vastly superior.

The Fitzroy tavern itself is a wonder to behold. Sam Smith's have spared no expense in recreating an old sytle pub with the wood and glass and privacy screens. It is a pub worth visiting to look at any enjoy, though it's not the best example of what Sam's have done, but it does look stunning. Yes, this might be a modern instalment to a pub, but I like pubs that have character, which this does, compared to a pub that may strip out furniture to a minimum and floors down to boards. Obviously if all pubs looked like this it would be dull and uninspiring, and I that's what I like about pubs. You find so many unique or different styles, different eras and historical impacts. Pubs are ever changing and should adapt with the times, but we all dread when a large swath of pubs follow a new trend, as we all know trends change, and soon those pubs begin to look dated and undergo another change. In each of these changes it loses any original features or identity.

So that's the end of my pontification about pub design and where I ended this beer tour.