Posts Tagged ‘Fuller’s’
Snacks in Fuller’s Pubs
Jul 1st, 2010 |
I recently had a business meeting in Hammersmith in West London and afterwards I was able to visit a few of the pubs in that area that I hadn’t been to for a while. The first two pubs – the Dove and the Salutation were Fuller’s pubs and although I didn’t stay long in either, I was a little peckish and so asked for a bag of salted peanuts.
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Evening Pub Crawl of Lewes – Part 3
Dec 9th, 2009 |
This is the third post in a series featuring a pub crawl that Jon and I undertook recently around Lewes in East Sussex. It features the last couple of pubs we visited – the Lewes Arms and the Brewers Arms. You can visit the previous two posts:
- Arrival in Lewes, and the Harvey’s brewery
- The Dorset Arms, the Gardners Arms and the John Harvey Tavern
The Volunteer and the Elephant & Castle
Back across the river bridge and then to the right we came to the Volunteer on Eastgate Street.
It’s an attractive welcoming pub, but was selling just Sharp’s Doom Bar and St Austell Tribute. These are both fine beers but we decided we hadn’t come to Lewes to drink cornish beers so we decided to press on.
Next potential stop was the Elephant & Castle up the hill on White Hill. We decided that this pub didn’t look that inviting and as time we short we passed on that one too.
Retracing our steps slightly and then up a side street we came to the Lewes Arms.
The Lewes Arms (Backstory)
The Lewes Arms in Mount Place has some notoriety in that it was the setting for an extraordinary boycott some years ago by the regulars. At the time the pub was a Greene King pub and like every pub in Lewes it stocked Harvey’s Best. GK went through a stage a while ago of purging their pubs of all but their own beers and the Lewes Arms was no exception.
Only here the locals didn’t take too kindly to it and organised a campaign to get GK to change their minds. When Greene King wouldn’t, the boycott was born. All the regulars stayed away and the pub was apparently deserted most nights. I believe Greene King tried all kinds of tricks to convince people that the boycott wasn’t really working – including bussing staff in for quizzes etc from towns nearby.
Eventually though GK threw in the towel and began stocking Harvey’s Best again. After a while GK sold the pub to Fuller’s and now the Harvey’s Best rubs shoulders with London Pride and the other Chiswick-brewed regulars.
In retrospect Greene King argument that Harvey’s pubs tended to stock only Harvey’s beers and that they were only doing the same was a fair one. It is interesting now that the Royal Oak in Borough which is Harvey’s only London pub always carries one beer from the Fuller’s range – usually (but not always) the seasonal guest. It is rumoured that this is a reciprocal arragement for the Lewes Arms carrying Harvey’s Best but that was denied recently by the landlord of the Royal Oak. Incidentally the Fuller’s pints in the Royal Oak are always on top form.
In another recent move many GK pubs now regularly carry guest beers from other breweries – most notably in my experience the Fulflood Arms and the Green Man in Winchester which seem to stock hardly any GK beers. Perhaps GK learned from the Lewes Arms experience – perhaps the two occurences are unrelated.
Anyway I hear you cry, what is the Lewes Arms really like?
The Lewes Arms (Review)
This was my first trip to the Lewes Arms and I really had no idea what to expect. It’s located on a small backstreet and is quite a tiny pub inside. It reminded Jon and I of the Charles Lamb near Angel tube station in London – a larger room with small areas off.
The pub seems friendly and we weren’t treated like outsiders at all. The barstaff were chatty and the atmosphere overall was very good.
Beer-wise the selection reflects the Fuller’s ownership plus of course the Harvey’s Best’ Disappointingly the Gales HSB (one of my favourites) was lack-lustre and I thought the Red Fox to be not much good either. Ironically the best pint here was the Harvey’s Best but that wasn’t superb either.
It was a shame that such a nice pub should be let down by the beer quality.
After some hasty but tasty chips in the street from the chippy opposite the Lewes Arms, Jon and I headed off for our last pub of the evening – the Brewers Arms.
The Brewers Arms
The Brewers Arms in High Street, close to Lewes Castle, is quite large when you get inside and has two distinct halves – a subdued dimly lit front bar and a lively bright back bar.
We had no stranger-phobia that you get in some places and the barstaff were very friendly and efficient. They even let me take away a Harvey’s glass for a contribution to their charity box so I’ll always be well disposed to the pub.
The Brewers Arms is advertised as a true free-house and the selection was quite eclectic. I tried a Hammerpot brewery beer (forget which one – oops) which was OK but the Harvey’s Best was very, very good. And so that beer bookended our trip to Lewes. All that was left was our synchronised dash to the station to pick up the train back to London.
A Summary
Our evening in Lewes was great fun despite the rather gloomy October weather. The pubs on a map don’t seem very concentrated but Lewes is quite a small town and it doesn’t take long to get between them. Lewes itself looks interesting and is worth a visit for more than just the beer.
There’s a map of our Lewes Pub Crawl here.
Other Winchester Gems
Sep 4th, 2009 |
On my recent pub crawl round Winchester I managed to visit most of my favourite pubs in the city. However it’s just impossible to fit in all the good ones in an evening as they’re so spread out so some of them got missed.
This post mentions the ones that I didn’t get to but that in my view are still worth a visit.
The Fulflood Arms
A recent addition to my Winchester favourites, the Fulflood Arms is situated in Cheriton Road on the west side of the station – ie away from the town centre. I believe it’s been refurbished fairly recently and it’s now a friendly, welcoming pub in a residential street.
The Fulflood Arms is a Greene King pub, but like the Green Man on Southgate Street you wouldn’t guess that from the eclectic beer selection. I’ve seen Triple FFF, Itchen Valley, Cheriton and Bateman’s beers here as well as a couple of GK ones. The food’s good too.
There are games in the corner including a bar billiards machine, and I believe they have quizzes mid-week.
St James Tavern
This Wadworths pub is at the bottom of the Romsey Road – just up from the West Gate. It’s a small cosy pub with a triangular frontage. Despite its size there are two distinct areas inside.
The beers are much as you’d expect for a Wadworths pub and usually seem well-kept.
Bishop On The Bridge
The Bishop on the Bridge is a large pub at the eastern end of the High Street – near the King Alfred statue. It used to be an Eldridge Pope pub many years ago, but became a Fuller’s pub about 10 years ago.
I like the interior as it’s light and airy. The vibe is very relaxed although the barstaff are efficient. The beer selection is what you’d expect from a Fuller’s pub including a tasty Gale’s HSB – a personal favourite.
The food menu contains few surprises but the food itself is tasty and good value.
Out the back there is a patio area – attractive because it’s away from the traffic and next to the fast flowing river Itchen. However it was threatening rain on my last visit here so we stayed inside.
So that’s about it for my write up of Winchester pubs – except to refer you to the previous posts concerning the ones that I visited on my recent evening out:
- An Evening in Winchester Part 1 – Albion, King Alfred, Hyde Tavern
- An Evening in Winchester Part 2 – Old Vine, Green Man
- An Evening in Winchester Part 3 – Wykeham Arms
- An Evening in Winchester Part 4 – Black Boy
Also you can see a Google map with all my favorite Winchester pubs. And the Pizza Express is good too…
An Evening in Winchester (Part 3)
Aug 11th, 2009 |
This post follows on from the previous part of my write-up of a recent evening out in Winchester.
The Wykeham Arms
After the disappointment of the Green Man being shut it was good to find a pub that was actually open.
The Wykeham Arms is located just south of the cathedral in Kingsgate Street. It’s just round the corner from Wykeham College so technically outside of the old city I believe.
An Eldgridge Pope pub when I first started visiting 20 years ago, the Wykeham Arms has been through a chequered beer history. From the Royal Oak and Thomas Hardy IPA, and then the Bass years, the Wykeham Arms was eventually taken over by Gale’s a few years ago. The Gale’s beers – especially HSB suited the dark interior of then pub. When Fuller’s acquired Gale’s in 2005 the Wykeham Arms effectively became a Fuller’s pub although one or two Gale’s beers are still stocked alongside London Pride and ESB.
From an atmosphere perspective though not much has changed over the years. The pub has always attracted the money with its location in desirable streets close to the college and the cathedral. But I feel it’s never been snooty about it – not a thought that everyone agrees with. It is however a shame they never show the 6 Nations and other key rugby games on the TV in here any more – the vibe in the pub during games was electric.
The interior hasn’t changed at all either. It’s very traditional – wood panelling, and bric-a-brac hanging from the ceiling. The links to the college are represented with photos and framed exam results.
Some of the tables are old metal-framed desks bolted together. And note the truly curved glazed door as you come in from the street – expensive to reglaze I’m sure.
I’ve already mentioned the glorious HSB (see also a previous posting about Gale’s beers) but the Wykeham Arms provided my first opportunity to taste Gale’s Seafarers – a very drinkable summery pint, but nothing remarkable. Sensibly I had this before my pint of HSB.
The collection of old Gale’s (and other) pump clips on a high shelf is an interesting distraction. See the really intricate HSB one here (click on the thumbnail to see the picture in Flickr).
You can probably tell that I would recommend this pub to anyone who finds themselves in Winchester.
But we have one final destination to cover tonight – the Black Boy. So a quick walk across the top of the water meadows and up the hill past the old canal wharf and we’ll be at the best pub in Winchester.
Giles Coren always writes outspoken articles and he certainly didn’t mince words about a trip to the Wykeham Arms. Read the article here.
Read about the pubs we got to:
- An Evening in Winchester Part 1 – Albion, King Alfred, Hyde Tavern
- An Evening in Winchester Part 2 – Old Vine, Green Man
- An Evening in Winchester Part 4 – Black Boy
And the ones we didn’t get to:
An Evening Out In Brighton
Jul 16th, 2009 |
Most of my beer drinking takes place in London after work or occasionally in Woking where I live. But just now and again it’s worth getting away somewhere different for an evening.
With a slightly earler departure from work and a bit of time invested on a train you can be in many interesting places. Using the discount available with an annual gold card is useful too.
Late last week it was Brighton’s turn and I’d like to share with you my mini pub crawl of 3 real ale pubs in the seaside city. The crawl doesn’t take you far from the station, and in fact nowhere near the sea but the sound of the seagulls will reassure you that it’s over there somewhere.
So, leave Brighton station by the front entrance and head over to the right of the cab stand and turn left down the hill that emerges blinking from under the station frontage. This is the top of Trafalgar Street. As you go down the hill look out for the first pub on the itinerary – The Lord Nelson at 36 Trafalgar Street.
The Lord Nelson
The Lord Nelson is a traditional Harvey’s pub. It looks tiny from the outside but is actually bigger inside. The Gallery Room out the back features local art and becomes a family room at weekends.
The pub carries most of the Harvey’s range and the beers are kept very well.
Food is not available in the evenings so if you want something to eat it’s best to wait to the next pub – the Basketmakers Arms.
So when you’re ready to move on, carry on down Trafalgar Street and then take one of the roads on the right – Sydney Street is a good one for North Laine shops and then turn left onto Gloucester Place. The Basketmakers is down the hill on the right hand side.
The Basketmakers Arms
The Basketmakers Arms (12 Gloucester Rd) is a Fuller’s pub these days, but was formerly one of Brighton’s Gale’s pubs. This pub is consistently busy but that is due to it being one of the finest pubs in Brighton. It’s a friendly, lively place.
As well as the standard Fuller’s London beer selection, The Basketmakers offer one or two Gales beers and there is usually a guest beer of some sort. The Gales HSB is always excellent, and when available the Gales Festival Mild hits the spot too.
I always eat at the Basketmakers Arms when on pub visits to Brighton as the food is superb. Choose from a varied and reasonably priced menu.
As well as beer and food, the pub is worth a visit just for the collection of old photographs, signs and other memorabilia.
But come on now, it’s time to move on to the 3rd and final pub. So head straight back up Gloucester Road – right to the top, carefully cross over into the middle of the small one way system and turn right into Surrey Street and there you’ll find The Evening Star.
The Evening Star
The tiny Evening Star (55 Surrey St) is run by the Dark Star Brewery so you’ll not be surprised to hear that several beers from their range are available including Hophead permanently, as well as guests from other micros, real ciders, and a good selection of belgian bottled beers.
Now you’ll understand why there are only three pubs on this crawl and that this is the last one. Don’t forget to actually get your train home – fortunately the station is not too far away.
The pub is full of friendly people who love good beer – whether that’s what you’re looking for is up to you. For me the Evening Star is a must for any trip to Brighton.
That is the regular pattern of my evening trips to Brighton, but if you’re feeling adventurous and looking for an alternative then try the Shakespeare’s Head.
The Shakespeare’s Head
Situated about 10 mins walk north-west of the station The Shakespeare’s Head (1 Chatham Place) is Brighton’s Hall & Woodhouse pub.
It’s location means it’s away from the central circuit but it’s still worth a trip – don’t be put off by the dingy exterior. If you like Badger beers then 2 or 3 are available on draught and they carry many of the bottled range too. The Badger Best I had tasted very good.
Another significant reason to visit the Shakespeare’s Head is the famous selection of sausages. First choose your sausages then choose your mash (yes, more than one type) and then choose your gravy. End result is a plate full of heaven.
View a Google map of this pub crawl.
Next week, Winchester.