Fun Time in Putney and a wee bit more...

And this wasn't done in one day, honest, but on Thursday and Friday, I'm a wee bit sensible 😉 Anyway, I started off at The Rocket, Putney Wharf, Brewhouse Lane SW15 2JQ (website), which you may have noticed is a 'spoons, and a pretty decent 'spoons too, with a nice view (see further down, my final photograph). Brewhouse Lane is so called because of Martin the Brewer, who is reported to have been brewing here in the 14th century, and it is believed that brewing still continued there into the 18th century (Layers of London).

I had unlimited coffee there and Eggs Benedict with Mushrooms, before drinking an ale, which was from Nottingham brewery Magpie (website), their 5.2% 'British IPA' Jay IPA. As you'd expect, brewed with British hops, but I can't find out which hops, anyway, hints of citrus and a slightly sour taste with a dry bitter finish. I noticed a hint of maltiness and tasted honey too, a bit too sweet for me, but happy to finish my pint, thank you very much.

OK, not directly Putney related, but The Rocket had been the second 'spoons I'd visited in 8 days, the previous week my brother and I had been to The Picture Playhouse, 36-38 Western Road, Bexhill-on-Sea TN40 1DY (website). Here we drank from Yorkshire brewery Roosters (website), who have brewed clear vegan ales for years now, it can be done, their 4.7% Twenty Four Seven 24/7, pale golden and brewed with Amarillo and Simcoe hops from the USA and Nelson Sauvin hops from New Zealand, providing a big citrus aroma and taste, and drying out to a very nice dry bitter finish, I liked this a lot, and costing just £2.50 a pint with my CAMRA member discount!

Back to Putney, and on Thursday I visited somewhere I've been meaning to enter for some time now, Ghost Whale, 134 Upper Richmond Road SW15 2SP (website), and they have premises in Brixton too. This is a bottle shop that also sells 8 keg 'craft' beers, and where you can imbibe on the premises too, which I did! I spent a while here, enjoying pleasant discourse with staff member Ray (from L.A.), who went to the same university college in Roehampton/Southfields as my brother, although quite a few years in-between their studies.

I began by drinking (and not pints here, I must add, but halves and two-thirds) Hertfordshire brewery Baron (website) Fuzz, a 4.2% Pale beer, brewed with Mosaic and Strata hops. OK, the beers I drank here were not clear, so Fuzz looked a little fuzzy too, but it was very fruity, citrus and forest fruits. Actually a clean refreshing finish, not bad at all.

The beers in the bottles pictured above were delivered whilst I was there, I didn't manage to sample any of them before I left, but I have reviewed Westmalle Tripel before, more than once (eg blog), I also took home 3 beers, see further down. But I did have a beer from East London brewery Howling Hops (website), their 6.6% NEIPA (New England IPA) Cabin Fever, thus brewed with Azacca, Topaz and Centennial hops, and consequently very pronounced citrus and tropical fruit, cloudy, so quite thick, but easily knocked back, not bad at all.

My final drink on the premises was from North London brewery Pressure Drop (website), their 8.5% DIPA (Double IPA, thus more malt for strength and plentiful hops) called Monstrous Unnatural Thing, brewed with Idaho-7 and Mosaic hops. This was very rich and thick, like fruit juice to look at, and with a tropical fruit flavour burst! It had a very decent flavour indeed, I liked it, but I couldn't have drunk a pint. Oh yes, and whilst I was there, Max of Wimbledon Brewery turned up, we chatted and he advised that he was then off to the Bricklayer's Arms where their ales were on tap, and where I was to visit on my second day (below).

On Friday I actually started off north of Putney Bridge, close to Putney Bridge Station, at a 17th century pub, The Eight Bells, 89 Fulham High Street SW6 3JS (facebook), which had 4 cask ales, including one from West London brewer Portobello (website) and two from South West London brewery Sambrook's (website), very local both. I had the 4.2% Sambrook's Pumphouse, brewed with British Admiral and Goldings hops, and late hopped with New Zealand Wakatua hops, to give this traditional English IPA a fruity twist. Pale golden, quite bitter, with a very dry finish, which I liked, pretty good.

I then crossed the bridge, and still close to the Thames on the south side (Surrey side), west of Putney Bridge and Max's parting shot the day before, to The Bricklayer's Arms, 32 Waterman Street SW15 1DD (facebook), which has certainly returned to form under the guidance of the new landlord Chris, not to mention tasteful refurbishment and new loos, great stuff! 12 handpumps, one for cider, and on my visit there was a choice between 9 different cask conditioned ales 👍including two I had a pint of each, from South West London brewery Wimbledon (website).

First, Wimbledon Best Bitter (4.3%), a traditional style best bitter, brewed with English Fuggles and Goldings hops, it does what it says on the label, I noted 'pretty good' and I would happily drink it all day. Then I had a pint of the Wimbledon Quartermaine (5.8%), an 'English IPA' brewed with Fuggles, Goldings, Admiral and Target hops, a bit sweet for me at first taste, but drying out to bitterness at the finish, not bad, but I noted that I should have had a half. 😉

I also drank 2 pints of ale here from one of my favourite brewers, Kentish brewery Kent (website), I'll try something from somewhere different on my next visit, but I had to... They were brewed by Kent after all! First, their 3.7% Session Pale, which again does what it says on the label, it is a light session pale ale, hint of citrus, very refreshing with a dry bitter finish, and very easy to drink, I could drink this all day. 👌 My final drink here was the Kent Kent Golding Bitter (4.1%), brewed with Golding and Fuggles hops, and a traditional 'ordinary' or 'session' bitter indeed, and I'll not get tired of saying it, but you know what you are going to get by reading the label, hint of malt and hint of citrus, but, well it's a very good bitter indeed, cheers! 

So, to the 3 beers I took away with me in a tote bag from Ghost Whale, a bag that my niece was very happy to adopt, two pale ales and a very dark one from Belgium. First, from Beak Brewery of Lewes in Sussex (website) and their 6.0% Parade IPA, brewed with Citra, Mosaic and Idaho-7 hops, so you would expect a big fruity flavour, and you wouldn't be disappointed! A pale golden beer, hazy, and fruity aroma and taste, a bit too thick for me, but not bad.

Then, from Windsor based brewery Two Flints (website) Vista, a 5.5% West Coast Pale Ale, brewed with Simcoe and Talus hops from the USA and British grown Olicana hops, and apparently a small amount of wheat added to the malt... This produced a very tasty pale golden beer, plenty of fruit in the aroma and taste with a lovely dry bitter finish, I did like this! 👍

My final beer, and from Belgium, was from Kasteel Brouwerij Vanhonsebrouck (website) and their Barista Chocolate Quad (11.0%), similar to a porter in style, with chocolate, coffee and a hint of liquorice in the aroma and more chocolate to the taste. A deep dark red, creamy, with plenty of body as you would expect from the strength and style, my niece wasn't impressed, but then she doesn't like beer much, but a good ale to finish a session with, cheers! 😁

Before I go, and this was my view from The Rocket (at the top of this blog), with Putney Bridge clearly in the picture if looking to the west (above), and with the historic St Mary's Church virtually next door to the pub (just out of shot), south of and just to the east of the bridge, to the left of the photograph. St Mary's Church was where the Putney Debates of 1647 were held by Parliamentarians during the English Civil War (Putney Debates) with the goal of deciding what a new 'democratic' commonwealth should look like...

Cheers folks! 🍻