This was a recent
mini 'pub crawl' as there are quite a few pubs along the way, but these are my 3 favourite pubs in West London along the Bayswater Road/Holland Park Avenue (actually all just off this old pre-Roman Road, which was upgraded by the Romans
Ladbroke Association).
First, around the corner from Lancaster Gate Tube Station, north of the main road and not too far west of Marble Arch, is
The Victoria, 10a Strathearn Place, W2 2NH (
website). This is a fine old
Grade II listed
Fuller's pub (
Fuller's website) built in the 1830s, and named after Queen Victoria as, apparently, it was opened on the same day as her accession to the throne,
and, she visited the pub after the opening of the rebuilt nearby Paddington Railway Station in 1854.
Anyway, a fine early Victorian public house, and I do like Fuller's ales, but I chose a guest ale from one of my historically favourite breweries, in Newport, Wales,
Tiny Rebel (
website). Sadly, a wee bit disappointed with their
Under the Sun as this is a 'vegan' friendly beer, consequently cloudy for the brewers who can't be arsed to provide a clear ale, although trendy
Yuccies seem to go for them, but not what I was expecting from a 4.3% 'pale ale' brewed with
Cascade and
Citra hops... Plenty of flavour, which you expect with those hops, but, well, regular readers will be aware I'm not overly impressed with beers that are like thick fruity drinks in my mouth, I much prefer subtlety of taste from these hops in a clear refreshing pale dry bitter...
I cannot fault the service at The Victoria though, notably the friendly young Bulgarian who served me, also friendly other staff, and the manager/landlord seemed a decent chap too, though I've never met him before, but he rushed off to a football match before I could engage him in much discussion. I'll be drinking a Fuller's ale next time I visit, as I usually do here. 😉
And not too far away, again north of the main road, and a wee bit further west, I visited
The Leinster Arms, 17 Leinster Terrace, W2 3EU (
pubanddining). Another
Grade II listed Victorian pub that was originally established as
The Scotch Stores in1856, changing its name to
The Leinster Arms in 1881. Up to 5 cask ales available, but for my last visit I went for the...
Yes, I went for their
House Ale called
Lennie (4.3%), brewed by nearby West London brewer
Portobello (
website). A decent enough pale amber bitter, a wee bit sweet to taste at first, for me anyway, and I'm guessing that if it's not Portobello's 4.3%
Star British Bitter, then it's a variation on the theme with English hops used. But I'm only guessing, however I'm always ready to try something different... Then further westwards and on to another Fuller's pub...
The Churchill Arms, 119 Kensington Church Street, W8 7LN (
website), this time a wee bit south of the main road from Notting Hill Gate. Built in 1750, and previously known as the
Bedford Arms or the
Church-on-the Hill depending on your source, maybe both (?), this great flower bedecked pub became named
The Churchill Arms after WW2, it would seem for obvious reasons, and it certainly is very Winnie themed! However, it was not him, but his grandparents, John and Frances Anne Spencer-Churchill, who frequented this pub in the 19th century, indeed, there is no evidence that Winnie ever visited, contrary to rumours!
There are over 100 flower pots, 48 window boxes, and 42 hanging baskets outside The Churchill Arms! And for Christmas every year there are many many lit Christmas Trees adorning the pub. It has a great interior, and claims to have the first ever Thai restaurant installed in a London pub, and I've eaten there before, and the food is exceptional.
Despite being a Fuller's house, I didn't drink Fuller's ale here either, but, from Cornish brewer
Verdant (
website), their 3.8%
Penpol. I believe this is brewed using
Citra hops, and the flavour supported this, very pale and light, refreshing, with that grapefruit/citrus taste and aroma, very easy to drink, and I liked it a lot, indeed, my favourite ale of the day. 👍
On my way home, I caught the train from Shepherds Bush to Clapham Junction, where I had 40 minutes to spare before catching my final train home, so I decided to go into the Nicholson's (website) pub, The Falcon, 2 St John's Hill, SW11 1RU (website). The Falcon is actually on the corner at Clapham Junction with Falcon Road and, at the bottom of St John's Hill, with Lavender Hill going up the other way, pretty much a landmark. The building is Grade II listed, and was built in 1887, although a pub had been on the site for a further 150 years, maybe longer. It has the longest continuous bar in the country, a claim supported by the Guinness Book of Records, and looks good still, following its refurbishment (blog).
So, before my final train journey home I drank a pint of Blonde Brummie, a 4.4% ale brewed by Birmingham Brewing Company (website). As you would guess from the name and strength a session pale ale, quite light and refreshing, not the best ale I've ever drunk, but nowhere near the worst. 😉 A vegan friendly and gluten free beer, and nice and clear, as we all know that vegan friendly beers can be presented. British hops used, but I couldn't discover which, though I wouldn't be surprised to see that Goldings was one. I'd be very happy to drink this in any pub that looks after their ales, like here, and it was a nice start to the journey, cheers! 👌
