The Craftening

I was supping a pint of Dark Star APA in The Harp on Chandos Place last Saturday (September 1st), when legendary landlady Binnie Walsh asked about that Craft Beer. I declared myself generally in favour, and she agreed, saying she was putting in some extra keg fonts just for craft keg. She's been researching, and yesterday Phase One saw bottles of Kernel beers taking their place in the fridges.

That sound of wailing and the gnashing of teeth you may hear emanates from some local CAMRA types who have implored Binnie not to install fonts for The New Keg. None of the nine beer engines is coming out, so I don't see what the problem is. It'll just be one more good reason to drink at The Harp. It also makes business sense at a time when pubs are still closing at a rate of a dozen a week. Good pubs don't get complacent or rest on their laurels, and with Craft Beer Co opening two more London bars and craft beer popping up at other pubs and bars around the city, it seems there's still a growing market.

Yesterday a pleasant couple from Brooklyn in New York pitched up at The Harp. The male, Bill, seemed pretty well-informed about Dark Star beers, including APA's recent bronze medal at GBBF. He ought to be, as our mutual friend is Alex Hall. This 'nexus of weirdness' stuff usually happens to me at Cask. The World Of Beer Is Smaller Than We Think.

Uh Oh!

From last Friday's South London Press...


Leaving aside the 'real ales' bit (I assume outsider shorthand for small-scale production artisanal beers) and whether you think Kernel actually has a 'signature' beer (I don't), my immediate thought was what posting this would do for the old Rabid Big-Head's ego. As you might know, he co-created the Black IPA with Evin O'Riordain.

Despite the SLP being his local paper, I don't suppose he saw this, so really there's only one way to find out...

Biggus Brickus

So, as usual, I missed the Jolly Butchers launch of the latest London collab beer, 'Big Brick', this past Tuesday. One day one of our so-called 'progressive' beer bars will figure out the benefits of a breakfast launch and I'll be able to attend.

The beer is a souped-up version of the 'London Brick' rye beer brewed at Redemption by a cabal of London's (and Sussex's) finest including Mark Tranter from Dark Star, Evin O'Riordan from Kernel, Phil Lowry, Matt & Karen Wickham from the Evening Star in Brighton (honorary cockneys these days), and of course the Andys.

If you're a regular reader (I must have one), you'll recall I was present at part of the birth - actually, given how long it took, more like the contractions. This version was brewed at Kernel, the craft beer progenitors being augmented by Emma Cole from the Jolly Butchers, Julia Stig of the LAB and yours truly. I weighed some hops and adjusted the sparging flow. If you enjoy the subtle bittering, that's partly down to me. Probably.

The sense of emptiness I experienced at missing the launch was diminished by the knowledge that the bottles would be on sale at the brewery today, so I made my way along nice and early to get some.

I had a bottle of the original London Brick in the 'cellar' so I decided to try the beers side-by-side. The new version is 8.9% and, like most of Kernel's stronger beers, isn't boozy or 'hot' despite the high alcohol.

I think the Biggus Brickus hadn't had time to settle properly, so it poured with a haze that made it appear much darker. After a while though, it cleared a bit and appeared to be the same colour, literally brick-red thanks to the copious amounts of rye in the mash. (Edit: I think there's some carafa in there, as well)

London Brick feels superbly clean in the mouth. There's the spiciness from the rye and bright, hoppy bitterness in the finish. But it feels thin in the mouth compared to the newer beer, which is viscous, providing a heady and luxurious mouthfeel. The newer beer is also, to me, much better balanced. The assertive hoppiness in London Brick is tempered by the high alcohol in Big Brick.

Having tried them side-by-side, I did get a nice mellow buzz on. It's easy to forget that the newer beer is almost 9%, and that its smaller sibling is over 6%. I preferred the Big Brick, but there isn't a loser when both beers in a tasting are from Kernel.

I heard that somebody on BeerAdvocate considered Kernel to be a bit of a 'one-trick pony'. Nonsense. With a saison in the pipeline, and a 10% 100th gyle brew single-hopped with Centennial (what else?) also imminent, they continue to explore the possibilities of different hops in different styles of beer. And I'll keep drinking those beers.

London Brick 2: The Embiggening

To The Kernel (Will Hawkes, sometime Independent beerhound, gives us this nice piece) to witness and if necessary, lend a hand to the birthing of the new version of acclaimed collaboration brew, London Brick. That version was a meaty 6%, this will be a bit different...

Toby not thinking about extract efficiency as he mashes in

As I arrive, Matt Wickham is loafing about outside with his lovely wife Karen, MarkStar Tranter, Angelo Scarnera from Saints & Sinners, and Emma J Cole, your hostess (and mine) at the year-old Jolly Butchers, in far Stoke Newington. They are lurking because Matt appears to have jinxed the HLT, so no mashing-in can start yet.

This version of the beer, dubbed Big Brick, has been 'visioned' by Phil Lowry (fast becoming the London Beer Scene's Justin De Villeneuve) to be a big 8% ABV. He isn't present as we finally get underway, probably jumping on the New Thing From America, White IPA.

We get underway, and the arch is filling with familiar faces from around London Brewing: Andy Smith from Redemption, Stig from LAB, Simon Siemsgluess from ZeroDegrees; and there are the various helpers who pitch in at Kernel, augmenting the small team of Evin, Toby and Chrigl. The grain bill is pulled together, including a generous (or ominous) proportion of rye malts. I quite like the spicy character rye imparts to beer, but brewers don't like using it. It has high water retention capacity, increases wort viscosity and makes the mash sticky and prone to setting. A German roggerbier might have as much as 20% rye in the mash, Big Brick goes much further that that.

7 hours? i wonder why?

Mashing-in goes well, then we start the runoff. First hops are introduced (Magnum and Hercules) and we wait...

And wait...

I had to leave at 2pm. Evin was busy with a shitload of freshly-boiled new potatoes and a raclette cradle, feeding the multitude who had assembled. The copper was about a third full at that point, and I found myself wondering how much longer they'd had to wait before getting the boil underway. Twitter came to life around 7pm, with the news that the runoff had taken 7 hours, and the mash was set like concrete. I wish I could have been able to stay around 'til the bitter end, but I'm glad it wasn't me who had to dig the mash tun out.

hop monkeys

I'm looking forward to sampling this beastie. It will be all the more enjoyable for knowing how much of a struggle it proved to even get the bloody stuff into the copper. I find myself hoping that it all turns out OK. But it will, I'm sure. This is London after all, and we're doing things differently here these days...

Kernel Scoops SIBA National Award

To Bermondsey to buy some bottles of beer, where I learn that London micro and 2010 Boggle Award winner Kernel Brewing has picked up the award for best bottled beer at the 2011 SIBA National Competition.

They won Gold and Bronze back in the summer of 2010 at the regional competition, for Export Stout and Simcoe IPA respectively, and it was the Export Stout which went forward for judging against these...
You'll see former London brewer Pitfield on there, now brewing in East Anglia, and bottled Kipling from Thornbridge.

Brewer Evin O'Rioirdian is delighted, though wasn't able to collect the award in person - he was only told the day before. I haven't seen the rest of the awards, so not sure if there's any more good news for London (Sambrooks were up for an award for Junction). I expect SIBA will update their website at some point.

I'm pleased for Kernel and also for London. CAMRA's champion pub of the year title for The Harp and now a SIBA national crown for one of our brewers. And, though modesty ought to forbid it, I will point out that both of these won Boggle Awards last year. Can I smell a winner, or what? We just want Cask Pub & Kitchen to pick up The Publican Tenanted/Leased Pub Of The Year title now...

Boggle Awards 2010

I don't have the budget or the engagement in the wider beer scene to be able to put together something like the impressive 'Golden Pint Awards' trailed on Young Dredgie's page. But I did want to recognise some good experiences in the London beer scene, so I've designed the "Boggle Awards", which are awarded in four categories:

Best London Brewer - Kernel Brewing
Best London Pub - The Harp, Chandos Place
Best London Beer Bar - The Rake, Borough Market
Best Beer Retailer - Utobeer, Borough Market

I decided to differentiate between a pub and specialist beer outlet because I think they cater to different demand, though it's clear that in some cases the lines are blurring. As London suddenly has a healthy brewing scene, I wanted to acknowledge my favourite local brewer, and the retailer award takes care of the off-trade.

The retail side might look like usual suspects, but it's still early days as new outlets look to craft beer to grow their business. Cask Pub & Kitchen gets an honorable mention for this year, and this time next year I'm sure there'll be new on- and off-trade outlets vying for recognition. As things develop, I'm sure I'll develop some more rigorous criteria to help me decide winners in future years. Or maybe not.

I haven't bothered to pick out a favourite London beer, since I don't take notes and I've supped several excellent brews this year. My top 10 UK-brewed would include Lovibonds' astonishing Sour Grapes, Saltaire's excellent Triple Chocolate, Kernel's delicious re-imagining of a Baltic Porter and my go-to pint, Dark Star's lovely APA, but really, so much affects the beer-drinking experience, so I'm not going to try and reduce a good year for beer to a list.

Thanks to all the brewers, pubs and bars, and shops for providing me with these experiences.

"I Was Working In The Lab..."

This morning, your correspondent was at London's excellent Kernel Brewery, as Rake manager and Rabid Barfly Glyn Roberts embarked on another brewing adventure, this time swapping the valleys of Wales for the backstreets of Bermondsey.

Our host was the affable Evin O'Rioirdain, who in less than a year has built a formidable portfolio of bottled beers and a brilliantly simple yet effective brand. Already a SIBA winner, he produces an impressive array of delicious hop-forward golden ales alongside his interpretations of some old-style darker brews, like London Porter, Export Stout and his recently-released Imperial Stout.

Today, with Glyn as a catalyst (actually, more like Igor to Evin's Dr. Frankenstein), Evin is fusing his two signature streams to create a version of San Francisco brewpub 21st Amendment's Back In Black Black IPA, a beer Glyn has raved about since his honeymoon. A 6.8% brew with Carafa roasted malt and hopped with Centennial and Columbus, 21A were generous in sharing their recipe with Evin.

As I arrive, Evin and Glyn are preparing to commence the boil. Mike, a homebrewer with thoughts of stepping up to commercial scale, is helping out around the brewhouse, getting a feel for the ebb and flow of a brewers' day. It has me reflecting that, in all the heated debate about 'craft beer' occupying the thoughts of the UK blogosphere, one of the criteria ought to be the level of automation. Here, it's all hoses and buckets. No computer controls, no Star Trek console telling the kit which valve to open, how much liquor to pump and where, just a brewer seamlessly interacting with his plant to produce an impressive finished beer. And then there's Glyn...Here, our Barfly weighs out the Carafa, steams up his specs while checking the brewing copper temperature, weighs out the first addition of hops, then, strangely, rubs hop oil on his upper lip. He says it's a natural decongestant, but that look on his face isn't because of Vicks Vaporub. Evin only uses whole hops, so there's every chance Glyn was blissed out in Druid Street way before the time came to put the yeast in.

Here's some more pics from the lab...
Like I said, Dr. Frankenstein and Igor. Igor checks the mash tun temperature, while that foaming stuff is new life (last seen as a prop in Woody Allen's Sleeper (1973) ). Finally, Evin commits bruicide by throwing himself into the brewing copper after Glyn snorts one too many hops.

Talk is that some of this might be available on cask as well as bottles. I find myself mischievously wondering whether kegging might suit the style better, but you know it'll be good. I can't wait...

London: Never Had It So Good?

(Sorry. Hehe)

A regular reader (who isn't a Frank Sidebottom fan) might recall me getting all giddy with excitement over the prospects for London beer and brewing following the London Brewers' Showcase in September of this year. And so it comes to pass, with a couple of new venues establishing themselves, and a madeover pub taking the bull by the horns and offering its own London Beer Week. The latter is The Jolly Butchers, while your correspondent has recently acquainted himself with the latest of the Draft Houses, (the one on Tower Bridge Road) and the Euston Tap. A lovely light space with accommodation apparently appropriated from a schools cince lab and a couple of caffs, some rock memorabilia to wallow in on the walls, and some interesting (if pricey) beers on offer. A great place to stop into after a visit to Kernel Brewing on a Saturday for some beer and stuff.

I'm not the only one getting all excited, either. If Stoke Newington were in a proper part of London - i.e. South (I have that instinctive wariness all South Londoners have for any part of the Other Side that's so far from the river), and the Jolly Butchers opened during the day, I'd have been at the fest, but I hear it was very successful. 4-12 opening, though? I know it sends a message to those who are feckless, workshy and would rather spend all day in the pub, but come on, lads!

The recent story for me (if it is a story) concerns The Euston Tap. I've never been to the Sheffield Tap, but they've thoughtfully brought the concept to me. I'm grateful. It's quirky with some great beers and nice people. However, I noticed a little comment tucked away on BeerAdvocate's UK forum thread about the place, in which a "London brewing insider" noted that some of our local brewers were boycotting the Tap over the omission of locally-brewed beers from the range on offer.

I haven't been able to verify this anywhere - but after all, the place has only been open a fortnight; it does pour a splash of cold water on the general mood of the London beer scene, though. I do know that Yan was ordering some local beers from Camden Town for the place, and that he did get to The Jolly Butchers. I wonder what he thought of it..?