The BeerCast

The Halfway House 24 Fleshmarket Close (off Market St) Map
Open: 11am-12am (1am Fri-Sat); 12.30pm-12am (Sun)
Link: Official Website
Good Beer Guide entry: Yes
The Halfway House is the littlest pub in Edinburgh, and probably one of the smallest in the UK. Hidden near the bottom of a flight of steps that lead from Cockburn Street down to Market Street, it’s about a minute from Waverley Station – so is a great place to wait for a train (if you can find it). There are railway prints on the walls and old pump clips behind the bar, but of course it’s the beer that brings the punters in. Four guest ales change regularly, and often all four are from the same brewery. Each week in August they showcase a different Scottish brewer – we climbed their steps to sample Orcadian ales back in September.

Bert’s Bar 29-31 William Street, West End Map
Open: 11am-11pm (1am Thu-Sat); 12.30pm-12am (Sun)
Link: bestpubs.co.uk
Good Beer Guide entry: No
William Street is tucked away in Edinburgh’s West End, and is one of the many quiet cobbled streets over there with a strange mix of shops. Bert’s Bar sits at the end, with a sign on the outside advertising the ‘Best Mince Pies in Town’ (being in Scotland we’re talking the meat variety, not the Christmas treats). Bert’s is renowned for two things – pies and rugby, as the shirts on the walls testify. It’s a good, honest Scottish boozer, with plenty of room and some decent beers on cask. What more do you want?

The Cambridge Bar&Grill 20 Young Street, West End Map
Open: 12pm-11pm; (12am Thu); (1am Fri-Sat)
Link: Official Website
Good Beer Guide entry: No
The Cambridge doesn’t do pies – recently renamed the Cambridge Bar&Grill it specialises in colossal burgers. Don’t let that put you off, it’s a small decent pub with a couple of cask ales on (one of which is always Deuchars IPA) that’s just as good without the food. Having said that, a couple of pints and a chilliburger are a pretty good way to spend an afternoon. The Cambridge’s management only have five tables bookable for eating, so although it gets busy you can usually squeeze in and get a beer or two. As their website says – “The bar oozes character in comparison to to many of the anonymous style bars in the New Town”. This means you, George Street!

The Guildford Arms 1 West Register Street, East End Map
Open: 11am-11pm (12am Fri-Sat); 12.30pm-11pm (Sun)
Link: Official Website
Good Beer Guide entry: No
If it’s character you’re after, the 19th Century Guildford Arms is accessed through a revolving door and has seven arched windows with etched glass. Directly behind is the staggeringly ornate Cafe Royal – but although impressive it only has two cask ales on offer. The Guildford Arms has at least twelve at any one time – it really is a beer haven. Every time we’re been in almost all of them have been different, apart from their regular offerings from the Caley brewery, and two of my favourite beers of all time – Orkney Dark Island, and Highland Orkney Blast. Oh, and they also do BOGOF deals on pints.

Bennets Bar 8 Leven Street, Tollcross Map
Open: 11am-12:30am (1am Thu-Sat); 12pm-11:30pm (Sun)
Link: bestpubs.co.uk
Good Beer Guide entry: No
Another grand Scottish interior awaits inside the apostrophe-less Bennets Bar (not to be confused with Bennet’s Bar in Morningside). This historical boozer sits just between Tollcross and Bruntsfield, next door to the King’s Theatre. It’s another great surprise on the eye, as through the dark entrance is a stunning Victorian drinking room with mirrors and windows celebrating Edinburgh’s brewing history. The Taylor McLeod mirror is apparently the last trace of that producer, who used to brew on the site of the theatre next door. There’s a back room if the front gets too busy, but it pales by comparison.

Malt & Hops 45 The Shore, Leith Map
Open: 12pm-11pm (12am Wed-Thu); (1am Fri-Sat)
Link: Beer in the Evening
Good Beer Guide entry: Yes
Not strictly in Edinburgh, but there are some great pubs on the Shore in Leith – one of them being the Malt & Hops. Handy for public transport as the number 22 stops exactly outside, there are a couple of tables on the pavement to soak up the Leith rays. The M&H dates from 1749, and is a great example of a traditional Scottish one-roomed bar. There are six guest pumps on offer with a regularly changing selection of producers – this is the kind of place where even BeerCasters get to drink things they’ve never heard of.

Dalriada 77 Promenade, Portobello/Joppa Map
Open: 12pm-11pm (12am Fri-Sat); closed Mon (Jan-Feb)
Link: The List
Good Beer Guide entry: Yes
It may look more like a haunted house, but the Dalriada is CAMRA’s 2008 Edinburgh pub of the year runner-up, and is even better for soaking up sunshine as it’s on the seaside. Found at the far end of Portobello promenade, there are three bar rooms inside with live music on weekends and a very good pub menu. They have three cask ales on offer, all of which are usually worth trying – BeerCast favourites the Stewart Brewery are usually represented. It can be a bit cold, but there can’t be many real-ale pubs where you can sit and watch seals frolic in the water out the front (not that I’ve ever seen any in Portobello, mind).

Other BeerCast Pub Guides

The BeerCast’s Pub Guide to Edinburgh, Part 1
The Baillie
The Blue Blazer
The Bow Bar
Cask and Barrel
The Cumberland
Kays Bar

The BeerCast’s Pub Guide to York
The Maltings
Koko’s
The Blue Bell
The Swan Inn
The Last Drop
The York Brewery
Suddaby’s Crown Hotel

(although my Dad was recently shouted at by the landlord of the Maltings, so consider it removed from our guide)

After the success of our first brewery showcase spectacular a few weeks ago, we decided to return to the same format once again for our 24th podcast. At the moment there can be fewer more deserving candidates than the Arran Brewery, given that until recently it looked like they might slip into the murky waters of brewing history. As we wrote back in May, after an increasingly successful eight year production span the financial climate conspired against them and they went into administration. Thankfully however, after a nervous couple of months a buyer came forward (the rather shadowy-sounding ‘Marketing Management Services International Limited’), and the beer started flowing again.

So as you can now once again find Arran’s beers in UK stockists, we thought it was high time to feature their wares on the BeerCast. Panellist Grooben made a recent visit to what is Great Britain’s ninth-largest island, and stocked up at the brewery shop. First on the menu for our special showcase is Arran Ale, followed by their seasonal beer for Spring – Sunset (as you’d expect from the BeerCast, we try this one rather than their more timely Autumnal seasonal Fireside). The third of their beers is the very popular Arran Blonde, which had previously been described by MrB as one of his favourite beers. Will it be as well received this time? Finally, the beer to close out the episode is their malty offering – Arran Dark. On the panel this week are Shovels, Grooben, Richard and MrB.

1. Arran Ale (3.8%abv)
The Arran Brewery, Cladach, Isle of Arran.
500ml glass bottle

What They Say – “Previously known as Arran Light – Arran Ale is pale coloured and a refreshing session bitter. Best served slightly chilled it’s great with a Ploughman’s Platter or just with a fresh baguette and a good mature Cheddar” [Official Website]; “An amber ale where the predominance of the hop produces a bitter beer with a subtle balancing sweetness of malt and an occasional hint of roast” [Good Beer Guide]

What We Say…
MrB – You can quaff this constantly for 24hrs – don’t sip it 8
Shovels – Gets better the more you drink it 7½
Richard – Light in colour and taste, it’s your classic ’7′ beer 7
Grooben – Something of a companion piece to Deuchars 7

2. Arran Sunset (4.4%abv)
The Arran Brewery, Cladach, Isle of Arran.
500ml glass bottle

What They Say – “A golden ale – a delicate balance of malt and fruit, with a dry hop finish. This is a light mid amber summer beer. It is great if drunk with the good old British sausage, Ploughman’s Lunch or any good Mature cheese” [Official Website]

What We Say…
Richard – I love the slight golden ale bitteryness to this 7½
MrB – More of a bitter, with a taste I don’t like so much 6
Grooben – A notch below the Ale but nice all the same 6
Shovels – I’m not keen on the bitter flavour compared to the Ale 5

3. Arran Blonde (5.0%abv)
The Arran Brewery, Cladach, Isle of Arran.
500ml glass bottle

What They Say – “A floral hop and new mown grass aroma, the taste is well balanced with citric fruit. A clear tasting pale golden beer in a continental style” [Official Website]; “A hoppy beer with substantial fruit balance. The taste is balanced and the finish increasingly bitter. An aromatic strong bitter that drinks below its weight” [Good Beer Guide]

What We Say…
Richard – There’s a great hoppy tartness to this 8
MrB – I still prefer the Ale, but would choose this often 7
Shovels – Sweeter and more lagery compared to their others 7
Grooben – A bit underwhelming compared to the cask variety 6

4. Arran Dark (4.3%abv)
The Arran Brewery, Cladach, Isle of Arran.
500ml glass bottle

What They Say – “Rich aroma of malt and hops with ripe fruit, the palate is velvety, and the taste is of full malt with a deep bittersweet finish. A traditional smooth drinking Scottish heavy beer.” [Official Website]; “A well-balanced malty beer with plenty of roast and hop in the taste, and a dry bitter finish.” [Good Beer Guide]

What We Say…
MrB – I’m a bit disappointed with the creamy 80 shilling thing 5
Richard – One of those beers that should just be a porter 5
Grooben – Too much sweetness to it, almost cloying 5
Shovels – Combines the smokeyness of a porter with the rubbishness of an 80/- 4

BeerCast panel verdict
Arran Ale (29½/40)
Arran Blonde (28/40)
Arran Sunset (24½/40)
Arran Dark (19/40)

Panellists – (from top left) Shovels, MrB, Grooben, Richard

• Listen to the episode here: BeerCast #24 – Arran Beers
• Subscribe to the podcasts in iTunes or our site feed

We’ll be back in a couple of weeks with our final ‘normal’ podcast of the year, before we break out the Christmas beers and build up to our Beer of the Year show. Stay tuned for details…and please leave us comments on the blog or iTunes, or emails. Cheers!

Usually Lagerboy tries something new and undiscovered for this column, but sometimes the gassy yellow stuff has passed his lips before. Kasteel Cru is just such a beer, having been sampled by various BeerCasters over the years – and always with interesting results. It seems to be a conversation-starter, that’s for sure. Produced in Alsace by the Brasserie Licorne, the main selling point for this lager is the addition of something quintessentially French – Champagne (well, champagne yeast).

At 5.2%abv, this rather refined ingredient seems to be added to give the beer an extra acidity and sparkly taste – the official website describes the “immediate zing from the carbonation”. When you first pour it, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a rather oddly-coloured glass of wine – bubbles rise up in streams, the faint yellowish tinge just about visible to remind you that it’s grain-based, not grape. It’s so pale you almost want to give it a few steak dinners to toughen it up a bit.

As a result, Kasteel Cru has a strong, gassy nose and a really sharp, bitter taste. The Hallertau hops give it that bitterness, and it combines with the champagne yeast to unsurprisingly give an almost wine-like taste. If previous Lagerboy entries have confused by describing beer as ‘tasting green’ – then this one without doubt tastes green. It’s one of those things – if there wasn’t the c-word plastered all over the bottle (as it were), would you sense there was champagne in there? Lagerboy certainly thinks so.

It’s an interesting beer, distributed in a reassuringly hefty bottle designed by expert glassmakers in Riems. The contents are certainly refreshing, because of all the sharpness going on as a result of the ingredients. But is it that nice? Well, I’d have to say no it isn’t – no question bitter zingy lagers are eminently preferable to sweet malty ones, but Kasteel Cru maybe pushes things a bit too far. The smell verges on the vinegary, and the delicate champagne taste gives way far too quickly to an aftertaste that verges on the unpleasant.

Kasteel Cru Official Website

Last year on the BeerCast we highlighted the local gem that is The Wellington in Bennett’s Hill, Birmingham. A real local boozer that values well-kept and varied ales above everything else is a treat wherever you live. On a recent trip to London we ventured to a similarly well-regarded establishment – the Jerusalem Tavern in Clerkenwell. Located down a side street a short walk from Farringdon tube station, the battered narrow front door with peeling paint gives little away as to the interior.

Directly inside is a small boothed area, with the bar halfway up on the right – a glass partition hides it slightly from view. The overall impression though is wood – the Jerusalem is small, quiet, and extremely brown. It almost has the feel of a rustic coach house, with the narrow back room and tiny flight of wooden steps up to a rather cute single elevated table. Apparently the pub takes it’s name from the 12th Century priory of St John of Jerusalem, which used to stand nearby.

But the real treat of course, is the beer. The tavern is the only tied pub in London owned by the St Peter’s Brewery in Suffolk – and as a result gets very busy with loyal followers of the Bungay producer. Only their ales are on offer, served from wooden casks mounted in the back wall of the bar. A well-informed blackboard gives the styles, abv and price, so there’s no excuses here – you really know what you’re in for.

I started off with their classic, St Peter’s Golden Ale (4.1%), which was a very appealing deep orange colour. Dry and hoppy, with a touch of fruit and malt, the hops win out at the end and it becomes a fantastic session bitter. Speaking of which, I then moved on to their Organic Best Bitter (4.7%) – as opposed to their regular Best Bitter – which was darker and more malty, with that lovely Northern-style long bitter finish (to which I am biased, after all…). Finally after having been joined by panellist Andy, we plumped for their Grapefruit Beer (4.7%), which was really quite tremendous – slightly cloudy but with a deep grapefruit smell, the taste was zesty and sharp – this one must be refreshing when drunk in summer, and proves St Peter’s can handle all styles of ale.

‘Glad you could join us’, reads a small sign at the back of the Jeruslam Tavern. I’d be quite happy to re-join them every time I got back to London.