“When you have lost your Inns, drown your empty selves…. For you have lost the last of England” Hilaire Belloc There has been quite a furore surrounding the British pub scene of late, where ownership of certain pubs by Pubcos has been wielded on occasion like a three year old child, playing with a laptop (though probably with less chewed edges and drool). This is without the ardour experienced by some communities where buildings that housed former pubs are gutted, stripped or demolished to make way for new accommodation, be it ‘luxury’ (aren’t they all?) apartments, student accommodation or other housing. Some of these often ornate and unique premises are even just let left to rot and dilapidate, falling into incredibly sorry conditions. Whilst many new and interesting micropubs are opening in places across the UK like former butchers, plumbers merchants, cafes and other local small retail premises, inner city areas have seen shifting development landscapes, with many pubs taking the brunt of gentrification. Landlords have been moved on by owners in order to progress a sale in the name of profits and the ever tightening purse strings which have been drawn asphyxiatingly tight during these austere times. More locally, Liverpool has seen many pubs removed permanently from the landscape, boarded up, gutted or demolished; some justifiably so and others in far less honourable circumstances. The former Royal Hotel pub on Smithdown Road in the city is now a colony of the aforementioned ‘luxury’ apartments (for students), the ornate exterior has been preserved to a degree, but the interior is no doubt totally different now and where a community pub was present, the building remains empty during the summer months. Another pub in proximity with a similar story was the Railway on Wellington Road; another row of housing, with the only indication of the building’s former use is the sign hanging defiantly on the exterior facing the youth club across the road. This is a trend, which is repeated across many of the cities in the UK. Recently, an excellent article on the fight to save a community pub in London was written by Tom Lamont for the Guardian. The Golden Lion was fought for by its landlord, David Murphy to save the drinking establishment from becoming yet more apartments under the stewardship (following procurement of planning permissions to raise the property value) of Tony Stark (not the one people like, from the Avengers). The article is a pretty long read, but it is deeply succinct in showing the plight many face under ownership from Pubcos, who are so engrossed in the bottom line and detached from their tenants, they refuse to see the inherent value of some of the properties they own on a community level. You can see it here: [http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/oct/13/the-death-and-life-of-a-great-british-pub] The situation is reflected somewhat by the scenario many in Liverpool will be familiar with for the Roscoe Head on Roscoe Street. The pub, managed by Carol Ross and having been in her family since the early 1980’s has also been present in the good pub guide since its inception (one of only five to have this honour) has been a regular haunt for cask beer and real ale enthusiasts for many a year. The Roscoe Head is housed in a grade II listed property and the current lease Carol has comes to an end in 2021, which could see the end of over 30 years of ownership by her family. In an astounding case of detachment by a Pubco, Punch Taverns sold the pub as part of an estate to property development company New River, this included many ‘core properties’ of which the Roscoe was one. This sale has incensed Carol Ross; as the chance to exercise a market rent only (an act passed down by the House of Commons in 2014) option was due in the new year, this has also followed on following Ms Ross’ enquiries into buying the pub outright (which were rebuffed by Punch Taverns). The market rent only option would have allowed the landlord of the pub to operate by shopping around for its own stock, making things cheaper for the landlord and potentially by cascade, the drinker. Punch Taverns, like other Pubcos, often tie their landlords to supply agreements where the Pubco themselves take a slice of the profit by charging fees on the transfer of the stock (for example, a freehouse would be able to purchase a barrel for £80, but under this ‘wet rent’ situation of surcharge, the Pubco charges the landlord £140 per barrel). This potentially leaves the pub in danger of being strangled into charging high prices to the drinkers and driving them away, such was the case with the Golden Lion in London. So what about the new owners? New River’s website states that their portfolio of 29 shopping centres and 202 pubs around the UK are “principally suitable for conversion to alternate use”. This in itself doesn’t fill anyone with the confidence that the Roscoe Head is safe from redevelopment down the line, despite the assurances from New River’s Property Director, Allan Lockhart, who stated “There are no other plans than to continue the operation of the Roscoe Head as a pub and we look forward to working with the licensee.” The danger for the pub, in part, lies within the development plans in the wider area of Roscoe, Renshaw and Hardman Street. The area is owned by Unite, who develop student villages in city centres (and have a few already in Liverpool) and a question mark hovers over this situation as to whether longer term a small community pub is in keeping with the vision of the area. [http://www.yourmovemagazine.com/major-student-plan-revealed-for-city-centre-site/6988] Whilst the former multi-storey car park has been demolished and earthworks have started to the rear of the Roscoe Head, the pub is still in place, but surrounding properties could be vacated, demolished or even swallowed to make way for another large, concrete and glass hive along with its small convenience stores, pharmacies and laundrettes. Whilst this is a saddening thought for some (considering the relatively soulless cluster developments at the top end of Hardman Street nearly swallowed the Caledonia pub), there is a real issue here in the loss of unique architecture and community areas that provide real diversity and life in a city. Upon speaking to Carol it appears that since New River’s acquisition of the Roscoe Head, a number of additional inspections have been instructed and a bureaucratic maze laid out seems to have been put in place to disturb the licensee and her staff, also with the potential to disturb the business itself. This blog did put a number of questions forward regarding the situation, but with the situation being rather terse and any correspondence having potential legal implications, certain discussions cannot be published.
There have been two occasions of protest at the pub within the last few months, the first taking place on the 12 September 2015 and the most recent on 7th November. For the second of this the National Chairman of CAMRA, Colin Valentine came down from Scotland to attend and deliver some words of encouragement and discuss the situation at large. Another update from this second event was that despite a number of letters and messages being sent to Paul Roy, Chairman of NewRiver, not a single reply had been received to date. Although the Roscoe Head has been made an Asset of Community Value (ACV) by petition to the Local Authority, there are only limited guarantees about its future. This protection only applies if the property has an application submitted for planning to change the usage from a public house to another purpose, hence why the sale of the pub from Punch Taverns to NewRiver was not blocked. At this stage, nothing is certain with the future of the Roscoe Head, but the current licensee seems to be remaining stoic and determined to hold on. Pedro.
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Since the demise of El Macho on Hope Street in Liverpool, the site has hosted the Clove Hitch restaurant and its seedy little brother in the basement below, the 23 Club. Many of you will know it well (those who read these articles regularly) and whilst initially the restaurant was treated as a much separate entity (it still is to an extent) the two are now much less estranged, with the Clove Hitch regularly hosting Meet the Brewer events where 23 Clubs space is too limited. 23 Club was set up in 2012 to embrace bourbon whiskies and craft beers (yes, yes, I know – a loaded term in most parts, admittedly), serving said beers which until recently were relatively obscure to most people. The bottled beer cave introduced latterly to the 23 Club lies next to the bar in the basement and has since spread its influence to the upstairs, infecting rows of shelves with assorted bottled beers for denizens to peruse and match at will with the food from the restaurant. Thankfully, these bottles are also available at slightly lower take-out prices too. The selection is quite simply remarkable in relative terms, much of the choice is made up of lesser known American and European craft beers from Italy, Denmark and Belgium. The best of British is also on display at the venue and this is before looking at the keg and cask offerings with offers on filling growlers. The added bonus is the staff at 23 Club and Clove Hitch; most are clued up on the stock and ready to make recommendations based on dining accompaniment or an personal preference. So even if you find yourself staring blankly at an obscure bottle of facing a dilemma in keg and cask, there is someone on hand who will be able to help out. So, what beers can be expected on the premises? Quite frankly, within a fortnight period, there will be a decent turnaround in the keg and cask, whilst bottled supplies are in flux for most of the time. In terms of a list, expect to see stalwarts like Buxton Brewery, Camden, Beavertown, Thornbridge and Liverpool Craft mixing it with Mad Hatter, 3 Potts, Neptune locally and from further afield Toccalmatto, Mikkeller,Tool, Cantillon, Kees, Amager and Brewfirst. This is before the extensive selection from the US including Alesmith, Crooked Stave, Stone, Clown Shoes, Evil Twin, Founders and Green Flash. You could do worse, much worse, then head over to peruse the shelves if you’re looking for something new to try or some gear to impress someone/with a present over Christmas.
Hope you enjoyed the double read this month guys, see you again soon; there’ll be another review coming another ample selection of beers which would make beers for New Year drinking, so keep twitchy!
Pedro. Fans of David Lynch's work may click onto the reference made by the newest addition to Liverpool's Baltic Triangle. Certainly, the low-key (if rather interesting, but hushed viral campaign) and quiet tones of the build up to the opening of Black Lodge has been in keeping with Lynch's eyebrow raising style; although it has been much less heavy on the surreal. Now that the proverbial cat is out of the bag, a bit more information can be disseminated for public consumption; the project is based on Kitchen Street in the Baltic Triangle and has been set up as a joint venture between the owners of 23 Club and Liverpool Craft Brewery along with some creative and design input from design company, Smiling Wolf. The venue has been set up to serve craft beer, all keg dispensed so far with no firm plans to introduce any cask offerings, charcuterie boards and cheese but it also has some other interesting facets in the form of turntable sat in a lofted position to the rest of the establishment and a projector, planned to not only broadcast promotional graphics but also potential video conferencing for Meet the Brewer events. This is a superb idea when considering the logistics of bringing any foreign brewers to Liverpool for such an event. The biggest talking point for the venue is the brewery kit, which once upon a time was Liverpool Craft Brewery's 2-barrel pilot kit. This will be used in a community brew project where people can come along and brew with the Black Lodge staff to produce a batch of unique brews to be sold on the premises. At launch, there were 5 of Black Lodge's own beers present on the taps, all of which were competent at least and in one case with the Neighbourhood (based on Chadwick Street near to the LCB premises) Coffee collaboration coffee IPA, a superb beer with incredible contrast in aromas, mouthfeel and finish. A heady aroma of coffee gives way to the body and vanilla flavour of a cream ale, before the finish gently drifts back into coffee roasts and acidity. Think something akin to an affogato, coffee ice cream float with vanilla, perhaps event a latte, but with a much more refreshing edge. All the beers were collaborative efforts, kicking off the project in its true spirit; a cinnamon and raisin stout, Pacific Northwestern IPA, Michaelmas (blackberry) IPA and a Russian Kvass rye ale complete the set of beers. As an aside, though the brews are meant to be one-off zeitgeist beers, I truly hope the coffee IPA is going to continue to be made, as this was a very worthy brew. Judging by the enthusiasm all the staff and those involved with Black Lodge have for the venture, it seems that there is a lot of hope invested here - the collaborative element has already piqued the interest of a number of people, with plenty looking to be pencilled in along with many more admirers looking on enviously. Since the closure of the Mad Hatter MicroTap in the Baltic Triangle, there has been a sizeable gap left in the area for somewhere entirely dedicated to quality beers to compliment the other creative venues and bars in the triangle. This may just be the tonic. At the moment (time of writing), the venue is open and running, but some plans are being mooted for improvements in the interior to expand and adapt to the visitors, but at the moment, the bar will spend some time finding its feet, garnering more admirers and continuing brewing before any other adventures are embarked upon. Thankfully there are no backwards talking dwarves* present to freak anyone out. Yet. Pedro. -------------------------------------------------------------- *Another David Lynch, Twin Peaks reference. this article was edited on 10-12-2015 to reflect Neighbourhood Coffee's contribution rather than neighbourhood cafe in Woolton. Welcome to the November beer blog! This is a two-part blog, thanks to a few extra nights in and a ready supply of bottles thanks to big shopping trips earlier in the year. This time I am focussing on some of the bottles available from the supermarkets, including Booths who opened their doors in West Lancashire over the summer, the beer selection there is actually quite something and is pretty reasonably priced. The really exciting stuff will be happening in part two of this month’s beer review… but for now, on with the tasting…
Hope you enjoyed the read this month guys, see you again soon; there’ll be another bottle shop and bottle review coming before Christmas featuring Liverpool’s 23 Club and Clove Hitch who have a rather ample selection of beers which would make fine Christmas or New Year’s party drinking, so keep your eyes peeled for the next installment very, very soon! Pedro. |
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