Taproom - Hoxley & Porter - Earl of Essex

Wednesday 18th September - Upper Street and the surrounding roads have so far not made it on to The List as I had been waiting to go with certain members of Team List (you know who you are).  I caved last Wednesday as the lineup of bars, pubs and restaurants was becoming too long to ignore, and I felt North London needed some better representation on the blog.  Taro stepped up to the plate and met me at Highbury & Islington for a slow walk down to Angel.  

I suggested going for food at the fairly new Fish & Chip Shop, but Taro was having none of it.  Instead we headed straight for The Taproom, a popup beer bar on Upper Street that now plans to stay there for the foreseeable future.

I was excited to see Five Points Pale on as I haven't had any of their beers yet, so I went for a pint of that straight away.  It lived up to my expectations - hopefully I will make it to one of their brewery open days in Hackney soon.  That said, I should probably have gone for the reasonably priced flight of 3 third pints of ale for £3.90 which I spotted too late.

Taro did go for the flight, and left the barmaid to make two of the choices.  He ended up with Tiny Rebel Full Nelson, London Fields Shoreditch Triangle IPA and Williams Bros Red Ale - a lovely selection, with Triangle IPA just about coming out on top.  It's a really cosy place to drink, and we could have happily stayed there all evening.  Tables are fairly low lit, meat and cheese boards are available, and they run a pub quiz most Tuesdays.

We tore ourselves away and wandered a few doors down to find Hoxley & Porter, a brand new bar and restaurant with a stunningly realised train carriage and travel theme.  Upon entering, you walk down a long train carriage corridor, with views through to a classic dining carriage on your right before you reach the bar area which is slightly more exotic.  As soon as we arrived, the barman (in train conductor regalia) came out from behind the bar to give Taro a big hug.  I wasn't sure what was going on, so I demanded the same greeting before it became clear that Taro actually knew said barman.  Unbeknownst to Taro, his friend Yih was manning the bar that evening after a few months away from the mixology game.  We pulled up to two seats at the bar - always the best place to be - and got chatting.

We were lucky to also have head bartender Mikey Pendergast, previously of Powder Keg Diplomacy in Battersea, sitting to our left, along with a current Powder Keg bartender.  I have come across both of them before in passing at PKD and Ginstock 2013, but it was great to have a chat with them whilst they were off the clock.  Despite it being a cocktail bar, I quickly surveyed the beer options as I always do.  They are currently having to sell some standard beers on tap (two lagers and a cider, I think) because they are somehow affiliated with them, but they have cleverly removed the branding, and covered them with Dark, Light, and Apple Beer signs to fit in with the decor.  Hopefully they will find a workaround and get some craft beers in to match the exciting cocktail menu.  There were Redchurch beers in the fridge, including a Broadway Black Pale that I haven't seen before.

Anyway, on to the cocktails.  Taro started off with a boozy "My Daddy Owns a Yacht Club" which was all alcohol and incredibly drinkable.  I had heard rumours of a colour changing cocktail with an edible absinthe-coated scorpion, so I enquired after it.  Yih described it as their "halo" drink (i.e. the one to get the press talking) and Mikey got up from his seat to mix one up.  It is a ridiculous concoction that involves some 95% Polish Rectified Spirit amongst other things.  It changes colour instantly as you pour the final ingredient in, for reasons that were explained to me at the time but are now hazy.  Most importantly though, it was extremely tasty, and dangerously easy to drink.  Mikey described it as a cocktail that starts off like a Vodka Martini and ends up like a Rum Daiquiri, adding that he is well aware quite how pretentious that sounds.  He continued to entertain, moaning about the need to include a champagne cocktail (which they gave a no frills name to, similar to Southsider Cocktail Club's "Token Champagne Cocktail").

As we were finishing our first drink, we were joined by North Londoner Tom, who had texted about watching the Arsenal match but was quickly drawn into the cocktail fun.  He took Mikey's seat who left us in Yih's capable hands.  Early press reported that there was a "Crypt" downstairs where you could homemade spirits and scorpions being prepared.  This is apparently nonsense according to Yih - they don't have a license to take customers downstairs, and it is not at all glamorous down there anyway.  

Yih was constantly dishing out fascinating nuggets of information about his favourite drinks and the art of mixing.  He made up a sour ("Chipotle off the Old Block" with powerful chilli bitters) for another table, and let us in on the dry-wet-dry shaking technique (without ice or with) which produces a super smooth drink with well defined bubbles.  He is a rum expert, but happily took on Tom's request of making up something brilliant with gin.  He gave us a taster of the delicious Hayman's Gin Liqueur before rustling up a sublime drink with it, which was presented in a small bottle on ice - similar to the presentation of a Henry Martini Rifle at Powder Keg Diplomacy.  Taro went for a "Honey, Where's Mai Tai?", Yih's signature (off the menu) drink - easily the best Mai Tai I have ever tasted.  Meanwhile, I asked for his favourite strong rum drink, so he whipped me up a very special Rum Daquiri, with some extra Wray & Nephews's Overproof rum (one of H&P's most used spirits) for good measure.

Every drink was an absolute winner, and we were all simultaneously jealous of everyone else's beverage.  It was amusing to watch the bar staff dealing with one table who were constantly sending back drinks to make them sweeter, to the point where Yih suggested just giving them a bottle of syrup on the side.  I find it hard to believe that their drinks weren't up to scratch, but I guess you can't argue with the customer.  We eventually decided to make a move, and settled up a very reasonable bill.  Huge thanks have to go to Yih for being such a fantastic host (especially with a taster of the awesome Plantation XO Rum).  I will definitely return, though I would be sad if he wasn't there! The food is also meant to be exceptional, but we were just here for the drinks this time around.  They currently have a super cheap lunch deal going, but I would imagine that it won't last that long, so head there soon!

Taro sneaking behind the bar for a picture with Yih

We pressed on towards Angel, and decided to make one more stop at the Earl of Essex, a craft beer pub tucked away in a residential part of Islington.  Tom took us via Camden Passage - a lively little pedestrian street which I can't believe I have never found before.  Taro was on the hunt for food, but we managed to stay on track and got some seats at the bar.  I love a good beer board, and the Earl of Essex didn't disappoint.  The selection is fantastic - I knew most of the breweries but they had some really interesting beers from each one.  We tried all sorts, making up for my lack of a beer flight at the Taproom earlier on:

Oskar Blues Dales Pale Ale, Brugse Zot Brune, Moor Revival, Offbeat Grateful Deaf, Liverpool Beer Co American Red & IPA, Magic Rock Clown Juice and Arbor Twigs in Space were all sampled.  I was particularly impressed by the Liverpool Beer Co offerings.  Moor Beer Co (Somerset) continue to be one of my favourite breweries.  There are lots of great beers in the fridge too, including some craft cans all the way from Maui in Hawaii - Maui Brewing Co Big Wave will convert you to canned beer.

It's a very friendly pub, and the staff looked after us very well (especially hungry Taro - see his previous List form here).  Everything on the food menu is paired with a beer that they should have in stock.  There is a nice garden out back too, though we don't have many beer garden days left this year. Whilst Tom and I chatted about football, Taro befriended a barman who works round the corner at Smokehouse - a new gastropub (near the top of The List's most wanted) with smoked meats and a huge amount of beer on tap.  It is one of many places around Upper Street that I need to start ticking off - House of Wolf, John Salt, North Pole, 69 Colebrooke Row, Ottolenghi and Slim Jim's to name a few!  Thanks to Tom and Taro for kicking off the Islington List exploration.

Since this is a pretty beery post, I'll quickly mention some beer news.  Honky Tonk (Chelsea & Clapham Common) have just launched London's first "Beer Trolley".  A beer sommelier will wheel the trolley around to diners, and take them through various options that will hopefully match your food!  Thanks to Hollie from KK Communications for the heads up.  Honky Tonk have also started presenting your bill inside a book, which you can take home if you so wish.  They are considering turning it into a full on book exchange!

Also, keep your eyes peeled for the refreshing new Hiver honey beer which I had a taste of at Bermondsey Street Festival on Saturday.  It is currently on sale at The Hide Bar in Bermondsey, but should also be available elsewhere soon (if it isn't already).  Follow them on Facebook/Twitter for more info, or sign up for updates on their website here.

Ginstock 2013

Friday 14th June - I don't really know where to start with this one, it's all a bit hazy.  Ginstock is an annual event (fingers crossed) that started in 2012, run by the Tweat Up gang who organise fantastic one off foodie / drinkie days out including recently Taco Wars, Craft Beer Battle and Ribstock.  This "summer", Tweat Up  have been making use of Merchant Yard in Haggerston where the wonderful Street Feast is held every Friday.  If you haven't been to Street Feast (read more here) then you only have this Friday and a closing party on Saturday left to experience it (and the awesome Gin Store bar upstairs).  Street Feast is then effectively relocating to Wood Wharf under the name of Truck Stop which starts on the 4th July.

Anyway, I digress.  Ginstock.  I managed by some stroke of luck to win two free (usually £35) tickets through a competition that Barchick were running in association with Boodles Gin.  List Leader Natalie managed to get a few regular tickets before it sold out, but there were others who still needed tickets that I was delighted to be able to bring along.  I was informed that my prize also involved brunch for two with breakfast cocktails at 10.30 on the morning of Ginstock at Marcus Wareing's The Gilbert Scott, plus a taxi ride from there to Haggerston for kickoff at midday.  I sadly couldn't take them up on that as I was ambitiously packing in a concert in the morning before heading over to Kingsland Road, but they told me to chat to the folks from Boodles and Gilbert Scott in the hope of rearranging.  This was probably for the best anyway, as there was absolutely no need to have more cocktails than were already included with the Ginstock ticket!

Milk and Honey, Perkin Reveller and Dishoom have so far evaded The List , and Megaro has just opened

Team List (Natalie, Luke, Libby and Cassie) arrived first and had a good system going by the time I got there, saving seats and sending troops out in to the rain to battle through the crowds.  Everyone was given a voting card which also acted as the stamp card for 10 gin based cocktails from the competing bars. I love an imperfect stamp system as it always leads to a few extra free drinks (remember Malt Jockey?).  I was a couple of drinks behind schedule so had to really knuckle down.  Every bar was vying for our attention with freebies and witty banter.  Perkin Reveller gave out a tin containing all the ingredients of their cocktails so that it could be recreated at home.  Powder Keg gave out a bottled version of their cocktail - "stick your middle finger up at Boris and neck this on the Overground".  Free food and drink vouchers, badges, popcorn, sloe gin marshmallows, stickers, moustaches, bindis - you name it, we were bribed with it.  

My camera was having a temperamental day so most of these photos are from the Perkin Reveller website - see more here.

Teapots and jam from the Perkin Reveller team

The voting cards had plenty of room for leaving comments so that you could make an informed decision 10 (or 15) cocktails later.  The comments naturally became less pretentious and more honest / imcomprehensible as the afternoon wore on.

Midday: 

"Excellent presentation - fresh but a bit too floral"

5pm: 

"Red Bull / Worcestershire Sauce?" 

"Went down easy - that's what she said"

"Deliciousness personified" - what does that mean?

My favourite - "Oh, no :( "

Respect to latecomers Victoria, who arrived at around 3 and powered through them very quickly, and Arwa who finally escaped from work near the 5pm closing deadline which was luckily extended to 6pm.  The queues were a bit crazy towards the end but in general it was just the right amount of busy.  It was great to taste the new Boodles and Opihr gins, and to meet the people behind the new Megaro bar that is opening soon in King's Cross.  There was fantastic food on offer too.  I devoured a "fatty, greasy, piggy wrap" from the wonderful Stripped Back stall run by Ben Spalding, and also later on tucked into some delicious Yum Buns.  There were gin / botanical themed ice creams and lollies available from Sorbitium Ices and The Ice Kitchen but the weather didn't help them out too much.

No idea who this is.

Time to vote!

Eventually we got to the close of play and the votes were counted up.  Our favourites were The Gilbert Scott, Dishoom and Megaro.  The Gilbert Scott "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" was a delicious, drinkable CO2 charged concoction which we all finished in seconds.  Dishoom made a wonderful orangey cocktail named after Vasant Dhoble, an Indian police officer who goes around Mumbai hitting people with a hockey stick for breaking alcohol based laws - the idea behind their breakfast cocktail was that it could pass as orange juice, and Dhoble hopefully wouldn't notice.  Megaro were the last bar to be confirmed for Ginstock but did a fantastic job with their Sipsmith twist on a Tom Collins.  The winner of Ginstock 2013 was finally announced and the trophy went to the team of Boodles and The Gilbert Scott.  I managed to catch up briefly with Dav and the team earlier on in the day, and I'm delighted that they won.  I look forward to hearing more about their Ginstock adventure when I collect the second half of my Barchick prize at their establishment.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

Our party split in two at this point.  Some that were "ginned out" went to the excellent Fox pub and then on to Vietnamese food and The Book Club. I stayed put with Natalie and Arwa for the Gizzi Erskine after party lock in upstairs in the Gin Store.  It took a while for the bar to warm up but we saved our seats early before everyone else made it upstairs.  I spent the next hour playing poker and roulette in the casino earning tokens for more gin, with Arwa as a wing woman, whilst Natalie had a 7pm nap in the corner.  My secondary aim in the casino was to find a pretty lady called Flora who I had met in passing.  I wasn't very proactive sitting still at a poker table, but Arwa nearly had success by screaming "Does anyone know Flora?" in the queue for the women's toilets outside - there is no happy ending I'm afraid.  I also had a brief conversation with another female gin fan, but that ended when she said "Ergh, Battersea? Why would you live there?" - charming.  By 8pm we were totally shattered but we stuck it out for a couple more hours, surrounded by equally tired people and Gizzi Erskine's slightly terrifying Go Go Dancers who were being followed around by a cameraman.

View of Kingsland Road from the Gin Store

We eventually crawled on to an Overground train to that awful Battersea place, and had a quick spotify sing along before crashing out for most of the journey - the Powder Keg bottled cocktail was left for another day  if you are reading, Boris.  It was a hilarious, epic day filled with lovely people and awesome gin, and Ginstock 2014 has a lot of work to do to top this year.  Huge thanks to Barchick for giving me the tickets, and congratulations to Team List for making it through the day - only counts as 1 point though!  Don't forget to go to the last Street Feast this Friday or their closing party on Saturday,

The Lazy Fox - Fabulous Feast - London Whisky Fest

Just a few little mentions today ahead of some bigger posts from this weekend's adventures in Haggerston with Sister Em and Al, and round London with the Paris edition team.

Wednesday 22nd - Natalie, Libby and I squeezed in a quick pre-Star Trek trip to The Lazy Fox pub behind Fulham Broadway station.  The website doesn't give much away but this the second London pub from the Robot Pub Group, the other being The Thirsty Bear (order from iPads and pour pints at your table) which I mentioned here a while ago.  The Lazy Fox's innovative feature is the Wall of Beer.

You get a tab card which you slot in above the beer you want before you start pouring away.  Downside: pay for what you spill.  Upside: try lots of different beers and have as much as you want, when you want!  Thankfully The Lazy Fox is not offering the likes Carling and Magners, but is instead going for really tasty craft beers.  When I was there they had Anchor Steam, Harviestoun Schiehallion and Brooklyn Lager.  The American beers were very reasonably priced compared to what I have paid for them around London.  Get yourself down there whilst it is still relatively unknown and affordable!

Saturday 18th May - Two festivals to mention - you may have to wait until next year now if you want to go yourself!  In the afternoon I wandered over to St. John's Hill with Wandsworth local Rosie to visit the Fabulous Feast street festival (the culmination a week of foodie events at cafes, bars and restarants on St.John's Hill).  Alongside your usual cake stands there was also 'Make your own Mojitos', Bloody Mary mixing tables, and a brilliant stall outside Powder Keg Diplomacy.  They were giving away generous portions of their new dry ice cream with jam dessert, and hosting a beer and meat pairing workshop, on the same table.  Powder Keg Diplomacy is the jewel in St. John's Hill's crown, and was one of the earliest places that Team List visited - read more here.

Later on in the evening, I made my way over to Shoreditch for London Whisky Fest at Village Underground for my friend Lee's birthday.  You could choose to go from 5-9 or from 7-9.  I opted for the shorter session, but Lee, Jane and EJ started early at 5, and had clearly had a few whiskies by the time I got there.  Once you have paid entry (between £15-£25 - incredibly cheap!), you can go round sampling as many as you like, including 2 "under the counter" expensive whiskies.  There were also interesting whisky cocktails from Salt Bar in one corner, flanked by street food vendors.  More whisky fans arrived late from Lords (Sam, Mark, Henry, and Rich) but definitely got their money's worth.  Henry was worth sticking near for lines like "it screams of an oaked American Chardonnay".  Our favourites were Kilchoman, Talisker, Chicibu and the interesting range from Compass Box (Hedonism and Peat Monster in particular).  Keep an eye out for the next one and make sure you get yourself a ticket - a must for whisky fans!  

Well I couldn't not take a photo - note the tube trains on the roof

Yes, I know it isn't whisky

Compass Box range - Hedonism and Peat Monster on show

We ended the evening at Crown and Shuttle, Shoreditch's best new pub - read about my last visit here.  It doesn't get much better than Twin Peaks beer from Sierra Nevada and Thornbridge.  More posts coming soon!

Ben's Canteen - Powder Keg Diplomacy - Southsider Cocktail Club

Today's edition comes all the way from Battersea (mostly because I live there).  As expected this is already proving to be expensive and fattening (see liquified butter below) but Clapham Junction didn't let me down this week.  Three new places to report:

Tuesday night (26th Feb) - I wasn't sure where I was going to go but I had my heart set on somewhere. The candidates were Cafe Cairo (Clapham North), Pitt Cue Co (Soho), Ping (Earls Court) and Powder Keg Diplomacy (Clapham Junction). The texts went out to keen beans and votes came in for Powder Keg Diplomacy (or PKD). One keen "Lister" came all the way from Mile End only to discover that London's busiest station is sadly not on the Northern Line.

Powder Keg Diplomacy

After a quick transfer via Balham, Taro found Clapham Junction and we wandered up St. John's Hill towards PKD.  I knew a place nearby called Ben's Canteen that a friend had mentioned and so we popped in there first.  As luck would have it, Tuesday at Ben's Canteen is 2 for 1 Cocktails so we ordered a Spiced Vanilla Mojito each - to our surprise it was served in a jam jar. The drinks were good but I wouldn't buy one again unless it was half price.  We didn't stay long but the food is meant to be good - they claim to have one of the UK's best burgers but I can't confirm or deny this sadly. They run craft workshops amongst other things and it is definitely worth a look if you live in the area as there is a lot going on.

Ben's Canteen cocktails

Then we moved on to Powder Keg Diplomacy - a bar/restaurant with crazy cocktails, good beer and fine dining.  Apart from the cocktails helping it to stand out, the bar is Colonial themed and only uses ingredients that can be sourced from the corners of the old British Empire. My favourite section on the website is the separate wine list dedicated solely to wines from countries that we have been at war with.  On arrival we were presented with three ale samples to taste by a barman in a waistcoat.  They were all very nice but we made the correct decision to move on to their bizarre cocktail list.  Taro started with Queen Anne's Revenge - House Aged Wray and Nephew Rum, Pickled Walnut Vinegar, Green Tea and Treacle; Smoked and served with English Blue Cheese and Pickled Walnut.  It's a ridiculous cocktail served in a test tube type arrangement with a cork provided which you can take on or off depending on how smoked you want your rum. I meanwhile ordered Henry Martini Rifle - Whitley Neil Gin, Gunpowder Green Tea Vermouth, Maple Syrup, Dandelion and Burdock Bitters. Similarly ridiculous, mine was left for me to pour in my own time with most of the cocktail reserved in a spherical container on ice.

Queen Anne's Revenge

Taro and I were joined by two more from Team List - Rosie was excited to discover a cocktail called Regali-tea containing Earl Grey-infused Plymouth Gin (her two favourite ingredients combined at last) and Max went for a Chipotle Sour which had an enormous sphere of ice filling the glass along with a tiny Chipotle chilli. Extra points for Max for turning up having moved back to England that day from Brussels with a trip to Mexico looming a few days later. The drinks are good value at around £8 and the food is meant to be great. There is also a magician on certain evenings who walks from table to table performing close-up magic!

Henry Martini Rifle

Wednesday evening (27th Feb) - Max (of PKD fame) was having a curry in Battersea to celebrate his return from Brussels and also his departure to Mexico, so I shamelessly tried to turn it into another List evening. Luckily, Max was very keen and he will be sorely missed as a reliable member of Team List whilst he is away after a storming two day performance. We decided to try and squeeze in a few cocktails at Southsider Cocktail Club before dinner after reading great things about the Blumenthal-esque mixology going on there. Seven of us gathered in Southsider CC and we were delighted to find that they have £5 cocktails everyday from 5-8.  The cocktails are already cheap at around £7.50 considering how odd they are, so £5 is a bargain. The main reason I wanted to go was because they make their own version of Harry Potter's "Butter Beer" - here is their take on it: 42 Below Manuka Honey, Popcorn Bacardi Superior Rum, Butterscotch Schnapps, Liquified Butter (!), Soft Toffee Caramel, Vanilla Salt, Asahi Beer.

Sam and his Bloody Warhol

It was sickly sweet but definitely close to what I imagined the original to be like.  More strange cocktails were ordered including a "Bloody Warhol" served in a soup tin, "Dirty Man Harry" served in a gun shaped-flask, ice bucket and chilled coupette, "Grandma Sloane's Teatime Tipple" served in a fine bone china mug with a macaroon and the "Full English Flip" - Bacon Woodford Reserve Bourbon, A whole egg, Maple Syrup, Angostura Bitters, Dehydrated Bacon Crumb. Other odd ingredients worth mentioning include edible flowers, toasted coriander seeds, chorizo mezcal and atomised tobacco mist! The staff were also incredibly friendly and helpful and brought us unlimited free popcorn with three different flavours sprinkled on top. I can't recommend this place highly enough, especially with the overly generous daily happy hour from 5-8.

Southsider Cocktail Club

Whilst I'm here I thought I would mention a couple of events going on in London that are one-offs or have limited availability. I will try and tweet about them as they come up so follow @matthew1hickman for more regular updates. Feast is a food festival on next Saturday (7th-10th March) at the Tobacco Dock, Wapping - tickets are £8/£9 and a lot of the food on offer is from places on The List that I haven't been to yet. Cambalache - One Night in Argentina is a night of Argentinian experiences with unlimited food, wine and cocktails plus much more for £35 on 18th April. Dine Mile High is a pop-up air-travel-based restaurant/bar experience that looks fun. Backyard Cinema does what it says on the tin - tickets sell out fast each time so subscribe for updates for them. Wilfred Bagshaw's Time Emporium is "an immersive theatrical adventure which culminates in an after-party in a sprawling Victorian warehouse" - no idea what that is about. Last but not least - Hint Hunt is a an experience for 3-5 people where you have to solve a mystery together to escape a room within one hour. Leave a comment if you try any of these experiences or any of the places I have mentioned - it would be great to hear for you! Next stop for The List : The Doodle Bar.

Team List: Taro (Ben's Canteen, Powder Keg Diplomacy); Rosie and Max (PKD and Southsider); Mary, JB, Sam and Natalie (Southsider) - Taro leads with way with 4 trips