London Brewery Ride

London was the place to be for every craft beer fan this August with London Beer City taking place from the 5th - 14th. We were lucky enough to be there for the opening weekend and one of the events we couldn't pass up was the London Beer Cycle with ‘Ever Thought Of Trying’. Ben was a great guy and led us on the brewery tour adding to the experience with his passion, uplifting spirit and love of beer. The starting point for the cycle was the Copper Box Arena in the Olympic Park Stratford, heading out on a gentle ride to the One Mile Brewery for the opening of their tap room. Along with a group of avid cyclists with a passion for beer we donned our Santander bikes, showing up for the team! (How we do like to stand out out in a crowd).[su_row][su_column size="1/2"][/su_column] [su_column size="1/2"][/su_column][/su_row]The Route was mainly along the canal - River Lea Navigation. With blue sky, sun shining and beautiful surroundings, you almost forgot that you were in London. The first part was roughly six miles, amongst the urban landscape of barges and boats with a hippy is feel, we passed a number of watering holes which looked tempting for a pitstop. (Princess of Wales - good beer garden and view). We journeyed on for the whole six miles, eager beavers to get to the brewery.As we arrived at the One Mile End Brewery and parked up the bikes it was instant smiles all round. A little gem in Tottenham making its mark on London’s craft beer scene. We all headed straight for the tap! There was a variety of beer goodness for us to choose from on both cask and keg. Steam Lager was first up to quench the thirst after the cycle. A full flavoured beer that I wouldn't have normally associated with a lager giving me my first hoppy fix of the day.[su_row][su_column size="1/2"][/su_column] [su_column size="1/2"][/su_column][/su_row][su_row][su_column size="1/2"][/su_column] [su_column size="1/2"]We joined the brewer for a tour around the newly opened extension to the One Mile End Brewery. The brewery launched in 2014, beneath the White Hart Brew Pub in Whitechapel, London. It was great to get an insight into the process and history of this great craft brewery which is setting high expectations for the craft beer scene in London, with great tasting beer.[/su_column][/su_row]Next up I had the Snake Charmer IPA, sat in the courtyard soaking up the sun with the brewery setting the scene for a perfect Sunday lunch time. This strong beer went down nicely, accompanied by the light bites provided by Soffles and Thai in a Pie. Personally I couldn’t get enough of the crispy seasoned pittas by Soffles. With the dips I have to say they made the perfect bar snack and definitely went down nicely with the IPA, both full of flavours that complemented each other well.[su_row][su_column size="1/2"][/su_column] [su_column size="1/2"][/su_column][/su_row]We were eventually dragged away to get back on our bikes and headed over to the next stop of the afternoon, Mason & Company. A new addition to the canal side, back towards the Olympic Park. This is a craft beer bar and kitchen from Five Points Brewing Company.I have to say I was very impressed, not only with extensive range and the longest beer menu I have ever seen, but with the venue itself. Sunlight poured into the light wooded interior providing a bright atmospheric place to enjoy the great beer on offer. This was all topped off with a great talk by Francesca from Five Points. She introduced us to their new addition, a Pilsner which was surprisingly full of flavour, easy drinking and very refreshing, especially after the bike ride… just what we needed! It also cleared our palate to go on to taste some of the other more interesting beers. The next taster was the very popular Five Points Pale, which went down a treat. Full of American hops, the citrusy flavours made this beer very drinkable.With twenty beers on tap along with bottled and canned brews from London, the UK and around the World it was definitely a hard choice, but next up had to be one of the two taps which are permanently dedicated to Five Points beer - Hook Island Red. This is a red rye beer, beautifully coloured and full of body. The strong aroma of hops and incredible pine flavours hit you with every sip. A very interesting beer, one I would definitely recommend trying!Deciding to try something new I ended on the High Wire Grapefruit from London’s Magic Rock Brewery. A very intense pale ale, this was the one for me! It has a very strong hoppy character accompanied by a strong grapefruit flavour which balance beautifully together to create a tasty, refreshing brew.We had to make tracks early afternoon so didn't get chance to try the amazing food by Capish? in the kitchen which everyone is raving about. From a glance at the unique American/Italian menu it’s not hard to see why.A great day organised by Ever Thought Of Trying, the perfect balance of good people, biking and great beer brought together in harmony. A cracking tour!Article and photos by Lisa Bray