Your Guide to London’s top 5 microbreweries

The Rising stars of London’s burgeoning craft beer scene

From Silicon Drinkabout to the Tech City Beer Fest, events based around beer drinking have been important in bringing start-ups closer together in East London for years.

The rise of the Tech City cluster has come hand in hand with the rise in popularity of craft beer, but as little as six years ago, the only people talking about craft beer in London were grumpy, overweight luddites sitting in the back of smelly, neglected public houses in the armpits of the capital, and the beer they were drinking was not much better than the social skills of the drinkers themselves.

But fast forward to 2013 and you have a very different picture.

Heavily influenced by the craft beer scene in the U.S, and given a leg-up by Gordon Brown’s progressive beer duty, craft beer has become hip again.

The average age of ale drinkers and the branding and presentation of the beers that they drink are testament to this, as are the 30+ micro-breweries that have sprung up in London in recent years, opening up a market that was once dominated by uninspiring, tasteless corporate lagers. Micro-breweries are even funded on Kickstarter.

The stranglehold of big brand beers is finally being loosened, and not only are we seeing craft beer pubs open up all over London, but the selection of beers in local shops and off-licenses in East London has diversified to the point where it is not uncommon to find niche craft beer at your local corner shop.

But with such a broad range of beers and so many new names on the brewery scene to choose between, how is the discerning hipster to negotiate this treacherous landscape?

Never fear, Tech City News is here to take you on a tour of London’s top 5 microbreweries and some of the tastiest beers that the capital has to offer, with some of the best brewed right here in Hackney.

The Kernel Brewery

Hackney resident and Kernel founder Evin O’Riordain has a background in selling artisan cheese for Neal’s Yard, which maybe goes some way to explaining his obsession with flavour and quality. On a trip to New York in 2007, Evin found that there were people who took beer as seriously as he took cheese, and he was introduced to the hoppy pale ales that The Kernel has become famous for. He started brewing in 2009 in a railway arch in Bermonsey, where you can go and sample some of The Kernel’s best beers right at the source on a Saturday morning.

Which beer to try
The Kernel’s Pale Ale is a highly drinkable, light ale, but with a pronounced hop presence nonetheless. The hops used in each batch are printed right on to the label, so you’ll find differences in their pale ales from bottle to bottle. The Amarillo hop used in this pale ale smells like potent marijuana, which shouldn’t come as a surprise as the two plants are distant cousins. 5.2%

Location
Arch 11 Dockley Road Industrial Estate
Bermondsey
London
SE16 3SF

Howling Hops

Ed Taylor started off brewing at home making cider and meade before graduating to craft beer. He started brewing professionally at Redemption Brewing Company in Tottenham, before moving to the basement of The Cock Tavern on Mare Street to start his own operation, where most of the Howling Hops beer is sold. The Cock Tavern is a well stocked craft beer pub where the barmen make time to talk you through their excellent selection. Also, try their pork pies, served with piccalilli.

Which beer to try
The Howling Hops Smoked Porter is a dark coloured beer with a delicious smokey, malt driven flavour with tones of dark chocolate in the finish. 5.2%

Location
The Cock Tavern
315 Mare Street
Hackney Central
E8 1EJ