About the same for me. But I do wonder about the people who write this stuff. "Young’s know how to look after their beer and so it is here: besides the brewery’s usual pints, they’ve usually a couple of other breweries on" it says for the Lamb, not realising Youngs got out of brewing years ago. And last time I was in there (last week) they had whatever Ordinary and Special are badged these days plus two Sambrooks plus two others; that's long been the situation there, suggesting the authors didn't spend much time on fieldwork.
Quite a good list, as these things go, and also 39/50... with all except:
42. Bank of Friendship, Highbury
41. The Alexandra, Wimbledon
33. The White Swan, Twickenham
32. The Faltering Fullback, Finsbury Park
31. The Holly Bush, Hampstead
29. Bradley's Spanish Bar, Fitzrovia
28. The Glory, Haggerston
21. The Prince of Greenwich, Greenwich
19. The Marksman, Hoxton
11. Auld Shillelagh, Stoke Newington
8. Harwood Arms, Fulham
… and these already on my 'must visit' list.
Last edited by rpadam; 23-02-2020 at 09:10.
I won't go in Young's pubs today. I remember passing one in Bristol near a JDW and making a point of avoiding it. The rot set in around 40 years ago. The Windmill on Clapham Common used to have a great and cheap Public bar. It remained the best option in that area for many years but was not the same. More locally, the E5 Prince(ss) Of Wales was a great old fashioned two bar pub that people used to flock to from all over East and North London. Some years ago now, I heard it had neen knocked into one, gone down the gastro route and was charging over 4 quid a pint.
Does anyone else think that Wandle & Junction are imitations of Ordinary & Special?
Perhaps I'm insufficiently cynical, but in my experience it is now entirely possible to regularly visit Young's pubs and find staff (let alone customers) who suffer the misapprehension that Young & Co's Brewery Plc have something to do with the so-called "London Original" and "London Special" special they are serving (or drinking). I heard some mention of Wells & Youngs at the time of the original move to Bedford, and a bit when Charles Wells bought out Young's 40% stake, but almost nothing when Marston's bought the Eagle Brewery in 2017. Indeed, even the current www.youngsbeers.co.uk website would leave most people none the wiser (unless they read the small print, rather than swallowing the "London will always be Young's - Estd 1831" guff). I'd seriously think about reporting them to trading standards if I had more time!
I seem to remember that the brewer at Sambrooks mentioned that Wandle was a recreation of Ordinary at the time that Youngs brewing in Wandsworth ceased.
The only upside of going in a Youngs pubco house these days is that St Austell Proper Job is a regular guest ale,and if well kept is far superior to Original,Special and the Sambrooks beers IMHO.
"Good people drink good beer" Hunter S Thompson