Euston Tap & Cider Tap

The Euston Tap is one of the more welcome real ale houses to have opened in the Euston area, and popping in a couple of nights ago I was pleased to see the place is still going strong. I had a pint of a new ale made for them by the Nethergate brewery called One for the Road. Sadly it was a unremarkable pint. Although it was labelled on the board as "Wild Hopped" there weren't any exciting flavours coming through and it was all rather bland. Thankfully a pint of Ilkley Tap 3 was on good form and had in abundance the refreshing hoppy flavours that One for the Road was missing.

Euston Tap have opened a new venture across the road that specialises in "real" cider. After thinking long and hard they came up with the name Cider Tap. This is probably a better name then Euston Cider which as we all know is a euphemism for tramp piss. Although to be honest I probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a glass of real cider and a glass of tramp piss. Let's just say I've never understood the appeal of cider. As far as I'm concerned the stench, colour and taste are all designed to warn people away from drinking it.

Going by the current rise of alcohol prices, in five years time you'll have to choose between buying
six bottles of Rekorderlig or buying a car.

I once ordered some Strawberry "Real Cider" for The Lovely Jemma from the delightful The Harp near Leicester Square. On sight of the drink TLJ was convinced I had actually gone outside and convinced a vagrant to piss into a half pint glass. It was a wretched sight and smelt like a corpse that had soiled itself. The look on TLJ's face after the first sip assured me that this half pint was going to be left untouched and unloved on the table. I tried a sip myself and was thankful my tongue didn't just pack it bags and leave my mouth after the offense I had subjected it too. I honestly don't know how anybody could drink the stuff and I imagine the makers can only drink it because their tastebuds have been eroded away by years of horrific acidic cider.

There seems to be two very different camps when it comes to cider. There are those where cider is a pint of Strongbow or Magners, or a glass of sugary sweetness from Sweden such as Kopparberg or Rekorderlig. Swedish ciders in particular seem to be priced ridiculously high and it would probably be cheaper just to mix some Strawberry and Blackcurrant Ribena together and shove some vodka in it. You'd get the same effect. The other camp of cider drinkers are the real cider fans, those who prefer to have their cider made in a bathtub by two bearded gentlemen from Dorset. Unlike beer drinkers where lager fans might go for a ale and ale fans may plump for a lager, there doesn't seem to be the same crossover with cider drinkers. And unfortunately real cider (and perry) just isn't getting the same fanbase as real ale is enjoying.

The Cider Tap bar.  I liked the rustic wooden panelling.

So I was not surprised to walk into the Cider Tap and find it fairly quiet. The Euston Tap across the road was packed and bustling. However the smaller crowd suits the small space and the atmosphere was pleasant. There were about 15 ciders on offer (excluding bottled options.) I went for a half of Hogans Dry Cider. I'm no cider expert but I managed to finish it so it can't have been to bad.

I wish the Cider Tap all the best but cider is already a marginalised market so aiming for a niche of the market may not pay off. Hopefully word will go round and business will pick up. But to be perfectly honest I wouldn't mind if the place became an extension of the Euston Tap - perhaps with a few cider offerings chucked in.

The Pubs of Kings Cross and Euston

Kings Cross once the regeneration is complete (hopefully)

Working in Kings Cross is not a lot fun. The area has been going under a “regeneration” program for about 20 years and apart from the magnificent St Pancras station not much seems to have got done. Nothing says “Welcome to London” like a tatty row of shops, the horrific Camden Town Hall, and depending on the time of night, some ratty looking whores. Luckily most tourists don't get beyond the hastily cobbled together Harry Potter “Platform 9 3/4” photo spot at the front of the station. Here they can queue up to get a photo of the amazing spectacle of half a luggage trolley leaning against a wall. I'm surprised one of Kings Cross “ladies of loose morals” hasn't had the idea of dressing up as a witch and offered to handle tourists wands until they produce their patronus. Personally I like my idea of plying a dwarf full of booze, dressing him up with a suit and monocle and offering tourists the chance to take a picture with Griphook from Gringotts. But I digress.

The most criminal thing about the hovel that is Kings Cross is that there are precious little decent pubs around. In the local area there is Smithys which serves below average pints of Harveys Best and Doom Bar. I haven't dared tried the Landlord there for concern of my stomach. It also has one my biggest pet peeves in a pub – a separate area for diners where drinkers are not allowed. Places that do this should just become a restaurant and be done with it. What's the point of having a pub with areas you can't drink in?

The Harrison is a passable little boozer which serves an OK pint of London Pride and the aforementioned Landlord. However it's surrounded by some grotty council estates and can sometimes be full of wankers. I once saw a girl there dressed as a tiger. It wasn't halloween and there was no childrens party in sight. Anyway the crowd was so full of hipsters nobody even thought of saying “YOU LOOK LIKE A BLOODY IDIOT.” I did say it but really quietly under my breath while staring at her (turning away quickly when she looked back at me) because I'm a Londoner and proudly passive aggressive.

This was my favourite image when
doing a search for "Mabel"

To get a decent pint after work I have to head down to Euston Station where there's a cluster of good real ale pubs. First up is Mabels Tavern which is a decent Shepherd Neame boozer. The Kent Best, a satisfyingly malty bitter is always well kept here. As is the Master Brew, a session ale with a cleaner, crisper taste that goes down well. The prices are a little expensive and it's always tremendously busy on a Thursday and Friday night but it's worth stopping by if in the area.

Next door to Euston Station is the Doric Arch, which used to be the pretty good Head of Steam. Sadly the old bar billiards table that used to be there is long gone but it's still a nice pub with a good selection of Fullers and guest ales. I had a great pint of Bitter and Twisted by Harviestoun there last week, the hoppy flavours in this delicious blonde ale coming through wonderfully.

Across the road the Euston Tap is a great boozer which at last count had a selection of 27 beers and ales on offer. The place is tiny and it's impossible to get a seat. If the weather is nice though it's fine to stand outside and watch the buses whiz in and out of Euston bus station, sometimes narrowly avoiding hitting some toothless smackhead that has wandered on to the road. There are a couple of drawbacks with the Tap – to get to the toilets requires a scary climb up a narrow spiral staircase, and the beers look like they are being served from a urinal. Luckily most of the beers don't taste like piss. I enjoyed a perfectly pleasant pint of Festival by Dark Star there recently. This strong ale has a good caramel flavour, the heavy malty aftertaste might not be for everyone though.

The Bree Louise is nearby but I shall review that at a later time as I haven't visited recently. Also I've typed up more than enough and am starting to get a headache. Until next time!