Favourite places to drink (part three)

In 1979 I spent a few months living in a squat in the East End of London.

We knew some people already living in the area and they pointed out a boarded up terraced house. After ripping off the boards we had ourselves a house. And it was free.

I think it was one of these houses

Admittedly, it wasn't perfect. There was a reason the house was unoccupied: the roof leaked. In several places. Just as well we moved in during the summer, when it was dry.

Best was that we had one bedroom as a rehearsal room. A drum kit and a couple of amps. How many happy hours we spent jamming away. Matt on drums, me on bass, Tym or Piers on guitar.

There were quite a few pubs in the area. One we drank in quite a bit was a Truman's pub on Devons Road, the Tenterden. It had a slightly odd, but old interior. Truman had been keg only for years, but had released a cask beer, Tap Bitter, a couple of years earlier. The Tenterden stocked it, but I wasn't mad keen.

Looking at the OG, I'm guessing that it was a cask version of their Keg Bitter. Both were around 1039º. I found mixing it with a bottle of Guinness produced something more to my taste. Guinness at the time, being bottle-conditioned, was a cracking drink. But a bit too pricey to drink straight.

There was only one Good Beer Guide listed pub in the area, The Little Driver on Bow Road. A Bass Charrington house, which sold Draught Bass. At the time still brewed in unions. I used to wander down there from time to time with Simon, who I knew from both school and university.

I realise now blending was a bit of a theme for me back then. Because I didn't drink the Bass straight. I'd mix it with a bottle of White Shield. Just to add some extra oomph.  The Bass was a perfectly acceptable drink straight.

Me and Matt worked in an arms factory close to Old Street tube. I can't imagine there's any manufacturing industry left around there now. We'd sometimes drop by the George & Vulture at lunchtime. A traditional Fullers pub. Where I first grew to love London Pride.

I didn't linger long in the East. As the summer came to a close and the rains arrived, the house became uninhabitable. And I moved back to Leeds.



The Little Driver
125 Bow Rd, Bow,
London E3 2AN.



The George & Vulture
63 Pitfield St,
Hoxton,
London N1 6BU.
http://www.georgeandvulture.com/