Southwark Brewing, Bermondsey, SE1

Last stop on the Beer Mile crawl and although not my favorite brewery there was some decent beer on, I settled for the Oatmeal Stout. Its typical bench and table seating inside although there was one sofa spotted. Worthy of a visit.

The final stop on the Bermondsey Beer Mile for those heading back in the direction of the city, Southwark Brewery marks a departure for those that have gone before by being the only place on the crawl to currently offer cask ale. I didn't spot any keg taps, but they were running a special cask ale day for London Beer city, so there were apparently more handpulls in operation than usual. Options on this visit were Bankside Blonde, London Pale Ale, Potter's Fields Porter, Bermondsey Best Bitter, Gold, Harvard APA and 5-Hop with the last two dispensed straight from the cask. I tried the Bankside Blonde which was a good, solid session ale. The bar is located in a railway arch with a red concrete floor and the same corrugated iron walls you'll find along the entire length of the Beer Mile. Canteen benches can be found to the left side of the arch along with a couple of sofas, whilst the bar is over to the right and all the brewery bits are hidden away to the rear. The bar area is probably the nicest of all those along the Mile, and not just because it has handpulls, but also a nice counter with the brewery logo on the front. A small standing area has been fenced off using upright pallets on the pavement outside - not the most attractive feature and this was the quietest bar of the day, presumably as the preceding bars had taken a few casualties along the way. Brewery merchandise is also available along with off sales. This was the ideal place to end the beer mile, with some proper beer to make up for a day of gassy keg stuff. The place is a bit more comfortable than others along the Mile, perhaps mainly because it was quieter, although this is all relative of course. Open Saturday only 11:00 - 18:00.

Official site of Southwark Brewery - www.southwarkbrewing.co.uk