Sometime last year I put together a list of bottle shop x beer bar hybrids with my good friend Jezza (www.beerguideldn.com) but we quickly realised that the rate of new openings was going to make it obsolete by the time we posted it. Sure enough, many more have arrived on the scene (Seven Seasons, Water Into Beer, Craftndraft), some have expanded (Hop Burns & Black, Mother Kelly’s), some have downsized (We Brought Beer), and some have disappeared (Beer Boutique, The Bottle Shop). Perhaps when it all settles down we’ll revisit the article, but for now let’s just keep things simple. One. At. A. Time.
Ghost Whale was a breath of fresh air when it arrived in Brixton, with only Craft Beer Co, Brixton Brewery and London Beer Lab for beer geek company at the time. It’s a regular stop for me if I’m heading to the nearby market or Pop Brixton for dinner, with 6 rotating drafts and hundreds more offerings in the fridge to choose from. The large central table is the sociable seating choice, and a great space for their well curated meet the brewer and tap takeover events. If you want that snap for the ‘gram, go and find the natural light and do some people watching in the windows seats. And that’s really all there is to it – friendly humans, inclusive events, a wide range of fresh beer to drink in or takeaway, and a nice place to sit. Simples.
Ghost Whale – www.ghostwhalelondon.com
70 Atlantic Road, Brixton, London, SW9 8PX
P.S. They’re taking over the old Beer Boutique site in Putney soon – keep up!
