Some breweries punch above their weight and Tap East certainly falls into this category. The company was founded in 2011 by Richard Dinwoodie and Mike Hill, the owners of Utobeer and the Rake in Borough Market. It came about when the Westfield Shopping Centre was being set up as one element in the rejuvenation of Stratford in advance of the Olympics the following year. The operators of Westfield were looking for artisan food suppliers and approached Utobeer accordingly. It was then all systems go to get the venture up and running, which they managed to do in just a few months. The small brewery (2.5 barrels) was set up at the back of the pub and Tap East became Europe’s first brewpub in a shopping centre.
Since then, Tap East has won awards in CAMRA’s Champion Beer of London competition for both Coffee in the Morning (a 5.5% ABV stout) and East End Mild (3.5% ABV). Tap East is one of only a small number of London brewers that still regularly produce a mild. Also, unlike many breweries that came into being around ten years ago, they remain committed to cask beer. However, that does not mean to say that there isn’t any interest by other brewers in cask. Terry Kinsella, Tap East’s head brewer commented, “What’s been interesting is the number of keg only breweries who want to come and do a collaboration with us and produce a cask beer.” Currently, Tap East’s biggest seller is lager but Terry said, “We get through a lot of cask on match days.”
Terry started as a home brewer. Josh Walker, the head brewer at the time, was looking for an assistant so Terry joined Tap East in 2019 for what was his first ‘proper’ brewing job. Before then, he worked on the Clipper riverboats but he didn’t fancy becoming a captain and so was looking for another role. When Josh left, Terry thought that Rich and Mike would recruit another head brewer but, as Terry recalls, “They said ‘Get on with it’, so I did. They allowed me to do my IBD training. Rich and Mike have a good pedigree of nurturing craft brewers, employing young brewers with a genuine interest in beer. Rich said I could brew as many different beer styles as I liked – as long as they sold!” Other previous brewers include James Wilson (now at Fermentis, the yeast and fermentation specialists), Asa James (now at Wild Card) and Josh (now at Exale).
The beer is usually sold in firkins or pins but with the occasional kilderkin (18 gallons) on request. Terry commented, “The 18 we did for Pig’s Ear Beer Festival was the first one we have done since before Covid. Pre Covid we used to do a few just to keep up with sales on match days.”
Being a small brewery in a pub converted from a shop unit has its problems, not least of which is space. The storage of hops is particularly difficult. Terry said, “I tend to use the same hops as once I open a bag, I need to use it all.” This also means that they don’t do much small pack (cans and bottles). “When we do, we need all hands and it is very labour intensive. I now have an assistant and that should make it easier,” Terry added.
As with many small breweries, collaborations prove a useful way to try something new and learn from others. These have included Wallop ESB (5.5% ABV) with Deviant and Dandy (who closed in 2023) and Emmets, a 6% IPA, with Neckstamper. Emmets is an old English term for ants but it is also Cornish slang for tourists. This beer got its name because Jo Llewellyn-Jones, the lead brewer of Neckstamper, doesn’t like ants!
Tap East celebrated their 12th birthday just before Christmas. Included in the beers available at their birthday weekend was Built Stronger, a well balanced brown ale (5.6% ABV). Although the birthday celebrations are over, Tap East is still worth taking a look at because the bar features beers not just from Tap East but from other independents as well. You can find the pub directly opposite Stratford International railway station. For more information on the brewery and tap room see www.tapeast.co.uk. For tasting notes on Tap East’s beers, as compiled by the London Tasting Panel, go here. Tap East’s full address is, 7 International Square, Westfield Stratford City, Montfichet Road.
Christine Cryne