All readers \u2013 not just CAMRA members \u2013 are invited to submit letters for publication to London Drinker but please remember that the letters column is intended for debate and constructive criticism. The editor reserves the right not to print any contributions that are otherwise. Please e-mail letters to ldnews.hedger@gmail.com. Please state \u2018letter for publication\u2019 so as to avoid any misunderstandings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BITTER TASTE<\/strong> THE UNION TAVERN<\/strong> BAD HABITS<\/strong> All readers \u2013 not just CAMRA members \u2013 are invited to submit letters for publication to London Drinker but please remember that the letters column is intended for debate and… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":434,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-letters"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=489"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":490,"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489\/revisions\/490"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/londondrinker.camra.org.uk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Like Nik Wood (letters Aug\/Sept edition), I too bemoan the lack of old style session bitters in London pubs. However, the situation may not be as bleak as he makes out. Timothy Taylor renamed their bitter \u2018Boltmaker\u2019 several years ago and it is still very much on sale, including in the Royal Oak in Surbiton near me as well as at the Bricklayer\u2019s Arms. Likewise, Sharp\u2019s session bitter has always been called Cornish Coaster and is still very much available, although sadly nowhere near as much as the ubiquitous Doom Bar.
On a separate note, can I please correct the assertion that Sambrook\u2019s is \u2018London\u2019s oldest independent brewery\u2019. That accolade surely now belongs to Twickenham Brewery, who were set up four years before Sambrook\u2019s in 2004.
John Norman<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regarding the survey on prices of beer in pubs near tube stations (Aug\/Sep edition \u2013 page 16) the statement that the Union Tavern in Westbourne Park has nothing on sale for less than \u00a35.55 a pint is completely untrue. This may apply to the keg craft products (in common with most pubs) but real ales are around \u00a34.60 per pint which is the usual price for the area. On Mondays at least one real ale is priced at only \u00a33.00 per pint. Please put the record straight.
Les Maggs \u2013 Chairman of the West London branch of CAMRA<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Next time you buy a drink, watch the barperson during the course of the pour. They will invariably do one or more of the following with their free hand:
\u2022 touch their face and\/or ear
\u2022 play with their hair
\u2022 scratch their nethers and\/or re-adjust their underwear
\u2022 cough into their arm
\u2022 wipe the sides of your glass with their fingers or with a cloth of indeterminate vintage.
I\u2019m not advocating that they should wear chemical suits, simply that they should be made aware that customers find each and all of the above a bit unhygienic and off-putting.
David Docherty<\/em><\/strong>
Editor\u2019s note: I can\u2019t say that I have noticed any of the events that Mr Docherty describes but that of course is his point. Beer is a foodstuff and should be served as such.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"