Visiting London Guide (Summer 2014 update)

London is a massive city with a rapidly evolving beer scene. To help guide any visitors that are looking for recommendations on breweries, pubs, shops, etc., I've curated the most often recommended places to visit while in London. The content below is geared towards the average visitor who may be interested in visiting some historic pubs as well as some top craft beer bars and drinking anything from cask bitters to hoppy IPAs to lambics.

Universally Recommended Top Place in London:

• The Kernel. Saturdays only, 9am-2pm. Best brewery in London. Excellent hoppy ales and stouts. No food but you can bring food in and there's a meat and cheese shop next door.

Recommended Breweries/Brewpubs:

• Beavertown. Saturdays only, 11am-5pm. American-style brewery with a great pale ale and black IPA. They also have a brewpub, Dukes Brew & Que, that serves BBQ along with beers from Beavertown and other London breweries.
• Partizan. Saturdays only, 11am-5pm. Walking distance from The Kernel. They brew a huge range of styles and excel at saisons. Small place with very little seating.
• Fuller's. Tours Monday-Friday. Book in advance. The biggest brewery in London. They brew mostly traditional English styles. Fuller's pubs are pretty common around central London.
• Brodies/King William IV. The best place to get Brodies beers but it's pretty far east and not easy to get to. The Old Coffee House in Soho is a good place to find Brodies beers in central London.
• Howling Hops/The **** Tavern. Howling Hops brewpub with guest beers from other London breweries as well as several ciders. All the bartenders have amazing beards.
• Brew by Numbers. Saturdays only, 10am-5pm. Walking distance from The Kernel. Good saisons and golden ales.
• There's several breweries and a bottle shop in Bermondsey that are only open on Saturdays. From west to east: Anspatch & Hobday/Bullfinch, The Bottle Shop, Brew by Numbers, The Kernel, Partizan, and Fourpure. That stretch is commonly referred to as the Bermondsey Beer Mile and you can read more about it here: http://www.londonbeerguide.com/article.php?ID=bermondsey.

Recommended Pubs and Bars

• The Craft Beer Co Clerkenwell, Islington, Covent Garden, Clapham, Brixton
• Cask Pub & Kitchen
• BrewDog Camden, Shoreditch, Shepherd's Bush
• Mother Kelly's
• Euston Tap
• The Earl of Essex
• The King's Arms
• The White Horse
• The Southampton Arms
• The Union Tavern
• The Rake

Traditional Pubs:

• Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese (Samuel Smith's)
• Royal Oak (Harvey's)
• Jerusalem Tavern (St. Peter's)
• Churchill Arms (Fuller's)

Pubs In Touristy Locations:

• The Lyric - Soho
• The Old Coffee House (Brodie's) - Soho
• The Harp - Covent Garden
• The Market Porter - Borough Market
• The Greenwich Union (Meantime) - Greenwich

Bottle Shops:

• Kris Wines
• Utobeer
• BottleDog
• The Bottle Shop
• Drink of Fulham

Maps:

• All of the above places
• Every brewery in London
• Scoopergen London beer map

Great UK Breweries to Seek Out:

• The Kernel
• Siren
• Beavertown
• Magic Rock
• Buxton
• Oakham
• Thornbridge
• Dark Star
• Arbor
• Tiny Rebel

Some Helpful Tips:

• No tipping if you order drinks/food at the bar. ~10% is customary for table service but isn't required.
• Pints are 20 ounces, which can be a lot for a non-session beer. Ordering half pints is common and some pubs only list the half pint price.
• Let the bartender know if someone else is before you. Jumping the queue is strongly frowned upon.
• Get an Oyster card and load it with money or buy a one week travelcard for zones 1 & 2. It'll save you time and money when getting around via bus, tube, and overground.

Original thread: http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/london-beer-recommendations-for-visitors.96473/