Brighton Independents Beer Crawl '24
Last summer, I spent the August Bank Holiday weekend roaming around Brighton completing the Brighton Independents Beer Crawl. I had such a good time, that I pencilled a reminder into my calendar for August 2024.
I sporadically checked the Brighton Independents Beer Crawl Instagram page to see if there were any updates over the summer, ready to do it all again. Summer came and went without any updates, so I resigned myself to the reality that it wasn’t happening and lamented its loss to anyone who would listen (mainly my wife—sorry, mate).
As the saying goes, to assume makes an ass out of you and me and I felt like a big juicy derriere. Rumours of the Brighton Independents Beer Crawl’s demise had been greatly exaggerated.
It’s back, baby! Only this time, it’s back in the autumn/winter slot as it was in 2022. Emily Mitchell, Martha Page (Brighton indie pub heroes) and Joseph Hurst (Verdant’s Head of On Trade) have again concocted a weekend of more beer, more stamps and more fun but with decidedly less sunshine this time out.
2024’s edition promised to be bigger, bolder and Beakier.
This year, Verdant have collaborated with Beak Brewery to create a hazy pale ale called It’s A Thing! in honour of the event (because the BIBC is definitely A Thing now). Beer distributor and wholesaler Pigs Ears facilitated all the deliveries and logistics as usual.
There are a whopping twenty-three venues (up from 17) this year:
The Hole in the Wall, The Evening Star, The Independent, The Rook, The West Tap, Vine Street Tap, Unbarred Tap, Seven Cellars Brighton Station, Seven Cellars Seven Dials, Brighton Bierhaus, Haus on the Hill, The Drop, The Pond, Easy Tiger, The Prince Albert, Bison Sea Lanes, Bison Hove, The Brick, Wine Barrel, The Brunswick, The Greys, The Well Kemptown, The Well Hove.
The list of venues sees Black Dove, Star & Garter and Bison Beer North Laine (RIP) gone and The Rook, The West Tap, Brighton Bierhaus, Haus on the Hill, The Prince Albert, The Well Kemptown and The Well Hove as new additions.
There’s only one new pub for me to visit (Haus on the Hill) as part of Every Pub in Brighton which is probably an indictment of both me visiting most of the good central-ish Brighton pubs and the EPIB venues being a list of Good Central-ish Brighton Pubs.
I had already made plans on Thursday evening to meet some friends for beers in London so immediately started planning with three days to work with. But then I had a brainwave - why not be productive with my day? I had no plans before getting the train to London in the late afternoon. Surely I could do something with the hours before? I ruled out pubs as that would involve rocking up to Kings Cross several beers deep. Instead, Thursday (the red beer icons on the map image above) was going to be bottleshop day. I would spend the day collecting stamps and cans of beer which would help reduce the overall number of places I’d need to get to on the days that followed.
The original plan for Friday (the blue beer icons on the map image above) was to mimic the route from last year (from the station to Hanover to the seafront) but I thought it’d be more fun to flip reverse it and start at Bison Sea Lanes before heading inland to Kemptown and Hanover, knocking off the beers and stamps there before ending the day at Unbarred. Plus, I’d probably have a bit of a sore head so the fresh air and walking would do me some good.
Saturday’s plans (the green beer icons on the map image above) would be a pretty chilled crawl around North Laine (and Brighton Bierhaus) as we were catching up with friends and I was aiming to prioritise socialising rather than force my pathetic beer crawl agenda on my pals.
Finally, Sunday (the black beer icons on the image above) would see us conquer the Hove-ish pubs finishing at The Well where, once again, I would be carried aloft on the shoulders of my fellow drinkers as they all chanted my name and shower me in high fives. Probably.
Similar to last year, what follows is a breakdown of each day’s shenanigans. I’ve also included two images for each day detailing the planned route and the actual route I ended up taking because I thought it was interesting to retrace my steps last year. Interesting to me anyway. Let me have this.
You can also view a visual diary of the route I took via our Instagram story highlight.
Thursday
Planned route
Actual route
I started proceedings the same way as last year by securing a can from Seven Cellars (Brighton Station), and the all-important stamp card to document my progress (Verdant’s Big Stupid Hazy was the can of choice). I then cut through the station onto London Road and entered Brighton Open Market. The Drop had moved from the front of the market to the back so I weaved through the stalls as they set up for the day and made my way to the bottleshop. They had only moved to their new location two days ago (it’s where Casa Azul used to be) and I arrived just as the shop was being opened being the keen/sad little man I am. The new spot is excellent - it’s much bigger with plenty of seating and, crucially, a door to keep the warmth in.
I was only meant to grab a can from The Drop but was talked into having my first taste of Beak and Verdant’s It’s A Thing on draft instead which was tasting great - lots of flavour for its relatively low ABV. I didn’t need much persuasion, even if it was 11:45am. I sat and chatted with Dan as he set up the shop and another customer who dropped in shortly after me. We did some decent beer chat amongst other things (Jamie Oliver, Oatly and Reading) before I realised I was on a beer crawl and needed to get moving.
Earlier that morning, on the train into town, I double-checked all the opening times of the places I had planned to visit and was gutted to see Bison Hove wasn’t open until 4pm on Thursdays which put paid to my plans to visit before my train to the big smoke. Instead, I opted to go to Brighton Bierhaus as they opened at noon and it was slightly out of the way on Saturday’s planned route so I figured I’d save dragging my friends away from North Laine and grab the stamp now.
Brighton Bierhaus had not been open too long when I arrived. So much so that the staff were still putting on the Verdant and Beak beers and taking photos of the pump clips for social media. I had Verdant’s Headband, as the majority of the other patrons ordered some delicious-sounding toasties. I had no time for that and was soon on my way to acquire the next stamp.
I ambled along the seafront and arrived at The West Tap in next to no time. I opted for Verdant’s Marylou and chatted to the person behind the bar about my plan of attack to get all the stamps.
A further meander down the seafront before heading up to Western Road and my final stop of the day in the shape of The Wine Barrel. I grabbed a can of Verdant and Beak’s It’s A Thing! (as well as Unbarred’s Whisky Sour because it sounded interesting and Brewski’s Swift Haze, purely because I liked the can) and secured the stamp.
I rewarded myself with a well-earned pork bánh mì from Earl’s Sandwiches and jumped on the bus home. I had 5 stamps out of 23 which was always the plan so was pretty pleased with the progress so far.
The Brighton Independents Beer Crawl would need to take a brief interlude as I headed to London to catch up with some friends for the evening.
Friday
Planned route
Actual route
I expected to be a little hungover when I woke up on Friday but felt fine, surprisingly. Maybe the BIBC was giving me life?
Bison Sea Lanes was today’s first port of call and I arrived around lunchtime. It was sunny enough to sit outside (check the Instagram story!) which was a bonus. I had half of Verdant’s Sundialer and the obligatory stamp before clambering up the steps and making my way to Kemptown.
I met my wife in The Well (Kemptown) and we both tucked into a Verdant and Beak’s It’s A Thing! - drinking this beer was becoming a thing in itself. That’s not a complaint when the beer is so good. We sank our beers pretty quickly and began the ascent up the hill and through Queen’s Park. We were both pretty hungry (me from walking around pubs and my wife from doing An Actual Exercise Class) so made light work of the snacks my wife had picked up before coming to The Well as we trudged towards the Hanover pubs.
The 8th stamp came courtesy of The Independent and my first taste of Verdant on cask in a while in the shape of Miniature Cymbals, a straw-coloured pale ale that was the right ABV for the time of day (3.4%). We took a pew in the window and I double-checked the pub openings (having fallen foul of them last year).
The only pub I hadn’t been to as part of this crawl was Haus on the Hill so I was pleased to get an excuse to visit as well as get a stamp landing on Verdant’s It’s Pronounced Verdant for the occasion (what a beer, by the way). It’s a really good pub that is much bigger than it appears on the outside - a sizable main room as well as an upstairs and beer garden with a healthy number of keg and cask options. The person behind the bar that served us was very welcoming and cheerful which really made me want to go back and spend a few hours there. But not today as we had places to be.
One of those places was The Greys and stamp number 10. Double digits now. Beak’s Folds was the beer of choice this time and I enjoyed it even more on draft than the can I had a few weeks ago. We settled into a little snug at the back of the pub and enjoyed the radiators being on full whack - the sun had already set by now and the temperature had dropped quite significantly.
We cut across The Level and London Road in search of the final stamp of the day. Unbarred Brewery & Taproom was the destination. It was around 6pm and the post-work crowd were out in full force. I grabbed my stamp and another It’s A Thing! and we managed to bag a seat outside close to a heater. But not close enough, annoyingly. Due to the chill and in desperate need of food, we made light work of our drinks and headed for the bus stop home (via a tipsy attempt at Christmas shopping in M&S).
This was the first day where my planned route and actual route matched exactly. I congratulated myself with a can of Big Stupid Hazy when we got home.
I was sitting at 11/23 stamps halfway through the crawl which was quite pleasing, from a pacing perspective at least.
Saturday
Planned route
Actual route
Due to starting and finishing early yesterday, I was feeling pretty spritely on Saturday morning. We had plans to meet some friends at 2:30pm so we had a very leisurely morning before getting the bus to the first venue of the day.
The Evening Star was target number one today and I nabbed the stamp with ease with Verdant’s Penpol on cask. We were a little early and hovered awkwardly by a raised table before we were offered two seats at a table by two lovely people. I spotted their BIBC stamp cards and then proceeded to monologue about pubs and beer before realising I was being a little dweeb and apologising. They didn’t seem to mind (I don’t think). Our friends soon arrived as we said goodbye to our new friends so managed to land a full table. I had Verdant’s Fruit Stickers as my second beer of the day and second beer in The Evening Star but today was less about stamps and more about pals. Saying that, my friends were happy to indulge me and we were off to our second stop of the day pretty swiftly. Handily, just around the corner.
I shamefully hadn’t been back to The Prince Albert since the last BIBC so was happy to return. I got the round in and the barperson asked if that meant she had to give me three stamps. If only it were that easy. Alas, I told them one was all I needed. The stamp was earned from Verdant’s Bissoe on cask. We found a room that was reserved but not for another 45 minutes so settled in to drink our beverages until then.
Due to our time-limited table, it wasn’t long before we made the very short stroll from The Prince Albert to The Pond. Verdant’s They Went On Forever was the beer of choice this time around. We found a table upstairs (coincidentally, the exact table we sat at when we met up during BIBC last year) and did some more excellent chat.
We were all excited to visit the next location because it had recently been refurbished so we were all keen to see how different it was. Vine Street Tap (or Vine as I think it’s now known) is looking incredible. They’ve maximised the tiny space they have well by moving the bar from the back of the room to the side and adding additional seating. It’s also been given a vibrant lick of paint with a very cool orange/rust which I’m a big fan of (my jumper was the same colour so I blended in quite well). I earned the stamp here via Beak’s Plump, a very tasty table beer. I’m glad to see Beak making a table beer again because I enjoyed Lulla when they brewed it. Several more drinks and a bottle of wine later and I’d almost forgotten about stamps and the BIBC. Almost. We were going to stay for one more drink when I realised we could probably knock off at least one more venue before the night ended. I figured it would give me less to do on Sunday. We said goodbye to our chums and headed east.
The Rook was pleasantly busy when we arrived. I settled on Verdant’s Unconventional Tactics and earned stamp number 16. I realised we were just around the corner from another potential stamp so we might as well go there. It would’ve been rude not to. I managed to sell One More Stop to my wife with bribery (in the shape of pickled onion Monster Munch).
Our final call of the day was Easy Tiger. We arrived around 10:30pm and there was only one other table of people here which was a shame, Easy Tiger is a great pub so I was expecting it to be busier. The barperson told us they were probably going to close at 11pm due to how quiet it was. That was enough time to bag a stamp. I ended the day with Verdant’s German Pilsner and 17/23 stamps collected.
Sunday
Actual route
Planned route
The 4th and final day saw me correct an oversight I had made. It turns out I thought there were 22 stamps until Saturday because I had counted the list of venues on the front of the stamp card rather than look at the actual list of stamps on the back. I’d completely missed Seven Cellars in Seven Dials so had to fix that today. Thankfully we hadn’t been anywhere near it on the preceding days so it wasn’t too much of a balls up.
I woke up with a bit of a fuzzy head on Sunday morning but knew that the finish line was in sight so shrugged it off and got going. My long-suffering wife didn’t share the same level of enthusiasm so left me to it for the first part of the day.
First up was the aforementioned Seven Cellars (Seven Dials), which was a bit of a schlep up the hill from Western Road but a necessary schlep. I grabbed a can of Verdant’s Big Stupid Westy, had a pleasant chat with the staff in the shop and headed back down the hill in search of more stamps.
It had started to rain a bit now but I wasn’t going to let that stop me. I barrelled down the hill to The Hole in the Wall, took a pew at the bar and ordered a pint of Verdant’s Penpol. This first pint combined with the fresh air (and BIBC, naturally) helped bring me back to the land of the living and I chatted to a few patrons about the crawl and how many places I had left to do.
It wasn’t long before I sauntered around the corner to The Brick. The barperson was very excited that I was nearing the end which made the beer taste all the better. It didn’t need any help though because Verdant’s Lite Lager was exactly what I needed. Crisp, clean with bags of lemony goodness - I would’ve happily stayed here for another. On another day I definitely would have. By now, my wife had joined me and we decided we were both in need of lunch. A quick pitstop at Soju (a Korean restaurant on Western Road) for re-energizing bibimbap and we were on the home straight.
There was a jazz show about to start in The Venue part of The Brunswick when we arrived which soon thinned out the bar crowd and made getting a beer (and stamp) easier. I know I’d bought a can of it but I couldn’t resist Verdant’s Big Stupid Westy on keg. Lunch had made me a bit sleepy now but I powered through my beer and could swear I could see the finish line in the distance.
I wanted to end the crawl at The Well so we walked past it and onwards to Bison Hove so I could grab a takeaway beer (Pomona Island and Beak’s Infinity DDH IPA) and the penultimate stamp.
The final stamp was here. We’d made it to The Well (Hove). I joked to the bar staff that I was expecting to be paraded around and they said they would’ve got to the confetti cannons out had they known. I finished the crawl with the prerequisite It’s A Thing! and we chilled out in this excellent little bar before making our way home.
Summary
Another knockout weekend of beers, friends, Brighton, walking and general fun. Having the luxury to space out attempting this over 4 days was a huge stroke of luck. 5-6 venues per day made it more than manageable and resulted in minimal hangovers - I don’t think I could’ve managed it in 2 days or less which is probably just a sign I’m getting old. It’s obviously always great to go to the pub but it’s even greater when you get to partake in a fun event like this and also support some independent businesses along the way.
If this long and self-indulgent blog post hasn’t made it obvious, I’ll see you at the bar next year for BIBC25!
