In The Heat Of The Moment....

I spent another warm evening in Leeds the other week in which I visited a few pubs, had a decent pizza at a place I hadn't visited for a while, and went to see a band at the Brudenell. Here's how the evening unfolded....

It was another warm day, although not actually classed as a heatwave, but after weeks of hot weather they all seem to blur into one. A look back of the last few blogs I have done seems to suggest that; it was hot when I went to Burnley in early May. hot when I went to North Wales in the middle of that month, hot when I went to Hull a couple of weeks later, hot when I went to London to see LCD Soundsystem in June, and hot when I went to York a couple of weeks ago to watch some cricket.

In fact I had been thinking of going to Leeds again this last weekend to watch some more cricket, but the incessant heat and the resultant disturbed sleep over several nights had induced a sense of lethargy. But on that warm evening the other week I visited a few of the options for a drink within easy striking distance of the railway station. I was stopping over at the Central Travelodge, so once I got checked in and my bag dropped off, I was back out and in search of a beer.

First up, I made my way over to Lower Briggate down an alley with the railway line up above. I then cut through the shady cool of another narrow alley with the odd bar and other premises and emerged on to Call Lane, a former area of ill-repute now home to a number of trendy bars, each with chairs and tables set up outside, with branded barriers demarking each one's territory. I was on my way to one in the lower part of this stretch, one I had been to several times, but not for a couple of years.

I walked into Northern Guitars, where loud rock music was pumping out of the speakers. A guy with a beard grunted at me as I walked towards the business end of this popular music-themed bar. I put on my glasses and studied the selection of beers on the bank of handpumps on the bar as he waited impatiently for me to make my choice. I went for a half of Court of Horrors, from the locally-based Meanwood Brewery whose beers seem to be popping up more regularly these days. The brewery, which was founded by two brothers in the eponymous Leeds suburb in 2017, produces both cask and keg beers im a variety of styles. I waited for Mr Grumpy to top my half up and I took my beer outside to the enclosed out the back with its attractive mix of red brick and mural-painted walls. As a train rattled by on the viaduct above, my phone rang. I couldn't hear the caller because the music was louder out here than it had been in the bar, so I grabbed my half and went back inside, still couldn't hear who it was so walked out the front and sat at one of the tables and made the third attempt to engage with the caller with the hum of traffic and noise of the hot city streets only a little quieter. It was a headhunter. Was I interested? No, smiling and shaking my head as I politely ended the call. I finally got to drink my beer, and have to say this 4.2% session IPA was rather disappointing (NBSS 2.5). I finished it within a few minutes and, resisting the temptation to leave it for Mr Grumpy to collect, I channelled my inner barman, and returned my glass to the bar, where it was left with not a thank you or even an acknowledgement from behind the bar.

I walked back up Call Lane and crossed over Boar Lane, cut through Central Road, where I walked past the now-closed Brownhill & Co which gave up the ghost a couple of months ago citing issues with the building's landlords. I only visited a couple of times but had enjoyed the ambience of this family-run bar, and it is a shame it is no more. I walked on, crossing Briggate from where I headed towards a place I first visited many years ago and about which I have always tended to have mixed feelings. But it is a place I feel compelled to visit every now and again, just to check how it is.

Whitelocks, tucked away down an alleyway off Briggate like a number of other venerable Leeds hostelries like the Ship and the Angel, often claims to be the oldest pub in Leeds (although that distinction belongs to another nearby yard-based pub, the Pack Horse). Established in 1715 when it was known as the Turks Head, it then changed its name to that of the family who took over the pub in the 1880's. John Betjeman described it as "the very heart of Leeds" and this historic pub with its Grade ll-listed interior certainly feels somewhere special. With its low beamed ceilings, tiled bar front with a copper and marble counter, gleaming brasswork and large mirrors, it is a sight to behold. Copper-topped tables and bench seating face the bar, separated by wooden baffles to create booths. On the bar back is a glass sign etched with the words First City Luncheon Bar, harking back to the first days of the Whitelock family's ownership when, after extending the pub into the cottage next door to create a kitchen, it became a popular and highly prestigious place to eat, with the restaurant separated from the rest of the pub by large heavy curtains. It was the place to be, and the pub's status was such that it was supposedly the first building in the city to have electric lighting when it was installed in 1895. 

One of my first memories of the pub from back in the 1970's is seeing waitresses in their black dresses and white pinafores ferrying drinks from behind the bar to the diners shielded behind those heavy velvet curtains from the view of us mere mortals . A reminder of the air of formality which hung over Whitelocks, where at one time a doorman would only admit gentlemen if they were wearing a dinner jacket and ladies were not allowed to be served at the bar. Another memory was brought back to me as I sat with my drink by a group of older guys stood chatting at the bar, one of them saying that "you used to be able to get an excellent pint of Number 3 in here." This was Younger's No 3, a sweet dark Scotch ale brewed in Edinburgh which was indeed sold in here when the pub was owned by Scottish and Newcastle Breweries, who had taken over the pub from the Whitelock family in 1944, and continued to do so for many years afterwards.

Today Whitelocks is rather unexpectedly run by Hackney brewers, Five Points, who acquired the pub a few years ago. They have maintained the pub very much as it always has been and the fact that it is invariably busy whenever you visit highlights the fact that this is one of Leeds's prime attractions. On a warm, sunny evening like the one when I visited recently it was busy enough inside but outside there wasn't a spare seat to be found at the tables the run the length of the outside yard up to the pub's sister bar, the Turk's Head, at the far end. The cask beers are from Five Points with a few guests, although there is no sign of Younger's No 3 these days. I got myself a pint of Five Points Gold, a 3.4% session ale brewed with UK-grown Cascade and Ernest hops which on this warm evening was welcome and refreshing (NBSS 3). I was though getting hungry and my mind turned to food, so it was time to move on. And so why my ambivalence towards Whitelocks? The beer was ok, the staff were pleasant, the place looks amazing. I think it is because it still retains this air of self-importance, and believes itself to be a cut above the rest. It is a fine pub for sure, but it is not the best pub in Leeds.

I was in the mood for pizza, but there was a 40-minute wait at Rudy's which my schedule wouldn't allow, so in the heat of the moment I took myself over to Tapped on Boar Lane (opening image) where I hadn't been for a while so it was certainly due a visit. Here you can eat decent pizza and wash it down with some excellent cask and craft ales, which may include beers brewed in the onsite brewery whose vessels grace one side of this single-room bar. There is usually something on from Tapped, the brewery based at sister bar the Sheffield Tap, as well as a good choice of guests from a number of quality breweries from across the country. I pulled up one of the comfy bar stools and plonked myself down at the bar. I ordered a pint of Nomad Pale from Edinburgh's Campervan Brewery. As its name sort of implies, it is a beer with a rotating cast of hops like Vocation's Chop & Change and Kirkstall's Jasper. This was a 4.2% session ale brewed with Citra and Columbus hops, a fruity and refreshing beer with a moreish bitterness (NBSS 3.5). It was a 20 minute wait for food said the girl behind the bar, so I'd saved 20 minutes on Rudy's and I was drinking some good beer while I waited. Win! As I got towards the bottom of my pint I went for two-thirds of Farmhand, a 4.5% Continental Pale from Norfolk-based Duration Brewery on keg, which was another enjoyable and refreshing beer brewed with a mix of Waimea, Mandarina Bavaria, and Saphir hops resulting in notes of citrus and pine and a slight effervescence which went well with the pizza laced with hot and spicy nduja sausage and jalapenos which landed a few minutes later. A big thumbs up to Tapped for some good beer, delicious pizza, friendly service, and all round good vibes.

Taps and tanks at Tapped

I crossed the road and walked into what is probably the pub I visit most regularly in Leeds these days, the Banker's Cat, which is virtually diagonally opposite Tapped. Despite only being a pub for a few years, this excellent conversion of what was a former bank by Thornbridge is one of the city's finest pubs and looks and feels as if it has always been a part of the city's pub scene. It is usually busy when I call in, but I can usually get a seat round to the side of the bar where a group of bar stools line the side of the bar. From the selection of beers on cask, I ordered a pint of Green Mountain, a delicious hazy session IPA with an ABV of 4.3%, which is generously dry hopped with Galaxy, Mosaic, Citra and Amarillo, creating a hugely aromatic and juicy fruit bomb. It was on fine form (NBSS 3.5), and as it is one of the few beers in my opinion that works equally well in both cask and keg formats, I followed up with a half of the same beer on keg.

The Banker's Cat

Meanwhile time was moving on, so I started to think about getting an Uber up to the Brudenell as these days what was once a very simple and straight-forward journey from this part of Leeds now involves a large sweep around the outer edge of the city centre and on to the Inner Ring Road before finally heading up the Otley Road. I ordered my ride, finished my beer, and not long afterwards my carriage arrived and eventually I was dropped off by the Brudenell in Hyde Park. I was greeted by a couple of guys on security, and then got my name checked off the list, a band was wrapped around my wrist, and I was free to go into the main room where Scottish band Arab Strap were due on shortly.

I headed to the bar which usually has three cask ales and a few keg beers to chose from. The Brudenell Social Club has featured in the Good Beer Guide in recent years and whilst to the wider world it is known as a gig venue it should not be forgotten that it is a thriving social club and community centre which attracts a wide variety of people of all ages from students who make up a large part of the local population to those who have long since retired. Regularly when I have gone there for gigs there will be plenty in the lounge who have gone there to watch the football on one of the many TVs or to catch up with their friends, oblivious to whoever it is who is performing in either of the two gig rooms. Beers generally are from local breweries such as Anthology or Kirkstall, and on this occasion I went for a pint of Anthology's 5.2% New Zealand Pale Ale (NBSS 3) which is certainly of a better quality (and price) than your normal venue.

Arab Strap duly appeared on stage, greeted by cheers and applause from the room which was around 75% full. It was the first time I had seen them play but I had liked a few tracks I'd heard from them over the years. I had seen they were on here only a few days before, and in the heat of the moment I had ordered a ticket. The band were formed in the 1990's in Falkirk by vocalist and drummer Aidan Moffat and multi-instrumentalist Malcolm Middleton, who released 6 albums between 1996 and 2005 before splitting up. They reforming a few years ago since when they have released another couple of albums. At first they were essentially an electro-acoustic band with a brooding, spare sound, but they subsequently developed a fuller sound that incorporated both indie and dance music. Their special brew of Gaelic-noir features lyrics that are dark, personal, and often sordid tales with many drink and drug references, all delivered in a Scottish accent, but despite the sometimes heavy themes the evening was lightened regularly by some often hilarious comments from frontman Aiden Moffat. 

It had been a good evening in Leeds with the best bits coming together in the heat of the moment....

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And here's some Arab Strap. This is "Bliss"....