An Afternoon In Auld Reekie....

There are some fine pubs in the city of Edinburgh and a few hours on an afternoon can't do them justice. But nonetheless, I recently called in to half a dozen of the best ones in the centre on my first visit north of the border for several years. Here's how the afternoon unfurled....

I arrived in Edinburgh, aka Auld Reekie, just after midday. I had caught the train here from Berwick, where I was staying for a couple of days, with the journey to the Scottish capital taking around 45 minutes. The train terminated at Waverley Station a few minutes after we'd passed Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano which looks down on the city from a height of 250 metres/822ft and provides the citizens with a lovely area of open space right on their doorstep. Waverley covers a large area and is Scotland's second busiest railway station. It it is located between and below the Royal Mile and the Old Town on one side and Princess Street and the New Town, where I was heading to first, on the other. The exit in that direction used to be via several flights of steps but I was pleased to see that since my last visit a number of escalators have been installed to make the ascent to street level easier.

So why the nickname Auld Reekie?  It means old smoky and came about because the combination of the confined spaces of the walls of the old city with the tall buildings within meant that with smoke billowing out of homes, the air was filled with a thick smog. And with the cramped conditions and the lack of sanitation in the homes that created other more foul smells. People would toss their waste into the street, and whilst it would be cleared away at night, a heady cocktail of aromas would remain. Fortunately. based on this visit it does not seem to be as much of an issue these days!

Emerging from the depths of the station, the air smelling sweet, I arrived on Princess Street, the city's most famous thoroughfare, where there was a steady stream of maroon and white double decker buses heading to places like Restalrig and Leith. Meanwhile, a Chinese family were lining up for a photo with the castle in the background, whilst bag-laden shoppers were making their way back to the station on their way home with the spoils. I didn't plan to linger here; my immediate destination was close by on West Register Street. 

The Guildford Arms (opening image) is one of Edinburgh's, and indeed Britain's, most iconic pubs. It certainly looks the part; an imposing redbrick and tiled edifice, its gable end dominating the approach from Princess Street. The entrance with its revolving door is ornate and grand, inviting the passer by to step inside to see what awaits, whilst frosted windows etched with the pub's name date back to its opening in 1896. Inside the pub, as you would expect, it is also spectacular. There is a large room anchored by a central bar which dominates the room as you walk in, whilst there are several separate areas to give it a more intimate feel than a large space like this could have. It boasts ornate colourfully painted plasterwork and very elaborate Jacobean-esque painted ceilings with spectacular cornices and friezes alongside much wood panelling, whilst upstairs is a gallery with a dining room. 

Some of the beer options here

Considering it was not yet 1pm it was very busy, with virtually all the tables taken, many of the occupants eagerly tucking into some food. At this point of the day I was more interested in the beer, so I had a look at the options available. Ten hand pumps lined the bar, comprising 5 regulars and 5 changing beers, many from small Scottish brewers as well as some national brands such as the ubiquitous Landlord. I went for a pint of Jarl from Fyne Ales, who are based in the wilds of Argyll, an old favourite that rarely lets you down. And it didn't here. It was in excellent form, and I rated it as an 8 out of 10. I drank it sat in a little alcove with its own table near to a side entrance. I sipped it slowly, people watching, and soaking up the atmosphere of this wonderful traditional pub.

Next door to the Guildford is the equally grand Cafe Royal which has an amazing island bar with ornate brass fittings at its heart, ceramic murals, and an upstairs restaurant. Whilst as impressive a sight it is as a pub and despite having 6 hand pumps on the bar, I have never especially warmed to it. And so with limited time available, I gave it a miss and instead set off walking down Rose Street which runs parallel to Princess Street. This narrow thoroughfare is principally a shopping street but also home to a number of pubs, bars, and restaurants.

A short distance along I came to my next stop. Situated across from a boarded-off building in the process of being renovated, which made the street even narrower, is the Abbotsford, which is owned by DM Stewart like the Guildford. This pub, which dates from 1902, is another classic Scottish bar with a magnificent interior. Star of the show here is a magnificent mahogany island bar which sits in the middle of the large room you enter from the street. whilst the panelled walls have inlaid mirrors and the high plaster ceiling is richly decorated. Historically the pub included a dining room, a private room and a smoking room, although they are no more. Changes were made in the 1970's when the first floor was acquired by the pub and a staircase was built to allow access.

Another interesting feature here can be found on the bar. Real ale is dispensed by air pressure from tall fonts (which is actually spelt 'fount'). This a traditional Scottish method of serving beer which goes back to at least the 1870's. This coincided with the introduction of water engines  or hydraulic pressure engines which enabled the beer to be drawn by using air pressure. The benefits of air pressure over other mains of dispense were eagerly promoted by its supporters and manufacturers. One of the benefits was described in a paper by James Auld in 1925 comparing against beer of the time, and is clearly not referring to beer pulled through a sparkler: "If two glasses of beer, one drawn by air pressure and one drawn by the pull, be allowed to stand side by side for a few minutes it will be found that the head on the pressure-drawn beer is thick and creamy, while the head on the pull-drawn beer consists of large coarse bubbles. When the glasses have been emptied, the side of the glass containing the pull-drawn beer is quite clear...while...the glass that contained the beer drawn by the pressure system has...a thick creamy film. This proves that the beer drawn by the pressure system contained...all the properties required of beer in first-class condition..." 

Despite Jarl being on and the opportunity to compare with the hand-pulled version I had enjoyed at the Guildford, I had come here to try beers from different Scottish brewers. So I went for a half pint of the Red MacGregor from Orkney Brewery, who have one of the most northerly breweries in the UK. My beer, a 4% ruby ale brewed with the Cascade hop had a complex aroma of fruity hop zest, spice and toasted caramel malt aromas and flavours leading to mouth-watering citrus hop fruits, which gave way to a clean, refreshing hop bitterness (6.5/10). I enjoyed my visit here, whilst the custom was steady rather than busy.

I moved on down Rose Street to a bar I had never been in before. About 10 minutes walk away I arrived at the Black Cat. From the outside it is a very unassuming single-storey building, but inside I found a warm and welcoming space which was a complete contrast to where I had been before. No island bars or mahogany here. It was quirky and quite alternative, with modern styling which includes a wall-to-wall mirror. It is furnished with an eclectic range of tables, chairs and stools including half-barrels and an upholstered banquette. The lass behind the bar from the Isle of Tiree was a delight, her accent when she spoke to the dude sat at the bar was a pleasure to listen to and better than many a soundtrack. The Black Cat is a big place for folk music, whilst the beer is not too bad either. The bar champions small independent Scottish brewers and from the two beers on offer I went for a half of Zest Appeal, a 4.5% Session IPA ½ from 71 Brewing who hail from Dundee, and are an independent brewery who produce lagers and small batch brews inspired by new-wave, modern brewing techniques, traditional European styles, and superior quality ingredients. My beer was most enjoyable, clean and refreshing (7/10), and if I'd had more time I would have gone for a pint.

Quirky with good beer: the Black Cat

My next pub was a few streets and a short distance away. The Oxford Bar on Young Street is a small unassuming street corner pub in a quiet part of the New Town. It is probably best known for being patronised by author Ian Rankin and his most famous literary creation, Inspector John Rebus. I was making a return visit having enjoyed my previous calls here. I walked in to the small front room where most of the space is taken up by the bar. The landlord broke off chatting to a couple of guys stood with half full pints to serve me, and from the four beers available on hand pump I went for a pint of Pentland IPA from Stewart Brewing, who have been around for nearly 30 years and are based in Edinburgh. This is a 3.9% session pale featuring European and American hops which provided citrus and floral notes underpinned by a smooth malt backbone. Very nice it was too (Rating: 7/10). Aside from the bar, there is a side room up a couple of steps which features a real fire and a number of tables and chairs, some of which became occupied whilst I was there. There are artworks for sale on the wall here, along with various old photos, one of which is of a former landlord William Ross, who refused to serve women and Englishmen, and anyone ordering a lager would be instantly barred! Fortunately that is no longer the case here these days and I was made to feel very welcome. Well worth a visit.

Time was moving on and with the longest journey between pubs coming up I decided to take an Uber to get there. In the end we cut down a cobbled road below the castle which meant the journey only took a few minutes, and I could have walked it in about 15 minutes. I got dropped off at the Grassmarket, which was busy with hordes of tourists trying to get a picture of the castle which was high up above us.

My next pub was just up and around the corner on the attractive West Bow, which was also busy with camera-wielding tourists. I was heading to Bow Bar, an old favourite which I have been to several times over the years, and it is very much a sanctuary from the madness outside. It has an attractive shop-like exterior and looks like it has been a pub for ages, but in actual fact it only dates back to the 1960's. It is a single-room affair with brewery mirrors and enamels from cigarette companies on the wall, and for those who fancy a wee dram there are over 400 single malt whiskies to choose from. On the beer front there are 8 cask beers on the bar, most of them served by air pressure via tall founts. I tried two beers here. First up was a pint of Whiteout from Cromarty who as the name suggests are based in the Cromarty Firth. This is a 3.8% session white IPA featuring Citra, Mosaic, Motueka, and Simcoe with wheat and three different malts which provided a solid backbone to what was a rather pleasant beer (6.5/10). Next I tried a half of a 4% Session Pale from Dalkeith-based Cross Borders Brewing who were new to me. This was another enjoyable beer which is brewed with Mosaic hops giving a mild citrussy flavour and a clean dry bitter finish (6.5/10). There was a great atmosphere in here and a regular churn of customers kept the friendly bar staff busy.

And finally, as the time before I was due to catch my train was counting down, I made my way to the last pub of the afternoon. I headed up to the top of West Bow, turned left, and then right when I hit the Royal Mile. More tourists, shops selling tartans and whisky, and the sound of bagpipes and I made sure I moved along swiftly. I turned down some steps when I got to Fleshmarket Close and about halfway down on the left was my final pub. I had arrived at the Halfway House, which has been a pub since 1864 and is a cosy, characterful bar decorated with railway memorabilia, a reminder that an entrance to Waverley Station is across from the bottom of the steps. The front of the small, often busy, bar area has window seats, stools and tables. The rear area has more comfortable semi-circular booth seating. It was quite busy and the only place to get a berth was at the bar, which was not a problem. There were two beers on from Orkney and two from Barneys. As I had had some Orkney earlier, I went for a pint of Volcano, a 5.3% IPA from Barneys. This was an excellent premium beer with a malt forward backbone with a floral bitterness and rounded mouthfeel. Czech, European, and US hops combine to give layers of flavour and character (7.5/10). It was the best beer I'd had since my pint of Jarl at the Guildford when I arrived, and managed a swift half before I left. I enjoyed it in here, it's a lovely little pub with a friendly atmosphere. 

I finished my beer, walked down to the bottom of the steps, and crossed over the road to the station entrance. I'd really enjoyed my afternoon in Edinburgh, but next time I will have to stay for a bit longer....