Underneath the arches Phil Mellows discovers a beer revolution and a partnership to inspire the spirit of community

The pungent reek of oil is giving way to the sweet aroma of mashing malt in railway arches across the country as a new breed of brewer, seeking out cheaper rents in urban areas, supplants the usual vehicle repair shops.

They’ve been joined by craft beer bars, bottle shops and street-food pop-ups as new drinking circuits have formed in these unlikely, neglected corners of the city.

And now we might be seeing the beginning of one of these destinations gradually forming under the train tracks between Maryland and Forest Gate.

Since 2018 the Pretty Decent Beer Company has welcomed visitors to its tap room in Sheridan Road, and it’s been joined down the line by a pair of neighbouring bars on Winchelsea Road, behind the Holly Tree pub (which has some interesting beers on itself, these days).

The Wanstead Tap, already an acclaimed venue for live music and talks, now opens its doors seven days a week serving craft beer, pizza and an amazing range of vermouths, while next door wine merchant Burgess & Hall is open as a bar from Wednesday to Sunday, selling craft beer alongside its natural wines.

Rather than being out-and-out rivals, the two businesses are working together to attract people to the backstreets of Forest Gate, with benches and tables in a ‘parklet’ along the front of their combined premises.

Inside, it’s the variety of beers that are the draw. On the Sunday afternoon I called round, Wanstead Tap’s three draught brews were Dance Every Day, a hazy pale from new Sussex brewery Only With Love; Quaker Shaker oatmeal stout from Birmingham’s Halton Turner and Sunshine, a Kolsch, or Cologne-style beer, from Wood Green’s Goodness Brewing (described as a lager, which technically it isn’t, but we won’t go there).

Burgess & Hall, meanwhile, had four on tap, Jacked Sprat IPA from Kent’s Time & Tide Brewing in Kent, and three beers I’m more familiar with – Northern Monk Faith Pale from Leeds, Verdant Lightbulb Extra Pale from Cornwall and Signature Studio Pilsner from Walthamstow.

And on top of that brilliant draught choice, both bars were selling a range of canned beers from acclaimed brewers around the country.

Ventures like this are not just about the beer, though. They’re helping keep these local communities vibrant and alive. You might want to drop by.

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