New Dispense Method?

So, yesterday afternoon, we decided to try out the newest of new beer places that have opened in Bristol - the Left Handed Giant brewery/bar.

We tried it on a Monday since every other time we'd gone past it had been heaving so we thought our best chance would be 4pm on a Monday.

There were loads of people there but no problem getting a seat.  To be absolutely honest, it was almost painfully hipsterish but, I guess that's no real surprise.

Like LHG's other main outlet (Small Bar) it's a card only affair.  I didn't see the notice until the last minute (a chalked sign underneath and identical chalked sign with the name of a drink on it...so easy to miss) but I half expected it so I wasn't tripped up by it.

They had 20 or so beers from something like 6 different breweries on tap but no cask.  That said, they are nothing if not explicit about their dispense methods since along with the name of the beer, the ABV and the price (all arranged into groups by beer style) the sign tells you whether it comes from keg, key keg or "tank".

We stuck to two of LHG's own brews (which are the ones served from a tank) and it has to be said both of us noticed the slight difference in texture between keg and tank.  We liked its slightly less fizzy texture.

We really enjoyed the beers.  We quite liked the large open space with broad doors which open onto a terrace so even inside you feel sort of outside.

The pizzas looked interesting but we weren't in the market for food at the time.

Did we really enjoy it?  To be honest, not as much as I'd hoped.

Like Small Bar the prices are very high so a 4% beer comes in at about 3.50 for 2/3rds - and that's for their own beer.  This absolutely isn't a criticism - they can charge whatever they want/need - but it does figure in our decision as to where we want drink beer.  So it simply means we won't go there as much as we might if the prices were a little lower.

As the Best Beer Buddy said - the nice range of strong beers available, and its proximity to home might mean we'll treat it as a "night cap" kind of place.

All in all, like many other place, I love that it exists.  It add colour to the local eating and drinking scene.

Well done LHG