I’m getting drunk for you

Each ridge and narrow bridge

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I apologise in advance for the money you will be forced to spend after reading this review. The plane tickets, the train bookings and the coach fares will be inevitable.

Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire

Sowerby Bridge is a picturesque village situated approximately halfway between Leeds and Manchester. The market town is nestled alongside the rushing River Calder and is made up of true story book visuals. Cobbled lane ways meet narrow passages amid historical churches, chimneys and shop fronts. Sowerby Bridge is a charming location sure to enchant most. Sold? OK. Well what if I throw in a world class, vegan restaurant?

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Toffee apples delight me

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I am enraptured with cider. Apple and pear varieties will often be found glistening in a glass or bottle close to my lips. It is my drink of choice and I often proclaim that nothing is more delectable than cider. Well guess what? It gets better still for a cider-loving FGV like me.

Toffee Apple cider by Brothers... truly scrumptious.

A while ago, I took you on a brief journey through the wonderful world of Brothers Cider. You probably recall my words of wonder and delight upon discovering their Strawberry and Pear flavours (if you are hazy, check first post here). Well, strap yourself in as cider suddenly gets all sorts of ridiculous with the Toffee Apple variety. Yes, Toffee Apple!

It took monumental willpower and self-assertion to actually take the time to chill this cider before tearing the cap off. I gave the drinks a few hours to cool up in the fridge and Brother was it worth it! This cider is outrageously-tasty.

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Pocket bread, flavor sauce and crunch patties

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Australia may have lost its only Maoz outlet when the Perth store shut up shop, but at least I’m still able to delight in their crunchy falafel goodness here in London.

Falafel and Belgian fries from Maoz in London

Maoz Vegetarian is a chain of falafel bars that originated when their first store front opened in Amsterdam during 1991. Since then, the company has franchised locations all around the world. They serve delicious falafel, salad and tahini masterpieces in cities as widespread and diverse as Madrid, Hoboken, Paris, Rotterdam and Berkeley. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough falafel lovers in Western Australia to keep the doors of the Perth outlet open. I believe a Maoz in Germany might have also fallen by the wayside. But luckily for fine food connoisseurs, 15 Maoz locations are still left standing for our eating pleasure.

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The winds blow all of my dreams away

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When I stepped out my front door inappropriately-wearing canvas shoes and landed in a few inches of slushy snow, I should have turned back and climbed into bed. Instead, I forged on into the dark depths of a hideous northern town called Wakefield.

The Albion Inn... a Samuel Smith pub in Wakefield

Simon and I thought it would be a fun adventure to check out the bars and pubs of Wakefield. This Yorkshire city is located roughly 8km/12 miles from Leeds and is easily reached by car or public transport. Whether people should attempt to reach it is another matter. The town centre is littered with closed stores and bankrupted businesses. Unemployment is higher than the national average and there doesn’t seem to be much of anything happening. Disillusioned with the grim first impression of the town, we decided to brace ourselves and delve a little deeper. Of course when prospects look down, I always head for vegan cider. This time I wish I hadn’t.

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Simply cider

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Forget about same-sex marriage. I’m on a one person mission to legalise unions between fat, gay vegans and Samuel Smith cider.

Old Rosie vegan scrumpy cider

As I traverse the length and skinny breadth of this land, I am doing all I can to convince people that cider is my favourite beverage. If I don’t have a pint of the golden drop in my hand, I surely must be carrying a few bottles home from the supermarket. It is a one-sided affair in which cider keeps giving and I take in abundance.

This week saw my obsession intensify with two new-for-me cider varieties arriving in my life. First up was the student classic and low-budget scrumpy called Old Rosie. Rosie is

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My black cab rolls through the neon disease

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Vegan beer, vegan cider and a view of one of the most iconic neighbourhoods in the world. It is all available in Soho’s White Horse pub.

View of Shaftesbury Avenue from the White Horse

There are a few select places in the world that can evoke a sense of excitement, mystery or wonder by name alone. Mention Sydney and it conjures scenes of huge passenger ferries chugging past the Opera House on their way under the Harbour Bridge and beyond. Silver Lake, Los Angeles is all about vegan eateries, cruisy gay bars and California Palms reaching for a brilliant blue sky muted by pollution. Madrid is late, late nights of drinking strong drinks in bustling bars before waking just in time to exploit the siesta tradition. And then there’s London’s West End.

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In the corner of my bar with your high heels on

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A gay-friendly pub with a no music policy and vegan booze? Welcome to The Old Red Lion, friends.

**UPDATE BELOW**

Queer and vegan friendly pub

Tucked away in a dim corner of the Leeds city centre is a pub with charm, grime, unique characters and cruelty-free alcohol. The Old Red Lion is a well-worn drinking hole branded by the Samuel Smith Brewery. If you are up to date with your FGV reading, you will know Sam Smith are responsible for some of the most delicious vegan cider, lager, ale and cherry beer you will ever guzzle. Add to this scenario a distinct lack of music, wallpaper torn and drooping, rough but friendly punters and truly hilarious conversations and you have the wondrous world of The Old Red Lion. I get giddy whenever the burly bartender calls me love as he pulls another pint of vegan cider for me.

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Cherry cherry boom boom

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I’m in a quandary, dear viewers. It is tearing me apart. Do I love cherry, strawberry or raspberry beer the best?

Vegan fruit beer... strawberry, cherry and raspberry

Regular visitors to the Haus of FGV will be all too familiar with the relationship I am fostering with the good folk up in Tadcaster known as the Samuel Smith Brewery. These traditional ale, lager, cider and beer producers have been turning out the liquid good stuff since approximately 1758. They are the last remaining independent brewery in the town of Tadcaster and the majority of what they create is suitable for vegans.

You will often find me frittering away an afternoon in one of the 300 or so Samuel Smith pubs scattered around the UK. Give me a pint of Cider Reserve and my woes are temporarily dismissed… and I’m rather pleasant company.

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A drunk, Welsh poet walks into a bar

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If you fancy a sampling of vegan food and alcohol, with a dash of animal rights and queer history thrown in for good measure, head to the central London area known as Fitzrovia.

A map showing the approximate area of Fitzrovia

Fitzrovia is an unofficial neighbourhood situated just north of Soho in central London. By many accounts, Fitzrovia was well-known as a hot spot for bohemians, free-thinkers, artists and even the odd socialist from the late 1800s through to the ending of the Second World War. The pubs and cafes of this district provided gloomy spaces in which outsiders were able to socialise, politicise and drink. Art, alcoholism and social justice melded perfectly and remnants of this bygone era can be enjoyed in Fitzrovia today.

Last week, Jordan and I ventured into the heart of Fitzrovia and what better place to commence my retelling of our adventures than the Fitzroy Tavern.

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Bobbing for apple cider

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One of the best things about being vegan in the UK is the access to an abundance of clearly-labelled, cruelty-free alcohol.

Look for this on your alcohol purchases

As I have mentioned previously, alcohol is often made with the aid of animal by-products. The most common way this occurs is during the fining process of beer, cider or wine. A large vat or container of drink contains much unwanted organic matter that needs to be filtered out before it can be sold. Egg, bone, fish stomach or sometimes milk protein is used to create a film that is sprinkled over the product. As the dead animal remains sink and pass through the booze, the organic matter is dragged down leaving the final product. Sounds tasty, right?

The above description is my take on what is a rather complex process. If you are a brewery technician and can add finer detail to this explanation, please enlighten us.

The good news is a large number of booze producers are opting out of this grisly practice. Increasingly here in the UK, a recreational drinker such as myself can walk into the local supermarket and experience no trouble in finding vegan drinks.

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