Meantime Brewery

From Greenwich to the Glass

Meantime Brewing Company was founded in 1999 by Alastair Hook in a small lock-up on an industrial estate opposite Charlton Athletic's ground. Hook had studied brewing at Edinburgh's Heriot-Watt University before completing his training at the Weihenstephan brewing school in Munich, the oldest active brewery in the world. He returned to London determined to prove that the capital could produce beers to rival anything on the Continent.

The early years were modest. Hook brewed in small batches, drawing on Continental lager traditions and traditional British ale styles in equal measure. His breakthrough came with London Pale Ale, a beer that married English hop character with the clean precision of German brewing technique. By 2010, demand had outgrown the original site and production moved to the purpose-built brewery on Blackwall Lane in Greenwich, where the company could brew at scale while maintaining the quality that had earned its reputation.

What to Expect on a Visit

The standard brewery tour runs for around 60 minutes and takes you through every stage of the brewing process. Starting at the raw ingredients store, you will handle the malted barley and smell the hops before moving on to the brewhouse, where the mash tun and copper kettles produce the liquid known as wort. From there, the tour follows the wort into the fermentation hall, where rows of tall stainless steel tanks hold beer at various stages of conditioning. Your guide explains the science behind each step in plain English, with plenty of time for questions.

Tours finish in the taproom with a tutored tasting of four beers. The selection typically includes London Pale Ale, London Lager, Yakima Red and a seasonal or experimental brew. For those wanting a deeper experience, the half-day brewing workshop puts you in charge of a small-batch brew from grain to boil, with your finished beer posted to you once fermented and bottled.

Greenwich and Beyond

The brewery's location on the Greenwich Peninsula places it within easy reach of several major attractions. The O2 arena is a 15-minute walk north, and the Emirates Air Line cable car across the Thames is just beyond it. Heading south, the centre of Greenwich offers the Cutty Sark, the Royal Observatory and Greenwich Market. The Thames Path runs along the waterfront, connecting the brewery to both central Greenwich and the Docklands. After a tour, many visitors walk the riverside route to the Old Royal Naval College, where Meantime once operated a brewpub in the historic Old Brewery building.