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The River Ale House (Free House)
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| Beer (sort) | Average Score (sort) | No. Samples (sort) |
|---|---|---|
| Goacher's - Fine Light Ale |  | 2 |
| Anspach & Hobday - Hop Pickers' Pale |  | 1 |
| Anspach & Hobday - The Golden Bitter | | 3 |
| Surrey Hills - Shere Drop | | 2 |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | | 1 |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | | 2 |
| Vibrant Forest - Pupa | | 1 |
| Mighty Oak - Burntwood Bitter |  | 3 |
| Mighty Oak - Here Comes Summer | | 1 |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | Not Tried | 0 |
| Oakham - Oranje | Not Tried | 0 |
| Wilderness - Blonde | Not Tried | 0 |
| Big Trip - P-Push It Real Good | Not Tried | 0 |
| Outhouse (cuckoo at Jolly Boys') - Safari Juice | Not Tried | 0 |
| Oakham - Superdelic | Not Tried | 0 |
| Verdant - Miniature Cymbals | Not Tried | 0 |
| Mighty Oak - Medusa IPA | Not Tried | 0 |
| Burning Sky - What Gives? | Not Tried | 0 |
Stephen Harris
Visits Details
02 Aug 2025 (Hogan Sampling)
A mix of the Saturday regulars and the more hardened in for the last 40 minutes of serving.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goacher's - Fine Light Ale | 3.70 | | Second day on now and still holding its head and lacing and lasting well. This Maidstone pale amber light bitter proved to be one of the best samplings of it for me again this evening and in first trying it Friday evening. A slightly fruited bitter first bite. A gentle bitterness rising up with the odd fruity note or two from its WGV (Whitbread Goldings Variety) lending herbal and floral flavours and East Kent Golding hops lending apart from the same, a hint of spice, honey and lemon. A pleasantly dry hoppiness certainly lingering. |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Burning Sky - What Gives? | 4.40 | Not Tried | |
| Oakham - Superdelic | 4.20 | Not Tried | |
| Verdant - Miniature Cymbals | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Mighty Oak - Medusa IPA | 4.70 | Not Tried |
01 Aug 2025 (Hogan Sampling)
Not overly busy for last 30 minutes of serving with some of the Friday regulars on parade among the more occasional.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goacher's - Fine Light Ale | 3.70 | | Not my favourite Goacher's but on very good form on its first day on was this Maidstone amber light bitter. Very good head and lacing and lasting to the bottom of the glass. A mildly fruity first bite aided by its WGV (Whitbread Golding Variety) and East Kent Golding hops. A mildly fruity first bite. A gentle bitterness rising. A fruity hoppiness winning over aided by the herbal and floral flavours from the WGV hop. A distinctly very bitter aftertaste lingering and for me very moreish when fresh on. Perhaps it tires after its first day but certainly the best Fine Light I can recall sampling. |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Oakham - Superdelic | 4.20 | Not Tried | |
| Verdant - Miniature Cymbals | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Mighty Oak - Medusa IPA | 4.70 | Not Tried |
31 Jul 2025 (Hogan Sampling)
A sprinkling of regulars mixed with the not so regular for the last 30 minutes of serving.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anspach & Hobday - The Golden Bitter | 4.00 | | Third night on for this golden-coloured Bermondsey bitter. Head and lacing, still good, lasting, fair. A fruit-infused bitter first bite. A mildly fruity hoppiness, aided by its mix of Ernest and Endeavour, and with a hint of a dried fig or two rising. A dry hoppy bitterness lasting with the odd biscuity malty note playing out. |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Mighty Oak - Here Comes Summer | 3.90 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Outhouse (cuckoo at Jolly Boys') - Safari Juice | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Big Trip - P-Push It Real Good | 4.10 | Not Tried |
31 Jul 2025 (Philip Pirrip)
Late evening visit until close. Where have the mid brown English hopped bitters disappeared to? One ale here then on to a bottle of Orval.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anspach & Hobday - The Golden Bitter | 4.00 | | Unspectacular golden ale. Not what I really wanted |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Mighty Oak - Here Comes Summer | 3.90 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Outhouse (cuckoo at Jolly Boys') - Safari Juice | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Big Trip - P-Push It Real Good | 4.10 | Not Tried |
30 Jul 2025 (Philip Pirrip)
Late evening visit until close. After one uninspiring pint I opted for a bottle of Westmalle 10.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mighty Oak - Here Comes Summer | 3.90 | | Pretty tasteless and lacklustre |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Anspach & Hobday - The Golden Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | |
| Outhouse (cuckoo at Jolly Boys') - Safari Juice | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Big Trip - P-Push It Real Good | 4.10 | Not Tried |
29 Jul 2025 (Hogan Sampling)
For the last 30 minutes of serving, a mix of hardened regulars in along with the more occasional out the front, and the weekly fiddlers and joined by some folk singers out the back.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anspach & Hobday - The Golden Bitter | 4.00 | | Fresh on this evening and in fine form was this Bermondsey light-coloured bitter. Head and lacing, very good, and lasting to the bottom of the glass, good. A hoppy fruit-infused first bite. A moderately fruity bitterness rising aided by a hint of dried figs. A hoppiness getting in on the act care of the English hops, Ernest and Endeavour. A malty biscuity touch in its fruit-infused dry hoppiness lingering. Very moreish and so stuck to it. |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Mighty Oak - Here Comes Summer | 3.90 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Big Trip - P-Push It Real Good | 4.10 | Not Tried |
27 Jul 2025 (Hogan Sampling)
A few hardened regulars on parade among just a small sprinkling of the more occasional for the last 40 minutes of serving.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Surrey Hills - Shere Drop | 4.20 | | Fresh on today and being a Sunday that could be anytime from the 1pm opening. It came with good head and lacing and lasted did this Surrey pale from Dorking. A hoppy-infused first bite. A mildly hoppy bitterness rising up but its maltiness winning over. It tasted rather too sweet for my taste buds. Its caramel-infused malt flavourings prevailing and perhaps not so common for the typical pale. Its sweetness may also be derived from its hints of grapefruit and lemon in on the mix. A touch of, and unwelcome to me, citrus did not greatly endear it to my taste buds, never mind its caramel-sweetness. Its hoppy bitterness did its best to placate me but there was still that slight fruitiness bobbing up and down and sailing off into the sunset. It was though greatly loved by many in 2019 at CAMRA's Great British Beer Festival as voted Champion Beer of Britain no less. I stuck with this pale despite its caramel-sweetness and fruitiness as my usual preference for a bitter was not upheld by the same rather flat bitter that was on Saturday evening still daring to be on this evening. |
| Mighty Oak - Burntwood Bitter | 4.00 | Not Tried | Only its third day on was this Essex bitter from Maldon. I saw someone else with a pint of this as I walked in and it looked as flat as a pancake from its almost 100% presence just served into their pint glass. One had sufficed for me the night before when it was very lacklustre in flavouring due to its tired conditioning. |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | Reputed by others to be overly sickly-sweet was this North Yorkshire vanilla-flavoured porter and so definitely not my cup of tea! |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Anspach & Hobday - Hop Pickers' Pale | 4.50 | Not Tried |
27 Jul 2025 (Philip Pirrip)
Late evening visit until close.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Surrey Hills - Shere Drop | 4.20 | | Good but had better Shere Drop |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | | Did not deliver the dream of a porter the tasting notes promised |
| Mighty Oak - Burntwood Bitter | 4.00 | | Poured flat with little life |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | 3.40 | Not Tried | |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | Not Tried | |
| Anspach & Hobday - Hop Pickers' Pale | 4.50 | Not Tried |
26 Jul 2025 (Hogan Sampling)
Only a few hardened regulars on parade among a few of the Saturday crowd for the last 40 minutes of serving.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vibrant Forest - Pupa | 4.50 | | Head and lacing, good, Lasting, fair. A fruit-infused sour first bite on this New Forest pale. A light citrusy and ripe tropical-fruited flavouring prevailing. Its fruity yeast strain helped me get its stone fruits to linger on my palate. |
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | | Second day on for this pink-coloured pale from Birling, north of West Malling. Head and lacing, good, and lasting, good. A dry pink grapefruited first bite. A dry bitterness rising up from its citrus-infused hops. I was left in its pink sunset sinking its dry fruitiness. |
| Anspach & Hobday - Hop Pickers' Pale | 4.50 | | Head and lacing, good, lasting, good. This Bermondsey pale, named after hop pickers, came with a bitter sourness on its first bite. A fruitiness rising up. The odd citrus note or two derived from its US hops, Citra and Mosaic, having a swirl on my taste bud's dance-floor. Like a mule, named after the expressive English hop, Ernest, in on the mix, it let out a good fruity-infused spicy kick or two, and aided by a "fruit-forward" yeast, before trotting off with its oaty maltiness into a hazy sunset. |
| Mighty Oak - Burntwood Bitter | 4.00 |  | Head and lacing, poor as only momentary. Lasting, not a chance! This Essex bitter from Maldon was only on its second day but like a greyhound that had lost the will to run its race, hugely struggling! I shared that struggle as only managed to quench my first with one pint of it and after my pilgrimage back from Canterbury to London by train. A caramel-infused malty first bite it just about managed to muster. Its malty bitterness rising but flopped back down again and it promptly passed away in my pint glass. It struggled and I struggled! I was ever so glad not to have another in not sharing in its lingering. |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Vibrant Forest - Summerlands (was 3.5%) | 3.40 | Not Tried |
25 Jul 2025 (Hogan Sampling)
Just a few of the usual Friday regulars in among the more hardened for the last 30 minutes of serving. Alas, my favourite Kent Old Skool bitter had all been supped earlier and so did not last for me on what would have been its third evening on. Pretty impressive to have been drunk so rapidly and so only made two full evenings on.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kent - Pamplemousse | 4.90 | | I suppose I chose this to recall the great Kent offering the night before as in the Old Skool bitter. Its first day on and this Kent pale from Birling, north of West Malling, was pink in colouring and pink grapefruited in taste. Head and lacing, very good, and lasting, good. A dry fruity first bite from this pink grapefruit, but quite how many pink grapefruits were sacrificed in its making, I am not certain from the tasting notes. An obvious citrusy note or two rising up. A dry fruity hoppiness sailing off into a pink sunset! |
| Mighty Oak - Burntwood Bitter | 4.00 | | Fresh on to replace the Kent Old Skool bitter was this Essex bitter from Maldon. Head and lacing, poor, lasting, non-existent. A malty first bite. A caramel-infused malty bitterness rising and lingering. It became rather flat rapidly without any conditioning to give it a bit of life. A great shame! |
| Brass Castle - Bad Kitty | 5.50 | Not Tried | |
| Vibrant Forest - Pupa | 4.50 | Not Tried | |
| Oakham - Oranje | 4.10 | Not Tried | |
| Wilderness - Blonde | 3.80 | Not Tried |
About The River Ale House
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
 | 14 |
| 727 |
| 1935 |
| 610 |
| 58 |
The pub is found in East Greenwich, Greater London, SE10 0RJ.
Micropub in Woolwich Road in a former street corner lingerie and hosiery business premises and which opened on 13th September 2017. Comprises a front room with bar counter and with real ales and ciders served on gravity dispense from a temperature controlled cellar room behind the bar, and a rear room down one step. Each day a pre-prepared paper ale menu sheet, with tasting notes, is provided to every table. Bare-board flooring throughout and all seating at wall mounted high settles and hand made wooden high tables. CAMRA card holders' discount on pints and halves of real ale and cider. Card payments accepted. SPBW London Pub of the Year 2019. Local CAMRA branch 2019, 2022 and 2024 Pub of the Year and its Cider Pub of the Year too in 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. CAMRA Greenwich District Pub of the Year 2024.
We have visited this pub 1536 times, seen 1907 different beers and tried 1125 of them.
Postcode: SE10 0RJ