Blue Blazer – Try something new
A classic boozer with some, well, interesting choices at the bar.
My first review of Blue Blazer took place amid a torrential downpour, the type where you get wet just by looking out of the window.
I’ve been back a few times since, and my estimation of this pub only grows with each visit. It’s simple, has a great atmosphere without being unmanageably loud and the staff are on the whole excellent.
There are better cask ale pubs elsewhere in the city – in terms of both selection and quality – but this place knows what it is to be a pub and doesn’t try anything too fancy. Except for the slightly weird cask choices. They normally have on has sometimes forced me to choose something I wouldn’t normally pick.
I always seem to end up with some sort of sweet dark thing, or a red ale, or something with the word “milkshake” in it. It doesn't always work out, but I can get stuck drinking some version of the same pale ale or bitter, over and over again. It’s good to keep taking a risk,1 challenging yourself to be a little curious once in a while. (More on that in the new year.)
Not that the Blue Blazer is some kind of craft beer experimentation lab. It’s just a normal boozer that has the odd left-field option at the bar once in a while. Up with this sort of thing.
The chaser
More pub sale news. The Stockbridge Tap and Cloisters Bar are on the market, for close to a million pounds each. I have reviewed both in the past. Cloisters Bar I can take or leave, but The Stockbridge Tap was a really pleasant surprise to me when I visited. Hopefully new proprietors keep the quality up.
I promised a little more levity in the Chaser this week. So here’s a nonsense news story of 100+ people queueing for the Edinburgh Airport Wetherspoons at 4am a couple of Saturdays ago.
They must have all read my glowing reviews of it. Or, they were just desperate to get into one of the most expensive Spoons in the country.
Edinburgh Pub Reviews is free. But if you want to support my work further, you can leave a small donation by hitting the button below. That way, I can continue my mission of visiting every single pub in Edinburgh.
I am aware that “drinking a pint of beer that’s a bit different to the usual” is quite low on the risk scale. But still.