Our Beer Man’s Verdict

We recently highlighted the Clockwork Beer Company when Blythe was on a whistle-stop tour of some Glasgow eating and drinking venues.

It sounded like an intriguing place, so I was delighted when some work-related meetings took me to Hampden, the home of Scottish football – which is a corner kick away. Okay, not literally – but it’s just a five minute walk so it is easy to imagine this place being mobbed on match days.

It’s a nicely appointed place – I particularly liked the big clockwork key on the sign outside – but feels like the interior is lacking focus.

All the components are nice – seating area by the windows, bar leading through to slightly more formal dining area – but a big windy staircase cuts the downstairs area in two and dominates. Although I sat downstairs, I much preferred the bright and open upstairs area, which I checked out before leaving.

Beer is, as the name suggests, the main draw – and that’s certainly why I was here.

They brew their own on the premises. Nothing too radical but interesting enough.

The Hoptopussy was nice and fruity giving way to hop bitterness, but lacking in carbonation. The Cartside Red is okay – sweet and malty, and more like an 80 than a red – while the Oregon is the pick of the bunch: a nice punchy American-style IPA.

Their own beers dominate, but there are also guest ales from Hobgoblin and Stewart’s on my visit.

While the beer is good, I thought the value for money was exceptional. Maybe I’ve grown too accustomed to paying the price for exclusive or speciality beers, but I found it almost ridiculously cheap.

Pints start at £2.60 while their most expensive is £3.60, and that’s for the 6 per cent ABV Hampden Roar. Excellent value.

The food all looked tasty and was similarly keenly-priced with everything under a tenner – and you can even have a third of any of their beers with your meal for just 70p.

It’s not a place you’re likely to stumble across on a visit to Glasgow. If you’re at Hampden, I’d mark it down as a “must” for a pre or post-match pint – but I suspect it will struggle to lure real hardcore beer geeks away from city centre venues like Drygate.

I liked it, though, and it certainly provides almost unbeatable value for money: a real match-winner.

Clockwork Beer Company, 1153 – 1155 Cathcart Road Glasgow G42 6HB