Usually, the furthest east you’ll find the St John team is at its Spitalfields restaurant, St John Bread and Wine. But this weekend St John co-founder Trevor Gulliver and his crew are heading to Walthamstow to launch their Eccles Stout, an annual collaboration with 40ft Brewery. But it’s not just about the beer; they’ll be bringing a bunch of classics from the bakery, including ox heart buns, pig’s cheek pies, potato pies and doughnuts, as well as house wine, to 40ft’s Blackhorse Road outpost, which opened in August. And, naturally, they’ll also bring a batch of Eccles cakes with Lancashire cheese. The party kicks off at midday, and a DJ will be spinning vinyl all afternoon.
“Each year we’ve held the launch party in Dalston, but having recently opened our new brewery and taproom on the Blackhorse Beer Mile, Trevor suggested we bring St John to E17 for the first time,” 40ft Brewery founder Steve Ryan tells Broadsheet. “The new taproom has such a great vibe. We plan to do quite a few food pop-ups with some of our favourite restaurants in the coming year.”
This is the seventh time St John and 40ft Brewery have worked together on the seasonal stout. Each year the recipe is updated – the 2025 brew foregrounds the Eccles spices. This time the currants, nutmeg and allspice blend was pureed before being incorporated into 40ft’s Deep Irish stout. The result is a big-bodied beer with nutmeg, dark chocolate and currant flavours.
“St John is known for many dishes, but we felt that Eccles in a stout wrote itself,” Ryan says. “The blend of the Eccles spice married with our Deep Irish stout is really quite special. But maybe a Pig Trotter IPA could make a 2026 appearance.”
Post-launch, the beer will be on tap at all St John restaurants and cafes, at 40ft Brewery Dalston and Blackhorse Road, and at various pubs across London. Fans who prefer their stout in cans can pick them up at St John venues.
The St John and 40ft Brewery Eccles Stout launch party runs from midday to 5pm on Sunday November 9 at 40ft Brewery Blackhorse Road.
