As a fourth year student recently returned from a year abroad I’ve realised there are so many things in and around Bristol that I haven’t done. So I made a resolution to experience as many of the wonders of Bristol as I can in the year before I graduate: a final year bucket list of all things Bristolian.
I start my quest at the Cori Tap on a Saturday night. The Cori Tap (or the Coronation Tap for its longer title), for those who don’t know, is a pub in Clifton Village that has been a student staple for years. Frequented by freshers, second years and final years alike, this delightful pub is popular. While there are a wealth of ciders on offer, the pub’s popularity can be attributed to its speciality “Exhibition Cider”, a flavourful cider that can only be legally served in half pints, because it is so strong. At £2.50 for half a pint, it is easy to see why this is a beverage of choice for many.
(Image Credit: Clifton Observatory)
Most students can regale you with tales of going to the Cori Tap for a quiet drink which turned into a huge rager after trying to complete the Challenge (10 exhibition ciders in half an hour), but until last Saturday I had never been! People looked at me like I’d grown a second head when I told them this. It wasn’t intentional, I liked the sound of the place, I like cider, seemed like the best place for me but it seemed like destiny conspired that I would always be too busy or too knackered to make the seemingly long journey to Clifton Village.
However, destiny was finally on my side when another Cori Tap virgin and I decided finally to go on that long-awaited pub trip.
It turned out that my fellow “virgin” lived right up by it, so after some leisurely chatting in her flat, we made our way 100 meters to the threshold. As we got our ID checked, I peeked round the door to get my first look inside, and feel the buzz!
(Inage credit: TimeOut)
My first impressions of the Cori Tap were that it was crowded, lively and very studenty. The dark murkiness was reminiscent of proper old fashioned pubs without the exclusive old man clientele, the dimness conspiring to make the pub feel really intimate, and while the noise was overwhelming, it rarely impaired conversation. We had got to there fairly late (against the advice of my friends) so navigating our way to the bar took a while. Eventually, however, I was receiving my first half of Exhibition cider.
I initially felt a little hint of disappointment at it’s tiny size, and wondered if it was truly worth it. But then I took my first sip and it was delicious.
I soon encountered the fated problem of Exhibition: it gets you quite tipsy quite quickly. I finished my first drink relatively quickly, and having not yet felt the effects decided to have another. And another.
Finally it was last call, and slowly all the punters poured out, with a happy sense of accomplishment. After the earnest chats that we were on the same wavelength and so on we went our separate ways, feeling like we had made lifelong friends. That is the beauty of the Cori Tap: it can be anything that you want it to be: a great place to predrink, somewhere for a friendly meet up or even an intimate date setting.
I will definitely be going back; I am now a Cori Tap convert.