MANCHESTER Beer Week (June 23-July 2) is 10 days of bliss for the beer lover, taking this citywide celebration way beyond last year’s inaugural event. Hence the inevitable arrival of the Greater Manchester Beer Awards.
Festival organiser Connor Murphy and a panel if independent experts (including ToM editor Neil Sowerby) have drawn up eight shortlists for the public to vote on before the July 2 deadline, the gongs to be given out a couple of weeks later. Here are the nominees in the eight categories:
Best bar: Brink (Manchester), Cafe Beermoth (Manchester), Heaton Hops (Heaton Moor).
Best pub: The Magnet (Stockport), Marble Arch (Manchester), The Smithfield Tavern (Manchester).
Best new pub/bar: Bock Biere Cafe (Manchester), The Mounting Stone (Bramhall), Petersgate Tap (Stockport), The Pilcrow (Manchester), Reasons to be Cheerful (Burnage).
Best beer range: Brink (Manchester), Cafe Beermoth (Manchester), The Magnet (Stockport), Port Street Beer House(Manchester), The Smithfield Tavern (Manchester).
Best restaurant beer range: Bundobust (Manchester), Hispi (Didsbury), Hawksmoor (Manchester), Volta (West Didsbury).
Best independent beer retailer: Beermoth (Manchester), Bottle (Heaton Moor), Epicurean (West Didsbury).
Best brewery: Chorlton Brewing Co (Manchester), Cloudwater Brew Co (Manchester), Marble (Manchester), Thirst Class (Stockport), Track Brewing Co (Manchester).
Best brewery tap: Blackjack Brewtap (Manchester), Cloudwater Barrel Store (Manchester), Track Brewery Tap (Manchester).
Vote here. We’ll be doing a full preview of Manchester Beer Week, which is still evolving. Check their website for updates on events