JUST a couple of months on from the end of Manchester Beer Week the citywide celebration of hop and malt has announced the winners of its inaugural Greater Manchester Beer Awards.
Chosen by public vote from shortlists drawn up by experts, the list of victors shows the strength of the city and region’s contemporary beer culture.
Best bar: Heaton Hops (Heaton Moor).
Best pub: The Magnet (Stockport).
Best new pub/bar: Reasons to be Cheerful (Burnage, pictured above).
Best beer range: Cafe Beermoth (city centre).
Best restaurant beer range: Bundobust (city centre).
Best independent beer retailer: Epicurean (West Didsbury).
Best brewery: Cloudwater Brew Co (Manchester).
Best brewery tap: Blackjack Brewtap (Manchester).
Meanwhile, the eight local branches of CAMRA have crowned Wigan Central as their Greater Manchester Pub of the Year. Opened less than three years ago in an arch next to Wigan North Western station, it’s the brainchild of the town's Prospect Brewery.
Prospect brewer Patsy Slevin said: "Back in 2014, our aim was to have a dedicated real ale bar in a historic part of the town. We invoked memories of the long since closed Wigan Central station with our decor and furnishings that reflect the age of steam. But we aren't stuck in the past – regulars and occasional visitors love our real time monitors showing departures at both Wigan stations."
The Central is now a contender for CAMRA’s national Pub of the Year.
Salford Beer Festival has announced it will run from October 19-21, again raising money for its venue, St Sebastian’s Community Centre. The size of the centre limits entry, so organisers recommend booking tickets (£5) in advance via this link. Well worth it with 150 per cent more beer and several interesting brewery one-off collaborations promised.
Beer is big these days – the upcoming Manchester Food and Drink Festival features a couple of fascinating hop-driven events.
On Friday, October 6 at the Festival Hub in Albert Square there’s A Perfect Match – Wine and Beer Tasting with Food Pairing, where BBC star and Reserve Wines Didsbury owner Kate Goodman meets Cloudwater founder Paul Jones (above). The pair will explore the cultural and gastronomic differences between grape and hop alongside the best food pairings for each, provided by Altrincham Market House stalwarts Wolf House Kitchen. Tickets are £25 plus booking fee. Buy them here.
The following night, Saturday 6th, in the same location Paul Jones and Manchester Beer Week organiser Connor Murphy team up with some of the best local brewers to give an insight into the difference two decades have made to the Manchester brewing industry. Tickets for Twenty Year of Beer are £15 plus booking fee. Buy them here.
Meanwhile, from Thursday, September 28 to Sunday, October 8, the Hub will host the Fantastic Festival Beer Bar, where the public can explore the mazing range of locally brewed beers now available.
And for the culmination of the festival, the Manchester Food and Drink Awards has added a Brewery of the Year category alongside Pub of the Year, Food Pub of the Year and Craft Ale Bar of the Year. Vote for them here.
