DRINK. A delicious word that sometimes gets overshadowed by the ‘Food’ part in Manchester Food and Drink Festival. Yet it plays a massive role in the 12 day long celebration (September 29 to October 10). Wine and Gin (via the Fever-Tree Gin Garden are brilliantly represented and then there’s the beer.
That big marquee at the Albert Square festival Hub is inevitably packed, whether it’s hosting the The Wainwright Ale Bar or The 100 Greatest MCR Beers Fest. Check out below what’s pouring noon till 11pm every day.
It is not, of course, on the gigantic scale of Munich’s legendary Oktoberfest with two million barrels consumed and an array of beers brewed specially for the festival. Our good news is that thanks to Albert’s Schloss you don’t have to hop over to Bavaria to taste these. As its contribution to MFDF Peter Street’s German-influenced bar has been granted special dispensation to stock FIVE Fest beers until October 19 (or until they run out) at its own Oktoberfest.
At the typically exuberant launch party Manchester’s Lord Mayor Carl Austin-Behan broached the first keg of Spaten beer (above), following the Munich Oktoberfest tradition.
Since it’s also the 500th anniversary of the Reinheitsgebot – the German Beer Purity Law ruling that barley, water and hops alone be used in brewing – ToM felt we ought to investigate more closely the five small batch brews (well, that’s our excuse) that put our own standard lagers to shame.
Spaten (5.9%): Benchmark amber tinted lager, there’s a firm hoppiness to counterbalance the chewy malt with a hint of nuts on the finish.
Löwenbräu (6.1%): Golden with bread and honey on the nose, which follow onto the palate with a hoppy bitterness on the finish. Lightweight but enjoyable.
Hacker-Pschorr (6%): Very amber with the creamiest of heads. Grassy aromas with a malty, honeyed mouthfeel. Just a touch sweeter than the rest, but very refreshing.
Paulaner (6%): Amber in colour with dark toffee and rich malt dominating yet in balance with the hops, this is perhaps the most complex of the five.
Hofbräu (6.3%): The strongest of the line-up, it is deceptively fresh. Creamy head and digestive biscuits hints coming through on the the palate. Nice balance.
Albert’s Schloss, 27 Peter Street, Manchester M2 5RQ. 0161 833 4040.
After all this Teutonic taste bud teasing it’s great to contrast with classic English beer styles and Wainwright’s fulfils all the criteria….
Wainwright Ale Bar
Wainwright, The Golden Beer is the UK’s No.2 bestselling golden ale and has part of it strategy to claim top spot it is again a sponsorship at the UK’s leading regional, urban food festival. It certainly looks – and tastes – the part with its shimmering golden appearance plus a subtle honeyed sweetness from the yeast and delicate, citrus overtones from the hops. Wainwright’s MFDF Bar also stocks 12 other delectable ales. With an extensive selection of world beers and UK keg ales available throughout the event, there will be a something for everyone – whether it’s the punchy Wychwood ‘King Star’ offering a full-bodied lager packed with intense flavour or the distinctive Marston’s Pedigree with its dark palate of biscuity malts and spiced earthy flavours providing a slower drink for keen cask enthusiasts.
Thursday, September 29 -Sun October 2. Festival Hub, Albert Square. Noon-11pm. Free
100 Greatest MCR Beers Fest
When the Wainwright barmen have pulled the last of countless pints another beer lover’s must settles into the big tent. This massive regional beer celebration showcases all the new wave breweries that have sprung up in the city. Not to be missed are the exciting likes of Cloudwater, Runaway and Alphabet alongside comparative veterans such as 7 Brothers (founded June 2014) and Squawk, formed way back in 2013. Of course, longer-established brewers feature, too in the enormous beer bar that is the centrepiece of the Hub for the final furlong of the Festival. And and it’s free to get in with live entertainment thrown in. Whether you seek a golden ale, wheat beer, a well-balanced bitter or crave the darker pleasures of stout or porter, this is sheer beer nirvana.
Monday, October 3-Sun October 9. Festival Hub, Albert Square. Noon-11pm. Free
On a smaller scale are some attractive Fringe beer events, the pick of which are:
Two Beers Brewery and Reuben's Brew Food Pairing Event West Didsbury bar Saison teams up with two of Washington State’s finest breweries to host a ‘night of food and drink decadence’. Five small plates will be matched with five beers never before been seen on these shores. Brewery representative Andy will introduce the beers and the dishes that go best with them. Only 35 places available, so act swiftly.
Thursday, September 29. Saison, 236 Burton Rd, Manchester M20 2LW. 7.30pm. £25. To book tickets phone 0161 4349521 or email [email protected].
Founders Brewing Co Tap Takeover of PLY US craft ale whizzes Founders Brewing Co take over the PLY taps for a full week with six featured beers, recommended paired pizzas from PLY’s menu and two specials created especially to match two of the brews.
Monday, October 3-Sunday October 9. PLY, 26 Lever Street, Manchester M1 1DW.
Beavertown Meet the Brewer Takeover at Heaton Hops The acclaimed Heaton Chapel mini-bar, nominated for Craft Beer Bar of the Year in the 2016 MFDF Awards, welcomes the high profile London brewers of the likes of Neck Oil and Gamma Ray (you’ll have seen the colourful cans). A hoppy evening guaranteed for all.
Wednesday, October 5. Heaton Hops, 7 School Lane, Heaton Chapel, SK4 5DE. From 7pm. £20. To book email [email protected] or ring 07578621639.
Alphabet Brewing Co and Holy Crab – Charlie Don’t Surf Shack Street food aces Holy Crab, now resident in the the Kosmonaut kitchen every Thursday to Sunday, are joining forces for four days with Alphabet to run the Charlie Don’t Surf Shack. The Kosmonaut basement will be transformed to take you from land to sea and street food stall founders Lou and Hannah have some Holy Crab-meets-craft beer tricks up their sleeve as they pair their seafood snacks with ABC’s summery brew.
Thursday, October 6 to Sunday, October 9. Times vary, Check with website. Kosmonaut. 10 Tariff Street, Manchester M1 2FF. 7pm. Unticketed.
Manchester Food and Drink Festival runs from Thursday, September 29 to Monday, October 10. Download the festival brochure here.