Worried about the price of your pint? Well, you may come to think that you have never had it so good. Surging malt and barley prices and a bad worldwide hop harvest have given rise to fears of inflation-busting increases in the wholesale price of beer. To add to the gloom the soaring price of oil, electricity and gas has increased the cost of both production and distribution. The large brewers in particular have warned that price increases are “inevitable”. Much of the increase is apparently caused by materials shortages because of soaring beer sales in countries like Russia and China. A “double whammy” is that there has been a drop of nearly 10% in beer sales in pubs this November and reports of a poor Christmas. In the wake of this, Pub Company shares have fallen on average by 36% year on year. All of this will be passed on to the customer one way or another. The brewer passes it on to PubCos and licensees, already hard hit by cheap supermarket prices and they in turn will pass it on to customers and so continues a vicious spiral which may end up, some predict, with the £4 pint in some City Centre outlets. Is there any hope for the drinker who already sees his spare cash eaten away by utility, food and transport price rises? Well, not much. Our Independent Family Brewers, though affected by increased costs, transport their beer over shorter distances, have few mortgaged pubs, no shareholders to appease and already offer cheaper beer on the whole than the Nationals. We look particularly to them and our local micro brewers to keep their price rises to a minimum and to continue to provide value for money to their loyal drinkers, who in turn should not be afraid to shop around, not only for the best prices, but the most welcoming pubs, good beer and overall value for money.
Peter Alexander
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Happy New Year, and welcome to a brand new issue of More Beer. As usual, our contributors have been out far and wide doing serious research and reporting back for the benefit of you, our readers. 2008 is a Leap Year, so let’s get our woolly jumpers on, spring into action, and put some of our boundless energy into getting into those vaults and appreciating those hops (sorry!). Our Branch calendar for the next six months is listed in this issue, there’re lots of social opportunities and the Oldham Beer Festival to look forward to.
Unfortunately, we have neither the time nor the funds to get everywhere, so we welcome input from everyone – if you know a pub with good real ale within the Rochdale, Oldham & Bury area (or anywhere else for that matter), tell us about it. It’s selection time for GBG 2009 shortly, and although the entries are solid, it would be nice to be able to highlight new ones.
Cheers!
Chairman: Peter Alexander
Email – peter@peteralexander.plus.com
Secretary: Pam Ellis
Email – pam@pamellis.fsnet.co.uk
Membership: Mike Robinson
Email - jmikerobby@aol.com
Social Sec: Ken Holt
Email – kenjan.holt@btopenworld.com
Treasurer: Clive Taylor
Email – camraclive@uk2.net
Pubs officer: Bernie Jackson
Email – acksionman@ntlworld.com
More Beer Editor: Sue Barker
Email – suebarker@bulldoghome.com
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The 22nd Oldham Beer Festival will take place on Friday and Saturday 4th and 5th April 2008 in the Queen Elizabeth Hall, West Street, Oldham. The venue is right in the centre of Oldham, next to the Civic Centre and immediately adjacent to the town centre bus station, making it easily accessible by public transport.
Organised by the Rochdale, Oldham and Bury Branch of CAMRA (The Campaign for Real Ale) proceeds go to the Mayor of Oldham’s Charity Appeal Fund. This year the fund is supporting Dr Kershaw’s Hospice, The Oldham Branch of the Alzheimer’s Society, The New Children’s Hospital Appeal, The Oldham Education Trust and Life Education Centres.
Featuring 75 cask ales from around the country, a wide range of continental bottled beers, plus traditional ciders, perries and fruit wines, the festival will once again host Oldham’s longest bar and become Oldham’s biggest pub for the weekend. As well as liquid refreshment there will, as usual, be traditional food available at all sessions provided by members of the Mayor’s Appeal Committee. The excellent air conditioned facilities provided by the Queen Elizabeth Hall mean that over 1000 people can attend each session at any one time and with seating available for 500 people in the hall, space should never be a problem. Disabled access is available at all times. Children will be allowed in the festival at lunchtimes accompanied by their parents/guardians. Live entertainment will be available on each of the two evening sessions.
The festival is open at lunch times between 12 noon and 4pm and in the evenings between 6pm and 11pm. Admission prices are £1 Friday lunchtime, £4 Friday evening, £2 Saturday lunchtime, £3 Saturday evening. CAMRA members will be admitted free of charge at all sessions on production of a valid membership card.
For more information and (in due course) a list of the 75 beers ordered for the festival, please visit the Branch website: www.robcamra.org.uk
If you are not already a CAMRA member, join in advance by using the application form in this magazine or visit www.camra.org.uk so you can save £10 in total on entry to the festival.
Mike Robinson
The 25th Bury Beer Festival went well, with virtually all the beers finished off by 10 pm on the Saturday. All we had left was some dark beer. Surprisingly, not all the strong ones went first! Our festival beer was Al’s Tipple, brewed by ROB member and BBF bar manager Alan Ainsworth at Darwen’s Hopstar Brewery following a chance meeting and chat with the brewery’s Barry Tyson at Edgworth Beer Festival.
The festival glasses also seemed to be popular. Beer of the festival was Wentworth Oatmeal Stout. All the attendees seemed to relish the chance to chat undisturbed by music. Noticing in the Manchester Evening News that the Hairy Bikers were due to visit Bury Market on our opening day to cook Black Pudding and visit a local (unspecified) microbrewery, I spent a cold hour waiting around the film site in the hope of presenting them with festival glasses and inviting them up to the Beer Festival, if their schedule allowed, where they could have tried a lot more local brews. Unfortunately they had gone walkabout and there were customers waiting at the Festival. However, another of our intrepid members ran them to earth in the fish and meat market, and here is the result courtesy of Jim Schofield.
It’s reported that, following a make-over, the Ainsworth Arms (Bury & Bolton Road) now has 3 cask beers on regularly. At various times, Bank Top, Courage Directors and Naylors Pinnacle have been seen, sampled & approved. The manager has been awarded Cask Marque, and has assured our reporter that his staff will receive cellarmanship training. Food is good quality and they’ve tried to raise the standards a bit. Small start, but worth encouraging. Further reports will follow.
Sue Barker
The festive spirit was around the Waggon in Uppermill just before Christmas as decorators were repainting the pub’s B& B facilities. One of the tradesmen came downstairs, said “Good Morning” to a woman standing in the bar area only to see her disappear without a word - apparently the ghost of Mary Bradbury, a previous licensee of the pub from 1887-1900 who has been sighted on other occasions. It has not been confirmed whether the seasonal pin of Old Tom Strong Ale (8.5%) had been interfered with prior to this event... Robinson’s seasonal beers have proved to be popular at the Waggon. In December Mr Scrooge, a 4.4% mahogany festive ale was available, to be followed in February by Tempus Fugit which is a slightly weaker chestnut brown ale.
Wayne Rawstron, the previous licensee of the King William IV (King Bill) in Greenfield, took over the tenancy of the Cross Keys in November in time for a hectic Christmas period. Ably assisted by his partner Wendy, close pal Jason and other family members he plans to develop the Cross Keys as a community pub and re-establish links to a number of local organisations. The adjacent barn, part of which is the HQ of the Oldham Mountain Rescue Team, will be used for functions, in addition to its existing use on Wednesday nights by the Folk Club. The established range of JW Lees cask beers - GB Mild, Bitter, Moonraker and their new seasonal beers - will continue throughout the year. During the festive season their excellent fruity Plum Pudding (4.8%) was very popular and had to be reordered at short notice several times! With a background in catering Wayne would like to build on the reputation for good value home-made food which he established at the King Bill, pies and puddings being particular favourites.
In the meantime his brother Andy Lilley has taken over at the King Bill, having previously managed the bar, done the cellar work, and ordered the beer and other essentials there, and no major changes are planned. Andy wants to retain the King Bill’s appeal as a local village pub showing popular sport on high quality wide-screen TV’s. Two young chefs have come in to continue making a similar range of food which Wayne established previously, namely freshly cooked home-made meals. Of the five cask beers on offer the regulars, Tetleys and John Willies bitters and Deuchars IPA, will continue, with two changing guest beers from the Punch portfolio. Sometimes (during the silly season??) Old Rosie cider is also available.
A short stroll along Chew Valley Road, the but is now closed and converted into bijou Clarence Hotel is a detached stone pub dating residences like most other mills in Saddleworth. back to the mid-19th century. After periods of ownership by Bass Charrington and W&D, the Bought by JW Lees in the mid 1990’s the pub Clarence is now an Enterprise Inn with a well has been well renovated with a slate floor and appointed interior and the emphasis on food. lots of dark pine in the bar area and the three Walkers are welcomed at the Clarence, it’s in a separate drinking areas. It also has a prime location near the picturesque rambling restaurant offering a wide choice of hot and area of Chew Valley with Dovestone reservoir a cold food, and a large function room where prominent feature. various music and other themed events take place. However those of you looking for a Two regular cask beers, Dobcoss and Tetley quiet pint, be warned - there is a fruit machine bitters, are supplemented by the Greenfield next to the bar and loud piped music Brewery seasonal offering (4.4% Icicle during a throughout the pub. recent visit) plus either Black Sheep Best Bitter or Old Speckled Hen. The pub’s location and Apart from smooth flow mild (no sign yet of ambience provide a good opportunity for a their new Brewer’s Dark) the complete range rewarding couple of pints after a few of John Willies cask beers are served around hours walking. the year - bitter, seasonal beers and Moonraker strong ale. During a recent visit two seasonal
The Clarence is also within spitting distance of beers were available, Ruddy Glow and Plum Greenfield Brewery which is expanding the out-Pudding (4.8%) - is this a record in a JW lets for their beers. They now brew the house Lees house? beer for the Crown and Kettle in Manchester and are regular suppliers to the Smithfield Five minutes walk down Manchester Road Hotel, the Paradise Brewery Bar in the Arndale towards Mossley the Tollemache Arms, an end Centre, and King’s Arms in Salford. Closer to of terrace stone building, is a must for home their beers are taken by a number of connoisseurs of the traditional pub. Licensee brass band clubs including Delph, Boarshurst Diane Harrison took over the “Tolly” a couple of and Dobcross. In December a special batch of years ago and transformed it from an unspoilt Rudoph’s Tipple, a 5% dark porter, was pro1950’s local’s pub to a spotless unspoilt 1950’s duced for the Pig’s Ear beer festival in London. local’s pub with a friendly welcome to one and all. Lots of oak panelling and glassware are in
Also on Chew Valley Road, between the King evidence and the only concession to the 21st Bill and the Railway, the Wellington is an century is a plasma TV which is used to follow unexceptional pub which majors on multi-popular sporting events. screen presentation of sports events and live music at weekends. Mainly catering for their The Tolly is a Robinson’s tied house and offers lager/cider clientele, two handpumps dispense two of their beers, Old Stockport (3.5%) and cask ale of uncertain quality, although the Unicorn (4.2%), from a bank of traditional black Boddies was in decent nick over the Christmas handpulls. On a good day these can be period, and Theakston’s Old Peculier was also enjoyed on the patio overlooking the on offer. Huddersfield Narrow Canal.
On the outskirts of Greenfield, on the corner of Millstone Brewery in Mossley made a special Manchester and Huddersfield roads, the Royal Christmas beer this year which was well George is a large hostelry with the same name received at Th’Heights in Delph and the Ashton as a (now defunct) large textile mill nearby. Arms in Oldham, amongst others. Reindeer, a This factory was particularly noted for the 4.2% dark gold beer, was brewed with production of piano felt and coloured bunting Marynka hops from Poland and roasted wheat.
A few of their beers, including Three Shires, Grain Storm and True Grit continue to be bottled and sold mainly via the Wholefood Shop in Mossley.
Like most other brewers there is some concern about prospects for 2008 with the escalation of raw material costs - one extreme example is an American hop variety which has increased threefold recently.
On a slightly more positive note the Diggle Hotel offered a popular choice of Christmas specials including Hambleton Festive Folly (4%), Rudgate Good Elf (3.8%), TSA Turkey Stuffing (3.8%), Leyden Christmas Cracker (3.7%), Skinners Christmas Fairy (3.9%) and Mauldons Bah Humbug (4.9%).
Ken Holt
Saddleworth Brewery was established by the Taylor family in 1997 next to the Church Inn in an old stone brewhouse that had been closed for around 120 years. The brewery and inn are set in an historic location up a valley overlooking Uppermill next to St Chad’s Church, which dates from 1215.
The Old Brewhouse, Sadddleworth For a number of years Peter Percival was the brewer here but he left in 2002 to set up Greenfield Brewery a couple of miles away in Chew Valley; the brewing is now done by Julian Taylor and his father Mike and just about all the output is sold through the Church Inn.
Over this period a range of seven regular and six seasonal beers has been developed with most of the seasonals named after Julian and Christine’s four children to coincide with their birthdays. As expected, other beer names have a local connotation including two derived from the Saddleworth Morris Team who meet (and occasionally practice!) in the pub. (Apparently the dancing improves after a few pints of home brew!). Beer strengths vary from Clog Dancer at 3.6% to the reformulated Christmas Carol at 6.6% ABV.
The old brewhouse contains the mash tun and stainless steel copper and has a 3 barrel brew length; fermentation and cask filling is carried out in a cellar beneath the pub. Water is taken from a nearby spring and treated using UV and filtration before use and regular checks are made on its purity by the local environmental officer. A variety of malts and hops are used for the different brews, possibly the most complex is the recipe for the powerful Shaft Bender (5.4%ABV) containing Maris Otter pale, crystal, pale chocolate, black and wheat malts and Golding and Fuggle hops.
The Church Inn has a reputation for cheap beer and when the brewery began Saddleworth More (3.8%ABV) sold at £1.00 per pint; its current price is £1.50. Recently Robyn’s Bitter (4.6%ABV) was also on offer at £1.00. However Julian warned that over the past few weeks he had seen over 60% increases in malt and hop prices, brought on by the extremely wet summer in England, and this was bound to translate into higher beer prices throughout the industry. He also acknowledged that their beers have suffered from variations in quality in the past and is keen to iron these out by controlling various factors more closely. One of these is the use of a batch of new yeast for each brew run, supplied by the modern yeast plant at Joseph Holt’s brewery in Cheetham.
Ken Holt
With a New Year upon us perhaps this is an opportunity to reflect on the year past and to look forward. The area has more pubs in the GBG guide (9) than for a number of years, one of which, the Tandle Hill Tavern, won the Manchester Food and Drink Best Pub Award for 2007. With one or two pubs also knocking on the door the future is promising.
There is a new brewery to support (Greenmill) in addition to the longer established Phoenix and Pictish breweries and the prospects for real ale locally produced and from further afield are as good as they have been for a long time.
We should also not ignore the family brewers, most of whom at last seem to have come to recognise that there is a demand for real ale in the region. Thwaites, Holts, Robinsons and Hydes have all expanded their beer range and if Lees could only learn from the success of “Bumpy Lane” at THT then the future would be bright but thankfully not Orange. Perhaps, however, with Lees we should wish for more consistency in the quality of their standard beers than the variability they achieved in 2007.
On the down side a number of pubs closed their doors for the last time and the pressure on tenants/managers will be every bit as intense with raw material prices surely increasing the price of a pint above the present rate of inflation. With leases coming up for renewal at a number of local hostelries it is to be hoped that we do not lose some of our favourite watering holes.
One of our fellow imbibers at one of our favourite pubs, an enterprising chap who we will call Mr Punch has remarked that we focus only on price. We would take issue with this observation as if this were the case we would be extolling the beers of Sam Smith, which from a recent visit to one of their pubs and the quality perspective we cannot do. Our comments on price usually concern the family brewers who sell their beers to free houses substantially cheaper than to their tied houses allowing the free house to sell a pint at up to 50p/per pint cheaper. This is particularly galling when the free house and tied house are virtually neighbours. Good for the drinker but not for the publican especially in these difficult times. Remember to drink responsibly. Drink a pint of real ale.
Mike Dale
JW Lees has announced a revamped beer list for 2008. The permanent range will be Bitter, Brewer’s Dark, Scorcher, John Willies and Moonraker. No mild I hear you ask? Well GB Mild has been renamed Brewer’s Dark although at the time of writing, new pumpclips had not been distributed. Seasonals will be; Spring Cheer (4.1%), Summer Sizzler (3.8%), Autumn Glow (4.2%) and Winter Warmer (4.5%). In addition there will be four other beers available. In March, for St David’s Day, Dragon’s Fire (4%), in June, to mark 180 years of brewing there will be, wait for it, 180 (4.5%), Get a Grip (3.9%) will follow in June, commemorating Lees new “Get a Grip” glass and finally in December, the ever popular Plum Pudding, which was on splendid form this year, is set to return.
This new range is to be welcomed and hopefully will meet the stated aim of giving licensees more choice. Let’s hope availability is wide and the beers are both publicised and keenly priced.
JW Lees have recently acquired new pubs across the North West and North Wales to add to their estate of 170 pubs. The new houses include Drovers Arms in Ruthin, Duckworth Arms in Ramsbottom and The Castle in Abergele.
The Abergele Castle and Drovers Arms are already open. The Duckworth Arms should also be open by the time you read this. All will be serving the full complement of JW Lees Real Ales on draught.
Willoughby’s Wine Warehouse, part of J.W. Lees, has returned to retailing rather than wholesaling wine, after a gap of several years, with a new store in Frodsham, Cheshire. The Church Street store opened on Friday 21 September, and has a range of over 600 wines Willoughby’s will open a second store in Sale, Greater Manchester, in the near future.
Peter Alexander
JANUARY
Tues 8th Branch Meeting, Woodthorpe, Bury old Rd, Prestwich
16th -19th National FestivalWinter Ales, New Century Hall, Manchester
Sat 26th Walking Social* Mid-day Pub Crawl of Chorlton
FEBRUARY
Sat 2nd/noon GBG Selection Mtg. Old Boar’s Head, Long St, Middleton
Tues 5th Branch Meeting, Merry Monk, College Rd, Rochdale
Sat 23rd Train Social* Liverpool
MARCH
Tues 4th Branch Meeting, Hunt Lane Tavern, Middleton Rd, Chadderton
Wed 19th Evening Coach Social* George Wright Brewery, Rainford, Lancs.
APRIL
Fri 4th/Sat 5th Oldham Beer Festival, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Oldham
Tues 8th Branch Meeting, Hare & Hounds, Bolton Rd.West, Holcombe Brook
Sat 12th Coach Social* Pubs in West Lancashire
MAY
Tues 6th Branch Meeting, Flying Horse, Town Hall Sq, Rochdale
Thur8th/Sun11th Weekend Social by air* Prague
JUNE
Tues 3rd Branch AGM, Bank Top Tavern, King Sq, Oldham
Sat 28th Coach Campaign* Independents’ Day, branch area
JULY
Tues 1st Branch Meeting, Two Tubs, The Wylde, Bury
Sun 6th Coach Social* Thornbridge Hall Garden Party / Brewery & local pubs
* Further details of social events are available from branch contact or social secretary.
All branch and committee meetings start at 8.30 unless otherwise indicated or announced.
Changes to the diary and other events may be announced at branch meetings or publicised on the website.
‘More Beer’ editorial meetings are held from time to time at the Royal Oak, Werneth - details available from the editor.
CAN’T ALWAYS GET TO OUR BRANCH MEETINGS?
BUT WANT TO KEEP IN TOUCH WITH THE ACTION !
Make sure we have your up to date E-mail Address on our Secretary s data-base. Information and Social Events can be E-mailed out to you.
I volunteered for the much coveted post of Beer Festival Organiser (BFO). After a rigorous interview I was chosen from a list of one and given lots of useful advice.
Apart from a bit of tedious form filling, my first real job was to organise regular meetings for the Festival Organisation Committee (FOC); which I managed beautifully with the kind help of the Two Tubs.
I quickly realised that I was surrounded by an experienced team and decided that the 19th century version of hands-on management was not appropriate and so I did the 21st Century thing and delegated. One rather annoying member asked if I would actually be doing anything other than delegating. I said that as I knew sod all about the workings of a beer festival, delegating jobs to the cognoscenti would be the natural thing to do. Did someone mutter “the easy thing to do”? I might have imagined that.
As the weeks went by everyone appeared to be doing what they’d said they’d do. The publicity material, staffing, health & safety, financing, hall organisation and the beer buying all happened as if by magic and I wasn’t present for the laborious task of loading rather a lot of kit from a CAMRAde’s dad’s garage into a hired white van. That was done on the Tuesday evening before the festival.
On the Wednesday morning I had an excellent Robert Peel Wetherbreakfast as was suggested by some FOC members, but they didn’t. That was because the beer was already being delivered at the Met. When I casually wandered over, there were barrels along the pavement being rolled into the Met side door by healthy looking volunteers. A quick scout of the hall and I realised that I appeared to be the only person who didn’t know what he was doing I borrowed brewing up kit from a friendly office and dived into the job that no-one else had volunteered for - that of tea boy. That day saw me helping with any manual labour and making tea for folk. The - he was bars were built and the casks positioned by lunchtime.
While a couple of us were out to lunch, the new handpumps had been unpacked and assembled. They looked very different from the other ones – a completely new look. They were black, tapered at the bottom, topped by a brass crown. Pete seemed a little unhappy with one on his bar. It was a little wobbly. We disassembled and tried moving things around a bit. We found that if we put what was perceived as a crown onto the base then put the black section on that, thick bit down, it looked more normal. We decided that as it felt more stable that way then that was how they were going to be. Damn modernity.
At the end of Wednesday the hall looked like it would hold a beer festival.
Thursday – tapping and venting and attaching the handpumps. Beer tasted – perhaps a bit excessively by some. Glasses delivered. Glass washer delivered. Foreign beer & cider sections completed.
Friday – Programmes delivered - Tidying up. 11:30 final instructions to Bar Staff from Pete. Glass section ready and waiting. Tills in place. Entry folk in place. I looked down the stairs and could see a queue. AND THEN my personal moment of glory (well it felt something like that); I checked that everyone was in place and ready and signalled to the Met Staff to let the crowds in. The feeling that that moment gave me made the whole thing worthwhile for me, and just for that, I will willingly do it again.
Paul France
The ‘Neil Richardson Trophy’ has been awarded to the Stanley Arms (295 Liverpool Rd, Patricroft, Salford. M30 0QN Tel: 0161 788 8801, corner of Liverpool Rd and Eliza Ann St – opp. fire station) as an example of a traditional unspoilt pub. These days, such examples are getting scarcer year by year. This is a new award in its first year and is in memory of Neil Richardson, local publisher and editor of the then oldest CAMRA magazine for 30 years – ‘What’s Doing.’ Neil died, aged 58, in August 2006 after a short illness. He continues to be widely known for his contribution to the history of Salford pubs, as well as his contribution to local history, as publisher and printer: giving many people their first chance to see and sell their memories and work in print. In the current CAMRA Good Beer Guide, the Stanley Arms is listed as a traditional street corner pub, tenanted and tied to Holt’s brewery estate, serving quality Holts bitter and mild.
Dave Hallows
Manchester based Hydes Brewery; purveyor of high quality cask beers and lagers has this week launched the first beer in its innovative craft ale portfolio for 2008.
The 2008 Craft Ale range comprises six distinctive and flavoursome ales which are being produced under the headline ‘Creature Comforts from Hydes’ with each clip featuring members of the bird and animal kingdoms in different guises.
The first beer launching the series is Harem Scarem, featuring a magician’s rabbit. Harem Scarem is a copper coloured, moreish beer with a magical, full and slightly floral taste. It has an ABV of 4.7%.
This year’s range follows hot on the heels of the success of the music themed range of 2007 which ended with the release of Atomic in November and Rockin Robin in December.
All of the ales are fastidiously brewed to the same exacting standards in the Manchester Brewery using the choicest grades of hop and premium malts. Distributed throughout the country by national wholesalers, as well as throughout the Hydes pub estate, the beers are frequently listed by national Pub Groups.
David Safiruddin, Marketing Director at Hydes commented: “Hydes has built a great reputation for its quirky and unusual craft ales which seemed to have continuously captured the imagination of beer drinkers nationwide as our sales are still growing by more than 20% year on year. Enjoying fine Cask Beer in a pub or club has to be one of life’s greatest Creature Comforts, so it seemed perfect to use this as the theme for this year’s portfolio.”
The Hydes Craft Ale Portfolio for 2008 consists of the following:
Jan - Feb 2008 Harem Scarem ABV 4.7%
Mar - Apr 2008 Trojan Horse ABV 4.2%
May - Jun 2008 Eager Beaver ABV 4.4%
Jul - Aug 2008 Bells & Whistles ABV 4.1%
Sep - Oct 2008 Owd Bill ABV 4.5%
Nov - Dec 2008 Mumbo Jumbo ABV 4.9%
Established in 1863, Hydes Brewery, the Manchester Brewer is one of the few British regional breweries that is still owned and managed as a family business. With an estate of more than 80 Managed and Tenanted pubs across the North West, and a growing portfolio of own brewed beers and lagers, Hydes remains at the forefront of the industry.
For more information or images of pump clips contact Hydes press officer Emma James on 07931 318095
or email emma.james7@btinternet.com
or visit: www.hydesbrewery.com
Once upon a time, on a summer-like Saturday, two intrepid imbibing scholars decided to take on the challenge of the Valley of Beers. Not to be confused with the Valley of the Kings, this is actually the nickname given to Sheffield because of the propensity of real ale outlets. After enduring a rather crowded train journey, we were glad to disembark and march on to our first stop.
The Harlequin is an open plan Free House on Nursery Street. We were greeted by Dean Martin on the sound system and eight hand- pumps on the bar. A pint of Bradfield Farmers Blonde was enjoyed before a chip muffin put a lining on our stomachs. A very nice pub with the added USP of offering pheromone wipes in the toilets. Apparently, it’s the future.
A hop and a skip took us next to the Fat Cat on Alma Street. A lovely multi-roomed pub, built in the 1850s, it has been flying the flag for smaller breweries since the days when the big nationals dominated the local scene. Here we sampled some of the Kelham Island Best and had fun playing spot the Camra look-alikes with a visiting branch. A shiver went down our spine when we spotted the doppelganger of ROB’s very own flame haired vixen!
Reluctantly, we moved round the corner to the Kelham Island Tavern. This is the sister pub of the Fat Cat and provides an interesting contrast with its more modern, yet relaxing, interior. An excellent choice of 10 handpumps here. After ruling out the dubious (Owl), and the undrinkable (Boggart), we finally settled for Durham White Gold. This 4% golden delight was crisp and refreshing with a real citrus kick.
Our next stop would have been the Three Tuns, but as it didn’t open till 7 we had to make do with glumly peering through the windows. The beer range didn’t look too appealing anyway. Unfortunately, the next pub was a disappointment as well. The Museum is a former Hogshead in the shopping precinct. Underwhelming in appearance, the choice of only “Greede Kerching” beers soon had us scuttling to safety.
We called in at the Red Deer only to find most of the handpumps turned round. By now seriously in need of refreshment, we settled for a very acceptable pint of Banks. Our next stop took some finding, but it was worth it. Fagans is an old fashioned, cosy, backstreet boozer-except it’s on a main road. It was named after an ex licensee who was Tetleys longest serving landlord (38 years service), and it now sells Tetleys alongside Abbeydale Moonshine.
In order to reach the more far-flung pubs we still had to do, and keep to our schedule, we then decided to use the Supertram network. A short ride on this excellent service brought us to our next stop, the Hillsborough Hotel. This multi-roomed, hardwood floored, brewpub offered 8 beers, including several of its own. We tried the Crown Pale Ale which was, I felt, a little yeasty. Our next destination involved navigating some dark paths and a dual carriageway, but again it proved worthwhile.
The New Barrack Tavern offered 11 handpumps and had a great atmosphere. The Harvest Pale we tried here was on top form as well. Retracing our steps took us to the Wellington (aka The Cask & Cutler), yet another good pub with a central bar offering 8 beers. Donning our scooper mittens, we tried Millstone Baby Git, which like all their beers was very palatable.
It was time to get back nearer the station, but not before we tried the Bath Hotel. This National Inventory pub has two well appointed rooms to choose from and 3 guest beers. Sipping our Phoenix Rip Rap, we observed that, sadly, we were the only people drinking the real stuff. The group of lads that followed us in were all content to swill the usual national suspects whilst discussing their chances sexual congress that evening.
Pushing on further towards the station, we called in at the Devonshire Cat. Not surprisingly, it being a Saturday night, this modern café bar style pub was very busy. However, service was very good and the barmaid proved very knowledgeable about beer, helping us to choose from the 12 on offer.
Gulping down our Kelham Island Pale Rider, we headed for our final stop. Warren-like, the Red Lion is a comfortable street corner pub that offers a good range of real ales. We settled on Abbeydale Moonshine, but then couldn’t resist squeezing a Bradfield Blonde in for the finale. It seemed fitting as it had been our first beer of the day. Then it was a dash to catch the last direct train back to Manchester. Once there, and obviously suffering from train dehydration, we detoured to the Jolly Angler and rewarded ourselves with a pint of Hydes Bitter. Then there was just time to catch the tram back to Bury for a nightcap, but that’s a story for another time...
Alex Koval
Given that I have a bit more time on my hands these days and that my mate Graham, the Chairman of Furness Branch of CAMRA is spending more of his time in the Manchester area, we decided to see what can be done ale wise using a First Bus Saver.
The 17 bus was our first port of call, taking us to Rochdale from whence the First Calderdale bus would take us to Yorkshire (and back) all for £3.50. Alighting in Rochdale we found we had 40 minutes to wait for our next bus, so decided to take a stroll into town. We popped our heads into the centrally located and next door to the bus station Wetherspoon’s, the GBG listed Regal Moon, but decided that the beer choice on this occasion did not warrant a pint and so popped off to the Flying Horse Hotel. I made a mental note to check on the Regal Moon again, as the choice has seemed disappointing to me on my last few visits. The Flying Horse is an impressive GBG listed pub next to the Town Hall (equally impressive) and we settled for the Phoenix Flash Flood, a 4.1% bitter. It was, as usual, up to Tony Allen’s high standards, an excellent light and hoppy beer that deserved another half! Other beers available were Lees Bitter, Taylor’s Best and Landlord. This was my second visit there in a week and the Phoenix beers (Arizona last time) were exemplary on both visits.
Back to the bus station, we boarded the 528 to Halifax as we wanted to visit the nationally listed Three Pigeons and yes, we could use our £3.50 ticket to get there! Even better. We landed in Halifax and took a little walk around this extremely hilly town, finding the Three Pigeons at 2.30pm. Alas, it didn’t open till 3.30! Should have checked the GBG! Never mind, as we had passed a very interesting pub, The Pump Room, a free house, we back tracked and we were presented with a good looking (interior) traditional pub belying its modern looking exterior. With eleven beers available on hand pump, it’s not a bad place to wait and deserves a visit in its own right. Beers available included Daleside Blond, Copper Dragon Golden Pippin, Timmy Taylor’s Golden Best, Best Bitter and Landlord, Abbeydale Archangel, Moorhouse’s Black Cat Mild and Durham Blue Velvet. So, plenty to go at. We both settled on the Copper Dragon and on the basis that it was delicious, decided to have two of them each.
We whiled away the hour and then strolled up to the Three Pigeons, now open. This is an Ossett Brewery pub with four Ossett Beers and four others. We had an interesting look round this National Inventory Pub featured in the April 2007 “Beer” section of CAMRA’s What’s Brewing. It is immaculately restored inside with neat and attractive features. The distinct rooms all retain their original Art Deco glory and there is a miniature but perfectly formed domed ceiling to round it all off. It well deserves its National Inventory status. We were given a warm welcome too. On the beer front, I had some odd tasting Roosters, but this was cancelled out by some excellent Goose Eye which hit the spot for me. Meanwhile Graham went down the Ossett route and was well satisfied with his choice. The pleasant barmaid advised us that Ossett have now got 10 pubs including those of both Fernandez and Riverhead Breweries which they have recently taken over, though both continue to brew. After our couple of pints we then headed back for our bus calling at the Orange Tree (near the Bus Station). This was disappointing with Timmy Taylor’s Best being distinctly vinegary, though it was exchanged for slightly better stuff with good grace. We didn’t take Tommy’s advice and have the Drinker’s Delight Smooth (see picture) at 3.3% even though it was only 99p a pint! This obviously was not much of an attraction to the locals either, as we were the only customers in the place.
After this relative set-back we caught the faithful 528 back towards Rochdale and jumped off the bus at Sowerby Bridge. Two pubs in mind here and contrasting types they were too. Firstly The Works, a former joiner’s workshop that was very welcoming and warmed up no end by one very large open fire. We both thought it an excellent conversion to pub use. Beers were TT Golden Best, Best Bitter and Landlord and other guest beers including an Old Bear Brewery beer, Durham Magus. The beers were not so good however, a bit warm and thrashed to death by sparkling and poor condition. Disappointing for a GBG listed pub. Maybe we caught it on an off day as it was very busy.
Then just up the road to Puzzle Hall. This was an excellent pub, also in the GBG, with a very friendly landlord entertaining both the customers and his accountant at the same time! Beers here included Taylor’s Golden Best, Purity Gold, Northumberland Bucking Fastard, and Okell’s IPA amongst others. The aforementioned friendly (and very thin) landlord apologised that he hadn’t had more time to chat as we left. A great pub which is well deserving of its GBG entry.
Thence back on the trusty 528 to Rochdale and a transfer to the 17. I resisted the temptation to have more beer and went home very satisfied indeed. Graham being made of sterner stuff headed off “home” to Manchester, calling at the Lamp Oil (Eagle Inn) Salford for a couple of relaxing pints of Joey Holt’s Bitter. A great day out with interesting pubs and beers, all for £3.50 bus fare. We were greeted in every pub in a very friendly fashion indeed, which to be frank makes for a very pleasant change. Not a single dour Yorkshireman was encountered. So much for that stereotype!
Peter Alexander
Had an enjoyable Friday afternoon/evening doing a few of the pubs in Chorlton after taking up Tony Allen’s advice, who had also done a tour there the previous Saturday.
Chorlton is becoming a bit more upmarket following in the footsteps of Didsbury. Some rather trendy bars and restaurants are popping up, centred on Wilbraham Road, Barlow Moor Road/Manchester Road.
1. BAR Phoenix Flash Flood & White Monk Pictish Brewers Gold, Marble Ginger & Manchester Bitter.
2. DULCIMER Skinners,Thwaites Bomber &Shuttle, Otter Claus.
3. SEDGE LYNN This is a Wetherspoons with the usual offerings plus maybe two others and one or two coming soon! – Usual service i.e. poor, but still worth a visit as the inside is quite interesting being a former snooker hall.
4. MARBLE 5 Marble beers plus Abbeydale Archangel, Southport Golden Sands
5. PI Bazens Flatbac, Banktop Flat Cap Sold some cracking pies in here although a bit on the expensive side for a pie (£4!).
6. HILLARY STEPS This is further up the road on Upper Chorlton Road, but I’m afraid I didn’t make it to this one, however Tony reckons it’s well worth a visit. The area is well served by public transport from Manchester (No 86 & others).
All in all a good crawl, not too far to walk and all the beers were on good form.
Peter Boden
In November last, my mate Stuart and I took advantage of an exceptional offer from train operator GNER and bought return tickets from York to Inverness for £10. Tuesday lunchtime was spent sampling the beers and generous portions of food at the Maltings in York before we caught the daily through train to Inverness, where we arrived at 20.07. That evening we took the 25 minute walk to the cosy Clachnaharry Inn, with its log fires. Here we sampled Atlas Three Sisters and Elgoods Black Shuck and picked up a copy of the excel- lent local CAMRA magazine, which contained a comprehensive list of real ale outlets in the Highlands. We returned to the city centre and visited the Castle Tavern. This pub overlooks the River Ness and featured a small but well polished interior. Beers available were Highland Dark Munro, Houston Spellbinder and Belhaven 90/-. The Belhaven was good value at £3 for an 8% beer (typical price for bitter in the area was £2.60 - 2.80).
On Wednesday, we caught the train along the scenic line to Kyle of Lochalsh, alighting at Plockton. During our stay here we visited the Plockton Inn, where the only beer was Fullers London Pride, albeit cheaper than London prices at £2.30 a pint. The Plockton beer delivered the previous week had sold out, so we were delighted to find that brewery’s Dall Winter Sunshine, together with Isle of Skye Hebridean Gold in the Plockton Hotel. The hotel featured another gleaming interior and the Hebridean Gold turned out to be my beer of the day. We did a slight detour on our return to the station to have a look at the Plockton brewery. On returning to Inverness we tried the Hootenanny, a live music venue, (Black Isle Heather Honey Beer) and the Phoenix, with its island bar and rather gloomy interior (Hebridean Islander Strong Premium Ale). We later caught the bus to Rosemarkie (£4 for a 30 mile round trip), where the Plough was a welcome refuge from the driving rain. We sampled pints of the only beer available on the night - An Teallach Ale. The night was rounded off in the Blackfriars, back in Inverness. There was only one customer in this basic local on our arrival - hopefully they saw more trade on the five nights a week when activities were advertised. Beers tried here were An Teallach Beinn Dearg, Caledonian XPA and Hebridean Berserker.
Overall, we were pleased with the availability of decent real ale in the area. In our short stay we had beer from 6 of the 12 Highland breweries, together with other Scottish and English beers. We were impressed with the newsletter (“What’s Yours Then?”) and the activities of the local CAMRA branch detailed in its pages. We had to return south at 07.55 on Thursday, but this gave us time for a leisurely tour of York pubs during the afternoon. A new outlet for me was the Brigantes Bar, which featured 8 real ales, all from Yorkshire breweries.
Graham Chinn