Visit the a swift one site

Food for thought.

Late last month I was summoned to a beer festival for a meeting about ale.
Reluctantly, (I was an hour early!) I answered the call and appeared at The Junction's Woodfest in Castleford to discuss another event, May's East vs West Fest.
As far as I recall this 'planning meeting' involved some very nice beers in the wood (dark beers from Tiger Tops and Cheshire Brewhouse were standout for me) a lot of crisps and me being politely told by the boss to pull my finger out with the publicity.
So here it is. East vs West Fest will be at The Red Shed in central Wakefield from May 12-14 (but there is also talk of extending it one day to tie in with the final day of the Premier League season).
It will feature breweries from the Manchester area and a series of collaborations between organiser Five Towns Brewery and Yorkshire breweries.
From the West, via some ale networking from Beers Manchester, we have Alphabet Brewing Company, Beer Nouveau, Track Brewing Company, TicketyBrew, Squawk, Runaway, Blackjack, First Chop and Carbon Smith.
From the East there have been three collaborations so far.
The first was at North Riding, of Scarborough, and there have been rave reviews about the outcome: Rum & Raisin Dark Mild, 4.3%. It sold out before it was even brewed but the duo behind it are pledging to re-brew it soon following some great feedback from pubs and drinkers.
The second was at Rat Brewery in Huddersfield in March when Rat Out, a 5.8% hoppy rye IPA, was created. We've heard good reports of that beer too and you can read all about it on the Beers Manchester blog by clicking here.
The latest has been with Caphouse Brewery and I hope to bring you the details about that beer and more collaborations shortly. Watch this space.
Collaboration between North Riding & Five Towns breweries.
Image courtesy of The New Bridge, Newcastle Upon Tyne.



More...