Press Releases

Industry experts will gather at the Manchester Beer Festival trade day to debate how the beer industry should combat discrimination.

Taking place between 6:30 pm and 7:30 pm on 24 January at Manchester Central, the panel discussion “Sexism is bad for business. What are we going to do about it?” aims to address the ongoing issues and challenges of sexism in the beer industry and determine what practical steps can be taken to address it. It follows hot on the heels of the festival’s decision to filter out beers with sexist names or discriminatory images and CAMRA publicly condemning sexism and discrimination in the industry.

Master Beer Trainer Christine Cryne will lead the debate with the following panelists on board:

• Jaega Wise, Head Brewer of Wild Card Brewery, who has recently made headlines for her comments on sexist beer labelling
• Annabel Smith, beer sommelier and founder of Dea Latis, an organisation that aims to bring beer to more women
• Barry Shaw, operations manager for Beerhouse’s pub chain which includes six pubs
• Jennifer Smith, co-owner and founder of Brewsmith Beer, a ten-barrel brewery
• Katie Wiles, CAMRA’s senior communications manager and beer blogger at wilesaboutbeer.com

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Fans of cider and perry are in for a treat this month as the North’s biggest beer and cider festival opens in Manchester.

A staggering 77 ciders and 26 perrys picked from 63 different producers are set to pip last year’s record-breaking choice. Organisers of the Manchester Beer and Cider Festival have a reputation for showcasing the best from traditional cider and perry producing regions alongside the developing northern scene. And for this year they travelled to the far south west to curate a selection of Cornish ciders from small producers.

The fermented fruit drinks have enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in recent years. Real cider and perry are traditional products made naturally from selected varieties of apples and pears; a world away from the industrially-produced cheap namesakes.

The natural yeasts from freshly-pressed apples or pears ferments the juices, producing alcohol and CO2 and are matured in barrels before being released to enjoy. Real cider and perry are never carbonated or pasteurised, a status they share with real ale.

Cider and perry bar manager Mike Robinson said: “Devon, Somerset and Herefordshire are usually regarded as the core area for production, but Cornwall has a thriving scene. This year we are offering half a dozen from the county – topping the list is the Cornish Supreme Champion Cider, Touchwood Medium Cider from Mithian near St Agnes. I believe this is the first time these six have been on sale in the North.

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Leading beer experts to conduct tutored tastings in Manchester

Real ale lovers enjoy the taste of their favourite drink, but do they know why? Now help is at hand as the North’s biggest beer festival is set to show next month just how diverse and complex beer is.

Building on last year’s sell-out tasting sessions, Manchester Beer and Cider Festival will give drinkers the chance to hear from three of the country’s leading beer experts. They will be running tutored tastings, suitably accompanied by generous samples of some of the 600+ ales on offer.

Christine Cryne, John Clarke and Sally Lavender will be talking about some of their favourite beer styles, showcasing the breadth of taste and history of real ale in the UK and further afield. All three have gathered reputations as entertaining writers and presenters and their combined expertise will be available to selected audiences on each of the three days the festival opens to the public. Their subjects will range from the dark arts of milds, porters and stouts, the mystique of Belgian Abbey and Trappist beers and how beer can best be matched with cheese. (more…)

31st July 2017

For immediate release:

Tickets on sale 1st August 2017 for the big one – Manchester Beer & Cider Festival 2018

Lovers of the brewers’ art are poised to snap up guaranteed admission to the North’s biggest celebration of beer & cider. Advance tickets for all days of the Manchester Beer and Cider Festival are on sale from 1st August through the festival’s website. Organised by the Greater Manchester branches of the Campaign For Real Ale (CAMRA), the event returns to Manchester Central from Thursday 25^th to Saturday 27^st January 2018.

The festival attracts visitors from all over the world to Manchester, recently crowned cask beer capital of Britain. They pour through the doors to sample some of the very best beers and ciders from the UK’s booming brewing & cider making industries. Foreign beer fans are well catered for with an excellent selection from Europe and further afield.

The 2017 festival featured over 750 different beers and ciders, and drinkers obliged by downing over 62,000 pints. A change of catering proved a huge success, with some of the best local and national street food traders providing a choice of hot and cold food. Organisers are planning to exceed the 13,588 visitors and expect ticket demand to be high for the 2018 event.

Plans are in hand to enhance festival-goers’ experience with a series of tutored tastings run by acknowledged beer experts. As well as a CAMRA membership stand, there will be stalls selling beer memorabilia, books and a selection of traditional pub games to enjoy.

Festival Organiser Graham Donning said “We’re delighted to make Manchester Central our home once again. Each year, we review feedback from visitors to make the next one even better, so we will have some improvements to make drinkers more comfortable. They like the Manchester Central venue that has vast numbers of seats and more space to move around. (more…)