There’s nothing like a spot of good news, and a new beer festival in Leeds can only be a good addition of the cities beer scene.

A day of bands, beer and sunshine (the latter not guaranteed) in Leeds’ eclectic Hyde Park is on paper, a bloomin’ brilliant idea. Take local musicians, regional breweries and pop them down into a stunning brand new arts centre within the former St Margaret of Antioch Church, and voilá!  On top of that potential the festival aims to raise money for West Yorkshire charity Village to Village, helping development projects in Africa.

I’ll be nipping by before and/or after the crunch match with MK Dons at Elland Rd. I’ll stick to Bovril at half time to save myself for some samples of these beers (which may or may not include a gallon-sized taster* of St Petersburg, mmmmmm). Read the rest of this entry »

Just got back from an ear-pounded evening at The Cockpit in Leeds. The main attraction was to see Dan Le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip who introduced us to their new album and a host of old favourites in the infamous ear-destroying arches of one of Leeds’ most popular music venues.

Norman Bar, or Norman's as it's more commonly known. Pic (c) Briggate.com

Before the gig we headed to Norman’s for tea. Norman Bar is often overlooked as an establishment to enjoy fancy beer but its elitist and trendy weekend image belies it’s self-proclaimed internationally stocked beer fridges. Goose Island IPA, Anchor Steam, Modelo Negra, Black Sheep and Pilsner Urquell are complimented by a draught line up including Duvel Green, Lindeboom and Addlestone’s cider. It’s also set in a contemporary and atmospheric space, lit with shades of purple and blue that fall just the right side of pretension. The oriental menu serving Japanese noodles and Thai red and green curries are dishes to be reckoned with and at £5.50 for a pint and a spicy filler are great value on a midweek lunch Read the rest of this entry »

Leeds Beer, Cider and Perry Festival. Image copyright of Leeds CAMRA

It nearly sneaked past us again this year, but Leeds Beer, Cider & Perry Festival starts today and is well worth a visit. It doesn’t seem to get much in the way of promotion and it’s not located in the city centre, but the festival is showcasing a whopping range of beer this year.

Beer lovers can fight their way through 150 real ales ‘from Yorkshire and beyond’ and the ‘best range in the North’ for cider and perry. There’s also a beer cum ice cream parlour to get us in a summery mood despite the bitter wind still encircling Bridgewater Place and a Global Beer Bar stocked to the rafters with fancy bottles from all four corners of the globe Read the rest of this entry »

Horsforth Beer Festival

Horsforth Beer Festival, North Leeds

Jam-packed with Yorkshire beer, Horsforth plays host to its annual beer festival this weekend and some of the pints you’ll find probably haven’t even left God’s Own County to get to your (half) pint glass. Local beers include:

• Great Heck ’Slaughterhouse Porter’
• Hambleton Ales ‘Cheeky Mare’ and ‘Stallion’
• Little Valley ‘Python IPA’
• Ilkley Brewing Co ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’ & ‘Ugly Duckling’

Prizes for the most memorably weird and wonderful beer (and brewery) names go to:

• Dicky Ticker Brewery
• Leadmill Brewery’s ‘Old Mottled Cock’
• Bazen’s ‘Zebra Best’
• Blue Monkey’s ’99 Red Babboons’
• Millstone Brewery’s ‘Tiger Rut’
• Nutbrook Brewery’s ’Cow Juice’
• Old Spot’s ‘Dog in the Barrel’

The Hop, live music and real ale pub opening in Leeds this March

Wakefield’s finest are coming to Leeds in the guise of The Hop, the live music and real ale venue of Ossett Brewery’s pub armada. Situated in the Granary Wharf area of Leeds overlooking the reinvigorated quayside, The Hop will sit under two of the previously disused railway arches that are tucked away between the confluence of the Leeds-Liverpool canal and the River Aire. Read the rest of this entry »

I was out for a drink recently and dived into Calls Landing Stew & Oyster Kitchen for a bit of respite from the biting cold whilst walking between Brewery Wharf and the City Centre. I was looking for a bit of warmth and some beer but I found quite a bit more. The place is quite small but on a cold night this meant that it was offering a very cosy feeling however, with large windows and balconies over the River Aire I would imagine it is equally an un-claustraphobic spot in the summer.

The menu offers seasonal stews using locally sourced produce, a large bowl with crusty bread being £5.50, Bruschetta, Anti pastas (including a Cheese Board or cold Meat Selection). Obviously Oysters were available, £1.50 for a single portion. There were also sweets and hot drinks available but in the main the menu was short and fairly uncomplicated. I cannot imagine Gordon Ramsey coming in and levelling his favourite ‘pretentious’ allegations at this menu. In a rather innovative twist you can also get a pot of stew and some chunky bread to take away for four quid, which I think is rather a bargain, and 5.50 to sit in doesn’t seem too bad either.  can’t vouch for the quality of the food but hope to be able to shortly, if anyone reading has eaten here please add comments and let me know how the food is.

Turning to the beers their are currently three cask ales available, Theakstons, Deuchars IPA and Mr Scrooge which I assume is a guest left over from the Christmas period. Amstell, Sagres, Guiness, Leifmans Fruit Beer and Bulmers were all also available by the pint. Turning to the fridge bottles of Broolyn EIPA, Vedette, Duval and Aspall’s Cider. Basically the selection is now what ‘beeries’ are increasingly able to expect from decent mainstream bars in Leeds. Very reminiscent of the selection available at Baby Jupiter Bar but in a very different setting. Personally I think that this shows an continuing trend towards different types of bar looking to stock a greater variety of beers that was once merely the preserve of North Bar.

Brewdog Tactical Nuclear Penguin - the world's strongest beer

BrewDog Tactical Nuclear Penguin Tasting at North Bar, Leeds

One of the best things I’ve found about living in Leeds, or a larger city for that matter, is the variety of events that take place that you don’t always find in less adventurous urban areas (maybe I was just brought up in a particularly boring town?!).

Zak with the Penguin

In the three years I’ve made Yorkshire’s modern capital my home, I’ve enjoyed Leeds International Film Festival, the West Indian Carnival, the Christkindelmarkt, a couple of League One Play Off Semi Finals and (less fortunately) a huge Robbie Williams concert at Roundhay Park (don’t ask) and countless other dates in the diary that are a feature of dwelling in a cosmopolitan city.

As well as these large scale events it’s actually the smaller opportunities that appeal to me most: being able to see Almodovar films in the ancent Hyde Park Picture house, attending a Flying Dog beer and food evening and the chance to see actual rock stars whilst playing 5-a-side (if you classify relatively obscure post-rock bands as rock stars!).

So when Zak Avery asked me if I’d like to take part in a live video tasting of the newly released and lavishly expensive Tactical Nuclear Penguin by BrewDog, the strongest beer in the world, not only did I jump at the chance but I carved another notch on my list of reasons to live in Leeds… Read the rest of this entry »

It seems so simple, this-setting-up-a-brewery lark.

Walking around the compact, but seemingly organised Leeds Brewery with co-founder Sam Moss, it’s easy to forget that the business has only been in existence for a touch over two years.

Situated on a light industrial estate not far from Leeds’ bustling centre, the brewery is the hub of an expanding local empire that now stretches to three pubs across the town centre as well as the modern and compact Leeds Brewery HQ. The team produces three permanent beers and twelve seasonal beers; one for each calendar month. The beers are on sale across the country and also in Leeds brewery’s three self-owned pubs in Leeds city centre.

The Leeds Brewery team

Being Leeds residents and big fans of the beers that the brewery makes, we jumped at the chance to take a day off work and visit our very own local brewers. Upon arrival the other half of the management, Michael Brothwell, was busy making an emergency keg delivery in the back of his Ford Fiesta, so it was down to Sam to take us round the modern set up… Read the rest of this entry »

Anyone who wants to find me on a Thursday night will do so in leed’s Baby Jupiter Bar on York Place after 10. It’s a small basement establishment and, despite it being loud when there’s live music on, we find it really relaxing for a beer after hockey training. The beer selection matches the surroundings in that it is quite limited but of a pleasing standard. Leeds Best on draught or from the fridge, Sagres on tap spreading north as I suggested it might earlier in the year, Zatec, Modelo, Duvel, Old Peculiar and Vedette.

Pac Man and Zatec @ Baby Jupiter

They do simple bar food over lunch and early evening and have selected live music. In keeping with a smaller bar the bar staff are friendly and personable and it’s always a bonus to have good service to go along with good beers.

Our favourite selection from the fridge is a nice cold bottle of the Czech Zatec (pronounced Jhatets). It’s a sweet, hoppy lager with natural honey aromas and a low carbonisation which combines with the sweetness to give a syrupy effect. The label touts the purity of the water used in the brewing process as a key component, a fact bourne out by the crispness of the flavours, and a reminder to all beer fans just how important the H2 O is in the whole brewing equation.

The final triumph of this beer is the natural honey aroma left in the empty glass. It is no wonder that it was included in the 50 top beers as listed by the Independent last month.

These were the second and third Nicholsons Pubs we visited on our day out. Both followed the same theme of the Nicholsons brand, a traditional style pub with a good range of real ales on offer. The format is the same up and down the country as we can see in Leeds’ own Victoria and Commercial and Scarborough Hotels.

I’ll cut straight to the chase…..the beers on offer were…

The White Lion, Covent Garden –

Black Sheep Brewery – Golden Sheep – darker in appearance than I expected from the ‘golden’ cousin of the Black Sheep. The beer was remarkably smooth, not in a London Pride ‘I could drink this all day’ manner, but a fuller more satisfying way.

Shepherd Neame – Late red – a promising fruity nose is borne out in the initial flavour. This fruitiness falls away to a nutty aftertaste that lingers in the mouth.

Morrisey Fox – Brunette – slightly acidic and sharp in the first instance, there is some fruity flirtation but ultimately it fails to deliver in full.

Timothy Taylor Landlord

Fullers London Pride

The Three Greyhounds, Soho(ish) –

Daleside – Autumn Leaves – the flavour delivers what the name promises with a smoky, dark fruit flavour lingering through to a distinct note of Raspberry.

Abbot Ale – a strong punchy English wake-up call to the taste buds. Darker and stronger than anything else I’d tasted on the day