BEER FESTIVALS IN 2019

Nicholson’s

Beer Showcase is returning for its 3rd year. Choose from over 40 seasonal and showcase beers. Watch this space for more details…

The Barley Mow (Westminster, London)

The Barley Mow, Westminster will be running a London-brewed ale week during Cask Ale Week, rotating 20 different locally brewed ales over the 11 days.

York Beer Festival (York)

York Beer Festival running from Wednesday, 18th September to Saturday, 21st September, are celebrating Cask Ale Week with more than over 500 beers and ciders available to try.

To purchase tickets, visit: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/york-beer-cider-festival-2019-tickets-64160464677.  

St Albans Beer & Cider Festival

South Herts branch of CAMRA have organised the St Albans Beer & Cider Festival as part of Cask Ale Week.

Running from Wednesday, September 25th to Saturday, September 28th, up to 450 different beers will be on sale across the 10 bars at the festival. Up to 50 real ciders and perries from small cider makers from across the country will also be available, as well as no/low-alcohol beers, vegan beers, and gluten free beers.

Live music, headlined by award-winning singer-songwriter Kyla Brox Band, will keep festival-goers entertained throughout, while there will also be a learning and development stand – stationed by brewers and beer aficionados keen to provide samples and information about various beer styles and ingredients used to make beer.

A fabulous festival of food will also feature during the event.

Oakham Ales (Peterborough)

Oakham Ales are participating in five beer festivals during Cask Ale Week, including St Albans Beer & Cider festival – where they’ll be taking 17 cask and 2 keg beers!

The Wakefield Festival of Beer (West Yorkshire)

The Wakfield Festival of Beer is being held from Thursday, 19th September to Saturday, 21st September. The festival will include over 130 different beers and ciders from over 40 breweries, including Wakefield Beer’s very own collaboration beer ‘daylight rhubarbary’ with Truth Hurts Brewing Company.

An Oktoberfest theme is set for the Friday, with live music and amazing raffle prizes and giveaways also available.

All proceeds go to local causes including: The Rory Foundation, Wells Academy, Thinking Forward 4 Mental Health. For more information, visit: http://www.wakefieldfestivalofbeer.co.uk/charities.html and for tickets, visit: http://www.wakefieldfestivalofbeer.co.uk/buy.html

Wigan Beer Week

To celebrate Cask Marque’s National Cask Ale Week, Wigan CAMRA decided to host the inaugural Wigan Beer Week (WBW) with a strapline of ‘everything beer, everything Wigan’. No fewer than 16 venues are taking part in WBW.

As you would expect, beer is the centrepiece of WBW and celebrated with a series of beer festivals, tap takeovers, brewery open days and meet the brewer events.

See below for some of the more unusual events during WBW: –

Art in a Brewery: Prospect Brewery turned into an Art Gallery for the duration of WBW showcasing works from three local artists, including the Guardian Landscape Photographer of the Year (Pete Rowbottom).

Beer Bus: A vintage bus, operated by Wigan Transport Trust, running on both Saturday’s of WBW to link with events and pubs outside of the town centre.

Beer Yoga: Wigan Central host a Beer and Yoga night. The ultimate way to chill out whilst enjoying a beer?

Pub Heritage Night (and festival of heritage beers): The Swan and Railway pub in Wigan has just been painstakingly restored to its Victorian splendour by a private individual, John Brearley. John provided a tour and talk about the pub’s rich heritage whilst the pub hosted a festival of heritage beers. Draught Bass is the ‘house beer’.

Beer from the Wood: in keeping with heritage theme, Prospect Brewery bar served a beer direct from a wooden barrel. The beer was ‘Tarn Hows – Blueberry and Vanilla Oatmeal Stout’, recently crowned CAMRA North West Champion Speciality Beer. The only wooden cask available from the current batch.

Collaboration beers: Wigan Brewhouse invited a group of local homebrewers to collaborate in making a new beer for WBW. Hophurst Brewery also collaborated with two local pubs in making a new beer for WBW.

Beer and Pie Festival: Pies are synonymous with Wigan. Wigan folk are known as ‘pie-eaters’ and the town hosts the annual ‘World Pie Eating Championships. As such, the Raven Hotel celebrated the humble pie by providing a range of ale-infused pies, with beers to match, during WBW.

Wigan themed Quiz Nights: Wigan Central and the Royal Oak pubs are hosting a Wigan-themed quiz night during WBW.

Tipsy 10k – whilst not strictly part of WBW, a few people did participate in a Tipsy 10k on the first Saturday of WBW. A 10k run/jog/walk calling for a drink at no fewer than 8 pubs en-route, most of which are in CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide 2020. It’s probably not surprising that most people chose less strenuous activities.

For more about Wigan Beer Week, see www.wiganbeerweek.org.uk.