It’s been a pretty hectic year so far for The Dead Crafty Beer Company and indeed, Liverpool in general as it seeks to push forward its reputation as a city mentioned in the same breath as some others when it comes to beer and brewing. One such organisation with this promotion and development at the forefront of what they are driving to do, is the Liverpool Beer Collective. Now for a quick disclaimer; I am part of this collective in so much that I really want to make a positive contribution to a scene which was for so many years, desperately barren and devoid of diversity, so I won’t wax lyrical too much on how positive I think this initiative is (I wouldn’t be involved if I didn’t think that). The Liverpool Beer Collective has been running a pretty visible social media campaign for a while now and is dedicated to promoting a number of breweries, bars and bottle shops across the region in order to provide some joined up thinking and provide for a healthy, vibrant and diverse scene in the city. Things are looking quite fertile in Liverpool at the moment; there are no fewer than another five breweries popping up lately in addition to the five or six covered around this time last year (Neptune, Parker, Red Star, Rock the Boat and 3 Potts – Black Lodge also opened up around this time, also followed by Southport’s The Craft Brewery). There have been a few extra micropubs (Beer Station, CASK, The Alehouse, Grasshopper and Skew Bridge to name a few) and bars (Hard Times and Misery, plus Dead Crafty only opened its doors in March 2016) popping up across the region with the remit to sell cask and craft beers (and small batch spirits) giving people an even more diverse number of establishments to spend their time. Back to Dead Crafty and on the weekend of the 9th until the 11th September, a local tap takeover was held – half the keg lines in the bar were stocked with beers from Liverpool Beer Collective partner breweries and there was the introduction of a loyalty card for prizes donated by members of the Beer Collective along with a tasty 10% discount in the Crosby Beer Bottle Shop for completed cards (think like those coffee cards you get at places around the city). Judging by the turnouts, the event was pretty successful. Both Dead Crafty and the Ship and Mitre shifted kegs and casks of local beers quite quickly (one firkin of a Connoisseur Ales’ Pale lasted no more than 7 hours from being tapped), with plenty of enthusiasm on the day for the takeover event from visitors. The enthusiasm spilled over for the tasting and meet the brewer events that took place as part of the weekend too, with Connoisseur Ales kicking things off on Friday evening in the Ship and Mitre, followed by new kids on the block Top Rope Brewing and Moonsugar Brewing. The events section was rounded off by Mad Hatter Brewing presenting tasters of their coffee IPA and the Wild Night Out (Elderflower) on Sunday afternoon. The talks from Top Rope and Moonsugar were particularly noteworthy, as both breweries are yet to formally release anything officially. There have been tastings at brewing clubs, but nothing to the general public on this scale and both breweries did themselves proud – the quality of their beers was nothing short of astonishing. If they can replicate what they presented at this event in future via keg, cask or bottle, they should be absolutely fine. Top Rope presented the following beers; Orange Soda Gose, Overkill IPA (a tip of the hat to the late Lemmy from Motorhead), Ryecentennial Brown and 8-Bit Pale Ale. A nice rounded and diverse portfolio, with the Gose being a very refreshing and interesting take on the style and the Ryecentennial being a very fine brown ale with tonnes of character. Moonsugar brought along their IPA, Stout and notably, some rather excellent Mead, which is definitely setting them apart from other outfits in the region. Both talks were informative and bode well for two potentially brilliant additions to the Liverpool scene and with any luck, the beers, braggot and mead will filter out from the city and find the rest of the UK (and hopefully beyond). Going forward there is the possibility of more events along the same template as this tap takeover, but the best way to find out is to keep an eye on the Twitter and Facebook feeds which have both been very well managed (so not by me, then).
What would you like to see from the Liverpool Beer Collective and Liverpool’s bars, brewers and bottle shops over the coming months? Cheers, Pedro. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Liverpool Beer Collective Email: [email protected] Twitter: https://twitter.com/LivBeerCo Facebook: www.facebook.com/liverpoolbeercollective
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Another month, another 8 beers. Hopefully you’ll have all had a go at breaking the barbecue out at some point over the last few months, as we (despite the awful patches in July and August) have had some pretty warm and dry weather – perfect for selecting a few lighter and fruitier beers to wash down some burgers, kebabs or whatever floats your charred boat. As ever, there’s a spread of beers from across the region and a focus on some lighter, more hoppy beers with a slant to picking up on refreshment. We have a couple from Mad Hatter and a decent selection of beers picked up from 23 Club’s basement beer shop. Go forth, seek and indeed, enjoy!
Until next time take it easy - drop me a retweet or a share on Facebook using the buttons below if you enjoyed the read! Cheers!! Pedro. ------------------------------- 02-09-2016 - Article Edited to correct name of Mad Hatter Brewing Beer 'Te Punca' to 'Te Punga'. There has been a slight shift in things lately, or more accurately a changing of the guard in the streets of Liverpool for those in search of positive gustation experiences, especially for those who are feeling rather exploratory about beer. The end of October saw the shutter finally roll down on the Mad Hatter Brewing Company Brew Tap, although that is not likely to be the end of the tea parties. A change of usage in the Watkinson Street building meant a move for the Brew Tap, in turn meaning no usual weekend frivolities will be taking place. There are plans for one off events at the new premises, so all those feeling rather down in the mouth would be advised to keep their ears to the ground and an eye on the website, especially since the recruitment of Paul Spraget from Weird Beard Brewery will mean something new and exciting has already begun brewing. The send-off weekend for the Brew Tap was typically boisterous, featuring small pop up food stalls and the provision of cakes from Liverpool Cake Company. A sad loss, but not one forever, thankfully. Another new bar on the scene, although with experienced hands at the bar is the Pen Factory, located on Hope Street between The Clove Hitch and the recently architecturally acclaimed Everyman Theatre. Those who were familiar with the previous incarnation of the Everyman’s below street-level bistro will know of Paddy Byrne, who has spent some time getting the new premises for the Pen Factory ready before the holiday period. Thankfully I managed to get a glimpse of the premises, due to open on Wednesday 5th December 2014 and there is a treat in store for those who enjoying the slight bohemian ambience of the previous bistro. There is much more light at the Pen Factory and Paddy stated that he had looked to divide the premises into three areas, a ‘snug’ nearest to Hope Street, followed by a ‘social’ area near the bar and finally the more table orientated dining area nearest to the kitchen. Each has it’s own charms and level of comfort. The beers on offer will be in a vein similar to that of the old theatre bistro; casks bolstered by the presence of some kegged continental beers, the former whilst benefiting from no brewery ties will include the likes of Tiny Rebel, Salopian and Liverpool Craft whilst kegs come from two styles of Krombacher amongst others. The food will very much be in the hands of the former head chef from the bistro too, Tom Gill, taking in salads and smaller dishes earlier in the day, whilst the evening may see a more formal menu being served to the clientele. The launch has been put back before, but a soft-launch is planned, to allow the venue to find its feet. So whilst it is rather exciting, let’s be gentle, eh? In another more restorative slant, the Jacaranda has re-opened its doors on Slater Street and boasts a number of world and craft beers. The space in the Jacaranda feels much more open and airy than in its previous incarnation, white walls along with the dark wood inside make for a much less oppressive but slightly colder feel. The beer selection is actually quite reasonable, whilst not pulling up any trees, the fridge holds Neck Oil, Gamma Ray and 8-Ball from Beavertown, Kona Longboard and Moritz in cans plus Paulaner Hells alongside kegged IPAs, some standard Lagers and space for two cask hand-pull pumps. Up the road from Slater Street, Brewdog has finally landed in Liverpool to much fanfare; including a toasting with Punk IPA from the manager on the opening night and a welcome appearance from Sarah Warman (who has made a few appearances in lieu of Rebecca Seal on Sunday morning brunch to talk about various styles of beers, how to match them and generally drum up interest for those who need reconciling that it isn’t as sophisticated as wine in that department). The new premises on Colquitt Street have been a while coming, with planning roadblocks from both the short-sighted City Council and the ill-informed local constabulary being thrown in the path of the Scotland based beer-juggernaut. Happily though, these obstacles were not insurmountable and the bar is now open and not full of drunken, fighting morons, as we knew it would be. The layout is spacious and pleasing inside Brewdog Liverpool; two large container units form the back-stage of the bar area (one of which is temperature controlled and used as the keg cellar) and there is a vast array of beer in a number of styles which should keep the most curious of drinkers happy. Seating really isn’t much of an issue in the establishment; with a single long breakfast bar style table near to the bar, smaller cabaret style tables near the windows and a number of booths present at the periphery, there should be no nursing of a drink whilst standing. Another rather cute addition is the area provided for old ‘vintage’ arcade games, with pin-ball, Star Wars, a 60-game console and Silent Scope all present for your entertainment should a change of pace be wanted. The addition of three further venues opening in November and December in Diablo’s (another American style dive possibly, with sports/pool/beers and dirty food) on Berry Street, Kabinett on Myrtle Street and Patterson’s on Gradwell Street (a ‘chicken shack by day and a bar by night’ no less), may give another two options for places to eat and drink, depending on how dedicated they both are in terms of their menu and beer menus. A quick visit to Patterson’s was alas only that, a fridge of average stock (Sol, Heineken and Budweiser with Beck Vier on keg were the low points and the only high point was the presence of Einstok White; the ONLY high point). The bar itself is great, very colourful graffiti murals adorn the walls, comfortable seating, reasonably priced food (chicken mostly) and reclaimed wood tables and bar all make for quite a pleasant environment. Alas, we’re not really in a shortage for the American diners sprouting up everywhere. The potential is there, plus with the Kazimier Garden already providing a reason to visit that area of the city centre, footfall from Liverpool One up through town may benefit these venues. Kabinett does provide something genuinely alternative, rumour has it that the plan is cheese and wine, something which is welcome as a change of pace and leaves the venue right in the thick of the new excitement discussed above. Near to Concert Square (hear me out…) the presence of the Grove Beer Tap and Grill at the back of Concert Square has met with a generally positive reception, although a pretty stringent closing time policy means things are wrapped up curtly at 11pm on a Saturday evening; stragglers need not apply. The bar itself is very open, with smaller seating arrangements scattered around the periphery and an impressive central swathe of wood panelled bench seating that reaches up to the high ceilings, but the impressive edge really is the outside beer garden area with large boulders, barrels and plenty of space for a warm summer evening. The food was excellent on the occasion of our visit, not only from a preparation point of view (as you can see from the photos) but from the pricing (which admittedly I don’t dwell on too much in most of my reviews) which is more than reasonable. Sadly I wasn’t prepared for a full review but as a side note, whilst writing up this article, I could happily have a helping of the smoked fish and chips again. The beer selection is very solid, mostly composed of American craft keg beer, with a respectable line up in the bottle fridge. Liverpool Craft Brewing Company and Rothaus are present on keg and in bottles along with beers from Portland, Flying Dog, Anchor Steam and Brooklyn, giving plenty of choice for some refreshing IPAs, stouts and some seasonal offerings. Exciting times, but let’s not forget the other excellent venues we possess in the ‘Cultural Quarter’ and along Dale Street which have provided good food, broad choice of, well selected and looked after beers. They deserve the continued support, even in healthier times!
Cheers! Pedro. Cometh the hour, cometh the err… Brewery? Gathering around twenty people to a secret location in Liverpool city centre for some blind tasting of some great bottle beers was some time in the making; thankfully the event came off rather well. The selection of the beers was made, some weeks before the event with the intention of contrasting the styles on show and putting some local breweries head to head with some others from further afield with some fairly weighty reputations behind them. The styles of beer were selected to give each brewery a chance to shine within 3 categories. The first up for tasting was a Pale style beer, be it English, American or Wit style, being lighter on hopping and lighter generally in alcohol compared to the following categories (so as not to cloud the attendee’s palate too much). The second style of beer was the IPA category (for the uninitiated readers, this acronym usually means India Pale Ale or in some cases Imperial Pale Ale, the latter of which is noted for additional alcoholic strength). The final style was that of a stout or porter, with flavours ranging from coffee, toffee malts through to liquorice and some chocolate and vanilla in sweeter styles. To begin with, the event was only meant to cover four breweries, but a last brewery jumped into the fray eager to have their beers tasted blind by the discerning panel. In total, this meant there were fifteen beers to taste, rate and as an added twist, all the attendees were asked to guess which of the five supplied each of the beers. So, the line up of breweries and the beers they supplied (Pale, IPA, Stout respectively) were as follows: Thornbridge (Bakewell, Derbyshire) – Wild Swan, Jaipur IPA and Beadecea’s Well; Mad Hatter Brewery (Toxteth, Liverpool) – Liverpool Wit, Follow the White Rabbit IPA and Fatter Stout; Liverpool Organic Brewery (Kirkdale, Liverpool) – 24 Carat Gold, Shipwreck IPA and Kitty Wilkinson; Meantime Brewery (Greenwich, London) – London Pale, Meantime IPA and London Stout; Melwood Brewery (Knowsley, Merseyside) – Paleface, Equinox and Derby Stout. The beers were all tasted by attendees in batches of 5 (in each category) before they were supplied with a rating of 1 to 5 for the respective placing. Each of the numbers in the ratings were added together and then the beer with the lowest score was placed first in the category, then the next lowest in second place and so forth. The overall brewery rating was then gained by the relative placing of the beers in first to fifth position, adding the numbers together again, with the overall lowest score being the winning brewery in this round. Hopefully that all makes sense, trust me, after a few drinks adding the scores up was rather a demonstration in focus! The winners were then announced at the event and the competition run for some excellent craft beers, supplied from Holborn Cask Ales in Ormskirk; I did promise a shout out to the winners, so congratulations to: Andrew Barlow (1st place) Jason Peters (2nd Place) Mark Toney (3rd Place) Les O’Grady (4th Place) Incidentally, Andrew and Jason both guessed 7 breweries correctly and Mark and Les guessed 6, so a tie-breaker was required in the form of guessing the month and year of Germany’s Reinheitgetsbot, which split the winners accordingly. So, which Breweries won then? Continue reading below for full details. Pale Ale Category 1. Mad Hatter Brewery – Liverpool Wit 2. Thornbridge Brewery – Wild Swan 3. Meantime – London Pale Ale 4. Liverpool Organic Brewery – 24-Carat Gold 5. Melwood Brewery – Paleface IPA Category =1. Thornbridge Brewery – Jaipur IPA =1. Liverpool Organic Brewery – Shipwreck IPA 3. Meantime Brewery – Meantime IPA 4. Melwood Brewery – Equinox 5. Mad Hatter Brewery – Follow the White Rabbit IPA Stout or Porter Category 1. Meantime Brewery – London Stout 2. Mad Hatter Brewery – Fatter Stout =3. Liverpool Organic Brewery – Kitty Wilkinson =3. Thornbridge Brewery – Beadecea’s Well 5. Melwood Brewery – Derby Stout Overall Brewery Placing 1. Thornbridge Brewery – 6 points 2. Meantime Brewery – 7 points =3. Liverpool Organic Brewery – 8 points =3. Mad Hatter Brewery – 8 points 5. Melwood Brewery – 14 points Although the scores seem stretched from top to bottom, the voting was quite tight in some places and all the beers received quite positive reviews; the Derby Stout in particular was particularly unlucky, just missing out on a lower score. Anyway, congratulations and thanks to the Breweries for getting involved and helping out with glassware loans and providing a discount on the beers to keep the ticket costs as low as possible, many thanks to John and Julie at Melwood for jumping in with provision of additional beers for the event too. Thanks also go to Gaz and Sue at Mad Hatter for glassware loans, especially to Karen Reilly for organising the venue and Angela Mulligan for helping to keep the event running smoothly. Finally special thanks to all the people who attended to make the event a veritable success; I think I’ll be hiring some elves to help run the event and keep things ticking along without having to run around with trays of beer! Stay tuned for the next event folks, I shall be putting feelers out for breweries to get involved and will spread the news on my Twitter feed, Facebook page and via this blog. Cheers and catch you all soon, Pedro x Let’s dispense with the usual Beer Festival anecdotes about them being frequented by Gandalf-a-likes from Lord of the Rings and those dressed like Steampunk enthusiasts, but also steer clear of references to more contemporary groups that begin with the letter ‘H’. There was more than a healthy spread of the UK’s demographic present at the Camp and Furnace over the third weekend in June, all of whom seemed happy, enthused and remarkably positive about yet another shot in the arm for the City of Liverpool in its own ongoing gastronomic proliferation. The usual pattern was followed by my companion and I, upon entering an event such as this – retrieve glass and programme, wander about like a lost soul for ten minutes, find a shady spot to call our own for the duration of said event and then finally wander off to find our first victim. That is, our beverage of choice (if you thought anything else, you’re weird). The first beer went down a little slower than is usually to be expected, primarily a courtesy of the reveries from the evening before, but thankfully things were able to gather pace after that. Pace, just in time for my pencil to decide to give up on me (a retractable in case you’re wondering), robbing me of an ability to note any of the hazy observations about the beverages on offer and make succinct tasting notes. However, that was never really going to be the raison d’etre for this piece, so there is no real huge loss. The usual system of tokens was in place; a crisp £10 got you a card of 20 tokens with the beer prices coming in at around the 3-6 token mark generally speaking. The beers were served both from keg and cask across a number of bars spread around the periphery of the Furnace. Aside from smaller blackboards, pump clips at the bars and a larger ‘masterboard’ (which was often inaccurate) at the door into the Furnace, there was little way of deciding what your next beverage would be. A minor failing in the whole process for such an event was not to put any tasting notes or comprehensive list of the beers on offer in the actual event programme. This therefore failed to mitigate the trying of a beer which may have initially sounded enticing, but turned out to be a rather dull brown offering or a bog standard mild with a very misleading name (I hasten to add that this wasn’t exactly the case – but on more than one occasion I was stuck with half a pint of something not exactly pleasant to my palate). This failing was in part dealt with by many bartenders offering small tasters of a beer prior to taking away the half pint, which was a very welcome facet to proceedings. There were a number of beers pushing the envelope with regards strength, usually the 6 token beers, which had ABVs in excess of 8-9% and I do think I spotted something at over 11% which is Saison Dupont Rochefort 10 territory – offering very deep and complex beers with figgy and dried fruit characters to rival some wines. The only problem at a beer festival is being rather picky about which of these stronger beers you go for without ending up a bit of a mess by the end of the session! Some of the ales on offer were more standard offerings of citra and cascade hopped beers nestling alongside some excellent IPAs and a number of complex stout ales. There has been mention in national press (the Guardian no less, at least, prior to the event slipped into an article about the ‘rise of craft beer’ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2013/jun/13/craft-beer-guide-beginners]) of the endeavours undertaken by the Expo Liverpool Echo posted this piece about the Expo: [http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/review-liverpool-craft-beer-festival-4325877]. There is even some footage posted right here: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3kZxuiq6i0] with a nice panoramic shot of the Furnace for all to see. There was even some blogging (shock horror) on the event, although I’ve not had a chance to trawl them all, Allgates Brewery did post this: [http://allgatesbrewery.com/allgates-brewery-blog/2013/06/liverpool-craft-beer-festival/]. Pricewise, it was in keeping with usual goings on at the Camp and Furnace, with the burgers hitting the £6 mark, similar to those installed at the Food Slam events that take place on a Friday in the venue (which, all things considered are pretty steep). The flavoured popcorn is always a good accompaniment as a bar snack, as were the rather large bags of crisps, something to help soak up the beers and thus appreciate the convivial atmosphere always goes down well. The chance to watch some live brewing was also a welcome and interesting touch, with the likes of Beavertown, Camden and the hosts, Liverpool Craft Brewery all displaying their talents.
An education, an experience and most certainly, overall, a pleasure; here’s to the next one! Pedro. x ------ Many thanks to Jon Young for his photography skills on the afternoon. You can follow Liverpool Craft Beer Expo on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/Livcraftbeerexp And Liverpool Craft Beer here: https://twitter.com/Craft_Beers British Bank Holiday weekends are invariably washed out affairs, much more suited to sitting wistfully on a window ledge staring outside at the rain trickling down the pane. Luckily, the last two Bank Holiday weekends in May of 2013 have been gloriously bright affairs. That type of weather definitely lends itself to sitting out with friends in a Beer garden, having a picnic and a few cold drinks in the park with the family or even better, attending a beer festival. There have been a few of late and there are a few more to come in Liverpool over the next few months. I spent the first May bank holiday at the Eagle and Child beer festival in Bispham Green (near Parbold/Mawdelsey). Typically, this festival experiences excellent dry weather and is generally superbly run and friendly affair. The addition of hand pumps to a few of the cask ales on offer this year is a definite improvement and a step upward from the usual high standards in the grounds of the pub owned by the Ainscoughs (of Racquet Club fame). The most recent Bank Holiday weekend was also spent investigating a slightly smaller scale beer festival, this time by the banks of the River Mersey in Otterspool at the Otter’s Café at Active Adventures. Having ventured down on the Saturday and Sunday, the clientele was mixed to say the least, with a market having brought some people out and the remainder either those wandering along the promenade for a walk and an ice cream or those specifically for the beer festival. There was even room for a Hen do oddly enough! Rather than a pub or association running this event, the crowds were treated to some local brews organised by the Mad Hatter Brewing Company. The Mad Hatters Brewing Company is the newest addition to Liverpool’s ever-increasing craft beer and real ale scene with Head Brewer Gaz and partner in crime Sue, initially taking things a little more seriously in 2007. With the burgeoning interest in Liverpool (as with the rest of the UK) in food and more pertinently, drink, driving the demand for fashionable food and beers with character, there is certainly room. The latter of these demanded items is something that the Mad Hatter is able to provide in abundance. This is more than evident, with some 16 different styles of beer lined up at the brewery, perhaps more once confidence has grown – and a range of brewing techniques not generally used in the UK. Some departure from academia up in Lancaster, I am sure most would agree, but a brave and highly welcome decision for a lot of us. At the festival, there were a few ales on offer from some of the usual suspects on the Liverpool Beer scene in the shape of Liverpool Organic Brewery, Liverpool Craft Brewery, Wapping, Brimstage Brewery from Wirral and another newcomer in the shape of the promising Melwood Brewing Company. The undoubted stars of the show at this festival were the beers on offer from the Mad Hatter Brewery. The unusually potent ales conceived by the Mad Hatter himself were present in fridges, which were stocked full as to be curiouser and curiouser; leporine artwork by Emily Warren of Stealthy Rabbit adorning a variety of exciting bottles promising much. Emily's thoughts are given in a bit more detail than I can divulge right now over on: [http://thestealthyrabbit.blogspot.co.uk/]. Over the course of the weekend, I made it my duty to try and characterise as much of the wonderland made real by the brewery as possible. However, with an ABV of usually over 7%, care must be taken – an easy task it was not!! The brewery was keen to provide something as an alternative to the usual session beers on the market, offering viable alternatives for food pairings to the usual fallback of a bottle of wine. Here are a few of the tasting notes I made whilst I was able to stave off falling down the rabbit hole:
2. Imperial IPA: Using Simcoe hops, the pine notes in this beer are deeply embedded and very obvious, at 7.3% it packs quite a punch and has quite a sharp edge with some good acidity. Very, very hoppy!
That’s your lot for what magnificence I tried on offer at the Beer Festival, but your extra reading after this blog is to go and check out the Mad Hatter Brewing Company website (conveniently located here: [http://madhatbrew.co.uk/] and for more up to date information, search facebook for Mad Hatter Brewing Company, or follow them on twitter, @MadHatBrew] with a run down of their beers and details should you need to contact them. Their beers will be available from the following outlets: Beers are available in Liverpool from: Stamps Too, (CAMRA pub of the year, Liverpool) The Dispensary, Renshaw St The Ship and Mitre And also soon from: 23 Club, below the Clove Hitch Pod, Allerton Road Manchester: Pie & Ale, Northern Quarter, The Port St Beer House, Northern Quarter And also soon from: Joshua Brooks, Oxford Road The Magnet, Stockport (CAMRA pub of the year, Greater Manchester) Unfortunately, you can’t buy from the Brewery direct at the moment, so you’ll have to go hunt down these bad boys from one of the outlets above if you’re feeling impatient!! A tip of the (mad) hat should also go to the guys down at the Otters Café for putting on the mini market and beer festival. They have an aerial assault course in the vein of Go Ape! there alongside a maze and the café and lovely riverside views. The coffee and cakes is pretty good there too! Full details of the venue are just a click away: [http://www.activeadventuresliverpool.co.uk/]. Until next time guys, I’ll see you through the looking glass! Pedro x |
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