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BrewDog – AGM 2017, Aberdeen #PunkAGM2017

BrewDog AGM2017

Another year, another BrewDog AGM. This write up will be slightly less detailed than usual. Initially, I was going to pretend it’s because I’ve covered the previous two AGMs in depth here and here and they are fairly similar. This is true. But the real reason is that I seem to have slipped out of good blogger mode recently. I ...

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The Independent Manchester Beer Convention 2016 (IMBC 2016)

Indy Man Beer Con 2016

The highlight of Manchester’s beer calendar is undoubtedly the Independent Manchester Beer Convention, or Indy Man Beer Con as we like to call it. Returning for its fifth year and seemingly going from strength to strength. Tickets to the peak time sessions sold out in record time. Although I enjoyed 2015’s event I felt it wasn’t quite as good as previous years. ...

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Cantillon Zwanze Day 2016 @ North Bar, Leeds

Cantillon Zwanze Day 2016 @ North Bar Leeds

My love for Cantillon knows no bounds. Their Quintessence event in May remains one of my highlights of the year. Another huge occasion on the Cantillon calendar is Zwanze Day. An annual event where the legendary Belgian brewery releases a specially produced new beer in only a handful of venues around the world. I’d only ever tried 2012’s offering, a rhubarb lambic which was a recreation ...

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International Rainbow Project 2016 @ Magic Rock Tap, Huddersfield

International Rainbow Project 2016 @ Magic Rock Tap

The fourth annual Rainbow Project was held in September. An event where seven of the UK’s best breweries design a beer inspired by a colour of the rainbow. 2014 saw the breweries collaborate with European friends. It’s where the now infamous Buxton/Omnipollo partnership was first established. While in 2015 the British breweries were joined by American counterparts. This year it ...

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Leeds International Beer Festival 2016

Leeds International Beer Festival

I love Leeds. The people, the city, the bars. And despite some stiff competition, Leeds International Beer Festival was my 2015 ‘Beer Festival of the Year’ too. Naturally I couldn’t wait to return this year. So much so that I booked two sessions instead of one. Just like last year it was another warm and bright September day. Yorkshire was looking ...

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Copenhagen Beer Celebration 2016 | CBC2016

Copenhagen Beer Celebration | CBC2016

Imagine paying £200 for a ticket to a beer festival and not wanting to go. Okay, I’m exaggerating slightly. But I did have to force myself to get out of bed for the first session of this years Copenhagen Beer Celebration. To be honest, I was never massively looking forward to the morning sessions. As much as I love beer, usually ...

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Cantillon Quintessence 2016, Brussels

Cantillon Quintessence 2016

I’ve been to a lot of breweries over the last few years. Most are on big out of town industrial estates or previously disused arches under railways tracks. But not Cantillon. Their brewery is on a normal street, in a normal part of Brussels. Which is odd really, as the beer they brew is far from normal. Inside is a ...

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BrewDog – AGM 2016, Aberdeen #PunkAGM2016

BrewDog - PunkAGM 2016

It doesn’t feel like a year since the last BrewDog AGM, that’s because it wasn’t. I did have to check, though, just in case I’d been having too much fun over the past 12 months. Last year’s ‘meeting’ was held in June while this time it was brought forward to April, presumably to gain maximum exposure before their share offering ...

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Founders Brewing Talk @ Cafe Beermoth, Manchester

Cafe Beermoth - Founders Brewing Talk

There are a few key beers I can pinpoint as important turning points in my craft education. Founders Brewing Co’s ‘All Day IPA’ and later ‘Centennial IPA’ are right up there amongst them. Since then I’ve sampled many more of their range and enjoyed most of them, with some real highlights. The American craft brewing legends were in Manchester recently ...

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The Independent Manchester Beer Convention 2015 (IMBC 2015)

Indy Man Beer Con 2015

Last year’s Indy Man Beer Con was probably my favourite weekend of 2014. It genuinely blew my mind, totally shattered my perception of beer festivals and left me feeling I’d never be able to enjoy another as much again.blo So in June when tickets went on sale for this years event I immediately snapped them up – for three different sessions – ...

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The Rainbow Project 2015 – Northern Launch @ Magic Rock Tap, Huddersfield

Rainbow Project Launch @ Magic Rock Tap, Huddersfield

The Rainbow Project began in 2013 when seven of the UK’s best breweries each brewed a beer inspired by a colour of the rainbow. In 2014 the UK breweries were paired with a European counterpart to create a collaboration rainbow beer, while this year saw them each paired with a top US brewery. I missed it completely the first time around ...

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Leeds International Beer Festival 2015

Leeds International Beer Festival

I said that Indy Man Beer Fest had ruined all other beer festivals for me. I was wrong. That was before I knew about Leeds International Beer Festival. It was a warm and sunny early September day and I’d just come back from eight days in Northern Italy, where besides one amazing day in Venice I’d been stuck with fairly average ...

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Omnipollo Takeover @ Buxton Brewery Tap House

Omnipollo Takeover at Buxton Brewery Tap House

I try not to drink too heavily during the week; it does nothing for my productivity the next day. But when I heard about Swedish brewery Omnipollo taking over Buxton Brewery’s Tap House for the day I just had to be there, despite the fact it was a Thursday. I don’t have a single favourite brewery but Omnipollo are always around my top 5 ...

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dubfest 2015: Introducing ‘drink up brewing’

dubfest 2015 - Original Old Bay Horse, Horwich, Bolton

Following in the footsteps of Blackedge Brewery, Bolton’s latest microbrewery ‘drink up brewing’ (aka dub) are also from the small town of Horwich. I’d tried one of their first beers, dubSUMMER, at Great Ale a few months ago and was keen to try more after hearing exciting talk of IPAs, Gose and wheat beers. The perfect opportunity to do just that was ‘dubfest’; part launch ...

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BrewDog – Punk AGM 2015, Aberdeen

BrewDog Punk AGM 2015

* Read about the 2016 BrewDog AGM here. * Q: What do you get if you cross a beer festival with a street food event and a rock/pop concert? A: BrewDog’s annual Punk AGM.  Okay, there was about 45 minutes of an actual business presentation too, but in typical BrewDog style they’ve turned what for most companies is a boring corporate event ...

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