Buzzing about beer, cider, pubs and breweries across Manchester, Salford and Trafford FREE March - June 2020, Issue Number 6 In this issue: Tapping and tipping in the contactless age. Meet Pomona Island. What makes beer hazy? Stretford reborn. www.beerbuzz.beer Welcome to Editorial Welcome to the latest issue of Beer Buzz. Whether you are reading this over a crystal-clear March - June 2020 Edition pint or a murky glass of New Beer Buzz is published by the Central England IPA (see page 18), take Manchester, Trafford & Hulme and a moment to think about the working Salford & District branches of CAMRA, conditions of those who have brewed and the Campaign for Real Ale. served your pint. 5000 copies are distributed free of In this issue, we look at how the rise charge to pubs, bars & other outlets of contactless payments is hitting our across Manchester, Trafford & Salford. undervalued bar staff’s incomes from Expanded articles and PDF downloads tips (and how you can help). of past issues are available at As it seems the relentless tide of pub www.beerbuzz.beer closures is on the turn - we Focus on Editorial team: Stretford, an area which is leading the Acting Editor: John O’Donnell way with new openings and visit two [email protected] very different Salford success stories. Advertising: Graham Donning Our Barr Buzz section has news of more [email protected] new openings but sadly also reports on clouds hanging over some well loved Contributions in this issue from: pubs. James Darcey, Steve Davis, Graham Donning, Bob Dunbar, Plus loads more news and features as Jon Gobbett, Andy Heggs, usual. Ian Massey, Caz O’Donnell, Happy Drinking… John O’Donnell, Cath Potter, John O’D Mick Slaughter, Dave Wade, Richard Withecombe, Neil Worthington Designed and printed by Renbrand Creative. www.renbrand.co.uk The next issue of Beer Buzz will be Please send contributions to the editor published on 19th June 2020 at the above email address. The editor Deadlines for adverts: reserves the right to edit contributions Bookings 10th May sent for publication. Artwork 17th May The views expressed are those of Advertising Rates the individual contributors and not Quarter page £55 necessarily those of the three branches Half page £90 of CAMRA or of CAMRA Limited. While Back cover £275 every effort is made to ensure the Inside back/front cover £240 accuracy of the information contained Discounts for multiple inserts in a single publication or prebooking multiple issues. in Beer Buzz, no responsibility can be For dimensions and artwork guidelines accepted for any errors or omissions. visit www.beerbuzz.beer/advertise Inclusion of an advertisement does not All enquiries to Graham at imply endorsement by CAMRA [email protected] © Copyright CAMRA 2020 Cover Photo ©John O’Donnell beer buzz 3 Bar Buzz News from our local pubs, clubs and bars Flixton & Urmston handpumps offered Tiny Rebel’s Pango The team behind Urmston’s BrewChimp and Pomona Island’s Session IPA (an early bar have opened a second outlet in offer of the Pomona Island tap takeover nearby Flixton. planned for the birthday weekend). In keeping with the bar’s policy, both were The new BrewChimp is located at on sale at keen prices for the local area. 432 Flixton Road opposite Flixton train station in what was previously Bistro 432 The Assembly are also in the early and before that AT’s Café. It follows a stages of planning a nano-brewery for similar beer/wine bar hybrid model to the the bar. They plan to install a 100 litre Urmston original. brew kit (just over two 9 gallon casks or three 30 litre kegs per brew) on the bar’s A small bar sits at the far corner as you upper floor and will add two additional enter with four handpumps serving two keg lines to sell their own brewed beers. beers from Beartown, one of which is the house BrewChimp Session ale and two The bar has been voted as Trafford & guests. CAMRA members are offered a Hulme CAMRA’s Pub of The Season for 10% discount on cask ales. Spring 2020. The bar has launched a regular series of GRUB expansion Foodie Thursdays where they welcome a Street food and bar operator GRUB has local independent street food trader to raised over £18,000 to develop their Red serve up food to accompany your drinks. Bank home (pictured below) through a crowdfunding campaign. Photo © Graham Donning Plans to develop the space, on the outskirts of Manchester’s Green Quarter, Photo © Brewchimp include providing free space to charities and other groups who work to help Urmston’s The Assembly recently the people of Manchester and provide celebrated its second birthday. After opportunities for artists, makers and completing an initial arrangement with creatives to run events, workshops and Thornbridge Brewery, it is now sourcing exhibitions. cask ales from a wide range of breweries The funds will be used to build a new both local and national and has plans garden including a covered seating and to add a third cask pump before the workshop area using recycled materials. summer. They will also develop a market hall to When Beer Buzz called the day before house a weekly arts market and build a the second Birthday party, the two 60-seater performance space. 4 beer buzz To advertise in Beer Buzz visit beerbuzz.beer/advert GRUB also intend to develop their Décor will follow the Scandinavian programme of free mentoring and theme with pale concrete brickwork and training for amateur chefs looking to splashes of timber. start a street food business. They will Subject to planning and licensing, the be investing in equipment to help them café-bar should open late May or early further this project including providing June. Intended opening hours will be free training to potential operators. from 8am until late on weekdays, and New Scandi café bar for city 9am until later at weekends. Beatnikz Republic Brewery’s owners are Fresh beer & bar billiards opening a new Scandi-style cafe bar on The Smithfield Market Tavern has a brand Spring Gardens in the city centre. new cellar install with six cask lines, one Lättsam, which means easy-going or handpump cider line and thirteen keg light-hearted in Swedish, will serve ten lines replaced (including new handpulls lines of craft beer from Beatnikz Republic on the bar). and Nordic breweries such as Lervig, After being out of action for a couple of Mikkeller and Dry & Bitter. There will also years, the pub’s bar billiards table is now be artisan coffee, cocktails and natural back in operation. The traditional pub wines. game was developed in the 1930s from There will be an all-day food offering the French/Belgian game billard russe. It starting with breakfasts, soups, salads is played on a table with no side or corner and sandwiches for lunch and then an pockets but with nine holes in the playing after-work meal menu. surface which are assigned various point values ranging from 10 to 200. Seven To join CAMRA visit camra.org.uk/join beer buzz 5 white and one red ball must be potted from the range of brands on offer, staff through the holes to score points while friendliness and product knowledge, to not knocking down pegs which stand in quality of serve and the fresh smell and front of the 100 and 200 point holes. taste of the beer. Photo © John ODonnell Operations Manager Joe Gaskin and Bar Supervisor Jordan Murray Photo © Bernard Platt City Centre shorts The Salisbury Ale House has been The Molly House on Richmond Street in awarded the ‘Pint Perfection’ accolade at the Village is planning a beer festival on this year’s Star Pubs and Bars Awards. the Spring bank holiday weekend (22 – 2500 pubs from the Heineken owned 25th May). pub chain were eligible for the award Vegetarian Indian Street food restaurant which recognises the highest standards and craft beer bar Bundobust have of cellarmanship in keeping both cask announced plans for a second restaurant and keg beers. The pub scored 10/10 in in the city and that the new venue will all ten of the judging criteria – faultless include their own microbrewery. The THE BRITONS PROTECTION 50 Great Bridgewater Street Manchester 8 rotating hand pull cask ales Over 320 whiskies BPManchester thebritonsprotection 6 beer buzz Diary date - Chorlton Beer & Cider Festival 9th - 11th July group which began life in Leeds and now also has a restaurant in Liverpool has taken over a space known as The Cartway in the St James Building on Oxford Street (next door to the Palace Theatre). Formerly an indoor car park, the glass roofed restaurant will have space for 150 covers alongside the new Bundobust brewery. It is expected to Photo © Jon Gobbett open in May. Trafford & Hulme shorts Continuing his brutally honest Facebook video updates, landlord Simon Delaney Trafford & Hulme CAMRA named Hulme’s confirmed in January that the pub had The Salutation as its Pub Of The Season been in difficulty, laying the blame firmly for Winter 2019/20. The pub which is on the financial information provided by operated by Manchester Metropolitan owners Greene King prior to signing a University in partnership with Bollington five-year lease in 2018 having massively Brewery was praised for serving top understated the overheads of the pub. quality cask ales to a diverse clientele ranging from students, university staff Greene King went to court to get a and Hulme locals. repossession order on the pub but Simon and his partner Rachel, who also The Carter’s Arms in Northern Moor operate The Firbank Pub & Kitchen in has introduced a discount on cask ales to Wythenshawe, remained in negotiations card carrying CAMRA members who now and hopeful of being able to reach receive 10% off.