If you’re a fan of tequila – or you’re much more cultured than us and have a penchant for its equally delicious cousin, mezcal – then you’ll be happy to hear that a festival celebrating both is coming to Manchester.
You had us at alcohol.
Following their sold-out event earlier this year, Copita Mezcal and Tequila Festival is coming to Manchester city centre in September, where locals will be welcomed to the city for a full day of tasting, street food to pair with it, masterclasses and much more.
It’ll be the first time a festival dedicated to these two particular spirits has come to 0161 and looking at the full overview, we’re already licking our lips.
The new Mexican-inspired food and drink festival only debuted in Glasgow back in Spring 2023 but it unsurprisingly went down an absolute storm – after all, what’s not to like a big festival full of booze?
Set to take over the gorgeous Manchester Cathedral and turn the room into one big tasting floor, there’s going to be over 100 varieties of premium tequilas and smoky mezcals from some of Mexico’s most renowned producers on offer.
These will include prestigious brands like El Jimador, Del Maguey and Olmeca Altos; Vivir, Ojo De Dios, Bandero and El Tequileno with many more revealed in the run-up to the event.
As mentioned, there’ll also be guided tastings and masterclasses led by industry experts and festival-goers will gain exclusive insights into the craftsmanship behind these distinctive tipples, along with the opportunity to sample responsibly from dozens of stands from their very own limited edition ‘copita’, the traditional clay cups used to drink agave-based spirits.
Better yet, there’s no token system in place: this is all included in your ticket price, meaning you can truly make the most of everything on offer. We’ll cheers to that.
If that marg doesn’t get your mouth watering, nothing will. (Credit: Supplied/Copita Festival)
Colin Campbell, one of Copita’s co-founders said: “We’re really excited to be bringing Copita to Manchester. It’s gone down brilliantly in Glasgow the last two years so we felt now was the right time to take it on the road and we couldn’t think of a better place than Manchester to head to next!
“It’s a really easy-going event with a great atmosphere, lots of local street food, shopping and music, so whether you’re an aficionado or a casual sipper we’re confident you’ll have a great time.”
Once again, there’ll also be some fine Manc street food on offer – most notably Taco Or Don’t, the immensely popular pop-up shack which finished third in the British Streetfood Awards last year.
There’s plenty more on show that we could tell you about but it’s probably best to leave a little bit behind the curtain.
The second-ever Coptita Mezcal and Tequila Festival rocks up to Manchester on Saturday, 14 September and tickets are only £35 per session.
However, you can still get your hands on early bird prices that are good for 15% off (£29.75 total), which are available until Sunday, 7 July when you use the code EARLYBIRD15.
Sessions last three and a half hours and will take place from 12:30-4pm and 5:15-8:45pm, so it can be a daytime thing or an evening affair depending on how early you want to start drinking.
Mother and daughter-run bakery selling nostalgic cakes issues plea for support
Daisy Jackson
A Bury bakery run by a mother and daughter has shared a heartfelt message asking for support as running costs continue to skyrocket.
Little Blonde Bakes in Unsworth has enjoyed great success with its colourful occasion cakes and its nostalgic puddings and desserts.
We’re talking old-school cake with sprinkles and custard, thick slabs of banana bread, and pancake stacks with Nutella and strawberries.
They’re also all over the latest sweet trends, like pistachio kunafa strawberries and even a Dubai chocolate-inspired cookie pie.
But despite putting in such graft and creating such beautiful bakes, Little Blonde Bakes has said it’s falling on tough times.
The family-operated bakery, fronted by mother and daughter Jayne and Fran Harrison, said that it’s struggling to balance the rising costs of ingredients, national insurance, rates, and taxes, as well as a fickle Instagram algorithm that sometimes leaves them with only a few likes on a photo.
In their heartfelt statement, they added that events like the huge concerts that have come to Greater Manchester this summer, the hot weather, and the school holidays are having a negative effect on the small local business.
They wrote: “It feels like we our putting ourselves out there by sharing this & feels a little scary. but we need your help and support to keep going.
Little Blonde Bakes sells treats like old school cake and custard
“We’ve been doing this for 10 years now, and although it may seem like we are doing well, behind the scenes we are now trading and working to pay the bills. This goes for lots of small, local & independent businesses. They need us!”
The post from Little Blonde Bakes continued: “So if your local, or want to visit us, please do, we strive to always use the best ingredients and put so much love into our baking.
“If your not local, we have a full postal menu each week online which delivers anywhere in the uk.
“If you can’t do any of that (i know the cost of living crisis is also affecting a lot of people and families) then please, turn on our notifications, like & share & comment on our posts where you can, or even leave a review. Any support means the world.
“We really want to be able to continue doing what we love, with our amazing team, but the future looks a little scary without the amazing support of our customers. We love you all.”
You can pay Little Blonde Bakes a visit at 62 Sunny Bank Road, Unsworth, BL9 8HJ and follow them on Instagram @littleblondebakes.
Palms Bakery opens beautiful little coffee shop in Manchester shipping container village
Daisy Jackson
Viral bakery Palms Bakery has opened its own coffee shop over in the shipping container village that is Pollard Yard.
The bakery rocketed to fame with its colourful shag cakes, where spikes of icing are used to make psychedelic baked show-stoppers.
Since then, founder Rachel Samuels has expanded to all sorts of playful retro-inspired bakes and set up shop at Pollard Yard alongside a whole host of other Manchester independent businesses.
Previously, the Palm Bakery masterpieces were only really been accessible when you ordered an entire cake.
But now she’s taken on an extra unit at Pollard Yard and launched Palms Coffee, a sunny little spot that’s keeping her neighbours well-caffeinated and well-fed.
Blueberry matcha at Palms CoffeeThe sunny terracePalms Bakery cakes and cookies are on the menuPalms Bakery cakes and cookies are on the menuPalms Coffee is open at Pollard YardPalms Bakery now does sandwiches at Palms Coffee
It means you can now tuck into bite-size, individual helpings of Rachel’s amazing bakes.
There are pretty, nostalgic cupcakes (sprinkles and glace cherries a must), gooey chocolate chip cookies, and miniature banana bread loafs too.
Customers can sit on the terrace surrounded by plants, tucking into flavoured matchas and iced coffees (best-sellers include maple cinnamon, pistachio, and blueberry).
It seems to have become the go-to lunch spot for those working in Pollard Yard and surrounds, but there’s enough here to tempt anyone out from nearby Ancoats too.
Think sandwiches made with house-made focaccia, filled with mortadella and mozzarella, and a whole menu of toasties, like Reubens, kimchi cheese, and Caprese.
Palms Coffee is open now at Pollard Yard near Holt Town tram stop.
Danny Jones -
1st July 2024 
