In one of the most intriguing alcoholic innovations of 2021 so far, a northern brewery has come up with a recipe for a craft beer that tastes just like sour gummy worms.
Northern Monk has teamed up with low-ABV connoisseurs Mash Gang to create a 2.4% Berliner Weisse that mimics the ‘mouth-puckering zing’ of sweet shop treats – titling their concoction Gary’s Fizzy Army.
Packed with 2,000 kg of pineapple, passionfruit, blueberry and sour cherry, the beer is being tipped to cause quite the commotion – with Northern Monk even going so far as to call it one of their favourite beers yet.
Back to the pick & mix for LeiMai’s latest – a crushable 2.4% fizzy worm Berliner Weisse with 2,000kg of pineapple, passionfruit, blueberry, and cherry. Brewed with our NoLo pals Mash Gang
Available in 440ml tins, Gary’s Fizzy Army also sports an eye-catching label designed by Manchester-based artist LeiMai LeMaow – who is working with Northern Monk on a series of character-themed beers.
Fizzy Army represents the third addition to the series – following in the footsteps of Astro Gary (an astrobelt sour IPA) and Micki Pop (a cherry cola IPA). ⠀
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Describing the beer, the brewery said it was a “mash up of different fruits [that] captures the lucky dip of flavours you get with a bag of fizzy sweets.”
Cans are priced at £3.95 and are available online via the Northern Monk shop.
Northern Monk has been adding experimental additions to their range in recent weeks – including CBD beer Green Heathen; Brazilian chocolate stout OFS036; and a Prawn Cocktail Gose inspired by Seabrooks crisps.
Food & Drink
A massive East Asian street food fair is returning to Manchester next month
Emily Sergeant
Manchester’s massively popular East Asian street food fair is returning to the city centre next month.
Taking over a Sunday in mid March, the day-long event is set to treat hungry Mancs to food from six of GRUB’s favourite street food vendors, including some newbies too, who will all be serving up delights directly from the east of Asia.
This means that, from noon right through until early evening, you can feast on Taiwanese fried chicken and Japanese Tonkatsu buns from All Fired Up, and South Korean wonders from the aptly-named Korean Grub Club.
How about some fresh noodles with a choice of toppings and drizzles? Served up from Mala resident, Wok Bros, who will be coming to GRUB for the first time.
Manchester’s popular East Asian street food fair is returning next month / Credit: GRUB
Not only that, but for those with a sweet tooth, there’ll also be an array of desserts and treats courtesy of the popular Mary’s Cakery Makery too.
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GRUB says the East Asian Food Fair is by far one of its best-attended annual events each year, and also a personal favourite to host for foodie fans as well.
The East Asian Food Fair is happening on Sunday 15 March from 12-6pm, and you can find out more on the GRUB website here.
Featured Image – GRUB
Food & Drink
A brand new two-level food hall is coming to Manchester city centre
Danny Jones
Get ready, diners and drinkers, because another exciting food hall is coming to Manchester city centre very soon.
Greater Manchester is well and truly in its food hall era, it seems, with the likes of Mackie Mayor, Alty Market, Society, Kargo, Stockport’s Produce Hall, The Egyptian Rooms in Oldham, New Century Hall and many more that we could reel off.
We’re not complaining by the way: being able to go to a place where you can sample various different cuisines and pretty much any drink of choice is ideal for keeping things interesting – plus, it always helped appease big groups where not everyone wants to eat the same thing.
With that in mind, prepare to welcome Manchester’s latest food hall, which is being developed by a man who knows all about the industry alongside Vita Group, whose local presence continues to grow.
Being spearheaded by Jake Atkinson, the former operations manager of the widely popular Mackie Mayor, Altrincham Market and Macclesfield’s Picturedrome – all of which serve as the blueprint for a successful food hall – his new venture will be called House of Social.
Set to host five kitchens tucked between statement arched windows and spread across two levels, Jake and co. have spent a year building a brand new collective of operators, with some much-loved regional food and drink brands bringing new ideas to the table.
The House of Social food hall will open just a few yards away from fellow cultural hotspot HOME Theatre on First Street, itself an ever-flourishing Manchester district, not to mention just a few minutes walk from both Oxford Road and Deansgate-Castlefield stations.
Hoping to serve as both a prime destination for a great night out, somewhere to grab breakfast on the go, enjoy a quick bite on your dinner or waste hours chatting rubbish with your friends over a few drinks, House of Social aims to be a place for all seasons and occasions.
You can get a close look at the early CGI mock-ups of how it’s going to look here:
Credit: CGIs (supplied via Vita Group)
As mentioned, the project is in collaboration with Vita, who are developing another brand new university accommodation block within which the food hall will sit, meaning that students will also be able to dive into Manchester’s diverse food and drink scene of the city quite literally on their doorstep.
The five independent kitchens at House of Social will be revealed in the upcoming months. Locals and visitors alike can expect a variety of vendors serving pizza to dumplings, all from growing businesses excited to get stuck even further into Manchester’s thriving hospitality scene.
Atkinson said of plans: “It’s such an untapped location, we’ve got this beautiful building with loads of natural light from soaring arched windows and also some gorgeous interior details with that curving staircase – it’s going to have so much character.
“We’ve tried to match that with the traders we’re working with – we’ve got some big names and some big personalities coming along – they’re creating menus which work in a food hall setting but with so much more attention to detail than anything I’ve seen before in this space.”
Credit: Supplied
Jake went on to add: “The offerings will really complement each other but I also think the traders are going to gel well too. I just can’t wait to get started.”
Set to open Summer 2025, House of Social really can’t come soon enough; we’re all dreaming of sun-soaked days with a belly full of scran and booze. Bliss.
Speaking of food halls, another city centre favourite of ours is doing something very fun for us Mancs this Valentine’s Day…
The Manc -
26th April 2021 
