Manchester’s Summer Beer Thing festival will return to the city centre next weekend with over 20 breweries in tow pouring some of the UK’s freshest pints.
Taking place from Friday 30 June to Sunday 2 July, this year’s line-up has just been released and there are some absolutely cracking breweries signed up including local favourites Sureshot, Track and Squawk.
All three will be hosting stands across the weekend, alongside a brilliant line-up of visitors including Sheffield’s Triple Point, Dundee’s Holy Goat, Bristol’s Left Handed Giant, and FLOC from Canterbury.
Rivington Brewing Co and Verdant, from Cornwall, will be there too, with Talking Tides, from Redcar, and the Lake District’s Lakes Brew Co also attending.
Coinciding with the end of Pride Month, London’s Queer Brewing, the project set up to provide visibility for LGBTQ+ people in and around beer, will also be making an appearance.
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Image: Summer Beer Thing
Image: Summer Beer Thing
There’ll also be guest kegs from international names including Collective Arts (Toronto, Canada), Jester King (Austin, Texas) and Frau Gruber (Swabia, Germany).
It’ll be bliss for beer lovers, with loads of beer taps nestled throughout the garden all weekend and DJs bringing the party vibes.
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For the first time, this year’s Summer Beer Thing will see each of the indie operators at the foodie neighbourhood also open their doors to festival-goers, offering up one-off special drinks, able to buy with festival tokens.
Nell’s will be pouring a special Schoffertopper – Grapefruit Schofferhofer with frozen grapefruit margarita float, whilst Great North Pie will serve their twist on a Spanish classic with Tinto De Vimto.
Elsewhere, Three Little Words are putting on a specially-mixed Raspberry Gin Punch, and The Beeswing will offer ‘The Bees’ting’, whilst Redlight keep it classy with Mini Pomme Verte Martinis and Pollen keeps us all nicely caffeinated with its special cold brew coffee.
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Image: Summer Beer Thing
Image: Summer Beer Thing
The summer fixture is the sister festival to Manchester’s biggest beer festival, Indy Man Beer Con, which is staged every autumn at Victoria Baths.
Since starting in Manchester in 2017, it’s gone from strength to strength, attracting thousands of beer lovers eager to try the latest brews, as well as those new to craft ale looking for an accessible way to get involved and try something different.
Speaking ahead of the event Louise Bruin at Summer Beer Thing said: “We’re proud to be bringing a massive collective of breweries to Manchester for a weekend-long celebration in the Kampus garden.
“It’s no surprise we think British independent brewers are among the best in the world, so it’ll be brilliant to have so many of them all together in one place with a real celebratory atmosphere.
“It’ll be a perfect weekend for those who love craft beer and want to try all the latest seasonal brews, from crisp craft beers, to fruits, sours and stouts. Collaborating with all the Kampus bars and restaurants will just take it to the next level too.”
Tickets are priced between £6 and £10 and include a branded glass in which to sample craft beers, fruits and sours, hoppy, hoppier and session beers, as well as a range of non-beer drinks. These can be purchased via the Summer Beer Thing website.
The full list of participating breweries at Summer Beer Thing 2023:
Baron (Buntingford)
Beak (Lewes)
Burning Sky (Lewes)
Drop Project (Mitcham)
Fell (Flookburgh)
FLOC (Canterbury)
Holy Goat (Dundee)
Lakes Brew Co (Lake District)
Left Handed Giant (Bristol)
Little Earth Project (Sudbury)
Makemake (Portsmouth)
Maltgarden (Poland)
Pastore (Cambridge)
Queer Brewing (London)
Rivington (Cornwall)
Runaway (Stockport)
Simple Things Fermentation (Glasgow)
Squawk (Manchester)
Sureshot (Manchester)
Talking Tides (Redcar)
Thornbridge (Bakewell)
Track (Manchester)
Triple Point (Sheffield)
Verdant (Cornwall)
Yonder (Radstock)
Zapato (Marsden)
Featured image – Summer Beer Thing
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The massively underrated rooftop terrace in Manchester with great views and top cocktails
Daisy Jackson
Manchester city centre is generally STARVED of outdoor space, but we’ve found the perfect sun-soaked oasis where you can enjoy a bit of fresh air and a whole lot of great food and drinks.
Tucked up on the sixth floor of the award-winning boutique hotel King Street Townhouse, you’ll find a rooftop terrace with beautiful views of the city’s skyline.
As Manchester buzzes along beneath you, you can tuck in to everything from full charcuterie grazing boards to seasonal snacks and small plates, all served alongside an impressive wine and cocktail list.
This often-overlooked local spot is a firm favourite of those in the know, thanks to its sheltered location that basks in the sun all afternoon.
And although it’s in a prime city centre location, just a stone’s throw from Deansgate, St Peter’s Square and Market Street, it’s a luxurious escape from it all – as is the entire boutique hotel it’s part of.
Whether it’s a post-work social, a relaxed date night, or a cheeky afternoon cocktail, the King Street Townhouse Terrace is open to the public and available for walk-ins or bookings when it isn’t privately hired.
On the menu you can expect locally-sourced dishes like Pollen sourdough served with whipped butter, a meat or cheese grazing board loaded with British produce, and larger plates like a beef and bone marrow burger or a fried fish roll topped with crisps.
British charcuterie grazing boardSpritzes on the King Street Townhouse terrace
Pairing perfectly with a spritz or a beer are snacks like deep-fried Gordal olives, stuffed with fennel sausage, and a brioche garlic bread packed with cream cheese.
The hotel has a cocktail list that celebrates classic drinks and a few of their own signature concoctions, and it doesn’t feel much more luxurious than when you treat yourself to a glass of sky-high champagne with views like this.
The South Terrace can also be hired privately for leisure or corporate events, with tailored catering options including summer BBQs.
And you can ramp up your trip to this oasis by staying overnight in one of the boutique hotels’ rooms, or visiting the King Street Townhouse ESPA spa for a treatment.
Find out more about the terrace at King Street Townhouse HERE.
The terrace at King Street Townhouse hotelThe terrace at King Street Townhouse hotelDeep-fried olivesGarlic bread with creamed cheeseKing Street Townhouse hotel
A massive Manchester United fan zone is being set up for the Europa League final
Danny Jones
With Man United officially booking their spot in the Europa League final, a massive fan zone is being set up in Manchester for fans to watch it.
The Reds are going to Bilbao, but flights and tickets aren’t cheap, so a huge fan park will have to do.
Supporter park specialists 4 The Fans – the same team behind the huge sites at the likes of Manchester’s Secret City, Love Factory and the Progress Centre for Euro 2024 – are putting one of the biggest fan zones yet for the game on Wednesday, 21 May.
4 The Fans are committed to putting on a huge fan zone over in Stretford, and with well over 50,000 fans attending their events over the last three years, it’s sure to be a mega atmosphere.
A massive Man United fan zone is on the cards for this year’s Europa League final. (Credit: 4 The Fans)
Having seen the atmosphere at some of their previous events first hand, this latest fan zone plan is giving us real Euros vibes.
Set to take over the Bowlers Exhibition Centre, a.k.a. the BEC Arena over in Stretford, the enormous events space will be transformed into one of their biggest fan zones to date, with the biggest screen in Manchester.
VIP seated tickets are also available, and parents are welcome to bring their kids along to the family-friendly event.
Tickets are already available and, in fact, they were so confident in the result against Athletic Club that supporters were guaranteed their money back if Ruben Amorim’s side managed to capitulate.
No harm, no foul and, turns out, no need to worry anyway.
Past scenes from international tournaments. (Credit: Supplied)
If the idea of being surrounded by fellow Reds for the game isn’t an attractive enough prospect on its own for you, United fans, the event is also set to be hosted by a club legend (still yet to be announced), with DJs and music, as well as special effects throughout.
Of course, there’ll be plenty of pints and scran to fuel the promoter’s famous fan energy on offer too, so you really will be sorted from start to finish.
Doors to the BEC open at 5:30pm, with last entry at 7:30pm ahead of the 8pm kick-off; tickets start from just £8. Until then, you can watch back the highlights from the previous match down below. You can grab yours HERE.
How are you feeling for the final – are Ruben’s Reds going to lift the Europa League trophy?
Georgina Pellant -
22nd June 2023 
