Inn Brief

A new micropub has opened in Woodhouse Mill, at the bottom of Furnace Lane. The Oxbow offers a range of beers on both cask and keg. The former Rising Sun near Bamford, in the Hope Valley, which has sat closed and derelict for a few years now, has had the go ahead from Peak Park Planning Board to be redeveloped with a new hotel on the site. It is to be run by an independent operator aimed at visitors to the Peak District. The Bankers Draft (JD Wetherspoons) at Castle Square in the City Centre is hosting a Little Critters meet the brewer event on Tuesday 11th February at 7pm. The Cavendish on West Street, Sheffield, reopens following refurbishment on Saturday 25th January. A new restaurant specialising in vegetarian and vegan dishes has opened in Kelham Island in an old works on Cornish Street. Named V or V, the bar also has real ale and other craft beers for diners to enjoy – all unfined and vegan of course! The Dorothy Pax at Victoria Quay has had a bar refit and now boasts an increased number of beer lines! The Fulwood Ale Club, a micropub by the same people as the Ecclesall Ale Club, is now open on Brooklands Avenue. Sheffield Brewery Company‘s tap room is now opening to the public most weekends to serve their beer to drink in the brewery! Check their social media for opening hours. Also one that has opened since we published our guide to the Kelham Island area is Saw Grinders Union in Globe Works at Shalesmoor. This smart bar has 2 cask ales and a variety of other craft beers available along with cocktails and food. On Abbeydale Road, the Two Thirds Beer Company is now open. This bar in the unit previously occupied by Steel City Cakes, near the Broadfield, boasts 16 beer lines with a mix of cask beers on handpump and other craft beers on keg taps. On 30th January Shakespeare’s are serving a range of American Sours, the Joiners Arms in Bakewell are hosting a Thornbridge tap takeover & meet the brewer and the Kelham Island Tavern is hosting a ticket only Tryanuary tutored beer tasting. The Devonshire Cat are hosting a charity fundraising dinner for Cavendish Cancer Care on 6th February. In return for a generous donation you will enjoy a 3 course dinner and a gin & tonic. Of course it being the bar it is there will also be an excellent choice of ales on the bar to buy too! Advance table bookings are required for this event. The Jolly Farmer at Dronfield Woodhouse sees managers Karl and Ash celebrating 15 years at the helm this month and they will be celebrating at the pub on 8th February from 7:30pm. Expect live entertainment, food and beer to feature! Tiny Rebel have brewed a range of special beers to celebrate their 8th birthday and these will be available as part of a tap takeover at the Chesterfield Alehouse micropub on 13th February. A recent opening is the Parrot Club at Neepsend, owned by the same people as O’Hara’s Spiced Rum. There isn’t any cask beer, however a range of 3 craft beers from Triple Point is available on keg taps. Opening late January is Matilda Bar, an underground speakeasy style joint under the Sidney Warehouse gallery space. Access is via a door on the corner of Sidney Street and Matilda Street. A membership scheme will operate however anyone can sign in at the door. This is in addition to the existing bar in the gallery. Local craft beers will be available on keg tap. Just to add some confusion however, there is also rumour of the old Matilda Tavern pub that has sat boarded up for quite a few years reopening very soon! Toolmakers Brewery (on Botsford Street, which is behind their Forest pub on Rutland Road, just up the hill from Cutlery Works and the Gardeners Rest in Neepsend) continue to host music events at weekends in their tap room. The first Saturday of the month its Trojan Explosion from 8pm to 1am featuring Ska, Rocksteady and early Reggae music played on vinyl whilst most Sunday evenings sees live music. Check their Facebook page for details. The Royal Standard has closed, ei group are advertising the lease so it should reopen as soon as someone new takes the pub on.