Andy has been actively involved in CAMRA since the early 2000s after being recruited to sit on a National Younger Members Task Group.
Since then he has held roles on the branch committee including Secretary, Membership Secretary, Magazine Editor, Chair and now Social Secretary.
Andy has also been involved with the Steel City Beer & Cider Festival almost every year since becoming active in the branch.
Our January winner, as voted for by local CAMRA members, is the Two & Six Micropub on Snig Hill in Sheffield City Centre. The name and logo of the venue is themed around old fashioned British money, however the inspiration was much simpler – the address of the premises is number 26!
There was a micropub in the same premised previously although it was relatively short lived – The Social was part of a wider social enterprise initiative and only opened limited hours. The Two & Six was opened by Juliet, who was previously employed as the manager of the Social and saw potential of how it could be if she ran it as her own business along with partner Dan.
Before reopening in 2023, the place was redecorated and new furniture was brought in giving it a nice cosy pub feel. There is a second room attached which is used to host events like art exhibitions and is also used by local members of “Sons of the Desert” Laurel & Hardy appreciation society for film screenings!
This micropub attracts a nice mix of people and has a friendly atmosphere and you find some people sat near the bar enjoying chat and maybe a little banter whilst in the window you often find groups playing board games or simply quietly reading a book! There are also some tables outside on the pavement that can be in demand when the weather is a little warmer. A quiz night is hosted every Sunday at 8:45pm.
On the bar there are 4 handpumps serving cask ale with a mix of styles on offer plus one for traditional cider. The keg taps also include one or two interesting craft beers.
We’ll be presenting the award on the evening of Thursday 16 January, join us for a beer or cider there from about 8pm.
Ho ho how is it coming up to the end of the year already?! Tis the season and we have a tasty selection of beers perfect for spending a chilly evening in a cosy pub. First up is Glugg, a 4.2% Belma and Cashmere hopped pale ale from our “mythical creatures” series. This one is inspired by the Yule Lads of Iceland, but Gluggagaegir was a bit too much of a challenge to explain on the pump clip, and that’s before we’ve enjoyed a pint of it! Delicate melon flavours meet a spicy, earthy character.
Winter (4.2%) is coming, an Ekuanot single hopped pale which promises an aromatic fruitiness and flavours of citrus and berries, plus a delicate herbal note in the finish
And rounding off our festive releases is Doctor Morton’s Christmas Hamster (4.1%). Citra and Cascade hops combine with Munich malt for a tasty caramel character alongside notes of lemongrass. Sweet, spicy and smooth with a medium but fresh bitterness.
In keeping with the frosty feel of the season, we’ve got a couple of new beers coming up making use of new and exciting sub-zero, supercritical hop extraction techniques. First up, Cryo Deception (4.8%) – a special limited release of our much-loved New Zealand pale. Nelson Sauvin hops have been added in whole cone, T90 and Cryo form, for a lusciously aromatic and flavourful beer that’s bursting with notes of white grape, elderflower and gooseberry. Light and refreshing with a balanced bitterness in the finish. We’ve also got Polarnaut (4.7%), an experimental pale ale which features the cool combination of Citra and Sabro, in the vibrantly named Hyperboost and Dynaboost form. Expect a soft and refreshingly juicy beer with a blast of hop character giving notes of pith, pine and a hint of tropical coconut.
Heralding the new year, as is our tradition, we’ll have Doctor Morton’s Duck Baffler back (4.1%), a pale ale single hopped with Citra which is always incredibly popular. January also brings us an English hopped Through the Hopback special, featuring Ernest hops. This one will be 3.9% and holding flavours of ripe nectarines and apricots.
Bradfield Brewery still have some stock of their limited edition barrel aged beers in bottles. There are a choice of two – Highland Pale Ale (8.1% ABV) and Belted Galloway Stout (8.4% ABV). Meanwhile on cask the brewery is gearing up for the annual launch of Belgian Blue, the fruit flavoured Christmas beer!
Some interesting beers from local brewers recently at our Steel City Beer & Cider festival held at Kelham Island Museum. Blue Bee had an oak aged edition of their Park Hill Porter along with a Superdelic Nelson Pale Ale where the hop pairing gave a distinctive grapefruit and resinous flavour despite being a sessionable 3.4% ABV. Dead Parrot supplied “Twilight”, a barrel aged Belgian style Dubbel brewed for the Belgian Beer festival held at their Perch bar. Drone Valley brewery sent a special edition of their Station Porter which had the addition of roast Robusta coffee beans. Duality, a new brewery based in Todwick, had two beers at the festival – “Imposter Syndrome” a New England IPA and “The Usual” a simple 5% ABV Mosaic hopped pale ale. Emmanuales had two beers at the festival – Noah’s Dark Belgian Ale and Solomon’s Gold. A new beer from Fuggle Bunny Brew House was Mystic Makrut, a pale ale with bursts of Papeda and aromas from Asia. From Intrepid was Mitis Dark Mild (Hazelnut edition) and Solskin Hop & Grut Ale. Little Critters had a Head Banger hazy session IPA and Loxley supplied quite a varied range including Halliday best bitter and Palores hazy dry hopped pale ale. Neepsend was another brewery with a varied range including Hedylogos, a decadent double chocolate stout and Cherokee American Red Ale. Of interest from Triple Point was Zephyr, A whirlpool-hopped pale ale that is light, fruity, and full of character.
Stancill have brewed their annual bonfire night beer – Treason – A spiced Yorkshire parkin porter with a toasty, roasty flavour. Added ginger gives a spark of warmth.
Sheffield & District CAMRA branch celebrates its 50th birthday this year – the Golden anniversary – and one of the few long running Sheffield beers still available is Stones Bitter, which for a while had a strap line of “Sheffield Gold”. To mark the occasion True North Brewery provided a special dry hopped edition for the Steel City Beer & Cider Festival (the 48th due to having two years off for Covid). The beer was brewed using Challenger hops and double dry hopped with Goldings, giving floral, spicy, earthy, lemon, and thyme overtones, with a salty, moreish, and zesty finish.
Craftworks in Mosborough has had a refurbishment of the bar itself with a new, branded bar top and new handpumps!
Dorothy Pax has new opening hours for autumn. The bar is closed on Mondays, Tuesday to Thursday it’s open 4-9pm, Friday and Saturday midday to late and Sunday 12-9pm. These hours may vary when gigs are on.
The Yellow Broom micropub in Bramley, Rotherham (bus X2 from Sheffield), recently marked their 300th different beer on the bar which was Azvex Boltzmann Brain, a 6.5% ABV dry hopped IPA featuring the Idaho 7, Mosaic and Motueka hop varieties.
Hop Hideout in Sheffield City Centre hold their first ticketed tasting event at the new location of Leah’s Yard and it is in conjunction with Thornbridge brewery on Friday 25 October on the theme of beer from the wood.
The Old Shoe is hosting a Sunday Session beer and cheese tasting event on 17 November in partnership with the Weekend Project and Homage 2 Fromage, set to a vinyl soundtrack! Tickets cost £40 and available on their website.
Lost & Found on Ecclesall Road is reportedly being sold by Marstons via auction.
Work is now taking place to refurbish and reopen the Norfolk Arms in Grenoside.
The Grennel Mower at Lowedges has closed and has a to let board up. It is owned by Admiral Taverns.
The Cross Scythes in Totley is now being leased out by Stonegate pub company to a new management who also run the Bank House in Hathersage and the Dore Grill restaurant.
The Boston Arms in Woodseats have expanded their repertoire with the introduction of a cocktail menu!
Bradfield charity tractor run takes place on Sunday 15 December with Oughtibridge brass band also involved, the Blue Ball Inn at Worrall is offering the opportunity to watch from the pub with a beer from 4:30pm.
The current owners of the Barrel Inn at Bretton – Phil and Diane Cone are close to their 30th anniversary there, having run the pub since 1996.
Tickets are now on sale for both the summer and winter editions of the Great British Beer Festival in their new locations for 2025.
The winter festival takes place from 12-15 February at the Magna Science Adventure Centre in Rotherham, just 5 minutes bus ride from Meadowhall Interchange on route X3.
The summer festival takes place from 5-9 August at the NEC in Birmingham, which is a 5 minute walk from Birmingham International railway station.
Both festivals feature a huge range of UK cask ales, craft beers in keykeg, world beers, cider & perry, learn & discover bar, entertainment and more. Judging takes place for the Champion Beer of Britain at both events too.
The festivals are organised and staffed by volunteer CAMRA members with a little support from the team at CAMRA HQ, if you’d like to help out please fill in the online staffing form.
A Saturday in early October saw your editor out in the Hope Valley getting in some Beer Matters magazine deliveries before visiting Intrepid Brewery’s open day.
The afternoon started jumping on the local train from Dore & Totley station with an intention of heading to Edale, however the two car Northern train was seriously overcrowded so the decision was made to bail out at Hathersage and start deliveries at the Little John Hotel in Hathersage instead, where a beer from Red Willow brewery was enjoyed.
Following the earlier experience of the train service it was decided to use buses instead and the Peak Sightseer Blue route open top bus was utilised for a ride up the valley to Castleton for deliveries and quick halves in the Peak Hotel, Olde Nag’s Head and SwissTap.
That quick pub crawl matched the time it took for the open top bus to go up Winnats Pass to the Blue John Cavern and back and it was rejoined to head down the road to Hope for the Old Hall Hotel.
It was time to visit Intrepid Brewery next, located at Brough Mill which is on the road to Bradwell. Some buses on First’s route 272 go that way but not many and the one that was due failed to operate, however around the same time was the Hulleys bus 173 which runs once every 2 hours so that was boarded for the short run to the brewery!
The set up for the open day involved a pop up bar in the brewery whilst the yard outside had tables and seating along with Sunshine Pizza’s van. A pin was sat on the end of the bar containing a special imperial edition of the Stanage Stout so a half of this was tried, accompanied by a spicy/meaty pizza and both were enjoyed!
It was time to go home and the bus network provided another challenge as the 272 provides an hourly service towards Castleton but no service towards Sheffield for several hours, however it was proved possible to ride the Castleton bound bus to the main road by the Travellers Rest, quickly cross the road and join the Peak Sightseer feeder bus to Woodseats.
An open top bus ride at 6pm in October proved rather cold so the coat was zipped up as high as it would go and my lack of hat was regretted, however there was a reward as the bus climbed up into the hills above Hathersage as a beautiful sunset over the valley was witnessed!
This was pretty much end of season for the Peak Sightseer open top buses, with the last day of operation for 2024 being Saturday 26 October. It was obvious why of course, when I connected onto the regular Stagecoach number 25 to Bradway the existence of a roof and heating was appreciated!
Sheffield based Abbeydale Brewery Ltd is delighted to announce that it has become an Employee Ownership Trust, strengthening the commitment to its talented team, safeguarding its long-standing values and securing the legacy of the business. This change of ownership covers the whole business, encompassing the brewery itself and their pub, The Rising Sun in Nether Green. Both the brewery and pub are now 100% employee owned, with a company name chosen by the new employee owners of Sheffield Beerworks EOT Ltd.
The Rising Sun at Nether Green – Abbeydale Brewery tap
Since its foundation in 1996, Abbeydale Brewery have always utilised a people-focused ethos, growing organically over the past three decades and being open to learning from the team.
The business, which employs over 50 staff (split between the brewery itself and their pub, The Rising Sun in Fulwood), has always been firmly rooted within the community. It benefits from an engaged and committed workforce, all of whom reside within the local area.
Abbeydale’s core range of cask ales at the Rising Sun (photo credit Mark Newton Photography)
Employee ownership will ensure that the business can continue to drive forwards with the values of independence, community and teamwork which it holds as key – overall retaining, building upon, and further developing the principles held for the past 28 years. Selling owner Sue Morton says “as well as trying to grow the business safely and organically, we have always tried to maintain an inclusive and supportive culture with the people who work with and for us. The future of the business is important to us, and we have always said we would not sell out to the ‘big boys’. We can think of no better option to secure the legacy of Abbeydale Brewery than to trust our team with the business they have helped us to build, together – we’re looking forward to seeing the exciting new developments they will bring forward”.
A limited-edition beer will be released to commemorate the occasion. With a recipe that was democratically chosen by the team, “Trust” will be a sessionable pale ale, intended to capture the essence of the beers that have enabled the business to reach this milestone. It will be available in cask, keg and can, and will launch at the Rising Sun on Monday 14th October, and will also be on the bar at the Steel City Beer Festival at Kelham Island Museum from Wednesday 16th October.
Abbeydale Brewery founders Pat and Sue Morton (photo credit Mark Newton Photography)
Brewery founders Pat and Sue Morton will continue to be involved with Abbeydale Brewery – whilst they will step back from the day-to-day running of the business, their positions on the Board of Directors will remain, and they will continue to play an advisory role in the management of the business.
The board of trustees of Sheffield Beer Works EOT along with the Abbeydale Brewery trading board
The new Board of Trustees will be comprised of Jon Conroy who will be the independent chair, Pat Morton (selling owner), Dan Baxter (Co-Managing Director of Abbeydale Brewery Ltd and Abbeydale Inns T/A The Rising Sun), and two employee representatives – Finlay MacDonald who is a bartender at the Rising Sun and brewer Christie McIntosh representing the manufacturing side of the business. Dan says “I could not be more proud of our team and everything we have achieved together over the years. We are a humble bunch, mentored by Pat and Sue, and have a vast skill set amongst our staff at both the brewery and the Rising Sun. The future for the business is very exciting! The support of our customers and our community is paramount as it always has been. So a massive thank you for enjoying our beer. We will continue to do what we do best”.
Abbeydale Brewery join a growing movement of EOTs that also includes companies such as Aardman Animations, cosmetics supplies Lush, and fellow Sheffield based Gripple and Swann Morton.
Brewer Jim Rangeley with Abbeydale’s marketing manager Laura. CREDIT: Noelia Amado Photography
Sheffield’s Abbeydale Brewery are celebrating this week, after their Lead Brewer, Jim Rangeley, was named Brewer of the Year at the 2024 Brewers Choice Awards.
Jim was presented with the prestigious award at a London ceremony earlier this week, where he and the team celebrated alongside hundreds of their brewing industry peers at the annual industry event. Jim, 35, who hails from Sheffield and this year celebrates a decade of working in the beer industry, heads up Abbeydale’s small batch, mixed fermentation “Funk Dungeon” project, alongside being a valued part of the brewteam.
Jim says “I’m privileged to have a job I truly enjoy, working as part of a brilliant team for a company that puts its trust in me. To have even been shortlisted was incredibly humbling and it’s a true honour to have won.”
Judged by a panel of industry experts, this accolade recognises Jim’s talent and passion, as well as his strong sense of values and commitment to progress within the wider industry. Beer writer and judge Melissa Cole said “What Jim has achieved at Abbeydale is nothing short of excellent. From the Funk Dungeon to churning out great core ranges and being a decent human at the same time, this award is well-deserved.”
Tim Sheahan, editor of The Brewers Journal and organiser of the awards, added: “The level of competition for the ‘Brewer of The Year’ category is always incredibly high and in 2024 this was no different. But the judging panel at The Brewers Choice Awards recognised not only Jim’s ability to produce a wealth of different styles with unerring ease but his commitment to the industry, too.”
In addition, Abbeydale Brewery were also shortlisted in the Branding of the Year category for their cask beer focused Travel Poster series, the artwork for which is created by designer James Murphy, who has been working with Abbeydale Brewery since 2016. James described making the top three in this hotly contested category as “fantastic”, adding that the unique branding for this range is intended to invoke an emotional connection between the beer, the place, and ultimately the drinker.
Abbeydale Brewery, Sheffield’s longest established brewery, are well known for producing a huge range of beers (in particular their flagship pale ale, Moonshine), blending innovation with heritage and reflecting these values across their beers.
Abbeydale Brewery Funk Dungeon brewer Jim Rangeley – CREDIT Mark Newton PhotographyAbbeydale Brewery brewer Jim Rangeley mashing out – CREDIT Mark Newton Photography
Eyam Brewery is in our branch area and their beer always prove popular at our Steel City Beer & Cider Festival so when they announced their third and final open day of the year and we hadn’t got anything on that day we arranged a branch social trip.
The Stagecoach 65 bus from Sheffield drops off in the centre of Great Hucklow village just around the corner from the brewery providing a handy way of getting there, with some fantastic Peak District scenery to enjoy as part of the ride.
We arrived in the village at 12:30pm, half an hour before the brewery was due to open so we visited the Queen Anne pub first, which had two real ales available – Bass and Castle Rock Harvest Pale. Food was also being served.
At the brewery a pop up bar was set up serving a varied range of 5 cask ales and 4 keg beers, most of which have plague themed names. All were delicious. Sunshine Pizza (who can also be found at our beer festival!) were pitched up outside to provide food to soak up the ale whilst next door the Ground Effect coffee roasters had opened up selling bags of their coffee, showing people around as well as serving cups of coffee to drink!
The bus back was at 4:47pm, providing four pleasant hours in the village for us all!
inside Eyam BreweryThe Sheffield & District CAMRA group sat outside Eyam BreweryGround Effect coffee roasters and a fantastic view were just across the yard from the breweryInside Ground Effect Coffee including their bean roasting machine!
Hop Hideout began its journey on Abbeydale Road as a small craft beer shop with keg taps and a tasting room. When Kommune food hall opened with an attached independent retail area, the opportunity arose to relocate to a City Centre location. Hop Hideout left Kommune a few months ago, and there are now no shops there. Since then, some pop-up events in collaboration with local brewery taprooms have taken place.
Jules has now launched the third iteration of Hop Hideout at the newly regenerated Leah’s Yard on Cambridge Street in Sheffield City Centre. Leah’s Yard is home to a cluster of small independent businesses, including a Pete McKee gallery, designer clothing shops, ceramics, and various food and drink retailers.
The format for Hop Hideout is similar to before, with a cosy shop unit featuring fridges full of craft beer, cider, and natural wine, along with taps for draught beer and cider. There are also tables inside and outside if you want to sit and enjoy your drink on the premises. Moving from Kommune to their own space means Hop Hideout can now do much more on the special events side of things, so you can expect tutored tasting sessions hosted by brewers, winemakers, and cider producers.
Hop Hideout’s new opening was part of the launch of the entire Leah’s Yard development during the August bank holiday weekend, which attracted a lot of interest. The shop continues to see many new faces popping in, as well as a lot of old regulars who have followed them to the new location. The spot is ideal, in a busy part of the City Centre near City Hall, and it is looking fantastic following recent regeneration work. Leah’s Yard has the Cambridge Street Collective as a neighbour, along with many new shop units along the same street.
Once Jules has had a chance to catch her breath after getting the shop open, training the staff, serving the many customers, sorting out rewards for crowdfunding contributors, and getting everything organised and tidy, we will be having a chat with her for a future issue of Beer Matters, by which time some of the special events will have been announced!
