Author: Andy Cullen

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.

One Valley Festival preview

Posted on by Andy Cullen

One Valley Festival sees numerous venues across the Dronfield area including pubs, clubs and brewery tap rooms all put on special events involving beer, cider, street food and music all on the same day. The 2024 event takes place on Saturday 8 June.

Here is a quick guide to the venues expected to take part. Keep an eye on their Facebook page for the latest updates.

Most of the venues are close to the railway station and can be walked between; All the venues are served by one of the four local Stagecoach bus services – 15, 16, 43 and 44 – all charge just £2 per ride or a Silver DayRider pass is available offering unlimited travel on them all (£6.20 adult or £16 for a group of 5, buy from the driver or on the Stagecoach app).

Until 5pm there is also the Travel Derbyshire On Demand minibus that can be booked on their app for any journey in North East Derbyshire at a cost of £4 per ride, subject to availability.

CORE ONE VALLEY FESTIVAL VENUES

Manor House Hotel, High Street, Dronfield (get there by bus 15 or 16): As normal their coffee shop will be open serving cooked breakfasts from 8am and the hotel bar will open at 10am, however festivities kick off outdoors at the rear of the building from noon with two outside bars – one of them serving Abbeydale cask beers. Pellizco will be there slinging Mexican food and Britpop Resurrection will be performing live at 5pm and 6pm, followed by DJ Brad Gee playing an outdoor set from 7:30pm. https://www.facebook.com/manorhousehotel.co.uk

Blue Stoops, High Street, Dronfield (get there by bus 15, 16 or 43): Features a large outdoor drinking area and outside bars will be in place for the festival. Inside the normal bar and restaurant will be operating. https://www.facebook.com/thebluestoopsdronfield

Victoria, Stubley Lane, Dronfield (get there by bus 15, 16 or 43): Old Skool street corner local boozer with a small outdoor drinking area.

Green Dragon, Church Street, Dronfield (walkable from Dronfield station and bus 44): The car park will be closed off to make a bigger outdoor area with an outside bar open from midday, Smiths fish & chip van and music – DJ Higgz 2pm to 4pm, Vocalist Hayley-Lou 4pm to 6pm and DJ Higgz from 6:30pm until late. https://www.facebook.com/GreenDragonDronfield

Dronfield Arms, Chesterfield Road, Dronfield (walkable from Dronfield station, bus 44 stops close by): This pub is the home to Temper Brewing and a branch of Pizza Pi, for the festival the car park is closed off for a party with outside bar and music stage with live acts during the afternoon from 1pm then a DJ taking over at 6pm to keep things swinging as the sun sets. (stage line up: 1pm Magenta Apricot, 2pm Kickback, 3pm Issac, 4pm Dronny Bottom Buskers, 5pm Chris Paul, 6pm to midnight DJ Phil). https://www.facebook.com/dronfieldarms

Underdog, Chesterfield Road, Dronfield (walkable from Dronfield station, bus 44 stops close by): A barely noticable passageway runs down the side of the building to a rear courtyard area where for the festival an outside bar will be serving a range of craft beer, flavoured ciders and alcoholic slushies. Also present will be Butlers Family Bakers’ selling hot pork sandwiches. https://www.facebook.com/TheUnderdogDronfield

White Swan, Chesterfield Road, Dronfield (walkable from Dronfield station, bus 44 stops close by): If the weather is good their patio area proves popular and for the festival they have an outside bottle bar. Also featured is a pizza van and Bethany Grace will be singing between 1pm and 3pm. https://www.facebook.com/whiteswandronfield2023

Pioneer Club, Stonelow Road, Dronfield (get there on bus 15 or 44): Expect a full range of drinks on the club bar inside, live entertainment, DJ and food stalls. It will be a family friendly venue too with a bouncy castle, childrens entertainer and other kids activities. https://www.facebook.com/PioneerClubS18

Miners Arms, Carr Lane, Dronfield Woodhouse (bus 16 stops outside or bus 43 is a short walk away): This is a suburban community local with a decent beer garden. On festival day real ale on the pub bar will be joined by a cider shack outside, there will be live music at 1pm and 8pm with a DJ providing the music inbetween, returning later on in the evening to host a throwback disco once the band has finished. BBQ food will be served from midday to 6pm and there will be a dessert van from 4pm to 7pm. In the daytime there will be a bouncy castle for the kids. https://www.facebook.com/theminersarmsdronfieldwoodhouse

Jolly Farmer, Pentland Road, Dronfield Woodhouse (get there on bus 43): A suburban community pub that serves food. Festival day routine sees them open early serving cooked breakfasts (advance booking essential!) then into the afternoon their outdoor area hosts a pop up bar, BBQ and live entertainment. https://www.facebook.com/jollyfarmerdronfield

ONE VALLEY EXTRA VENUES

Beer Stop, Callywhite Lane, Dronfield (walkable from Dronfield station or bus 44 stops right outside): A small craft beer shop that offers on site drinking with a patio area at the front – expect as usual a choice of beers in keg, can and bottle www.facebook.com/BeerStopDronfield

Drone Valley Brewery, Unstone Industrial Complex, Main Road, Unstone (bus 43 and 44 stop at the end of the drive): For the festival their brewery tap operation cranks it up a gear or two – bigger bar in the brewery showcasing their range of cask ales plus lager and cider, separate outside cocktail bar and a food stall provided by Gow’s Kitchen of Coal Aston. There will be live music throughout the afternoon: Simon Lancaster at midday, Tony Bovill at 12:45pm, Ed Hulse at 1:30pm, Dog & The Enigmas at 2:15pm, Shambles Duo at 3pm, Charlotte Hall at 4pm and Cobalt Tales at 5pm. https://www.facebook.com/dronevalleybrewery

Miners Arms, Hundall Lane, Hundall (get there on bus 15): Always a popular destination on festival day is this rural pub up in the hills! On the day the beer garden gains an outside bar with a range of ales, lagers and ciders along with a food stall and outdoor live music stage. Music kicks off from 2pm with Steve Birks and Hallowed Travellers. https://www.facebook.com/minershundall

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT AND DJ SCHEDULE

Here is a summary of what all the venues have announced so far. Please check for any changes directly with the venues before making any special journeys!

  • 12:00 – Drone Valley Brewery: Simon Lancaster
  • 12:00 – Pioneer Club: DJ John
  • 12:45 – Drone Valley Brewery: Tony Bovill
  • 13:00 – Dronfield Arms: Magenta Apricot
  • 13:00 – Jolly Farmer: Ding & John – live singing and DJ sets throughout the afternoon
  • 13:00 – Miners Arms (Dronfield Woodhouse): Russ Dennett (guitar solo)
  • 13:00 – White Swan: Bethany Grace
  • 13:00 – Blue Stoops: DJs throughout the afternoon and evening until 10pm playing chilled tunes.
  • 13:30 – Drone Valley Brewery: Ed Hulse
  • 14:00 – Dronfield Arms: Kickback
  • 14:00 – Green Dragon: DJ Higgz (until 16:00)
  • 14:00 – Miners Arms (Dronfield Woodhouse): DJ Dave’s throwback disco (throughout afternoon)
  • 14:00 – Miners Arms (Hundall): Steve Birks
  • 14:00 – Pioneer Club: Jo Mansfield
  • 14:15 – Drone Valley Brewery: Dog & The Enigmas
  • 14:30 – Pioneer Club: Barney Baloney (childrens entertainment)
  • 15:00 – Dronfield Arms: Issac (cover songs)
  • 15:00 – Drone Valley Brewery: The Shambles Duo
  • 16:00 – Dronfield Arms: Dronny Bottom Buskers
  • 16:00 – Green Dragon: Hayley Lou, performing Diva classics and dance favourites
  • 16:00 – Drone Valley Brewery: Charlotte Hall
  • 17:00 – Dronfield Arms: Chris Paul
  • 17:00 – Manor House: Britpop Resurrection (band playing 90s classics from Pulp, Blur, Stone Roses, Oasis etc)
  • 17:00 – Drone Valley Brewery: Cobalt Tales
  • 17:00 – Miners Arms (Hundall): Hallowed Travellers
  • 18:00 – Dronfield Arms: DJ Phil (until midnight)
  • 18:00 – Pioneer Club: Alan Squires (guitar & vocals)
  • 18:30 – Green Dragon: DJ Higgz
  • 19:30 – Manor House: DJ Brad Gee (until closing time)
  • 20:00 – Miners Arms (Dronfield Woodhouse): Brude (classic rock band)

BUS STOPS / RAIL STATION

Use these links to view the next buses scheduled from the nearest stop to each venue, there are separate links for each side of the road. Click on the time of the bus and it will show you where the bus is and if it is on time or click on the map link so you can see on a map where the bus stop is and where the buses are.

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What is real ale or cider? What’s craft?

Posted on by Andy Cullen

Do you keep seeing talk of real ale and craft beer and wonder exactly what it means? Hopefully we can answer your questions in simple terms!

Most beer is brewed in the same way at a basic level – Malt added to water which is boiled, hops are added into the boil and the result is cooled then fermented with yeast into beer! (ingredients may vary and I know that’s an over simplification!)

Real Ale is a term originally coined by CAMRA activists in the early days. It can be applied to bottled beer that has a yeast sediment, however the most common use is for “cask conditioned” beer (or live beer to use a more modern term) where the brewery has racked fresh beer into casks with live yeast which allows secondary fermentation to take place in the cask in the pub cellar, meaning the beer is not only fresh but has a natural sparkle without needing to add gas on dispense to make it fizzy. However on the flip side, as it is a fresh live product it has a short shelf life and if on the bar too long can go off, oxidising and gaining vinegar characteristics!

Craft beer doesn’t really have an officially recognised definition and as a term is often abused by marketing people. It was intended to promote beer where the production is the opposite of industrial – smaller scale brewers using quality ingredients, manual processes and a love of the product where the recipe is dictated by the brewer rather than the accountant.

Of course there are success stories of craft brewers that have grown and the question is then whether they are still considered craft. Beavertown sold a good share of their brewery to Heineken who invested in a much bigger scale brewery and bigger distribution and there is a view the beer isn’t as flavorful as it used to be whilst Brewdog is now a multinational industrial scale brewer that supplies supermarkets and chain bars. On the other hand closer to home we have Thornbridge that has expanded significantly over the years with investment in bigger production facilities for their core brands, on site lab facilities, canning/bottling lines, a sales & marketing team and more – however the care for product, visions and values and an excitement to experiment (for example their barrel aging programmes and the installation of a Burton Union set) lives on, suggesting they still deserve to be called craft!

You may also see talk of cask versus keg for how draught beer is packaged. Typically real ale is in a cask as if facilitates secondary fermentation (although some single use keg products such as keykeg can also be used for real ale) and in CAMRA’s early days it was very much cask is good and keg is bad as the brewers that were replacing their traditional cask beer with keg products were filling their kegs with a poorer quality product made with cheaper ingredients with a process designed to make the beer long life rather then fresh with the lower production costs and lower wastage from expired beer proving financially attractive to both brewers and publicans.

These days things are less simple with craft brewers putting beer in kegs that are a good quality product (with decent ingredients, not pasteurized and often not filtered) and has much more flavour than the big industrial brands. The craft term isn’t tied to a specific format with such brewers often choosing cask or keg based on which they feel suits the style of beer best – for example a high strength stout that is likely to sell slower may be best in keg as it won’t go off so quick or a continental style lager may be enjoyed with some extra carbonation whilst a mild, malt bitter or gently hopped blonde might taste better on cask.

CAMRA does continue to champion the tradition of real ale, it is a fantastic part of our beer heritage we want people to continue to enjoy and are still passionate about that, however often now at CAMRA beer festivals other formats will be showcased alongside the cask where it is a good quality example of the genre (after all CAMRA was founded on the basis of wanting a choice of good quality beer) and campaigning priorities have moved on with issues facing consumers, publicans and brewers, particularly with the cost of living crisis!

Next is the subject of what we refer to as “real cider” or “real perry”. Similar to real ale it is the traditional, fresh, good quality product, however the key thing here is slightly different – it needs to be made from freshly pressed apple or pear juice that has been fermented rather than the more industrial product made from concentrate. Also any additional flavouring should be the real thing, not just a syrup chucked in.

Kelham Pride

Posted on by Andy Cullen

1 June sees the first ever Kelham Pride celebration. This is a free all day festival that kicks off with a parade starting from Kelham Island Museum at 1pm via Ball Street Bridge to the event’s main stage at Burton Street (Peddler Warehouse). There will also be events taking place in venues around the area including Happy’s Bar, Grafters Bar and Alder and a couple of local breweries have brewed a special Pride beer for the occasion.

On cask look out for Blue Bee’s special.

For more details of the event visit their website – Kelham Pride.com

Steel City 48 confirmed

Posted on by Andy Cullen

We are very happy to confirm we have the go-ahead to organise our 48th Steel City Beer & Cider Festival this year, which will take place from 16 to 19 October.

The venue is once again the wonderfully atmospheric Kelham island Museum with the same format as last year – bars spread across the Upper Hall, Brearley Room, Crucible Room and a marquee serving a huge range of real ales (around 200!) plus over 50 other craft beers in keykeg, bottle and can along with a selection of around 30 different ciders and perry.

The upper hall will also be home to the live music stage and stalls whilst in the courtyard you’ll find a number of street food traders. Meanwhile the Millowners Arms pub, located within the site, will be trading as normal exclusively for festival visitors with some additional beer choices plus all your other pub drinks such as wines, spirits and soft drinks.

New this year will be a street food trader in the rear courtyard by the Crucible room where the keykeg bar is based, adding to the experience for those hanging out around this part of the festival!

For more information visit the website – sheffield.camra.org.uk/sc, this will get updated as details get confirmed, alternatively follow the Steel City Beer & Cider Festival on Facebook, Instagram and X for updates.

PUBlic Transport

Posted on by Andy Cullen

The weekend of 11-13 May sees some changes to Derbyshire buses.

In Killamarsh service 80 to Chesterfield has a change of operator and route, with First South Yorkshire replacing Hulleys of Baslow. A direct bus to Sheffield is once again introduced with First bus 120k – this is the existing 120 with one bus an hour extended beyond Crystal Peaks. Timetables are available from Derbyshire County Council at derbysbus.info

In the Peak District Stagecoach’s Peak Sightseer open top bus service makes a return for 2024, this time with two routes – Blue route from Chatsworth to Castleton on an hourly frequency and Red route from Chatsworth to Bakewell every half hour. There are also some feeder trips at the start and end of day with pick ups at Meadowhead, Woodseats, Ecclesall and Totley. The ticket price this year is £9.50 for an adult or £25 for a group of 5 people with discounts offered for concessionary pass holders and Wayfarer ticket holders. The ticket is a “Gold DayRider” offering all day unlimited hop-on-hop-off travel on the Peak Sightseer services plus all other Stagecoach buses in the area. More information online at stagecoachbus.com

Also in our area with less significant timetable or route changes are buses 65, 208, 257, 272 and X17 whilst on Supertram there is engineering work from 25 May to 2 June – details at travelsouthyorkshire.com.

Peak Sightseer open top buses – Red route
Peak Sightseer open top buses – Blue route

Pub of the Year 2024 (East Sheffield)

Posted on by Andy Cullen

The Chantry Inn (400 Handsworth Road, S13 9BZ) has been voted as Sheffield and District CAMRA East Area Pub of the Year for 2024.
 
This historic pub which was built around 1250 is uniquely one of only four pubs in the UK set in consecrated grounds being within the boundaries of St Mary’s parish church in Handsworth.
 
It compromises of three different rooms each with some original and unique features including real fireplaces, beamed low ceilings and even the bell pushes used in previous days to order the ale. There are also claims of various tunnels and passageways from the cellar to the church. 
 
It has had a varied past originally being a chantry and safe house for nuns, then a washhouse and a school before being a pub for much of the later years from the early 1800’s.
 
Chantry Brewery acquired the pub in early 2019, undertook a tasteful restoration and now deliver real quality beers. There are always 5 cask ales on tap from Chantry brewery with a rotating special including Steelos, Kaldos, Full Moon alongside the regulars of New York pale, Iron and Steel bitter, Special Reserve and Diamond Stout. There are also changing keg beers available often from Tiny Rebel or Beavertown as well as real cider options and Chantry brewery’s own Helles lager. 
 
Congratulations to all involved with the Chantry Inn including the brewery and the pub manager Terry and his partner Alison. The area pub of the year award presentation is planned for the evening of Tuesday 11 June and all are welcome to join the celebration. 

Inn Brief

Posted on by Andy Cullen

Bulls Head in Ranmoor, which is a Stonegate pub co lease, has reopened under the new management of Adrian and Clair, who also own the Angel at Holmesfield. The pub has four handpumps and they anticipate putting on some local beers including Bradfield Farmers Blonde and Thornbridge Jaipur along with others from the Stonegate list such as Purity Ubu.

Banner Cross is running a programme of Sunday afternoon garden gigs, on every week from 14 July to 1 September between 4 and 7pm. On the 14 July they’ll also be showing the Euro 2024 football final on the outdoor screen. Check out their Facebook page for more details.

Robin Hood in Millhouses closed for a refurbishment on 21 April and reopened on 9 May.

Crown at Totley is having some work done on the pub exterior from 28 May. If you see scaffolding up don’t worry, the pub hasn’t closed down!

Shepley Spitfire in Totley has reopened following refurbishment with a new pool table and darts board, upgraded beer garden. There are three real ales on the bar and the first Saturday back open saw live music in the evening.

Prince of Wales in Norton Lees has been closed for a refurbishment but has now reopened.

George in Castleton has won a PubAid Community Sustainability Hero award. The pub grows its own produce, uses solar power and keeps bees as well as doing much recycling!

British Oak in Mosborough host their annual Oakstock event on 12 and 13 July. This sees live music outside from 5pm Friday and midday Saturday along with food, outside bar and kids’ entertainment.

Changes in the kitchen at Dog & Partridge in Sheffield City Centre with a new pop up taking a residency there from 14 June – it will be the home to Stacked Deli, offering a range of gourmet sandwiches.

Old Horns Inn at High Bradfield is closing for a refurbishment from 20 May to 15 June. When they reopen they will launch a new menu, new drinks range and new look.

Abbeydale Tap & Snap is serving Pieminister pies from 24 May.

Old Hall Hotel in Hope will be supporting the annual Steam Rally Day which takes place to raise money for the Hope Valley College CRY screening fund on 22 June. Various events involving steam traction engines with venues being Old Hall Hotel at 11am, Bike & Boot Inn at noon, Hathersage at 1pm and Travellers Rest in Brough at 3pm. The finale is at 6pm in the Speedwell Cavern car park at the foot of Winnats Pass and is followed by an evening of celebrations. The charity provides a service going into the school that serves the rural Hope Valley communities to test year 11 students for cardiac abnormalities, this costs £6,000 a time!

We’re hearing that the Eyre Arms in Hassop is on course to be reopened.

Pub of the Year 2024 (District)

Posted on by Andy Cullen

The winner in the Derbyshire part of our Sheffield & District branch area competition, as voted for by our members and validated by our judges, is the Old Hall Hotel in Hope.

The main pub building is a 16th Century coaching inn sited on the main road through the village opposite the church which is split into three areas – the main lounge containing the bar, a smaller side room and a restaurant. Upstairs there are hotel rooms offering bed & breakfast accommodation with the breakfast served in the tea room, located in a newer building that is connected to the main pub.

The pub is traditionally furnished and in the winter gets quite cosy with the fire lit!

A selection of well kept real ales is available on the pub’s bar, generally leaning towards the more traditional styles. The pub is also proud of its scotch whisky selection with some of the stock arriving following road trips to the highlands and islands of Scotland!

On most bank holiday weekends a marquee appears on the pub car park hosting the Hope Valley Beer & Cider Festival with a large range of cask ales served on a mixture of handpump and gravity and the opportunity is usually taken to showcase breweries from or near to Derbyshire including the two most local brewers Intrepid and Eyam. The festival also features live entertainment and a snack bar.

The Old Hall Hotel is leased from Heineken’s Star Pub Company by Atlantik Inns, a local company run hands on by experienced pub landlord Rick Ellison and his team. There is a quiz night every Tuesday and various other events from time to time and attracts tourists staying in the area, hikers and day trippers as well as locals that live in Hope or other nearby villages.

Join us at the Old Hall’s beer festival on Saturday 25 May when we’ll be presenting them with the District Pub of the Year award at around 3pm.

Buses 173 (Bakewell-Castleton) and 271/272 (Sheffield-Castleton) stop close to the pub or Hope railway station (Sheffield-Manchester line) is a 10-15 minute walk away.