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.
This year the Sheffield & District branch of CAMRA is 51 years old, Beer Matters magazine is 50 years old (as long as you count its predecessor, the Parish Pump newsletter) and we’ve run 49 annual beer festivals (the festival had two years off for Covid!) although the branch has been involved in more than 49 festivals due to putting on beer festival bars at student union and music festival events in the past!
Over the years we’ve also presented a Pub of the Year award and we have them listed on our website going back as far as 1982.
We have many breweries in our area and a number of them offer the opportunity of drinking the beer at source. Some of them are attached to a regularly open bar whilst others run special tap events on certain days.
This wonderfully restored bar at Sheffield railway station is also home to the Tapped Brew Co with the brewery located in one of the drinking rooms behind a glass screen, so on a brew day you can sit and watch the brewer at work! The bar is open 7 days a week serving their own beers plus guests.
GETTING THERE – tram or train to Sheffield Station, various buses to Sheffield Interchange
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Rutland Arms, Old Queens Head
If you aren’t tempted to base yourself in the extensive outdoor drinking area you walk through to get to the front door, almost all the indoor tables are on the other side of a glass screen from the brewery. The bar features a huge range of beer brewed on site, the majority of their beers are hoppy pale ales or European style lagers but not exclusively so and all are of great quality and also mostly gluten free too. You’ll find this venue on Shoreham Street, on the edge of Sheffield City Centre.
GETTING THERE – Buses 1, 24, 25, 47, 48 and 51 stop close by or it is walkable from Granville Road tram stop (Blue or Purple route).
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Rutland Arms, Lord Nelson
FUGGLE BUNNY BREWHOUSE
Fuggle Bunny Brew House is located on an industrial estate a short walk from Halfway tram and bus terminus and brews a range of mostly traditional real ales along with the occasional special on cask or keg. The beer names are themed on telling a story and the pump clips are designed like book marks. A bar is opened in the brewery once a week, on Fridays, with a selection of their beers available. The “Fuggle Friday” tap sessions do have the vibe of a local community pub with folks that live nearby walking their dog down their for a beer and chat! During the summer months they also have a monthly Saturday tap event with live music and a food trader, keep an eye on their Facebook page for those being advertised – the last one of this year is an Oktoberfest event on 27 September.
GETTING THERE – Blue route tram, buses 26, 26a, 53a, 74, 120, 120k
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Guzzle, Belfry, Scarsdale Hundred (Wetherspoon), Craftworks
LOXLEY
Loxley Brewery is located at the Wisewood Inn where you can enjoy a range of their beers and food is served too. There is a beer garden at the rear and some lovely scenery! The pub also hosts a beer festival every June in a marquee outside.
GETTING THERE – bus 52a, 61, 62
TOOLMAKERS
Tookmakers brewery, off Rutland Road in Neepsend, brews a selection of traditional cask ales in small batches to supply their pub, the Forest, which is next door. They also have a seperate brewery tap room across the yard from the brewhouse which hosts events including live music and comedy shows.
GETTING THERE – bus 7, 8
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Gardeners Rest, Neepsend Social
DEAD PARROT
This could be described by some as something of a Frankenstein’s monster, assembled from the parts of two former breweries – Aardvark and Frog & Parrot. The brewery tap bar is Perch, located on Garden Street on the edge of Sheffield City Centre (near Fagans and Butlers Balti!) with the brewery in the building behind. At present their beers are brewed in small batches to supply the handpumps in their own bar and occasionally beer festivals. The bar also serves very good quality burgers and pizzas.
This is a modern craft beer tap room with in house brewery. There has been a change of ownership after which brewing was suspended but that is due to resume any time now. The venue is on Neepsend Lane, next door to the Gardeners Rest.
Chantry are based in Parkgate, Rotherham, a short walk from the Tram Train terminus. They mostly brew simple session ales – traditional bitter, pales and blondes, however do also produce a stout, special reserve and lagers along with specials. Part of the brewery building, which is two neighbouring industrial units, doubles up as a live music venue with a programme of gigs booked for many Fridays and Saturdays through the year. The stage is on the ground floor and the bar is upstairs on a mezzanine level with a range of their beers at reasonable prices.
GETTING THERE – Tram Train or various buses from Rotherham Interchange
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Little Haven
TEMPER BREWING
Temper is a small batch independent brewer that leases the set up underneath the Dronfield Arms pub, supplying the bar upstairs and sometimes other connected pubs including the Joiners Arms in Bakewell and the two Sheffield Beer House venues. The Beer Stop (craft beer shop) nearby is owned by the brewer but doesn’t usually stock Temper beer.
GETTING THERE – walkable from Dronfield railway station or bus 44 stops close to the pub.
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Underdog, White Swan, Pioneer Club.
This brewery is unusual in that it’s owned by the community, staffed mostly by volunteers and profits go to local good causes. The beer range is mostly traditional cask ales with pales, blondes, bitters, stout and porter although occasional brews include a black IPA and a Scottish Export Ale. The brewery itself is in an industrial unit in Unstone with the tap room located in a tent next door, this opens every weekend on Friday, Saturday and Monday plus some special ticketed events are hosted there on a Sunday from time to time.
GETTING THERE – bus 43 or 44
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – various pubs in Dronfield town centre are a short bus ride away.
The brewery started its life as a small kit in a brick shed in the grounds of Thornbridge Hall but is now spread across multiple industrial units on an estate in Bakewell! One of the units has modern kit brewing beer like Jaipur IPA in large volumes and also hosts a bottling plant whilst a second unit is home to the smaller, traditional kit where the small batch seasonal cask ales are produced along with barrel aged beers. This unit is also home to their huge tap room where a range of their beers is available to try along with pizzas. You can also book a “Thornbridge Experience” where you get a talk about the brewery and a number of different beers to taste.
GETTING THERE – a short walk from Bakewell town centre where buses 218 and 257 will drop you from Sheffield, alternatively buses 173 and Transpeak stop at the end of the drive.
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – various in Bakewell town centre including the Joiners Arms micropub.
INTREPID
a part time operation located in the Peak District hamlet of Brough. A number of regular beers including pale ales and a stout are produced and the brewer regularly works on something “more interesting”. An open day is hosted at the brewery twice a year in the summer when a pop up bar is opened in the brewery with a pizza stall, seating and music outside in the yard.
GETTING THERE – bus 173 or 272
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – various in Bradwell and Hope
EYAM BREWERY
The name of this Peak District brewery is slightly misleading as when they upgraded to bigger kit they relocated away from Eyam to the nearby village of Great Hucklow. The beer names do still retain the same theme though, which plays on the historical reputation of Eyam as the plague village! It is located in a beautiful rural location with views of hills and fields! They host three open days a year when they open a pop up bar and shop in the brewery with seating and a street food trader.
GETTING THERE – bus 65 or 173
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Queen Anne
ACORN BREWERY
Acorn are best known for their Barnsley Bitter but do produce a varied range. They run a beer club scheme which gets you access to their monthly ticket only tap events.
GETTING THERE – walkable from Wombwell railway station
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS –
RESTING DEVIL
This brewery is located in the former function room at the Chesterfield Arms pub, located close to Chesterfield town centre.
GETTING THERE – buses 44, 44 or X17
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – Neptune, various town centre pubs.
BRAMPTON BREWERY
Located in an industrial yard just off the end of Chesterfield’s famous “Brampton Mile” pub crawl producing a range of traditional ales. They have a tap pub – Tramway Tavern – on the main road near the brewery, however there is also a bar in the brewery itself where you can get beer when booked on a brewery tour or attending an open day.
GETTING THERE – various buses from Chesterfield town centre
NEARBY REAL ALE PUBS – numerous on and near Chatsworth Road including the Rose & Crown, Chesterfield CAMRA’s Pub of the Year award winner.
Chin Chin Brewing Co are hosting another open weekend from 26 to 28 September, open 1pm to 9pm each day. It features a bar showcasing their own cask ales plus some keg beers from guest craft brewers along with cider, music and food. The brewery is on Langthwaite industrial estate in South Kirkby, a ten minute walk from Moorthorpe railway station (Sheffield to Leeds/York via Dearne trains).
Blue Bee are best known for their pale hoppy beers and their ginger beer has something of a following too, however they do brew dark beers now and again and one of their recent brews is Parkwood Porter, at a sensible 4% ABV. In contrast, an extra pale ale has also been brewed at a sessionable 3.7% using Columbus, Chinook and Citra hops.
Stancill Brewery have unveiled their Autumn range of seasonal beers including Bavaria (Golden Ale), Secret Potion, Casper (ghostly pale) and Treason (Parkin Porter).
Bradfield Brewery are building up to the usually much hyped annual cask launch of their Christmas beer, Belgian Blue, available from 3 November. However something that has been taking place much more quietly is their growing range of gluten free bottled beers, which now includes a choice of Farmers Blonde, Brown Cow, Belgian Blue, Pale Ale, Sixer, Stout and Yorkshire Farmer.
Eyam Brewery, based in Great Hucklow, are running a crowdfunding initiative to open a brewery tap bar and shop in Tideswell as they are unable to do so at their current production site.
True North Brewery is saying goodbye to brewer Dean, who is moving on to pastures new. A decision has been made not to employ a new brewer and instead to lease the brewery out to an independent operator, who will be given the opportunity to supply True North’s venues.
Official Government figures have revealed that more than 200 pubs have closed across the UK in the first half of 2025, with closures accelerating amid mounting tax burdens and cost pressures on the sector.
CAMRA’s own figures, which show 137 pubs lost in the first six months of the year, and 149 already gone in total this year, are broadly in line with the Government’s, underlining the scale of the crisis facing the industry.
CAMRA Chairman Ash Corbett-Collins said:
“These latest figures are yet more proof that pubs are being pushed to the brink by unfair and unsustainable tax burdens. We warned earlier this year that rising Employer National Insurance Contributions, alongside a cut in business rates relief, would hit pubs hard, and sadly we are now seeing those warnings borne out in closures on a devastating scale. Every pub that shuts its doors is a blow to jobs, communities and our cultural heritage.”
“What makes this even more devastating is that so many of them are not just shutting their doors temporarily but being demolished or converted to other uses. CAMRA has consistently called for stronger planning protections to stop our locals being wiped out overnight. Pubs are more than just businesses; they are community lifelines. Without action in the Autumn Budget, figures like this will be just the tip of the iceberg.”
CAMRA has revealed the 16 regional and national winners in its Pub of the Year 2025 competition.
The shortlisted pubs have beaten thousands of entries to be crowned the best in their region or nation and will now battle it out for the chance to be named CAMRA’s overall Pub of the Year. The final four pubs in the running for the overall title will be announced in October with the winner revealed in January 2026.
With the Bank Holiday weekend approaching, CAMRA is encouraging people to get out and enjoy their local or seek out all of these great pubs for a quality pint in great surroundings.
Judges are looking for great atmosphere, décor, welcome, service, inclusivity, overall impression and, most importantly, quality cask beer, real cider and perry.
The 16 pubs have been recognised as the best of the best in the UK and their shortlisting for the competition is testament to their quality and commitment to their communities.
This year’s contest comes as many pubs across the UK face their toughest year yet. They face high costs, high costs, heavy tax burdens and crippling business rates. Pubs need sector specific support, including the reform of the business rates system, an extension of the draught beer and cider duty and a reduction in Employer National Insurance to help with staffing costs.
Andrea Briers, CAMRA’s Pub of the Year Co-ordinator said:
“It is a real pleasure to announce this year’s top 16 pubs, each of which has demonstrated exceptional quality, warmth and dedication to their communities. These pubs are shining examples of what makes the Great British pub so special, from perfectly kept pints to a genuine welcome for all.
“Achieving this in the face of rising costs and other pressures is no small feat, and we want to see these pubs, and thousands of others like them, continue to thrive. That’s why we’re calling on the Chancellor to give pubs a fair deal in the Autumn Budget, so they can keep serving their communities for many years to come.”
The Brothers Arms hold their Oktoberfest party on Saturday 4 October with live music from 2pm onwards, concluding with a DJ set by Tink & Annala. Bratwursts from Worrall Foods will be available too.
The Green Room in Sheffield City Centre now once again has cask ale on the bar after a long spell with no craft beer of any description. On the newly installed handpump is Abbeydale Moonshine and they now also have a couple of Abbeydale beers on the keg taps too. The bar has an open mic night on Mondays, DJs at the weekend and a back room filled with retro video games!
The JD Wetherspoons chain hold one of their regular real ale festivals from 1 to 12 October which involves a number of international collaborations. At the Rawson Spring in Hillsborough they are hosting a special preview day on 30 September with beer tastings, festival ales at just £2.15 a pint and a special 20% discount on food for CAMRA members that day. You can download a copy of the festival beer list from their website or pick up a printed copy in their pubs.
The Canary, Waverley – photo by Richard Allen
A new bar called the Canary opened on the Waverley estate on 12 September. It’s located at Olive Lane, the new shopping area. It has 3 cask ales on handpump along with a number of other craft beers on tap.
The Canary, Waverley, opening night! photo – Stuart Mathers
As usual for the time of year, a number of venues are hosting German themed Oktoberfest celebrations. This includes the Red Lion in Litton 26-27 September, Triple Point Brewing in Sheffield City Centre 3-4 October, Oxbow in Woodhouse Mill 20 September, The Beer Stop in Dronfield 25 September and the Broadfield from 20 September to 5 October.
The Sheaf View in Heeley are holding their annual Winter Ales festival 21-23 November.
There is a proposal to adapt a cafe in Greenhill to operate as a micropub in the evening. Sara’s Kitchen would morph into the “Greenhill Tap” come the evening, however the licence application has attracted a number of objections from local residents worried about noise and disturbance.
The Bath Hotel hosted a Titanic Brewery tap takeover on 12 September.
The King & Miller in Deepcar reopened following refurbishment on 22 August. The pub is run by Bradfield Brewery.
Abbeydale Ballroom, located in the basement of the old Abbeydale Picture House (previously known as Picture House Social) is being refurbished by True North and is due to open on 2 October. It is billed as offering cocktails, food, pool, live sport and a late night buzz.
Shakespeares Ale & Cider House hosted a Duration Brewery tap takeover on 13 September as part of their Ducks in a Row beer launch.
The Angel Inn in Holmesfield is now back open and serving food.
The Manor House Hotel bar in Dronfield has increased their food offering beyond breakfasts and cakes and is now doing bottomless brunches and Sunday lunches.
The Broomhill Tavern is hosting a Timothy Taylors tap takeover 25-28 September.
The Grouse at Longshaw reopened on 12 September following a period of temporary closure caused by issues with their water supply.
The Washington in Sheffield City Centre is one of the venues for Float Along Festival on 27 September and also as ever continues with their programme of free entry gigs. Upcoming events advertised so far inculdes Slackr and Hunchpower on 30 October, providing an evening of pop punk. The pub stays open until 3am every night (2am on Sunday nights) with a rotating roster of DJs keeping the dance floor going!
Jo Doyle, currently assistant manager at the Old Nag’s Head in Edale, is moving down the hill with husband Chris to run the Rambler Inn, which is under the same ownership. There will be some changes to the cask ale range with Abbeydale Deception introduced as a regular gluten free option alongside Timothy Taylors Landlord, Theakston Kinder Downfall (XB rebadged for the Edale area!) and rotating local guest beers. A traditional cider will also continue to be available. Occasional special events are planned such as whisky tastings, a monthly pub quiz and a summer beer festival in the garden. The Rambler is conveniently located right next to the railway station.
A handful of the Sheffield & District branch committee went along to the Old Hall Hotel in Hope on the evening of Tuesday 29 July to present their District Pub of the Year award, which was followed by their regular quiz and buffet.
Photographed is our Beer Matters magazine editor Andy Cullen presenting Rick Ellison of Atlantik Inns, who run the Old Hall as well as a number of other Peak District pubs.
The Old Hall Hotel features a real ale bar, restaurant, tea room and Bed & Breakfast accommodation. The bar is also known for its extensive whisky collection as well as their regular bank holiday beer & cider festivals.
The pub is a 10 minute walk from Hope railway station or buses 173 and 272 pass the front door and it is set among some beautiful Peak District scenery!
The team at the Harlequin led by co-owner Chris Bamford are photographed receiving our August Pub of the Month award from Sheffield & District CAMRA chairman Paul Manning.
The pub was also still celebrating a year under its current management and was also marking the impending departure of Ethan, who has been a key member of the team there since it reopened, presenting him with his leaving present!
in his speech, Chris also paid tribute to the late, great Wendy Woodhouse who had originally bought the pub and turned it from the Manchester Hotel into the Harlequin.
As of 1 August, when the Harlequin celebrated their first birthday, the bar had so far featured 269 different cask ales, 165 different keg beers and 66 different ciders. They serve food and have also hosted a number of events including a whisky tasting, sake tasting, tap takeovers, taco night and also host a weekly quiz night.
An enjoyable evening was spent at the Harlequin on the presentation night (and birthday party and Ethans leaving do!) with some great drinks and a buffet, thanks to the team for the hospitality.
If you fancy a visit the pub is walkable from Sheffield City Centre or Kelham Island; alternatively buses 7, 8, 75 and 75a pass the front door.
Two of the Peak District breweries in our area held open days during August – Eyam Brewery on 15/16 August and Intrepid Brewery on 23 August. Both involved opening a bar in the brewery showcasing their range along with a food trader.
Bradfield Brewery have announced the 2025 brew of their popular fruit flavoured Christmas special, Belgian Blue, will launch on 3 November. If you couldn’t wait for that you may well have enjoyed their summer special, Blueberry Ale!
The Brewery of St Mars of the Desert(SMOD) are planning a special Stichfass pouring event again on a date still to be confirmed at the time of writing. Stichfass is a traditional German beer barrel similar to a British cask and the beer is packaged during fermentation. Dan and Martha at SMOD drove all the way to Franconia to pick theirs up!
Recent brews at Blue Bee Brewery include a 6% ABV Simcoe Krush IPA and also the latest iteration of their American 5 Hop pale ale (version 82!) alongside the routine brews of Reet Pale, Bessemer Blonde and Hillfoot Best Bitter.
As with previous years, Drone Valley Brewery will be taking their outside bar to the Bradway family fun day, organised by the local community action group. The event takes place on Bradway village green (on Bradway Road by the shops) on Saturday 6 September from 1:30 to 4:30pm. Bus 25 stops close by.
Duality Brew Co had a number of beers at the Old Shoe beer festival in Orchard Square on 16 August. These were “Partners In Crime”, a NE pale ale (5.1% ABV), “Double Imposter Syndrome”, a New England IPA (8.4% ABV) and “Berried Alive”, an 8% ABV raspberry sour.
The latest brew produced on the Burton Union set at Thornbridge Brewery was a collaboration with Oakham Ales. The beer is American Pale, a 5.2% ABV pale ale brewed with Maris Otter malt combined with a variety of US hops which delivers a beer bursting with citrus, tropical fruit and pine character. Oakham Ales are best known for their Citra pale ale and their JHB (Jeffrey Hudson Bitter).
CAMRA run a national Pub of the Year and Club of the Year competition, this begins with each local branch putting forward an entry into the county competition of which the winners go on to be judged in the national competition.
We entered two pubs – the Kelham Island Tavern went into the Yorkshire judging and the Old Hall Hotel into the North Derbyshire judging. Unfortunately neither were successful beaten by some rather stiff competition in the wider region!
Here are the winners:
EAST MIDLANDS PUB OF THE YEAR – The Burnt Pig, Ilkeston
EAST MIDLANDS CLUB OF THE YEAR – The Royal British Legion Club, Parwich
YORKSHIRE PUB OF THE YEAR – The Beer Engine, Skipton
YORKSHIRE CLUB OF THE YEAR – Wortley Men’s Club, Wortley
Bear on Abbeydale Road now has a permanent cask line! For the Abbeydale Road beer festival the beer was from Weekend Project, however it is expected that the usual brewery on the handpump will be Two by Two.
Mount Pleasant at Norton Lees reopened under new management on Friday 1 August, although cask ale wasn’t immediately available awaiting the delivery from the Heineken Star Pub Company who it is leased from, however they are now regularly available with a range including Bradfield Farmers Blonde, Timothy Taylors Landlord and Tetley Bitter. Wednesday 20 August saw a food trader, Curbside Cravings, at the pub with a view of making it a weekly event if popular.
Old Red Lionin Grenoside is hosting ‘Top Red 12 Years On’ family festival on Saturday 13 September 2-8pm with live music & DJ, food, kids games, bouncy castle and market stalls.
King & Millerin Deepcar closed for a week from 11 August for a bit of a refurbishment and the instillation of a new kitchen.
Old Shoeare to host ‘Oldshoeberfest’, their take on Oktoberfest, on 26 and 27 September.
Sheaf Viewin Heeley are hosting their final live music event of the summer on Saturday 30 August dubbed ‘Last of the Summer Music’ with a programme of 8 different artists performing at the pub from 3pm onwards.
Sportsman Inn at Lodge Moor was expected to reopen over the August bank holiday weekend. The pub jas been taken on by the same management as the Ship Inn.
Fat Cat in Kelham Island held their 44th birthday beer festival on 21 August.
Old Nag’s Headin Edale held a beer festival over the weekend of 15-17 August with a ‘Sheffield versus Manchester’ theme, along with live entertainment.
Miners Armsin Eyam held a beer festival and hog roast on the Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend.
DRONFIELD
Blue Stoops in Dronfield closed from 18 August for a refurbishment representing an investment by Chilled Pub Co of nearly a million pounds which they say will better bring out the natural charm and warmth of the old building!
The 29 and 30 August sees a final farewell weekend for Tom & Vee at the Hyde Park Inn at Dronfield Hill Top after which they are retiring from the pub trade. They have been running this pub for the last 11 years and feel part of the community but between them have 40 and 38 years experience in the industry. Tom is going on to be a bus driver and Stonegate pub company are advertising the Hyde Park’s lease for a new tenant to take it over.
ROTHERHAM
Blue Bellat Harthill is hosting Hartfest on 6 September with gates opening at 2pm and music kicking off from 3pm. Entry is £10 with the event raising funds for Harthill Football Club to restore the former Spens field pitch so they have somewhere in the village to play their home games.
Over in the Brecks area of Rotherham a new venture called Barrel & Bean is planning to open towards the end of September. It is a combined coffee shop and micropub where you can go in the morning for coffee and cakes or in the afternoon for beers on both cask and keg. They are having 4 handpumps installed with a range of three cask beers on rotation. Buses X1/X2, X11 and 19/19a go there.
