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.
Over the Christmas period, Sheffield and District CAMRA sent a formal response to the recent Sheffield City Council (SCC) ‘Consultation on Citywide Options for Growth.’ This document covers a wide range of aspects of the city. However, it fails to address the key part which our breweries and pubs play in:
(i) employment
(ii) Beer Tourism
(iii) the future development of the City
The document suggests supporting district and local centres in providing a range of shops and services that meet the needs of all groups in society: “services” includes pubs. One of the many challenges, which needs addressing is the continuing loss of pubs, especially in suburban areas, and the detrimental impact this has on community well-being . Hence there is a need for the Plan to include policies which seek to protect valued community pubs. There is a need for more pubs to gain ACV status. In addition, there is a need to allow the continued development of micropubs.
Sheffield includes a growing, number of public houses which, by virtue of their interior, are rated by CAMRA as assets of Regional or National Importance. These pubs deserve support from SCC in a similar manner to the support which is provided to other buildings with historically significant interiors.
By mid-2016, Sheffield is expected to be supporting 19 brewing companies. This is a fast-growing and vibrant part of both the employment and leisure scene. It should also be noted that the ‘Kelham Island Tavern’ is the only pub to have won the annual CAMRA Pub of the Year Award on consecutive occasions. It is short-listed for the 2016 Award.
Sheffield attracts a considerable amount of what could be termed, ‘beer tourism.’ It is surprising that this document does not acknowledge the place of Sheffield as the ‘Beer Capital’ of the U.K. (see recent CAMRA ‘beer city survey’ results). For example, during the recent Steel City Beer Festival, a group of visiting Americans stayed in Sheffield. The focus of their visit was Kelham Island and the 41st.CAMRA Steel City Beer Festival. In addition, there are innumerable day-trips, from diverse parts of the U.K., to sample both Supertram and the excellent beer scene. Sheffield, if the city wished, could easily take second place to Bruges on the European ‘beer holiday’ scene. Sheffield has niche pubs, an excellent, diverse beer-scene and is light-years away from the corporate extravaganza which the Munich Octoberfest has become. In years to come, the ‘Neepsend brewery trail’ could, and should, become a ‘must-see’ attraction.
‘Beer tourism’ is something which, in a vision such as this, SCC should not ignore. It currently brings vastly more income to the City than the annual two-week, Snooker World Championship and is a potential growth area.
– Dave Pickersgill –
As part of Sheffield CAMRA’s ongoing improvement we are looking at our Beer Matters magazine and how we distribute it out to our local pubs and clubs. Currently various members collect copies at the monthly committee meeting then take then out to a variety of establishments.
As there is no formal log of these distributors we have no way of knowing who to speak to if a new pub requests copies. Beer Matters is a focal point for what we do in Sheffield CAMRA and we want to make sure everyone who is interested can get hold of a copy. Of course we also want to make sure we get the maximum effect from the 3,500 copies we print.
If you are one of the regular distributors can you please either email us at beermatters@sheffieldcamra.org.uk or drop a note into the meeting when you next collect. We need to know which puts you deliver to, how many copies you leave and ideally your phone number. If you collect at a different time to the committee meeting simply leave your details with one of the bar staff and we will pick them up when we next pop in.
The Rutland Arms is a regular haunt for quite a few of us, so we’ll get your list pretty quickly.
Once we have a comprehensive list we can see where we have gaps in the distribution that might need filling and also if we give any crossover in areas and duplication of effort. Of course if you’re a landlord or pub manager and you would like to receive copies of Beer Matters then contact us and we can add your name into the list and allocate someone to drop them off each month. You can also contact us if you are willing to become a distributor. Simply tell us which areas or pubs you could service and we’ll see if we can fit you in.
The Shiny Sheff was originally built as a Whitbread pub in the late 1960’s. It was closed for a short period in 2015 and has since reopened with a new look and a new Landlord, Mike Cashmore. Mike moved from the Sportsman (Crosspool) taking on the reigns in the summer of 2015. Regular beers are Abbeydale Moonshine and Bradfield Farmers with the prospect of more to come as trade grows.
The pub is a well-used suburban family pub, catering for all ages. In addition to one-off events (eg. a celebration of Burns Night), regular events include karaoke, a twice-weekly quiz and weekly live entertainment. Other attractions include free wi-fi and a selection of children’s books. Mike wants to increase the community reach of the pub and is looking to plan further charity events as custom increases.
Opening times are from 11:30 with 23:00 closure, Mon- Thu, midnight on Saturday and 23:00 on Sunday. Food is available daily from 12:00-21:00. The extensive menu caters for all and also includes ‘two for a tenner’ offers: members of the ‘Golden Club’ can also receive a ‘6th.meal free.’
The pub (274-276 Crimicar Lane, Lodge Moor, S10 4EP) is currently managed by the Bermondsey Pub Company, an independently run company which is owned by Enterprise Inns. They run 13 pubs, mostly in the north of England.
The name came from HMS Sheffield, the most heavily decorated ship which has formed part of the Royal Navy. During the Second World War, the ship took part in actions against several major German warships. Unlike most Royal Navy ships of that time, her fittings were constructed from stainless steel instead of the more traditional brass. This was an attempt to reduce the amount of cleaning required. Her nickname, the “Shiny Sheff,” stemmed from this. The front bar of the pub includes a large model of the ship and numerous framed memorabilia, including many newspaper cuttings. Ex-crew members still use the pub as a regular meeting place. The stainless steel ship’s bell, (made by Hadfield’s), hangs in Sheffield Cathedral along with the battle ensign.
The Shiny Sheff is one of the many community pubs which deserve our support.
– Dave Pickersgill
Drone Valley Brewery continue to await it’s (second) visit from HMRC to obtain a beer producer’s licence. Fortunately this time we are better informed as to what they require under their revised procedures.
In the meantime the brewery has gone from basic to remarkable thanks to our many volunteer members and supportive contractors. One observer commented that our fermentation room is as hygienic as a surgery.
All the kit is fully installed (except the cask washer) and the buttons ready to press on the custom built control panel. We have our brew plan in place, hops, yeast and materials all bought. The first 6 brews will include those that have proved so popular before plus 3 new ones, all named by our Members who own the brewery.
There is always more to do and we are still welcoming new Members and investors. www.dronevalleybrewery.comJez Horton
Well, it’s that time of year again. Christmas seems like a distant memory, Tryanuary has been and gone (hopefully trampling the stinking carcass of Dryanuary underfoot as it goes!) and beer festival planning starts. October might seem a long way off but organising a successful festival takes a lot of time and effort.
As always it starts with appointing a committee. The first meeting sorted out most positions but there are still some vacancies for anyone willing to get more involved. The main requirement is enthusiasm, but we’ll try our best to find positions that suit whatever skills you can bring. A budget has been set and sent to head office for approval, which should be a formality following the success of last year’s festival.
We are also needing more volunteers. Last year we had 137 volunteers who worked tirelessly to ensure that over 5,000 visitors enjoyed themselves drinking nearly 19,000 pints of beer or cider without any major problems.
We are hoping to increase visitor numbers and extend the bars this year, which will of course need more bar staff. We are also wanting to increase the numbers of people working the various stands such as tokens, admissions, membership, games etc. And it goes without saying that we will need more people to help with build-up and take down.
The build-up is particularly satisfying as you get to see the bars and stalls being assembled, and everyone involved feels a real sense of pride at what they achieve ready for the opening day.
Over 200 casks will need positioning on 40 metres of stillage, fitted with all the necessary cooling equipment, and then tapped and vented ready for serving.
Around 20 bars need to be assembled, bolted together and beer engines fitted.
Membership tables, token tables and games tables all need setting up in position, and the correct banners erected.
Token sets need readying for that initial rush of visitors.
All our existing glasses need washing and bringing round to the entrance desks.
And of course it all needs doing in reverse once the festival is over.
Days are split into smaller sessions so you don’t need to work a full day and you can even do an evening spot without needing to take a day off work. Volunteers receive a festival tee shirt, free festival glass and beer tokens to spend at the bars. More importantly you’ll have the satisfaction of being part of a team and helping to make this year’s festival even more successful than last year.
So if you feel you’d like to get involved, or would like to have a chat with one of us about it, you can contact us at festival@sheffieldcamra.org.uk.
Alternatively why not come to one of the planning meetings held the third Tuesday of each month as detailed in Beer Matters diary, or a CAMRA branch meeting, or even one of the Pub Of The Month presentations where you’ll be able to find one or more of the planning committee who will be happy to discuss things in detail.
We look forward to seeing you
The Sportsman, Norton, has had a short closure for minor refurbishment.
The Abbey at Woodseats reopened after a short closure but at the time of writing had closed once again – this time for a major refurbishment of five weeks and £3oo,ooo.
The Banner Cross is now open again under new management following a significant refurbishment.
The Fox & Duck in Broomhill is soon to become free of tie for their beer supply and will be increasing the number of handpumps to 7 and stock beer from Little Critters Brewery plus guests.
Saxbob is putting on a gig featuring Zacc Rogers and Sieben at the University of Sheffield Drama Studio on 1st April which will have a real ale bar, not normally available at this venue. Hopefully if the real ale proves popular the venue may consider making it a permanent thing.
Just across the road from the Drama Studio is the newest opening in the Street Food Chef chain of Mexican fast food outlets. Your editor was invited to a preview night before the opening of this new store and enjoyed a very tasty Beef Brisket Burrito and a bottle of Mexican beer – they are looking at stocking a range of Mexican craft beers that pair well with spicy food at both their Arundel Street and Glossop Road canteens (Pinstone Street is takeaway only). They also have an outside catering stall they are looking to start taking to beer festivals.
Also on the subject of food, there have been changes on that front at the Dog & Partridge on Trippet Lane with the departure of Bia Comida Tapas who had been resident at the Dog, the food is now cooked by landlord Connor and sees a simple but quality menu of sandwiches, burgers, scotch eggs along with some more substantial options such as steak or fish & chips. Your editor recommends the Cuban Sandwich!
This months Pub of the Month award see us back in Commonside at the Closed Shop, directly opposite last months winner, Hallamshire House. Beer drinkers in the area have never had it so good!
The Closed Shop was taken on by Sheffield’s Reet Ale Pubs over three years ago and it has since gone from strength to strength. A large scale refurbishment in July 2013 added the kitchen and updated the interior. It’s a traditional style pub with separate areas on different levels, and a large beer garden. The back room has a pool table and large TV screen for showing the occasional sports event.
Manager Andy Stephens, Assistant Manager Christie McIntosh and bar staff Dan, Kirsten and Louise have worked hard to ensure the pub has a very friendly feel. It’s a great pub to just sit and chat to friends and the informal nature of the staff adds to the atmosphere. Evidence of this is the outdoor ‘A’ board with its ever changing humorous comments. (the word ‘humorous’ is being used loosely in this context as you’ll see when you visit!)
However don’t let this light-hearted touch fool you when it comes to the serious business of food and Drink. 8 handpulls serve an array of fine beer, always including Blue Bee’s excellent Reet Pale, which is hardly a surprise as the company also owns the brewery. One or two Blue Bee specials usually feature on the other pumps as well as a range of local and national beers featuring a variety of styles.
A good wine and spirits list caters for the non-beer drinkers. Worth a mention is Christie’s ‘Ginfusions’ – gin from Locksleys of Sheffield infused with an array of flavourings. Home cooked food is also a feature of the pub with a good mix of traditional dishes such as steak and ale pie, classic burgers, and old-favourite butties. Chef Dean Long and assistants Simon and James produce an ever-changing specials board to add to the choice and vegetarian options are always available. Sundays see the menu expanded to include traditional roast meats which are extremely popular.
Wednesday and Sunday quizzes are a big attraction at the pub. Free to enter, often themed, and with a range of prizes.
Sheffield CAMRA will be presenting the award on Tuesday 8th March. The evening starts at 8 pm, with a free buffet after the presentation.
The Closed Shop opens at 4 weekdays, food till 9.30, and opens midday at weekends, with food till 9. Full details are on the pub’s website www.theclosedshopsheffield.co.uk or their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TheClosedShop. You can also follow them on twitter – @theclosedshop. Get there on bus 95 or car parking is available at the rear of the pub.
Sheffield Beer Week is a week-long festival celebrating the region’s brewing landscape – old and new! It’s also about highlighting the wonderful world of beer taking inspiration from across the globe.
Collaboration is key with Sheffield’s bars, pubs, breweries (local, national and global) and restaurants joining forces to host beery events. Sheffield Beer Week happens across the whole of the city in multiple venues.
Imagine a week where breweries hold open days for visitors to explore, pubs host beer festivals, bars have tap takeovers and restaurants offer menus with tailored beer pairings.
Every day there will be a unique beer event to enjoy!
Sheffield Beer Week is held the same week that the SIBA BeerX is in town, which combines an independent brewers’ conference, trade show and beer festival which means a lot of people from the beer trade are in town.
It is also looking likely that True North and Sentinel will both be in their new breweries and offering the opportunity to visit.
Brewery News
Events are gathering pace with a number of breweries planning new beers to launch during #SheffBeerWeek. With St. Patrick’s Day falling in the week, it looks like a few breweries are taking inspiration from the classic Irish stout style, but I’m sure they’ll be big twists! Breweries announced so far include Thornbridge,Abbeydale (who celebrate their 20th anniversary in 2016) andTrue North Brew Co (who are collaborating with Manchester breweries BlackJack and Runaway). They’ll be lots of Tap Takeovers and Meet the Brewers going on around the city during Sheffield Beer Week. Exit 33 and Emmanuales will be joining forces to host an event at Exit 33 tap The Harlequin. Stancill and The Red Deer, on Pitt Street, are also planning a joint event to build on last year’s.
Events
Here is a list of events planned at the time of going to press. More may well have been added – visit www.sheffieldbeerweek.co.uk for the latest information.
ALL WEEK
Manchester tap takeover at the Broadfield
SATURDAY 12TH MARCH
Beer Week launch party at True North Brew Company and the Old House
SUNDAY 13TH MARCH
Speed Tasting hosted by Hop Hideout
MONDAY 14TH MARCH
Twitter Hour – Beer Cocktails at Picture House Social
TUESDAY 15TH MARCH
Fourpure tasting at the Sheffield Tap
Brooklyn Brewery big bottle tasting at Hop Hideout
WEDNESDAY 16TH MARCH
Five Points meet the brewer at Brewdog
Hump Day Social with Feast & Glory, various City Centre venues
Beer Week Pub quiz at the Francis Newton
Karma Citra Beer & food pairing at the Greystones
Belgian Beer tasting at Shakespeares
Meet the Brewer Traffic Street Special/Castle Rock at the New Barrack Tavern
Beer tasting competition at the Three Tuns
Brass Castle Meet the Brewer at the Kelham Island Tavern
SIBA BeerX at Ice Sheffield
THURSDAY 17TH MARCH
Brass Castle meet the brewer & food pairing at the Tramshed bar
Stancill Brewery tap takeover and meet the brewer at the Red Deer
St Patricks Day Stout & Porter tasting at Shakespeares
Chantry Tap Takeover and meet the brewer at the Railway Hotel (Bramall Lane)
SIBA BeerX at Ice Sheffield
Steel City beer festival award presentations at BeerX
FRIDAY 18TH MARCH
Founders Brewing tasting at Hop Hideout
SIBA BeerX at Ice Sheffield
SATURDAY 19TH MARCH
Twitter Hour: The ingredients of beer at Sentinel Brewhouse & Taproom
SIBA BeerX at Ice Sheffield
SUNDAY 20TH MARCH
Sheffield Beer Week Closing event hosted at Sentinel Brewhouse & Taproom
Sheffield Beer Week Closing afterparty at Picture House Social
On Wednesday 17th February from 8pm the Closed Shop on Commonside will be celebrating it’s 3rd Birthday under the stewardship of Reet Ale Pubs. Join Andy, Christie and the team for a fun night of celebration that is bound to include cake, hats, games and much more fun and birthday surprises.
The pub serves 8 hand pulled ales, with Blue Bee Brewery Reet Pale being a permanent fixture, with the other 7 pumps rotating through a range of local, regional and national beers, with a mix of styles and strengths to suit all ale enthusiasts.
Alongside the selection of beer is a renowned gin list, a great whisky selection and much more.
Follow our twitter and Facebook for more party details (@TheClosedShop, @ClosedShopChef, https://www.facebook.com/TheClosedShop/) Or for more general information why not visit our website http://www.theclosedshopsheffield.co.uk/. We hope you can join us to celebrate the start of our fourth year on Commonside.
Over the Christmas period, Sheffield and District CAMRA sent a formal response to the recent Sheffield City Council (SCC) ‘Consultation on Citywide Options for Growth.’ This document covers a wide range of aspects of the city. However, it fails to address the key part which our breweries and pubs play in:
(i) employment
(ii) Beer Tourism
(iii) the future development of the City
The document suggests supporting district and local centres in providing a range of shops and services that meet the needs of all groups in society: “services” includes pubs. One of the many challenges, which needs addressing is the continuing loss of pubs, especially in suburban areas, and the detrimental impact this has on community well-being . Hence there is a need for the Plan to include policies which seek to protect valued community pubs. There is a need for more pubs to gain ACV status. In addition, there is a need to allow the continued development of micropubs.
Sheffield includes a growing, number of public houses which, by virtue of their interior, are rated by CAMRA as assets of Regional or National Importance. These pubs deserve support from SCC in a similar manner to the support which is provided to other buildings with historically significant interiors.
By mid-2016, Sheffield is expected to be supporting 19 brewing companies. This is a fast-growing and vibrant part of both the employment and leisure scene. It should also be noted that the ‘Kelham Island Tavern’ is the only pub to have won the annual CAMRA Pub of the Year Award on consecutive occasions. It is short-listed for the 2016 Award.
Sheffield attracts a considerable amount of what could be termed, ‘beer tourism.’ It is surprising that this document does not acknowledge the place of Sheffield as the ‘Beer Capital’ of the U.K. (see recent CAMRA ‘beer city survey’ results). For example, during the recent Steel City Beer Festival, a group of visiting Americans stayed in Sheffield. The focus of their visit was Kelham Island and the 41st.CAMRA Steel City Beer Festival. In addition, there are innumerable day-trips, from diverse parts of the U.K., to sample both Supertram and the excellent beer scene. Sheffield, if the city wished, could easily take second place to Bruges on the European ‘beer holiday’ scene. Sheffield has niche pubs, an excellent, diverse beer-scene and is light-years away from the corporate extravaganza which the Munich Octoberfest has become. In years to come, the ‘Neepsend brewery trail’ could, and should, become a ‘must-see’ attraction.
‘Beer tourism’ is something which, in a vision such as this, SCC should not ignore. It currently brings vastly more income to the City than the annual two-week, Snooker World Championship and is a potential growth area.
– Dave Pickersgill – 
In the meantime the brewery has gone from basic to remarkable thanks to our many volunteer members and supportive contractors. One observer commented that our fermentation room is as hygienic as a surgery.
All the kit is fully installed (except the cask washer) and the buttons ready to press on the custom built control panel. We have our brew plan in place, hops, yeast and materials all bought. The first 6 brews will include those that have proved so popular before plus 3 new ones, all named by our Members who own the brewery.
There is always more to do and we are still welcoming new Members and investors. www.dronevalleybrewery.com
Jez Horton 
Well, it’s that time of year again. Christmas seems like a distant memory, Tryanuary has been and gone (hopefully trampling the stinking carcass of Dryanuary underfoot as it goes!) and beer festival planning starts. October might seem a long way off but organising a successful festival takes a lot of time and effort.
As always it starts with appointing a committee. The first meeting sorted out most positions but there are still some vacancies for anyone willing to get more involved. The main requirement is enthusiasm, but we’ll try our best to find positions that suit whatever skills you can bring. A budget has been set and sent to head office for approval, which should be a formality following the success of last year’s festival.
We are also needing more volunteers. Last year we had 137 volunteers who worked tirelessly to ensure that over 5,000 visitors enjoyed themselves drinking nearly 19,000 pints of beer or cider without any major problems.
We are hoping to increase visitor numbers and extend the bars this year, which will of course need more bar staff. We are also wanting to increase the numbers of people working the various stands such as tokens, admissions, membership, games etc. And it goes without saying that we will need more people to help with build-up and take down.
The build-up is particularly satisfying as you get to see the bars and stalls being assembled, and everyone involved feels a real sense of pride at what they achieve ready for the opening day.
Over 200 casks will need positioning on 40 metres of stillage, fitted with all the necessary cooling equipment, and then tapped and vented ready for serving.
Around 20 bars need to be assembled, bolted together and beer engines fitted.
Membership tables, token tables and games tables all need setting up in position, and the correct banners erected.
Token sets need readying for that initial rush of visitors.
All our existing glasses need washing and bringing round to the entrance desks.
And of course it all needs doing in reverse once the festival is over.
Days are split into smaller sessions so you don’t need to work a full day and you can even do an evening spot without needing to take a day off work. Volunteers receive a festival tee shirt, free festival glass and beer tokens to spend at the bars. More importantly you’ll have the satisfaction of being part of a team and helping to make this year’s festival even more successful than last year.
So if you feel you’d like to get involved, or would like to have a chat with one of us about it, you can contact us at festival@sheffieldcamra.org.uk.
Alternatively why not come to one of the planning meetings held the third Tuesday of each month as detailed in Beer Matters diary, or a CAMRA branch meeting, or even one of the Pub Of The Month presentations where you’ll be able to find one or more of the planning committee who will be happy to discuss things in detail.
We look forward to seeing you 
Sheffield Beer Week is a week-long festival celebrating the region’s brewing landscape – old and new! It’s also about highlighting the wonderful world of beer taking inspiration from across the globe.
Collaboration is key with Sheffield’s bars, pubs, breweries (local, national and global) and restaurants joining forces to host beery events. Sheffield Beer Week happens across the whole of the city in multiple venues.
Imagine a week where breweries hold open days for visitors to explore, pubs host beer festivals, bars have tap takeovers and restaurants offer menus with tailored beer pairings.
Every day there will be a unique beer event to enjoy!
Sheffield Beer Week is held the same week that the SIBA BeerX is in town, which combines an independent brewers’ conference, trade show and beer festival which means a lot of people from the beer trade are in town.
It is also looking likely that True North and Sentinel will both be in their new breweries and offering the opportunity to visit.
