The Chantry Inn has been voted as Sheffield and District CAMRA Pub of the Month for October 2021.
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 grounds of St Mary’s parish church in Handsworth.
It comprises 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 chequered past originally being a chantry and safe house for nuns, a washouse 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 and undertook a tasteful restoration and deliver real quality beers. There are always 5 cask ales on tap from Chantry brewery with a rotating special including Steelos, Kaldos, Full Moon, Wentworth Red, Cashmere Time alongside the regulars of New York pale, Iron and Steel bitter, Special Reserve and Diamond Stout. There are also changing craft beers available often from Tiny Rebel or Beavertown as well as real cider.
Congratulations to all involved with the Chantry Inn including the brewery and the pub manager Terry and his partner Alison. The pub of the month award presentation is planned for the evening of Tuesday 12th October and all are welcome to join the celebration.
Paul Manning
You can find the Chantry Inn at 400 Handsworth Road, S13 9BZ. Buses 30, 30a, 52, 52a, 73, X5 and X55 stop almost outside.
The Champion Beer of Britain is one of the most prestigious beer competitions in the world. It is the ultimate honour for UK brewers and has helped put many into the national spotlight. It is awarded every year at the trade session of the Great British Beer Festival (GBBF).
The competition starts with individual nominations from CAMRA members and tasting panel nominations, then area competitions.
At the GBBF, the Champion Beer of Britain judging spans real ales across the categories for milds, session bitters, premium bitters, IPAs, session pales/blonds/golden ales and premium pales/blonds/golden ales. These are combined with the Champion Winter Beer of Britain category winners from the GBBF Winter (held in February) – session stouts/porters, strong stouts/porters, brown ales/red ales/old ales/strong milds, barley wines/strong ales, speciality beers (differently produced) and speciality beers (flavoured)– to create a shortlist for the final round of judging.
There is also a competition for the Champion Bottled Beer of Britain with two categories: ABV 4.3% or below and ABV 4.4% or above.
The process for next years competition starts with member voting opening on 1 September until 1 November inclusive and this will be the first year with the new beer style categories, of which there are 12. To vote log in at cbob.camra.org.uk and in the meantime keep an eye on What’s Brewing, the online members’ newspaper for more information.
It’s been a strange eighteen months for everybody but it has meant quite a few changes for us at Blue Bee Brewery. As Covid lockdowns hit we decided not to branch out into to any form of small pack as it was not something we have ever tried before, therefore the brewery was put into hibernation twice. However, towards the end of 2020 we made the decision to downsize the brewery. The brewery use to occupy two units on our industrial estate so we have now moved into one. So the start of 2021 was a busy one even though we weren’t brewing any beer, we cleared out one unit, re jigged the brew plant, built a new office and cold store as well as having a good sort out and we are really pleased with the results. Although we now take up half the space we don’t intend on making half the beer as we are still brewing on the same 10 brewers barrel kit we have the capability to make the same amount of beer should demand allow it.
Anyway as things creep back to normal we are slowly ramping up production of cask beer. We have maintained our core beers of Reet Pale 4.0%, Hillfoot Best Bitter 4.0%,Triple Hop 4.3% and Tempest Stout 4.8% along with the ever changing American Five Hop 4.3%.
On top of this we have the following specials to look out for in September: firstly Azacca Zappa 3.9% is and American hopped session pale ale showcasing two varieties of US hops which impart citrusy flavours. Secondly Vanilla Stout 5.5% an oat stout brewed with the addition of fresh vanilla pods, so expect a nice sweet stout with smooth vanilla notes.
Finally we brewed our 700th beer in early August: Galaxy Enigma 5.0% is heavily hopped hazy pale ale showcasing two fantastic Australian hops. So it’s great to back brewing again and fingers crossed things keep going in the right direction.
The Old Bulls Head in Little Hucklow was a regular Good Beer Guide entry in the 1970s and 80s when it sold a fine pint of Buxton-brewed Winkle Saxon Cross Bitter (3.8%). It later sold Wards Bitter.
The Old Bulls Head has historical interest dating back to the 12th century with claims to be the fiftholdest pub in England. Little Hucklow was once the scene of much mining activity, with considerable remains of old shafts, gravel hillocks and rakes still surrounding the village. The Bull’s Head pub contained a collection of mining relics. In addition, the handpumps had Shakespearean characters carved in wood.
In more recent years, the building sat derelict for about a decade, until two years ago when renovation work started. This involved alterations to the pub building, including the addition of a glazed ‘seed room’ extension, the addition of an external stone stair, an extension to the south-west corner, removal of the porch, alterations to openings, and internal layout changes. In addition, the car park was altered to accommodate a new building which includes six letting rooms.
The pub re-opened in July 2020 as the Blind Bull and offers a choice of four real ales, with a regular house beer The Blind Bull IPA, designed and brewed with Eyam Real Ale Company, and three regularly changing beers predominantly from local brewers, including Eyam Real Ale Company, Pennine Brewery, Peak Ales Brewery, and others. The varied food menu includes vegetarian and vegan options. The overnight accommodation is due to launch soon.
The Blind Bull was entered into CAMRA’s National Pub Design Awards and we are pleased that it has been recognised as the joint winner in the refurbishment category.
The Blind Bull now and as the Old Bulls Head in 1984
It’s great to see things steadily returning to something more like normal, we couldn’t help but celebrate the much awaited easing of restrictions with a special brew for July 2021: Farmers Back to the Baaar!
Our seasonal ales have received a warm welcome back over the last few months and the next one out of the traps is our Farmers Cherry Beer: a 4.2% light on the palate beer with a hint of cherry and a dry aftertaste.
In the pipeline we also have the exciting release of our six month barrel aged Kerry stout. The original batch of this imperial stout, brewed with a variety of speciality malts, was released in April 2021 and was well received! We’re looking forward to the release of the six month aged edition! Date TBC.
Our Brewery Taps are all now back open seven days a week, with indoor and outdoor seating available. Weekly quiz nights have resumed and Homemade Food is served at the King & Miller at Deepcar and the Nags Head at Loxley. The Wharncliffe Arms is hosting regular Karaoke & Pizza Nights to bring back the good nights out!
On a recent trip to Cornwall our committee member Paul Manning and his wife Bev called into Dorchester for a short two day stay.
Dorchester is the county town of Dorset with Roman roots and location of the Tolpuddle martyrs trial. We stayed at the Kings Arms hotel, a lovely hotel and before venturing out around tea time just after arrival we sampled Summer Luvin a 4.2% session brew from Piddle brewery in the hotel bar. Just across the road on Church St was the Blue Raddle free house. Built in 1850, this has been West Dorset CAMRA Pub of the Year three times and the beer and food quality showed why. We had a few pints of St Austell’s Tribute and Proper Job beers – both very well kept and popular.
Blue Raddle free house
The next day we ventured further into town and after a visit to the Tutankhamun museum found a great little micropub called the Convivial Rabbit. This was very popular and we sampled King St Pale: a 4.2% hoppy pale from Wild Weather brewery, Ernie’s Milk Stout: rich and malty with coffee and chocolate flavours from Settle brewery, a Cheltenham Gold APA from Cheltenham brewery and a real cider, Dorset Nectar Sweet Maiden at 5%.
Bev enjoying the Convivial Rabbit micropub
We then headed to the Brewery Square redevelopment project, a relatively new mix of retail, cinema and offices on the site of the original Eldridge Pope brewery which brewed in Dorchester from the mid 1800s to its closure in 2002. It was probably best known for its Thomas Hardy barley wine which won awards in the late 1970s. The first place we found was a great brewery, bottle shop and tap room called Copper Street brewery across the road from the train station. We sampled their Egbert’s Stone session bitter and Dark Ages vanilla porter. Being the day before the Euros final, the owner had renamed many ales including Egbert’s Stone becoming Sweet Caroline! He also had closer to home Little Critter brewery cans in stock.
Copper Street brewery tap room
Copper Street’s rendition of Egbert’s Stone as Sweet Caroline ahead of the Euros final
Our final call was into a pre-booked beer tasting masterclass in the Brewhouse & Kitchen which was also in the Brewery Square complex. This had an onsite brewery and the masterclass turned out to be just Bev, me and the brewer, Ian Gosney.
Ian took us on a fabulous journey of eight different beers, some brewed onsite and other speciality beers – 5% Legend Craft Lager, 5.4% Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier, 4% B&K Best Bitter, 4.8% B&K American Pale Ale, 6% La Chouffe Soleil Belgium beer, 5.5% B&K Traditional IPA, 5.1% Schlenkerla Smokebeer and finally a 5.2% Tailgate Peanut Butter Milk Stout. Some fine beers and the last one was a pleasant surprise as we have previously been to the Tailgate brewery in Nashville, Tennessee and what an excellent place that was but that’s for another day’s article.
Tasting masterclass at Brewhouse & Kitchen
After this we called again into the Convivial Rabbit for a beer I can’t recall before calling it a day. Dorchester is a great place for a stop off on the way to the south coast with a good choice of real ales.
Firstly a big thanks to all who’ve joined us in celebrating our 25th anniversary so far by giving our special birthday releases a try! They should all still be around for the next few weeks so keep an eye out for Celebration(2.8% Mimosa Quarter IPA), Double Deception(8.2% Nelson Sauvin DIPA), Cryo Heathen(5.0% Mosaic Cryo hopped pale ale), Indulgencechocolate cake stout (7.0%) and Dr Morton’s Birthday Extravaganza(4.1% pale ale), plus this year’s vintage of Methuselahbarrel aged stout (9.7%) which has mainly gone into can but might make it on to a bar or two as a very special release.
As well as all of that, we’ve got plenty of new beers coming out for September too.
We’ve got those snack cravings sorted with Doctor Morton’s Bag O Nuts (4.1%), extremely thirst quenching with Cascade hops, and completely nut free! The ever popular Larcenyis making a return, a 4.2% pale ale hopped with Chinook and Columbus for grapefruity and piney flavours and a moreish bitter finish. And if the dark side is more your style, we’ve got you covered too with Salvationbreakfast stout (5.4%) – complex and malty, with oodles of roasty toasty character, oats, maple syrup and coffee. Perhaps the most important beverage of the day!
And finally, later on in the month witnesses the first of our returning autumnal specials… yes, it’s almost time for our 5.0% pumpkin spiced ale, Pilgrimto make a comeback!
Sheffield breweries, True North Brew Co. and Loxley Brewery have teamed up to bring the Sheffield Half Pint Marathon back for its sixth year.
The month-long charity event will run throughout September in 13 of Sheffield’s favourite bars and pubs, with each brewery creating a brand-new beer especially. One For t’Road from True North Brew Co. and Get Em In from Loxley Brewery will be available in all participating venues and with each Half Pint Marathon beer purchased throughout September, a donation will be made to local charity Sheffield Mind.
Sheffield Mind is a Sheffield based charity which provides support to people with mental health issues. Sheffield Mind Business Development Manager Lindsay Doyle-Price said ‘Sheffield Mind are delighted to be partnering with True North Brew Co. and Loxley Brewery in this year’s Sheffield Half Pint Marathon. We have been lucky enough to be beneficiary of the promotion for the last two years and are grateful to all the participating bars for their ongoing support.
‘We very much hope that the people of Sheffield get behind the promotion, as every penny donated to Sheffield Mind will be invested in local service delivery.
‘It’s been a tough year for local people and local business and talking part in the marathon is a great way to support both.’
The premise of the Sheffield Half Pint Marathon is simple – at the starting venue of your choice you will receive your Half Pint Marathon card, then for each venue you visit and purchase one of the speciality beers you will receive a sticker. When your card is filled simply register via truenorthbrewco.uk/halfpintmarathon by 30 September and you will receive an email to let you know when and where you can collect your limited-edition print.
The Sheffield Half Pint Marathon print features hand drawn illustrations of the participating venues by the incredibly talented Will Rea.
Participants can complete the marathon at their own pace, in a day, week or even over the whole month.
True North Brew Co.’s Marketing Manager Krissie Petfield said ‘Mental health is often ignored in the hospitality industry and there is still a long way to go to improve the mental health and wellbeing of those working within the industry.
‘The last few years have been especially difficult with the ups and downs of the pandemic and we’re working towards providing further support to those suffering at True North Brew Co.
‘We are happy to be bringing back the Sheffield Half Pint Marathon alongside Loxley Brewery to raise money for such a worthy cause. It’s a brilliant opportunity to get together with friends and family and raise a (half) pint to support one another.’
This month-long celebration of some of Sheffield’s best independent bars and pubs is aimed at giving people a chance to contribute to a great local charity whilst exploring Sheffield.
Hannah Hebb, Loxley Brewery’s Business Coordinator said ‘It was a great honour to be asked to be a part of the Sheffield Half Pint Marathon. Over the last 18 months mental health has become more important than ever, so we at Loxley Brewery are proud to be supporting Sheffield Mind.
‘It would be fantastic to see people get together for such an amazing cause, supporting local businesses as they go, having a pint and putting the world to rights. It is important to remember that mental health is real, and it matters.’
Whether you’re a local or a visitor, beer lover or beer novice, the Sheffield Half Pint Marathon is not to be missed!
The Sheffield Half Pint Marathon runs throughout September 2021. More information is available at truenorthbrewco.uk/halfpintmarathon or on socials @sheffhalfpint.
The venues
Bar Stewards (Gibralter Street, Kelham Island. Buses 57,81,82,86)
We’ve listed the bus routes and tram stops by the venues above. You can get network maps and timetables from Travel South Yorkshire and all day travel passes (currently discounted until 27 September) from TravelMaster. You can track buses live on a map using the independent BusTimes.org website.
CAMRA has produced a revised definition of real cider and perry to reflect the current practices and processes of cider and perry makers across the UK. Below you can find all the resources you need to make sure your cider and perry is #NotFromConcentrate.
So is it real?
In order to be real, cider and perry should never be concentrated then diluted – either in terms of the juice used, or the alcohol content.
We use #NotFromConcentrate for our online campaigning for real products, and you can find a map and list of producers online at camra.org.uk/cider.
The definition
CAMRA defines real cider or perry as being fermented from the whole juice of fresh pressed apples or pears, without the use of concentrated or chaptalised juices.
The word ‘chaptalised’ as used in the definition refers to a process where the alcohol level in a cider or perry is increased by the addition of sugar to an unnatural level for storage, before it is diluted with water to the desired alcohol content for sale.
August is our birthday month! And it’s an extra special one this year as we’re celebrating our 25th anniversary, so we’ve worked hard to bring out a series of beers befitting the occasion.
We’ve put twists on a couple of our most favourite beers which we’re very excited about – first up is Double Deception, an 8.2% DIPA version of our much loved Nelson Sauvin hopped pale ale. And we’re making Heathen even Mosaic-ier with a 5.0% Cryo hopped version, which we’ve imaginatively decided to call Cryo Heathen! Dr Morton is getting in the party spirit with his Birthday Extravaganza (4.1%), hopped with Citra and Centennial, and we couldn’t have a birthday without a cake so the next Indulgence is a super sweet and sumptuous chocolate cake stout (7.0%).
We’ve also got the next in our Hidden Treasures series being released – Dreadnoughts Upriver to Peaceful Power (4.0%) is hopped with Chinook and Green Bullet and features the River Don Steam Engine on the pumpclip. Brewery co-owner Sue used to work with this engine and was there when it was run for the very last time before being moved to its current home at Kelham Island Museum, so we really wanted to include this connection in our series of Sheffield’s lesser known gems.
As well as all these newbies, we’d love it if you helped us celebrate our milestone birthday by enjoying one of our flagship, classic cask ales, which have been a part of our history for a quarter of a century. We reckon that’s worth a pint – mine’s a Moonshine!
