‘THE NORTHERN POWERHOUSE BREW SERIES” ANNOUNCED.
Tennyson once said that the North was dark and tender and true but in 2018 The Great Exhibition of the North (GEOTN), heralded as the biggest event in England this year, will brightly illuminate the region.
The first steps of one ‘Inspired By’ GEOTN project was launched today as eight independent craft breweries announced they will be collaborating on a series of one off limited edition brews that fall under the moniker The Northern Powerhouse Brew Series.
The beers will be released on the opening day of the exhibition (22nd June 2018)
The participating breweries Buxton, Cloudwater (Manchester), Black Lodge (Liverpool), Northern Monk (Leeds), Magic Rock (Huddersfield), Hawkshead (Kendal), Thornbridge (Sheffield), Box Social (Newcastle) will all brew in collaboration with Wylam Brewery at their home at The Palace of Arts in Exhibition Park, Newcastle.
The relevance of where the beers will be brewed is not without significance given that the Palace of Arts is the last remaining building from the original exhibition that took place in 1929.
‘I wonder what attendees of the exhibition in 1929 would have thought if they had been whisked forward in time to find us mashing in and canning beers together as a celebration of Northern Industry’, Wylam Director Dave Stone pondered on announcing the project, ‘for us it’s a real honour to host these exceptional breweries here at Palace of Arts and to be involved in a brew project that celebrates the history of the brewing industry in the region.’
The eight different beers will come in special cases of 440ml Cans with one of each of the beers in each case. More details of beer styles will be released at a later date.
Each can will be designed with elements of each Town/Cities Coat Of Arms… of course with a modern craft twist.
‘The North has long been the seat of industrial innovation in the UK’, Paul Jones Co-Founder of Manchester’s Cloudwater Brew Co. commented, ‘the modern beer scene continues that tradition. We are proud to take part in the first Northern Powerhouse Brew Series alongside some of the most progressive breweries in the country.’There will only be 6,600 cases produced each containing all of the eight brews .
‘It’s exciting to think that these little parcels of Northern Craftsmanship will be making their way around the world celebrating the unity of industry in the region’ Dave Stone commented, ‘all the breweries involved are extremely passionate about the heritage of the towns and cities they operate in and this project is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the history of industry in each place.’
Whilst the main focus of the exhibition falls on the host city of Newcastle Gateshead there is a wider programme of events that will span the regions Towns and Cities and as part of that programme launch events will take place at each of the breweries at which all of the beers can be sampled on keg and cases be purchased.
YouTube link to original Exhibition of 1929 footage that includes the Palace of Arts where Wylam Brewery reside https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJdlEzBU-jo