Newcastle Beer Festival 2026.

Last month I had the opportunity to venture north for the long awaited 48th Newcastle Beer & Cider festival. This year I would be getting to the festival on it's opening day meaning I would be privileged to the choice of every beer on the program at it's freshest. 

Although some years they change the theme up this year the beer selection was mostly focused on the North East, with a few Scottish brews and beers from elsewhere. Tapped brew and Brass Castle represented Yorkshire with live music, cider, scotch eggs, regional spirits, morris dancing and biltong all adding to the overall package. 

The slightly reduced number of beers available compared to last year didn't seem to detriment the festival and as always this years 'Battle of the Beers' feature was back with two categories. Firstly; 'Best of British', a beer made with only British ingredients and 'New World IPA' (kind of self explanatory).

First up on my hit list was Full Circle Waves of Motueka 3.4%. Always loved Motueka hops. A light session blonde ale with soft mouthfeel and sweet hints of lime, kiwi and pineapple. A solid opener from one of the regions most progressive breweries of the current decade.

Next up was Wylam Brewery Rant 5.5%. A collaboration brew with the fairly new Talking Tides Brew Co of Marske-by-the-sea. Brewed with Bru-1 and Strata hops it's a bit of an up front bitter-sweet pineapple mango-stone fruit mix up with a hint boozyness. Nice yet slightly peculiar. Another beer certainly worth a try was winner of this years Battle of The Beers New World IPA category; Firebrick Baffled NEIPA at 6.2%. Clouded golden and light bodied dominated by juicy stone fruit, berries and citrus. It had great drinkability for it's abv and I was fortunate enough to bump into Firebrick owner/head brewer/brother priest of the yeast Alistair Lawrence to congratulate him on his victory. 

Onwards, to the keg fonts

After this it time to venture towards the keg bar. Which this time so happened to be within the cask lineup instead of in a separate room. Donzoko is a name that has been part of the North East scene for the last decade or so. Revered for it's lagers. Saloon Doors at 7% is a big fruity West Coast IPA with plenty of boozy apricot-peach and opal fruits over a full malt backbone. The other great keg beer was the excellent St Dominics Tyneside Blonde. A 5% Belgian blonde style ale with it's very refined grassy hops and peachy-apricot notes.  

Back over at the cask section I did manage to bump into friends (and former rivals) from Hadrian & Border. It was only recently that Hadrian & Border's head honcho Andy Burrows went into retirement and Hadrian & Border Burrows 80 Shilling 4.4% was brewed to commemorate the long standing career of the former director. One of the first people I met in the brewing industry way back pre 2010. Lots of mature fruit, apple and pear meets caramelised malt. Overall quite rounded and easy drinking.  Next up was an offering from another long standing regional stalward, Durham Brewery Black Forest a 5.6% milk stout with lots of sweet but sharp blackcurrant, cherry chocolate and treacle. Nice but quite heavy going and probably better on keg. 

 First & Last Red Rowan 4% is an Irish Red ale that's light and very sessionable. Subtle honeyed caramel malt meet berry fruits. It was good to see Cullercoats Rocket Brigade 5.5% again. This years battle of the beers Best of British category winner. A premium strength testament to British hops.  But the beer of the festival for me was The Kernel East India Pale Ale London 1897 at 5.8%. A big, bold and balanced classic British hopped IPA with loads of bitter marmalade and grassy hop notes. I have to admit retro IPA's have long been my kind of thing.   

All in all it was great festival and lived up to hype of one of my highlights of the year. A mash up quality beer and familiar faces. And it was great to run into the likes of Almasty, Firebrick, Hadrian & Border, Consett ale works and First and Last brewery. Until next year. 

The SALSA audit (and winter update)

 

"Say traceability one more time!
I dare ya! I double dare ya!!"
(bringing a close to section 1)

Entropy; a state of disorder or randomness that increases with time. 

I remember a long time ago, one of the first University lectures I ever attended at Lancaster uni being opened with the subject of entropy. The universal law regarding order, or the degree of disorder, uncertainty or randomness that increases with time within a system. This can apply to just about anything. For example when you don't mow the lawn, shave for a week or get the kids to tidy their bedrooms. Randomness and disorder creeps in. Even during certain conversations I have found my own brain to regress into a state of randomness and disorder.   

So it is easy to see why accreditations such as SALSA plus Beer have a very relevant role in brewing especially in a once rapidly expanding independent brewing industry. Facing a SALSA audit can be very challenging and stressful especially for breweries relatively new to them. Back in the days at the old Daleside site preparing for a SALSA audit meant massive upheaval. Tediously working through each section of the SALSA standard whilst finding time to paint and clean various walls or parts of a building so old they were literally falling apart. Another one of the more awkward parts was the various contesting opinions within the team on how much/little is required to appease an auditor on any given section.  

 The best approach it seems is to have the foundations in place and maintained, alongside knowledge of  what (in theory) should meet an auditors expectations. On the Roosters site everyone has a roll to play to keep on top of the record keeping and cleaning. And with the arrival of our new centrifuge and malt silo's even more paperwork will undoubtedly have to be redone before the next audit. 

 

New malt silo's.

As most people are now aware, it is now winter. Getting to work and back has become that bit more challenging again. Waking up to find the heating already on, knowing full well it's set at the 10oC (as low as it will go) setting certainly indicates things are getting brutally cold outside. Although this hasn't hindered efforts in getting into town and executing the Christmas shopping early with the efficiency of an SAS raid. 

The new Roosters production team members that have joined throughout the year are settling in nicely. On the beer front Daleside Santa's Progress is out again on cask but sadly not in bottled form this year. Rooster's have released Little Donkey (4.3%) a Christmas beer featuring Jester hops. But one release I would recommend looking out for is the slightly unconventional Halloween themed NEIPA Mind Flayer (7.4%). 

 

Largely the mastermind of Rooster's lead brewer and brother priest of the yeast Tim, Mind Flayer doesn't sit in line with most conventional very hazy-hoppy NEIPA's (i.e. have little to no bitterness and taste closer to pineapple juice than IPA). Instead a healthy amount of dry hop aggression is retained with resinous citrus, mango and stone fruits on the palate from the use of Nelson Sauvin, Mosaic and Galaxy hops. The body is still very soft with an upfront fruity, hoppy aroma and the drinkability is similar to a classic IPA without having too much weight to it for the abv. 

In it's entirety Mind Flayer is not just very well orchestrated but has that factor of individuality I like finding in beers. Tim had obviously checked his bad invincible bearded brewing self before taking to the brew house floor to brew this one. I would recommend pairing it with meat feast pizza whilst listening to Akercocke's 'The Goat of Mendes' album for that perfect Halloween ambience. 

Almost like the Goat of Mendes himself would personally approve of this beautiful beer.  

Be sure to get hold of this one while it's still about. That is all for now regarding the winter update. Except to mention that the SALSA audit was passed and production manager Stu thankfully refrained from pulling the trigger.

The Hop Knocker, Durham.

Durham is generally considered to be a splendid place and one of the more sophisticated areas of the North East. It has a Cathedral a castle, the scenic riverside and some good pubs. 

I also happens to be near where my other half the lovely Susan has recently moved to. So to help keep me occupied for a Saturday afternoon I was gifted a visit to Durhams first independent specialist beer shop and micro pub; The Hop Knocker.

A little outside of the city centre The Hop Knocker is indeed a haven for beer fans. Inside one is greeted with a range of keg fonts accompanied by one hand pulled ale. A diverse range of cans and bottles in the fridges are available to take home and there is also a range of specialist beer glassware.   

On the inside The Hop Knocker experience has many qualities I like. It's quiet, intimate, friendly and focused on a diverse range of quality beers. So while the lovely Susan took her daughter to get her nails done next door I decided to sample some of the beers on offer.  

The beer fridge

Toxcitracy 4.4% from Nottingham based Black Iris brewery is a very soft rounded modern pale ale. As many Citra hopped beers come mango and citrus notes are at the fore. Bitterness is minimal but it's not cloudy. I also got to try El Topo 7.2% from Wylam Brewery. A Mexican oatmeal stout brewed with smoked chipotle chillies, raw cocoa, cinnamon and lime zest. It's certainly worth a try, full of spice and boozy top notes. Caramelised cherry, fruitcake. Cinnamon and oily pistachio. As with many speciality beers it's a bit of a mind bender yet at the same time I would say it's good enough to seek out again if given the chance. 

Glassware.

After leaving with a modest selection of beers it was time to say goodbye to The Hop Knocker and Durham. A splendid way to spend a Saturday afternoon indeed, with thanks going to the lovely Susan for treating me out.  

Sud's With Buds 2025

 

Earlier this month was the third ever annual Suds with Buds at Rooster's Brewery. As mentioned previously, Suds with Buds essentially involves the conversion of the entire brewery, taproom and beer garden into a giant festival of beer, live music and street food.

This year, in the honourable role of wrist band applicator, I got to bear witness  to over 700 beer fans filling the premises. These including many familiar faces from beer fans, workmates and other brewing industry folk.  

The weather stayed decent enough despite the odd shower and the street food was on splendid form featuring various options from Greek and Jamaican cuisine to fully roasted chickens.   

Eventually, after the public had departed the event came the long anticipated finale; The free bar for staff afterwards. Which is also a great time for having a bit of a social with the other breweries. 

Thankfully, despite a great number of taps running dry throughout the day a pretty diverse array of beers were still available. Firstly up, the excellent (but apparently limited edition) cask offering of Fell Brewery Meadowsweet Farmhouse Pale 4.2%. Funky and floral with crisp, light drinkability and boozy vanilla pear and apricot. Next along the line was Tinderbox West Coast IPA 6.3% with lots of dank pithy citrus and a big weighty mouthfeel. Heavy going cask ale that made me think it would be better on keg.

Moving on to Round Corner Zorro 4.4%, a Mexican style lager that's super light, zesty and dry with a kick of lime in the finish. Abbeydale Coconut Macaroon Stout 5.4%was a keg offering that manages to excellently balance the elements of rich and toasty with clean drinkable refined flavours. Coconut, liquorice and macaroon throughout. I only just discovered Abbeydale beers properly this year. Not just great beers but their team are good to chat along with. Another great keg offering was Lost and Grounded Cruise Wear NZ Pale 4.2% with beautifully balanced refreshing gooseberry, citrus and sherbert.    

Moving on to the heavy hitters Yeasty Boys Wylam collab WxY6 Southern Hemisphere IPA 7% was a very cloudy, heavy bodied IPA loaded with bold, sweet NZ hop flavours. Perhaps a bit too cloudy for my liking but Utopian Brewing Regenerator Doppelbock 7.5% was another class offering. Pouring deep russet in the glass, bready caramelised malt and boozy plumb and prune notes dominate. Quite refined for a Doppelbock.  

Without the stamina to continue this brought a close to Suds with Buds 2025 for me. In summery, not just a class showcase of beer for all but a great day out with plenty to keep everyone entertained.   

Over one year gone.

It has gone incredibly fast, but this spring marked the one year anniversary of moving to the Hornbeam park site. Since it's inception the Rooster's takeover has been nothing short of a roller coaster of change. From what began as two breweries trying to operate under the same roof using the same kit eventually merged into two brands, one brewery. 

Monkey Wrench lauter tun wort re-circulation. 

 You see at Rooster's there's been a party going down, a party hosted by growth, conquest and expansion. From the constant stream of new beers (and the revival of old ones) to new vessels, new staff, and new branding. The Rooster's-Daleside empire has been on the rampage. 

Hazy Faced Assassin expands the 'Assassin' range further in may 2025.

To say things have been busy is a bit of an understatement. Spring in particular was extremely busy, but then again spring is the busiest time of year in brewing. Something that is often overlooked is just how busy spring can be. The combination of bank holidays, outside events, beer festivals and national orders mixed with a bit of sun can make for a very chaotic time of year.

Whole hops being loaded into the hop back.

 That aside life in the modern independent brewing scene is a very different world to the one of traditional cask ale brewing I entered into straight out of university all those years ago. Over the last year I have learned a lot more about packaging beer in house post filtration. Different approaches to hopping schedules and how process control is managed on larger scale brewing operations. I also now know what a collaborative brew actually involves plus the different variations of it dependant on how much each participating party can be arsed.

The Great Exhibition of Prize Ales, Kirkstall Brewery.

Being closer to the independent brewing community as a whole has been another part of the parcel of moving to Rooster's. Collab's, festivals and visitors in general. I have met more people, and got more insights from across the brewing industry than ever before. It's kind of like when your in with the cool kids at school. Everyone want's to hang with the cool kids. Whereas on the old site we were more akin to the fat kid with glasses on. He's in the chess club, wears two stripe gear and has a Thomas the Tank Engine lunch box (even after everyone else has moved on to Power Rangers or Ninja Turtles). You know the type. 

Batavia (aka Operation Black Phoenix Thunder) showcased alongside Roosters Yorkshires Best 3.8%. Wild Wild Life 2025 and London Thunder at The Great Exhibition of Prize Ales, Kirkstall Brewery.

But the thing I have loved most about moving to Rooster's is being part a fully functioning team of passionate, committed professionals. This is a very different status quo to the 'being the team' or getting by with what resources are available scenarios of the past. Where finding the level of process control and work-life balance you wanted was rarely achievable. Putting that old world in the past has been a very positive step.