News & Features

On Saturday 5^th. of March the branch will be taking a trip to the annual Wigan Beer Festival at Robins Park Sports Hall

The festival opens from 11:30am to 10pm.

Entry is free to card carrying members, £2 otherwise.

Trains to Wigan are plentiful and cost less than a fiver, also combined tram and train tickets for the day will save a few pennies.

Trains leave from either Piccadilly or Victoria, the 10:24 and 11:22 from Picc. calls in at Oxford road and Deansgate, there are then 4 trains in the next hour from Vic. Then the 11:16 again from Picc. which is direct to Wigan North West station which as you may know is close to the Wallgate station anyway.

There will be a free shuttle bus to the venue from Hallgate which is near the bus station and the pickup point is the lay-by opposite the post office , it is free but a donation bucket will be on board to help subsidise the cost to the bus company.

The venue is actually in the opposite direction from station to the pickup point and you may prefer to take a stroll along the canal passing the famous ‘pier’, the venue itself is only about a 15-20 minutes walk from either station.

Please be aware the Robins park complex is close to the DW stadium where Wigan Athletic will playing at home to Peterborough so this may affect transport.

The fancy dress or ‘theme’ for the day for those who indulge in such frivolity is ‘at the beach’, at GBBF a reveller was escorted from the premises for sporting a mankini, you have been warned.

For the beer list and other details of the festival visit: https://wiganbeerfestival.wordpress.com/

Despite three years of duty cuts, people in Britain pay the second highest beer duty in all of Europe. The UK pays almost 40% of all EU beer duty despite only consuming 12% of beer across the EU.

Urge your MP to support pub goers and beer drinkers by asking for a further cut in beer duty.

Follow this link and take 30 seconds to fill out the form on the page.

http://www.camra.org.uk/beertax2016

Chorlton's The Beagle has introduced a new membership scheme.

Those who sign up and collect their membership card get 10% off draught & bottled beer and cider at all times plus access to special offers on food such as all you can eat Taco Tuesdays for £9.95 throughout February & March.

They have also teamed up with Beech Road's independent deli, wine/beer merchant & grocery store Epicerie Ludo who will also give Beagle Members 10% off all Beers, Lagers and Craft Ales when spending over £10 in a single transaction (not to be used in conjunction with any other offer).  Pay them a visit, you wont regret it.

Sign up at beaglesabout.com

Similar schemes have also been introduced at the group's two other bars in Manchester, Port Street Beer House and Common

Stretford’s Sip Club continues to come up with innovative ways to support its local community.

The latest is to become a hub for The Food Assembly – a network which connects local people to buy fresh food directly from local farmers and foodmakers. Orders are placed and paid for online at thefoodassembly.com and then The Sip Club welcomes the producers to their “hive” every Thursday evening for people to collect their orders. It’s a farm shop. In a pub. Brilliant!

The Food Assembly joins the Kids Clothes Swap, creatives meet up, watercolour painting club, kids drama workshops, Sip One Purl One knitting club and many more regular activities at the Barton Road venue. It’s like a community centre. In a Pub!

Owner Heather Garlick has even found time to expand her beer range with the addition of new bottles from First Chop Brewing Arm, Beer Nouveau, Blackjack Beers and cans from Chorlton Brewing alongside existing bottles from Runaway and Brightside breweries and the two ever changing cask beers.