EVENT(S) HORIZON
UPDATE
It's been 3 months since we last posted and with a week to go before our opening party (more on that later) we wanted to recap what we've been up to and to share our developments with you.
In our last blog on 2nd February, we had just taken the keys to the unit and were awaiting a multitude of licences and permissions. After much stress-filled wrangling and twitchy-ass times at Town Hall, we have since been granted all licenses and began brewing on our new 8 barrel kit. The installation has been surprisingly smooth and we're grateful to the firm we used being so flexible and accommodating. We have supplemented this kit with a few extras, but it's a fantastic kit that feels familiar; as a home brewer, I brewed on manual kits as this is what this is - but with a few extra pumps!
New kit, hops doing what they do best and peeling (I'm using goggles next time!)
Extras...
We're delighted to say that the beer we've brewed onsite has been well received and we think it tastes great - which is fortunate as we now have a permanent weekend taproom in which to serve said beers! We had a good few weekends of 'soft openings' to make sure we got things right and to find out exactly what times we should open. We can now confirm that we will be open permanently on Friday 4-10pm and Saturday 12-10pm.
We have decided to install 6 keg lines in the taproom. This gives us a decent range to play with so we can have anything from Session IPAs, Pales, Farmhouse Ales, IPAs, Russian Imperial Stouts so we can cater for different tastes. We will also be installing a fridge so we can sell our soon-to-be produced cans.
OPENING PARTY (Saturday 3rd June, 12-10pm)
We would love for you to join us for our big opening party with good music, good food, sunshine (please 🙏) and, of course, lots of beer!! It’s taken a great deal of time, effort and resources for the brewery dream to become a reality and – although this is just the beginning of our new journey – we wanted to celebrate this milestone with a big party and welcome people to come and see (and taste!) what we’ve been able to do so far.
We’ve been overwhelmed by the support of local residents that have popped their head to see what we’re about – some of whom have never been in a brewery before – and have loved it! Giving people their first taste of craft beer is a great experience. Other small businesses, local CAMRA branches and neighbour breweries have also been enormously generous in their support and guidance. We feel very lucky to be here.
As well as beer, there will also be food provided by the pastrami and salt beef street food specialists, Pastrami Now. Their pastrami and salt beef is cured, slow cooked and served hot with pickles, cheese and their renowned pink and green sauces. Pastrami Now also serve their sandwiches with great side dishes, a zippy coleslaw and German-style potato salad.
Sandwich, anyone??
The opening party will also play host to the exclusive launch of Mistress of Industry Coffee Co.’s first commercially available coffee: their house blend, Working Folk. Mistress of Industry Coffee Co. are Manchester’s newest specialty micro coffee roaster and use the same railway arch as Beatnikz Republic Brewing Co. Their coffee is available in 250g bags to buy at the brewery or from their website. At a future date, the brewery taproom will also serve coffee, but for now it’s only available to takeaway.
We've received praise for our beautiful illustrative can designs. The artist behind these can designs, Marcus Marritt, has illustrated many areas of the brewery and taproom in his distinctive style; these beautiful pieces of artwork will be revealed for the first time at the opening party.
CANS
As mentioned before through various posts and social media, we will be canning exclusively in 440ml cans. We planned to have them available for the opening party, but the tragic events of 22nd May meant our first canning session on 23rd May was postponed. The brewery is only a 5 minute walk from the MEN Arena and we took police advice to stayed clear of the area.
Our thoughts are with all those that have been affected; to suffer loss in such a way is incomprehensible and we offer our sincere condolences. We would also like to express our gratitude to the emergency services and all those that were able to help.
We have rescheduled our canning until mid-June and we will be able to release them at the opening weekend of Manchester Beer Week.
MANCHESTER BEER WEEK
This year's Manchester Beer Week is looking incredible with some absolutely stunning events lined up. We're proud to have a couple of events of our own confirmed.
Firstly, we've teamed up with the awesome Manchester Doughnut Co. to create a beer/food pairing party not seen in the city before. This is a truly unique one-off event not to be missed for anyone that loves beer or doughnuts.
The majority of the beers and doughnuts are made exclusively for Manchester Beer Week and will not be seen again. There is a limited amount of specialty doughnuts and beer, so please arrive early to avoid disappointment. The 3 pairings are:
Sour Passionfruit Doughnut Beer paired with Passionfruit Doughnut
Pecan Doughnut Porter paired with Maple Bacon Doughnut
Cherry & Cholate Doughnut with Bourbon Jelly paired with Russian Riot (our Russian Imperial Stout with cherries, muscovado sugar and bourbon oak)
Secondly, we welcome back Pastrami Now to bring you a mouth-watering BBQ blowout and beer pairing dinner. This one-off event is for the serious BBQ and beer lover! This 3-course menu is indulgent and includes some of the best brisket available which is paired by three different beers, including an exclusive one-off brew – a Rye IPA to complement the amazing BBQ flavours. The menu pairs delicious small batch craft beer with fresh seasonal produce and low-and-slow BBQ.
Menu
Starter
Salt Crust Beetroot Salad
paired with a New Zealand Farmhouse Ale with Sauvignon Blanc Oak & Lime (5.5% abv)
Main
Slab of Smoked Brisket, BBQ Beans, Sides & Slaws
paired with an exclusively brewed Rye IPA with US Hops (6% abv)
Dessert
Double Chocolate Pot with Caramel
paired with a Russian Imperial Stout with Cherries, Muscovado Sugar & Bourbon Oak (9% abv)
Includes snacks between courses
There is a limited number of seats and we recommend booking early to avoid disappointment! Tickets can be booked here.
WHAT'S NEXT?
You're now able to find our beer in and around Manchester, in places such as the Marble Arch, the Gasworks Brewpub, the Sandbar, as well as others. We're delighted how supportive the local beer scene has been and we will continue to update you via social media channels on where you can find our beer in pubs, bars and bottle/can shops. We are also close to having an online outlet agreed.
As you can see, we've been very busy and will continue to be, but, as a great man said, there are many other interesting things to do than sleep!
Thanks for ready and hope to see you in the taproom soon,
Paul
Paul Greetham | Founder & Brewer | Beatnikz Republic Brewing Co.