The popular Sausage and Ale Festival is returning to the Driftwood Spars hotel in St Agnes, Cornwall, after a two-year break.
It follows the return of the venue’s The Light, The Dark, and The Saison festival, to local acclaim, a few weeks back.
The festival will take place from 29th April to 2nd May, promising great beer, live music, family activities, and sausage-themed sustenance.
The event coincides with the St Agnes Bolster Festival, a celebration featuring life-size puppets, a drum band, and a giant effigy of Bolster, a marauding giant of Cornish folklore, whose welcome demise is marked by the festival.
Landlady Louise Treseder said: “Our first event of the year — The Dark, The Light, and The Saison — was very well received. People were buzzing to be together again following two very unsociable years. For the Sausage and Ale Festival we’ll be taking things up a notch as we hope to make use of our outside space, too.”
Traditional and innovative
Mike Mason, head brewer at the Driftwood Spars Brewery, added: “We’ve sourced some great beers specially for the festival, and are busy planning talks and tastings with guest brewers.”
The beers fall into two categories: traditional and innovative, with several Cornish breweries sending casks, and others from as far afield as Manchester, Blackburn, and Wolverhampton.
Mike said: “We’ll be showcasing our own small batch brews made right here in the cove, alongside the likes of Bee Keeper Honey Ale, from Atlantic Brewery, which is a limited-edition beer made with Cornish Honey. I’m also particularly excited about the Cinder Toffee Stout we’ve sourced from New Bristol Brewery — can’t wait to try that one!”
Louise added: “Two of my favourite Northern powerhouse breweries — Marstons and Thwaites — are sending casks, but I’ll also be making a beeline for Cloudwater Brew’s offering. This modern brewery, in the heart of Manchester, produces bold, contemporary beers which honour tradition whilst pushing the boundaries in seasonal beer.”
• For more details as they become available, follow the Driftwood Spars Facebook page.
