Joseph Holt — celebrating their 175th anniversary this year — have held a beer festival at their Manchester brewery for the first time ever.
It proved a tremendous success, with visitors travelling from far and wide. More than 60 different cask ales were available, and Bitter was served from an oak cask for the first time in 50 years.
“This was the first time we have held a beer festival on brewery premises, and we were thrilled with the number of people who wanted to get a behind the scenes view of how we make our famous beers and ales,” said Andrew Kershaw, who arranged the festival.
“Our beautiful Victorian brewery lent itself so well to the day, with some amazing and authentic spaces for people to gather in.”
The company, which has been in the same family for six generations, held the festival to celebrate the business’s 175th anniversary.
The brewery was set up in Manchester in 1849 by weaver’s son Joseph Holt, who began brewing beer at Oak Street before moving to the Ducie Bridge Brewery on York Street (now Cheetham Hill Road) in 1860. Joseph Holt then took out a 999-year lease on a piece of land on Empire Street, from where the company still operates today and where the festival was held.
As well as enjoying tours around the brewery, festival-goers were also able to try a full range of Joseph Holt beers, which included festival specials alongside core ales. There were also beers from other UK breweries, including Beartown, Runaway, Harvey’s, Palmers Brewery, and St Austell.
Andrew, a sixth-generation member of the Joseph Holt family to work at the brewery, said: “Our customers usually enjoy our beers in front of the bar, but given this was such a special anniversary for us, we wanted people to peek behind the scenes, too.
“There is so much affection and loyalty for Joseph Holt, in terms of the beer we brew as well as our heritage, culture, and our place in the rich history of Manchester and the North. And it’s an affection that transcends geography, given that people came from near and far.
“There’s clearly a thirst for future events like this, and we look forward to one day opening the doors to our brewery again, to celebrate our past and look towards an even greater future.”
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