The Didsbury Beer Festival was a three-day event, celebrating the beers, ales, perries and ciders from independent breweries throughout Britain. Returning for its fifth year the Festival has expanded both in capacity and the range of drinks on offer. It was hosted by St Catherine’s Social Club, which also provided a wide range of music and a surprisingly good curry to accompany the booze. Initially, set up by locals in Didsbury who want to enlighten people to the wonders of British beverages with all profits going to local charities.

Included in the entry was a pint glass and drinks coupons. The marquee was bustling with people but there rarely was a need to queue for your pint. With all the ales in one marquee I found myself walking up and down trying to work out how to decide which ones to try. Despite my wish to try them all I decided that I would go for the ones with the most interesting flavours. I started with the seasonal pumpkin ale by Quantum Brewers. Unfortunately I would have to say that pumpkin really shouldn’t be added to ale. Despite a bad start, I persevered with the Triple Chocoholic by Soltaire and the Ginger Pale Ale by Little Valley. These ales were much more appealing, with the former having an almost Guinness taste with a hint of chocolate. To finish the night I decided to try a perry and a cider. The Double Vision Elderflower I sampled was an absolute delight and something I would recommend to anyone. Unfortunately I didn’t stop there and decided to end the night with the Moss-Cider which, as the name may suggest, left me wishing I hadn’t risked it.