It was great to go and check out Northern Monk's centre of operations, as I've rarely seen their…read morebeers west of the Pennines. The Old Flax Store where they're based is a Grade II listed mill and located in the industrial Holbeck area towards the outskirts of the city centre. Spread over three levels: their brewery on the ground floor; The Refectory and bottle shop on the first floor and event space (Chapter Hall) on the top floor, it's been lovingly restored both inside and out. Despite how separated they are from the main hub of bars and restaurants, there were quite a few people enjoying their afternoons here with a beer, hot drink or bite to eat (they serve food throughout the day). With a small selection of board games (alas, pretty much all of them had vital parts missing), I'd advise bringing your own if you fancied entertaining yourselves in this chilled out space for a while before you ventured onwards. Tip: they have a small free car park out front for the designated drivers.

Northern Monk Refectory is a fantastic spot for food and beer. It's situated in Holbeck so it is a…read morelittle bit of a walk south of the city, about 10 minutes, but this distance at least when I've been there recently means it's not overwhelmed by the crowds you would expect on a Friday or Saturday. Those that venture out are discerning and looking for a quality beer and great food and that's what you receive from the guys at Northern Monk and their food collaboration with Grog and Grub. The bar features 20 draught beers (not sure whether this number includes their 2 on handpump) it is about 50% their own beers and 50% guest, with this number of beers they do a good job covering a range of styles so you should not be at a loss to find something you like. In fact all the beers I had were very nice Track Sonoma, Curveball Pirate Porter, and Northern Monk Salt Lime Wit.

The giant banner saying CAMRA winner winter 2015/2016 was a good sign outside this lovely…read moretraditional country pub. My boyfriend enjoyed a Timothy Taylor's while I had tomato juice into which I was allowed to dunk the Lea & Perrins myself - score! We both opted for the combo roast lunch which doesn't cheat you at £10.95 as it is a huge amount of food: ham, lamb, beef, roast potatoes, a variation on dauphinnoise potatoes, carrots and broccoli plus a giant Yorkshire pudding. They also brought extra gravy. Although I don't think I'll ever find a roast I enjoy as much as my family's, I really enjoyed this and thought it was great quality for a pub Sunday lunch. They had some nice (quiet!) background music playing and then switched to the Six Nations so are clearly making all the right choices! The view of the hill outside the back of the pub is beautiful and it's an easy drive from Stockport so I will definitely be coming back here. I see from the other pub reviews it has a beer garden which is awesome because Manchester has a total lack of those. Hooray for Hayfield!

When someone asks me to describe my happiest times over the past few years, many of them include…read morethis place! Now my mum and dad used to live down the road, but now they have moved it is more of a trip, but definitely worth it. Stella and Tom and their son Steve (this man has the deepest voice of anyone I've ever met) serve up a recipe for success if ever I've seen one. Have you ever longed for an old fashioned pub with great beer, traditional food, roaring fires, and a beer garden with a beautiful view....if so then this is the place that you have been looking for. Whether it's a great place to meet that special someone's parents, a warm place to rest your muddied boots after a long walk, somewhere to lounge in the sunshine whilst sipping a pint of Timothy Taylor's, or just a place to enjoy great British food; you MUST go here. Any criticism..... that it isn't nearer!

Really shocked to find a wide variety of IPA's, East Coast and West Coast styles. Each one tried…read morewas delicious. Many English brewed IPA's are too malt forward, but, this brewery has done something different and you can taste it. Best beer in Manchester. They had a food vendor, but, we didn't try it. But, nice to have the option when drinking beers.

If you are near Manchester, England, it is definitely worth a visit to Cloudwatwr which raised the…read morebar for craft brewing in the UK. They make some crazy IPAs including some solid hazy varieties. The tasting room is large and it has a stage indicating they may have music at times. They have a small amount of snack items / food. The staff were friendly and eccentric. Oh and be sure to visit Track Brewing across the street. I'll definitely return someday.

American brewery hoppers in Liverpool. We like this place! They're so nice, their beers are good…read moreand it has a nice, chill atmosphere. Be warned, it's really hard to find! Maps will misdirect you. It's at the end of Kings Dock across from the timber place that says "Beers" ironically. Cheers

Hidden down Kitchen Street in the heart of the Baltic Triangle, the walk to Black Lodge Brewing is…read moremore than worth it. If anything, it's part of the charm; you feel like you're discovering something new, something hardly touched or visited, when you first glimpse the small black and white sign outside. Located in a large warehouse (and as expected of a working brewery) there are very few airs and graces, the main decor being that of essential equipment and the large white tiled back bar. Three large vats of current brews is a great addition, listing the ingredients and dates they are expected to be on tap on a large chalkboard suspended from the ceiling. As the only people there when we arrived, I took the chance to have a chat with the guy simultaneously doing stock take and serving us. Although they're new, open since the beginning of December, they're stocked in couple of bars in the city (including BrewDog) and have recently launched a Mikkeller running club, an excellent way to engage with the local drinking community. I tried some of their Blackberry IPA and eventually ordered a schooner, Josh going for a South Coast Pale, which we then took over to a table. The taps were all around £3.50 per 2/3 and, although not an overpowering fruity taste, the Blackberry IPA was very refreshing with a subtle finish. They have a deck of beautifully branded playing cards on each table so we played a few hands of Karma and Rummy, paired with a few more drinks. They have a selection of cans and bottles behind the bar which they're more than happy to talk through, helping me to expand my beer knowledge with a can of Magic Rock Hire Wire Grapefruit. Tabs are taken and written on the white tiles; a simple and multi-purpose solution to this bar's requirements. We could have happily spent the whole evening here and explored the meat and cheese boards, but the pull of local exploration won. A great addition to Liverpool and hopefully we'll be seeing plenty more of them in future.

Harrogate brewing is a great local pub. They didn't have a chef at the time I visited so they only…read morehad prepackaged snacks. Beer is great and that's what matters. A proper pub atmosphere. Try there Nib mild my favorite

From the owner: Independent, award winning Micro, brewing in the beautiful North Yorkshire Spa Town of Harrogate,…read morein North Yorkshire. ​ We also run a fun, cosy taproom inside the industrial unit of the brewery.

Before I begin I just want to say WOW ! I've been on a few distillery and brewery tours now and the…read moreone at robinsons blew me away ! Tucked away in the back streets of central Stockport on top of the hill near the church and market you will find robinsons brewery. They have brewed beer here for decades since they upscaled out of the first robinsons pub and it is a brilliant place. They have a brand new visitors centre where you are greeted by friendly staff, light open space, wonderful displays, interactive screens and old fashioned brewery kit. You can also nip in here to buy some great gifts from their shop. You are greeted and given your free beer tokens for the end of the tour, asked to read some health and safety info as you will be wondering around a working brewery, and are then left to your own devices to explore until the tour starts. Tours are brought together in quite small numbers, there were about 15 people on our tour which was great as we could move around easily, hear the tour guide and answer questions as and when we wanted to. The tour lasts about an hour and takes you through the entire robinsons process. Be warned. The process starts at the top of the building so there are LOTS of stairs. There was a man on crutches on our tour though and he managed just fine, but if you aren't confident in your ability to navigate stairs, this unfortunately may not be for you. Once you eventually reach the top, you get an insight into old and new as they have cleverly kept all the original copper brewing kit and have installed the new kit (only since 2010 ish can you believe!) on the same floor levels. This is brilliant as you are effectively learning about two processes, old and new. You are taken down through the floors through each stage of the process, if you are feeling brave you can taste the different Malts and hops (be warned again - some of these are delicious but also some of these are Gross with a capital G) and you eventually end up in the fermenting room. A great vast room which has a beautiful strong aroma of your favourite beers, you can see the yeast working away in each of the huge vats that each batch is kept in. The tour guide we had was brilliant, she kept us all very entertained and knew the answer to every question asked. She told us all the back stories to every beer brewed by robinsons and why changes occur in the market and how robinsons react to these changes. The whole thing was really interesting and she really was very good at keeping everyone engaged, it was fab ! At the end of the tour you finish up in their own bar and restaurant. You can either select 3 1/3 pints from a selection of robinsons beer (we got to try their brand new trial beer voodoo dawn as one of our choices) or you can trade up for a glass of wine / fentimans products which are partially brewed here / tea / coffee etc. To accompany your drink they have also opened a brilliant little restaurant, it isn't huge so if you were planning on coming for a meal it may be worth booking. The menu looked great and the prices were incredibly reasonable (see the photos). We ordered a few things to share which came very quickly and everything was cooked to perfection. They try to incorporate their beers into a lot of the cooking and tend to have a different special or two on each day. If I was to come for lunch in Stockport at any point I would hands down be heading here, it is easily one of the nicest places about ! Overall 5/5. I would give it more if I could. Thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend to all ! Brilliant place :)

Amazing tour, worth every penny and a great rainy day activity with friends! We booked a 3.30pm…read moretour on a Saturday, and although it took a little longer than expected (about an hour and a half) it was a really enjoyable experience. The tour guide, Barry, was engaging and funny - he clearly loved his job and that enthusiasm rubbed off on everyone else. Great insights into brewing past and present, with lots of useful facts and fun stories. At the end of the tour, you get taken through to the bar where you get your choice of three 1/3 pints from the Robinsons collection, so great to try the brews Barry had talked about along the way! There is a restaurant too - menu looked tempting and reasonable prices. Finally, there's a gift shop at the end where you can buy gifts and booze - again very reasonable prices and a good selection of gift ideas. The tour costs £10 each and there's free visitor parking. Would thoroughly recommend.

Awesome beers at great prices. Watch out for the special beers they often produce in really small…read morequantities. I've never had a bad blue monkey beer! The shop also sells great merchandise such as t-shirts, bar mats, bottle openers etc. you can ask for some free blue monkey beer mats with your purchase!

The Brew Room is a fantastic, comfy pub north of Blackpool city centre. They make their own beers…read moreon the premises [5 hand-pumped ales available], and there's also a decent selection of guest ales. All beers are modestly priced, and kept fresh. It's a family-friendly place, kids are allowed until 8 p.m. The décor is fairly stylish and very comfortable, with a number of designated sections to sit and relax. Home-made smoked sausages [Excellent, and only 4.5 UKP] and oven-baked, freshly made pizzas are available at all times. On Monday nights they have a pub quiz, which can be very lively [I "ran" into one]. The staff are friendly and competent [in sharp contrast to the nearby The Hop!], food was served quickly. I actually visited the pub *twice* that same day - as Blackpool doesn't offer very many options for real ale lovers. Highly recommended for this town, it's only a short walk from The Blackpool Tower and The North Pier.