You’ll see a beer theme running through several of my blogs this week and with great reason. If I was to be crowned Western Australia’s Taste Master, I’d be charged with exploring the 30 boutique breweries peppered through the state of Western Australia (WA) amongst many other things. Wow.
It may be nowhere as big as WA in its size, but Leeds has a very impressive beer scene of its own. We have our own brewery, a phenomenal range of quality pubs and purveyors of beer, as well as a calendar dotted with excellent beer festivals. And in my opinion, there are none more excellent than LS6 Beer Fest.
Running this 25 – 26 May for the third time, LS6 Beer Fest is everything you could want from a beer festival. Held in a community venue imbued with character, there’s an eclectic entertainment line-up, a brilliant atmosphere and of course, the very best selection of beer. Over a beer (of course) at the delightful Friends of Ham, I caught up with Rachel Jeffcoat, co-founder of LS6 Beer Fest, to get the low-down on what’s in store for 2013.
The idea
LS6 Beer Fest was created by Rachel and her two former house-mates Lib and Ollie. After moving from Hyde Park to Bramham, they attended beer festivals in local village halls to get acquainted with their new surroundings which led them to discover a new-found love of real ale, as well as the fantastic community atmosphere of the beer festivals. A front-room conversation pondering why Hyde Park didn’t have a community beer festival led them to give it a go, and LS6 Beer Fest was born! Choosing the gorgeous Left Bank Leeds as a venue, the first beer festival was held in 2010 and was such a brilliant success that they did it again in 2011, with all proceeds from both festivals donated to Village-to-Village in Tanzania.
Left Bank loved the festival so much that they offered to run it themselves and so with support from Rachel, the third LS6 Beer Fest is scheduled to take place on 25-26 May 2013. Still a not-for-profit venture, all proceeds from the festival will be put towards the upkeep of Left Bank, helping to establish the venue as a community arts venue in Hyde Park.
The beer
All beers for sale at the festival will be UK beers, with half of them coming from local breweries in and around Yorkshire. You’ll be able to sample the beer delights of Ilkley Brewery, Magic Rock Brewery in Huddersfield and a special Festival Brew to be announced, which will come from a West Yorkshire Brewery. You’ll find the full beer list on the LS6 Beer Fest website. Rachel explained that the focus was creating a well-balanced list of beer that appealed to a wide variety of tastes and palates. It’s all about adventure and discovery, giving festival-goers the chance to enjoy their favourites, as well as try beers that they may not have tasted before.
The entertainment
Whilst you sip on the delicious beers on offer, LS6 Beer Fest aims to put on a great show and a line-up of fantastic acts will be announced shortly. You can look forward to live music as well as other kinds of entertainment, including the perfect match to beer – the great pub quiz! There will also be a delicious selection of street food on offer, with vendors to be announced asap.
The passion for beer
It’s clear that Rachel Jeffcoat knows her beer, but where did her passion come from? She told me that she finds it endlessly fascinating that the same four ingredients of malt, hops, yeast and water can make such a wide spectrum of beers, from a Pilsner, to a Stout or a Black-Eyed IPA! Whilst she understands the technical process, she is still intrigued and likens it to magic!
LS6 Beer Fest takes place at Left Bank in Hyde Park from 25-26 May. Find out more about the event on the website and buy your tickets here: http://www.wegottickets.com/f/6244. See you there!