What beers were on? click for 2007 beer lists

Lucky winners of "Brewer for a Day" prizes drawn at Merrie City 2007:

WF6 - Jason Woodhouse, Clark's - A. Priestley

Ossett - Pat Wallis, Acorn - John Groves

DETAILS OF WINNING 2006 BEERS AT THE FOOT OF THIS PAGE

COOL MERRIE CITY 2008

so far - just the date

Thursday 6th-Saturday 8th November 2008

please revisit this page!

sponsored by Ossett Brewery and the H B Clark Group

Light Waves Leisure Centre was again the venue, just under the underpass from the city's new bus station. Dates Thursday 11th-Saturday13th October.

Please note that the souvenir glass was included in the admission, as in previous years, since we were unable to wash glasses hygienically for re-use. Great news was that a hi-tech cooling system as used at the Great British Beer Festival would again be used to maintain the condition of the beers and ensure that festivalgoers found them truly refreshing. The entire building, including its paved approach is non-smoking. Under 18s cannot be admitted to our festivals. Festivalgoers who were fortunate enough to look young were asked to provide proof of age, otherwise we were not permitted to grant them admission. Our coolers inevitably gave off the heat that they extract from the beers, but if you came in a warm coat, you needn't swelter. Coats could be left in the lockers in the changing rooms - if you came in a group the simplest solution was to bundle all your coats into one locker!

In 2007 the tombola and other charity efforts were raising funds for the charities chosen by the Mayor of Wakefield, Councillor Allan Garbutt. Allan's mayoral charities are Martin House Hospice and the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. These are particularly poignant for Allan and his wife Pat because they lost a child, Keelie, when she was just nine.

READ REPORT ON MERRIE CITY 2005 FROM THE YORKSHIRE EVENING POST BY SIMON JENKINS, REGIONAL BEER WRITER OF THE YEAR

2007's Sixteenth Festival runs from Thursday 11th to Saturday 13th October. Session times wee Thurs 18.00-23.00, Fri 11.00-16.00 & 18.00-23.00, Sat 11.00-23.00.

Admission charges which took account of the inclusive souvenir tankard are Thursday Evening £4.00, Friday Afternoon £2.00 on the door only, Friday Evening £4.50, Saturday all day £4.00. Beer was only dispensed into official CAMRA festival glasses. Advance booking advisable owing to demand for tickets, except Friday lunchtime 12.00-16.00, where there was no problem if you just turn up on the door (no advance tickets). The entry concession given to card-carrying CAMRA Members, at sessions other than the Friday afternoon when, in effect, everybody gets a discount, took the form of two complimentary beer tickets.

Why not ask about our Corporate Hospitality Package: special entry tickets for you and your guests, with your company design plus a new festival tankard and special beer tickets and food voucher? For breweries and distributors, a number of the beer tickets can specify the products for which they are valid.

Why not join CAMRA and you are a good way towards concessionary or occasionally free admission to scores of CAMRA beer festivals up and down the country?

Beer was purchased with ½ pint beer tickets with a value of £1.10, although stronger beers incur a supplement starting with 10p above 5% abv, and a few low gravity beers actually qualify for a small refund.

Note that glasses in use for drinking could not be taken outside. Our stewards, who were there to help you, were wearing distinctive yellow dayglo apparel.

We also had a trail of proper cask ale pubs around the city, for those of you spending more time in Wakefield. This had been updated, as there had been a number of changes since the 2006 version.

Ticket outlets for 2007 have been Red Shed Wakefield 01924-215626, Fernandes Brewery Tap Wakefield 01924-369547, Tourist Information, Bull Ring, Wakefield 0845-6018353, Harry's Bar Wakefield 01924-373773, Boons Horbury 01924-277267, Shoulder of Mutton Methley Rd, Castleford 01977-736039, Brewers Pride Healey, Ossett 01924 273865, Robin Hood Pontefract 01977-702231, The Grove Leeds 0113-2439254, Fat Cat Sheffield 0114-2494801. In the week before the festival ticket sales were expected to be centralised on the festival site and at Tourist Information where tickets were available available until the Saturday lunchtime. There was a limited number of Friday night tickets available on the door.

For tickets by phone contact Mark Goodair, 7 Rayner Street, Horbury, WF4 5BD ' 01924 278043, (mobile 07722 147234) or Mick Exley, 84 Park Green, Normanton, WF6 1AP ' 07507 022508 (note new number)

Please note that tickets are no longer available from the Town Hall, and that Light Waves does not sell advance tickets.

***CAMRA publications and products are on sale at the event. Contact the Branch Secretary on (01977) 792813 or bradbury-ponte@lineone.net to enquire whether any 2005, or 6 t-shirts are still available.

On this link is the 2007 version of Drinking in Wakefield for the Over-18s , essential if you are thinking of trying a few city pubs on your trip. This has been updated and should be in your 2007 programme.

As well as beers from all our local breweries there were beers from breweries with which the branch had connections or had visited in the past year, plus themed bars featuring our White Rose County, East Midland and South Eastern beers. The beer lists for 2007 gave an indication of the beers which should be on sale, subject (a) to their being received on delivery day (b) to their being in a satisfactory condition and (c) to their not being sold out. Nearer to the festival date there was mention of unavailable beers and unexpected substitutions made by suppliers.

.See the 2007 BEER LISTS for the beers which were ordered. Lists were updated as and when we could - most breweries and beers were correct, but with a living product there would always the odd cask that misbehaved - some may have taken a while to settle but then be allowed on sale by late Friday or Saturday. As well as four bars stacked up with traditional British Cask Ale, you'd have English, Belgian and other World Beers in bottle, on the World Beer Bar (2007 outline list - click below). Some bottled beers were bottle-conditioned.

October is Cider and Perry Month, so from traditional cidermakers, usually farm-based we brought you cider and perry that were in no way like the fizzy pop that's all we can generally pick up in urban areas. Note that Sidro alla Piemontese from an Elland-based Italian maker does not comply with the definition of traditional English and Welsh ciders and perries, but it is hand-made and has a great following locally. We also had a selection of different deceptively drinkable Country Wines which were served in disposable stemmed wine glasses (click for a previous list - it's usually near enough the same).

A range of cold food was available at all sessions, typically bread and Yorkshire cheese or speciality pork pie platters featuring the local products of Cryer & Stott, snacks and "Olives and Things" (plus organic nuts) from stalls in the main hall.

decided by a series of tasting panels judging unidentified beers by strict criteria of appearance, aroma, taste and aftertaste, please note that the categories in which some of the beers were placed at the time have been revised in line with new national guidelines:

Where these beers fit revised category guidelines they may go forward for Regional Judging towards Champion Beer of Britain 2008.

decided by ballot slips handed in by people attending the festival. Please take part in this process again next year, and include your bottled beer, cider and perry choices, too.

Joint Second: Brown Cow After Dark Coffee Porter and Kelham Island Voodoo Child

Joint Fifth: Clark’s Red October, Ossett Silver King and Bob’s Chardonnayle ^®

Category Winners

Mild	Leyden	Black Pudding
Bitter	Whitstable	East India Pale Ale
Premium Bitter	Ossett	Warhorse
Porter & Stout	Brown Cow	After Dark Coffee Porter
Strong Ales	Clark's	Red October
Speciality Beer	Tigertops	Blanche de Newland
Bottled Cond. Beer	Lees Harvest Ale jointly with	Goose Island IPA
Continental beer	Timmermans	Kriek
Cider/Sidro	Saxon	Amarena jointly with Greensleeves

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